Letters from out President

Spring Projects

4/1/2026

April 1, 2026

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

Several projects that were to have taken place in the winter were postponed because of the lingering snow, so now the gardeners are burning the candle at both ends. All hands are on deck to lay out the future accessible path through the woodlands that will connect the meadow with the Temple of Love cascades. The slope cannot exceed 1:20, so there will be judicious cutting and filling to achieve the proper grade.

A highlight along the path will be the future Sun Dial garden, an evocation of the one created by Samuel Untermyer in the 1930s but with a twist—it will be constructed from various architectural remnants (more on that later). To give you a sense of its location, take a look at this bramble. Behind it is a substantial rock outcrop, which will give the garden a strong sense of place.

It's that time of year again, or so say the daffodils which are coming into bloom. Check them out on the slopes around the Temple of Love and the Rock and Stream Gardens, and on Daffodill Hill below.

We at last have achieved a long-held goal to expand our office space. For fifteen years, we have occupied a single room in the Cola Center with three desks and no closets. It required creative schedule juggling and inventive space management to accommodate four full-time and three part-time staff. With a second room, staff can actually work together in person face to face. And we can store supplies on shelves where we can easily find them. Imagine that!

One of the earliest harbingers of spring at Untermyer Gardens is witch hazel. A beautiful specimen on the lower terrace of the Walled Garden near the gate, now in full bloom, has golden ribbon-like petals in an elegant branching form. They are also fragrant. I planted a similar one at my house, but it doesn’t look nearly as nice. I wonder why that is.

More digging is in progress at the switchback area of the meadow, where a power rake is loosening the soil in preparation for seeding the whole area with a blend of native plants. The initial planting in 2024 farther up the hill was done with potted plants, so this is a different strategy, and it will be interesting to compare the results.

Our volunteers provide crucial support for our operations – greeting visitors, leading tours and classes, and assisting at special events. If you are interested in joining this group, please attend our Volunteer Kickoff meeting on Saturday, April 11, at 1:00 p.m.

Kind regards,
Stephen F. Byrns, President

Palpable Sense of Energy

3/11/2026

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

When I go outside in the morning these days, I try to listen for a little more bird activity. Any additional chirps are most welcome at this time of year, especially given our unending winter. This reminds me of a most interesting observation by Timothy Tilghman last year. His phone is equipped with the Merlin Bird ID app, which identifies bird calls. Leaving his phone on for ten minutes or so in various parts of the garden, he has discovered that birds are most diverse near the Ruin Garden, which is surrounded by many towering native trees: red oaks, tulips, black birch, hickories, cherries, and sassafras. Which goes to show that native plant advocates have the right idea—we would do well to keep planting more natives.

A juvenile yellow-bellied sapsucker

Untermyer Gardens is pleased to welcome a stellar addition to our staff, Laurel Rimmer. As Garden Programs Coordinator, Laurel will manage our classes, workshops, concerts, tours, special events, and the like. After holding a similar position at Wave Hill for 28 years, she became the Program and Marketing Director at Stonecrop Gardens, a part-time position. To our great good fortune, Laurel will devote the rest of her work week to Untermyer Gardens. She takes over from Trish Lindemann, who brought our programming to new heights. Luckily for us, Trish will continue to lead our weekly garden class.

Our first cohort of high school interns has reported for duty. Working on Saturdays and supervised by Liz Dreeben and John Jacono, they are at the very beginning of their horticultural experience. Their current focus is on starting seeds indoors for plants that will ultimately populate the vegetable garden once they’ve matured: cabbage, fennel, kale, and more. Participating in our Youth Horticultural Training Initiative has been a life-altering experience for 80 interns over the years, and we hope our new recruits will be similarly inspired.

Spring is coming and with it a great need for volunteers. It goes without saying that we could not achieve as much as we do without the help of so many people who love Untermyer Gardens. Our volunteers help greet people on weekends, act as docents for tours and school groups, and check in ticket buyers at concerts and other special events. We have scheduled a Volunteer Kickoff for interested volunteers on Saturday, April 11, at 1:00 p.m. Please join us! Click the link to RSVP, or email Volunteer Coordinator Maura May.

Just as we get cranked up for spring, I am reminded that our Untermyer project is built on passion. Visitors often comment on the palpable sense of energy they see in our workers, in both the garden and the office. Yes, there are challenges at times, but I am reminded of a thoughtful mentor who told me, “We do not struggle in our mission.” Now fifteen years in the running, the Conservancy is still forging new ground, making new discoveries, and figuring out how we can do better. Onward!

Kind regards,
Stephen F. Byrns
President

Family Legend

2/18/2026

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

Not in many years has the snow lingered on the ground for so long. Thankfully, the gardeners have cut a path that winds through it. What a fun way to wander around the garden, as you are led along the way. One path was recently studded with the shadow of the crenellated wall nearby, creating an interesting effect.

This is the season when the gardeners engage in their biggest recycling effort of the year, that of washing many thousands of plastic pots. It is quite an effort and enables them to plant thousands of seedlings in re-used pots and care for them in our greenhouses.

With temperatures going down to zero and below a few times this winter, I have been concerned about some of our trees that are marginally hardy in our plant zone. I am delighted to report that the Monkey Puzzle tree on the east side of the Walled Garden is looking quite healthy and robust, its vivid spiky leaves contrasting boldly with the snow. At the Vista, it’s interesting to see the warm brown color developed by the rows of evergreen Cryptomeria.

Here is a funny historical tidbit. An extensive piece in The New Yorker (May 18, 1940) about Samuel Untermyer after his death notes that Minnie Untermyer had purchased two Italian Renaissance ceilings from the estate of Stanford White that were never installed but stored in a barn on the property. According to family legend, there’s more to the story. While at the auction, Minnie wondered if she could buy them and sent a telegram to her husband, who replied, “No price too high.” He thought he had instructed her not to buy them, but Minnie thought he had approved, so buy them she did! Punctuation makes all the difference.

Although our summer concert series is months away, I am pleased to report that Lori Belilove and the Isadora Duncan Dancers will return to our amphitheater this year. The company danced here in the 1920s and 30s during Samuel Untermyer’s lifetime. Here is a charming video of a performance in 1932.

Kind regards,
Stephen F. Byrns
President

Arctic Winter

1/28/2026

January 28, 2026

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,
I for one do not mind an old-time arctic winter, especially the magical transformation that snow brings. Think of it as an adventure to be savored—though for some, ideally from the inside looking out! And don’t forget that you can get a suntan from the reflected snow while outside.

But with cold weather, we need to take special measures to keep the water from freezing in the Persian Pool. It’s critical to protect its beautifully restored mosaics, which can be damaged when freezing water causes the tesserae to buckle. The water in the pool is heated to some extent, but the other solution is to install temporary sump pumps, which activate and bubble the surface of the water. Though a bit unsightly, they are low-tech, inexpensive, and do the trick.

We are mindful of the fragile state of the retaining wall that supports the lower carriage trail immediately above the Old Croton Aqueduct, a New York State park. Its poor condition threatens both the carriage trail and the aqueduct below, so we have been deliberately setting aside funds to enable a replacement, hopefully in 2027. These efforts have taken a great leap forward with two recent grants from our devoted public officials, State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins ($500,000) and State Assemblyman Nader Sayegh ($125,000). This is a critical, complex project, and their support is pivotal and deeply appreciated. Please give them your hearty thanks when you next see them.

I confess to being a bit of a Luddite when it comes to technological bells and whistles. This newsletter may be digital, but it is written by me with the help of others. Old-fashioned low-tech suits me just fine. However, my tech-savvier readers might like to download a digital wallpaper for their mobile and desktop devices, featuring pictures taken by our peerless gardener-photographer John Jacono.

Our Winter Lecture is fast approaching on Tuesday, February 10, at 6:00 p.m. at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. Drew Schuyler, our excellent Assistant Head Gardener, is a brilliant horticulturist and a compelling speaker. Inspired by his in-depth five-week exposure to the gardens of Japan last fall, he will offer a rare look at these beautiful landscapes from a gardener’s point of view. Tickets are available here.

Timothy Tilghman is here with a video to discuss unusual tools that aid in accuracy and also save labor.

Kind regards,
Stephen F. Byrns, President

Ring in the New

1/7/2026

January 7, 2026

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

As we ring in the New Year, I’m especially pleased to welcome Michele Rossetti to join us as Executive Director. While I will remain as President, working part time, Michele will manage our operations and our partnership with the City of Yonkers. (You can read more about Michele here.)

A few weeks ago, we inaugurated a new tradition: the first alumni reunion of our high school interns. Since launching our Youth Horticultural Initiative in 2019, we have provided paid internships to a total of 80 Yonkers public high school students who worked in teams alongside our gardeners, supervised by Liz Dreeben and John Jacono. It was a life-changing experience for them, and many have maintained close bonds. Look at this group of smiling gardeners-in-training!

This year’s Illumination was our most spectacular ever, but the weather was very cold, which made the hot chocolate even more appreciated. The snow on the ground was a classic wintry touch, but it forced the gardeners to do massive shoveling and plowing not once but three times! The new Grand March delighted all, young and old, and helped to keep our blood flowing during the arctic temperatures.

We are so grateful to our Illumination sponsors: Yonkers Economic Development Corporation, ArtsWestchester, AVR Realty Company, ENT & Allergy Associates, Macquesten Development, Montefiore Einstein, Schildwachter Oil, Sound Associates, St. John’s Riverside Hospital, and Orange Bank & Trust Company.

In addition, our hearty thanks go to all the community groups who generously volunteered to greet visitors and serve the hot chocolate at the Illumination, which ran for thirty nights this year, a record. They were expertly coordinated by Maura May, our devoted Education and Volunteer Coordinator.

The snow in the garden is one of winter’s most magical treats. Its juxtaposition with our strong architecture is an added highlight, which you can savor when walking around. And the barren trees have opened up views of the river and the Palisades. Bundle up and come for a visit, but please check our website first to be sure the garden is open. At times, we may need to close temporarily to allow the gardeners to remove ice and snow.

Our annual Winter Lecture is approaching, and this year our assistant head gardener, Drew Schuyler, will speak about Japanese gardens. Drew received a prestigious Chanticleer Scholarship, which allowed him to immerse himself in the gardens of Japan over five weeks last fall. He will share his observations and his design insights with us. The lecture will take place on Tuesday, February 10, at 6:00 p.m. at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, followed by a wine and cheese reception. Tickets are available here.

Kind Regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

Grand Holiday Illumination

11/26/2025

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

I am pleased to share the details below for our tenth annual Grand Holiday Illumination, a joyous community celebration that is free to all. The Walled Garden will be aglow with thousands of lights as seasonal music from many cultural traditions resounds and visitors warm themselves with complimentary hot chocolate served by friendly volunteers.

This year, the Conservancy is establishing a new tradition—the Grand March—which will take place most nights at 6:30 p.m. (see schedule on website) on the lower terrace lawn, weather permitting. Lasting about ten minutes, this guided line dance is appropriate for all ages and promises to be a fun experience that adds warmth and camaraderie to the evening. The dance will be accompanied by lively march music as participants form twosomes, foursomes, a tunnel, a spiral, and a runaround.

We are grateful to the Yonkers Economic Development Corporation for their leadership support of the Illumination and to all our sponsors: ArtsWestchester, AVR Realty Company, ENT & Allergy Associates, MacQuesten Development, LLC, Montefiore Einstein, Schildwachter Fuel Oil, St. John’s Riverside Hospital, Sound Associates, Inc., and Orange Bank & Trust Company.

The Illumination opens on Saturday, December 6 at 5:30 p.m. It will then run daily December 7 through January 4 from 4:30 to 8:00 p.m. Please join us.

Kind regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

New Sculptures

11/5/2025

November 5, 2025

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

Recently, we dedicated seven large bronze busts of Hudson River School painters by the noted sculptor Greg Wyatt against a stupendous backdrop of the Hudson River and Palisades in the Long Garden. Depicting Thomas Cole, Frederic E. Church, Jasper Cropsey, Thomas Moran, Asher B. Durand, Albert Bierstadt, and Sanford R. Gifford, the impressive ensemble is punctuated by our two towering ancient Roman columns at the Vista Overlook. A most generous gift of the Newington-Cropsey Foundation, they recall the artistic displays that peppered the landscape in Samuel Untermyer’s time. An engraved label on the back of each sculpture provides a detailed biography of the artist.

Earlier this week, the Untermyer Gardens Conservancy received the 2025 Excellence in Historic Preservation Award, which was presented by the Preservation League of New York State, the state’s leading preservation organization. It honored the Conservancy’s role in the metamorphosis of Untermyer Gardens over the past fifteen years and continues the regional and national recognition we have received. Samuel Untermyer’s ambition for the garden was grand, and so is ours.

With colder weather setting in, winter preparations are underway in the garden. Tropical plants are being moved indoors, annuals are being cut down, the cascades and canals will soon be drained, and our intrepid volunteer greeters are off duty until the spring. We are blessed with a huge community of volunteers who help in so many ways, and at the end of the season we celebrate them at our annual Volunteer Party. Look at all these happy faces!

Our high school interns conducted the last harvest in the Vegetable Garden, and it was quite a haul. They were the third cohort this year and did an outstanding job. The garden now looks somewhat bare, but its underlying geometry is still quite interesting.

Work on the Stumpery has picked up speed. The gardeners and garden class members have planted about 200 woody plants, and our creative masons went to town building ten whimsical stone cairns. Some of them contain bits of flotsam that have been recovered from the garden over the years. The Stumpery will be one of the most distinctive and original features of the garden, and I believe it will be the largest in the world when it’s completed.

Timothy Tilghman is here to share how he and his team go about installing the Grand Holiday Illumination – it’s quite an operation!

Kind regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

Good News

10/28/2025

October 28, 2025

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

It’s amazing to think it was nearly 15 years ago that I started the Untermyer Gardens Conservancy, when the garden was just a shadow of its former self. To date, about two-thirds of the garden has been gloriously restored and is now appreciated by 300,000 visitors every year. The combination of sophisticated horticulture married to monumental architecture is hard to beat, especially when accompanied by a compelling historical narrative and an incredible view.

To date we have restored four of Samuel Untermyer’s original gardens—the Walled Garden, the Vista, the Rock and Stream Garden, and the Temple of Love. We have reimagined two gardens that reference earlier ones—the Ornamental Vegetable Garden and Orchard and the Rhododendron Walk. We have created three wholly new garden features that are evolving beautifully—the Ruin Garden, the Meadow, and the Stumpery.

Alongside the garden’s rebirth, we have introduced a rich array of classes, tours, and music and dance performances. Our dazzling Grand Holiday Illumination, now in its tenth year (and also free to the public), has become a cherished multicultural holiday tradition. And our outreach to the Yonkers Public Schools is growing rapidly, with more than 1,600 students visiting this year.

This is a project like no other, and it has seized the imagination and passion of so many people. Our team of gardeners has grown from the one and only (literally!) Timothy Tilghman to eleven this year. Just as Timothy found he needed more hands to care for the garden, I gradually brought in more hands to help me manage an organization that now raises more than $2 million every year to operate the garden and run our many programs.

I am delighted to report that Michele Rossetti will become the Conservancy’s first Executive Director on January 2. Michele is well known in and knowledgeable about the world of public gardens, having spent 29 years at nearby Wave Hill, nine of them as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. A lifelong Yonkers resident and longtime friend to the garden, she has generously assisted us behind the scenes over the years. She will bring managerial expertise, extensive experience in education and outreach, and fresh insights to enrich the formula that has served us so well. As she takes on the role of managing our operations and our partnership with the City of Yonkers, Michele will help propel us to an even higher level.

I have known Michele since 2000, so our mutual respect is deep. As a trusted partner, Michele will allow me to reduce my workload as I pursue an ambitious goal: to drive the completion of the final third of the garden’s reinvention with the critical fundraising this entails. There is much work ahead—renovations (the Color Gardens, the Long Garden, the Sun Dial Garden), innovations (the Quiet Garden), and building and rebuilding infrastructure essential to sustain the garden in its next century.

Stephen F. Byrns, President; Michele Rossetti, Executive Director; and Peter Boodell, Chair

I will continue as President, at my same desk by the window, but my presence will be somewhat less constant. And it will be my pleasure to continue to write this newsletter as long as you continue to read it!
Meanwhile, thank you for the role you have played in making Untermyer Gardens one of America’s finest gardens once again. I hope Michele and I, together with our board of directors, can count on your continued support during the Conservancy’s next exciting phase.

Kind regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

Understory Plants

10/16/2025

October 16, 2025

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

Fall is the best time to plant trees and shrubs, given its milder temperatures. A top priority for us is the Stumpery, where hundreds of understory plants are now going into the ground, such as bottlebrush buckeye, shadbush, chokeberry, buttonbush, redbud, dogwood, clethra, bush honeysuckle, witch hazel, holly, and more! They will complement the primary trees that were planted last year and will be followed by thousands of herbaceous and ephemeral plants in the years to come.

One of the outstanding features of Untermyer Gardens is its topography, which offers views that overlook the lower levels and architecturally interesting stairs to traverse, though some find them precarious. In addition to the array of accessible ramps that are being installed this year, we have added more handrails at some of the stairs. Here is one at the amphitheater, which will come in handy for many people attending our concerts.

We were excited to see the recent installation of seven larger than life bronze busts of Hudson River School painters by the internationally noted sculptor Greg Wyatt. Representing Thomas Cole, Frederic Church, Jasper Cropsey, Thomas Moran, Asher Durand, Albert Bierstadt, and Sanford Gifford, they anchor a future garden to be called the Long Garden, next to the Vegetable Garden. I love how their placement reinforces the existing geometry and complements the ancient Roman columns. The presence of the Hudson River in the background couldn’t be more appropriate. Greg Wyatt’s Peace Fountain at St. John the Divine in New York City is well known, as are his sculptures at Arlington National Cemetery and around the world. The sculptures are the generous gift of the Newington-Cropsey Foundation, located in nearby Hastings-on-Hudson.

Every year, one of my favorite autumnal activities is to lead a tour of Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, whose culmination of course is the Untermyer Memorial, where members of the family are buried. Woodlawn is one of the great cemeteries of the world, with splendid architecture, sculpture, stained glass, and towering trees. Like Untermyer Gardens, it is one of a kind! The tour will include a visit to the interior of the Collis Huntington mausoleum as well as the burial sites of Admiral David Farragut, R. H. Macy, William Earl Dodge, and Leopold Damrosch, among many others. Fall will be at its peak color, and tickets are available here.

Our annual Family Fun Day last week was our best ever, with perfect weather making it a big hit for the kids and their parents. Animals, magic, art, picnicking on the grass, and sundry games were enjoyed by all.

Kind regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

Last Hurrah

9/30/2025

September 30, 2025

Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,

As we move ahead into autumn, it is time to give thanks to our outstanding team of gardeners. Their skills become ever sharper, and their work ethic is unsurpassed. You need only tour around the garden to see the exacting level of maintenance they provide. Led by Timothy Tilghman, we thank them for an outstanding year and look forward to a burst of planting during the cooler days ahead.

The Stumpery is the scene of much activity right now as a series of stone cairns is being assembled as a counterpoint to the plethora of stumps accentuating the landscape. They will house a surprising water feature, to be revealed next spring. Also underway is the installation of a whimsical rustic seating area that will overlook the entire Stumpery, perhaps one day with a subtle river view!

My favorite horticultural “last hurrah” of the season is the panorama of asters sweeping down the hillside adjacent to the Temple of Love cascades. Short, medium, tall—they are often covered with pollinators greedily ingesting the tasty offerings of the flowers. Yum-yum, they seem to say!

The grasses in the ziggurat beds flanking the Persian Pool are quite dense and shaggy now. While their geometric pattern is a bit blurred at the moment, they make a novel statement where one would expect to find a planting of flowers. It’s nice to be surprised.

Please note that our annual Family Fun Day will take place on Sunday, October 5. This is a great opportunity to bring children to the garden for a picnic on the grass, a magic show, a visiting menagerie of pettable animals, art projects, a scavenger hunt, and more in a magical setting. Much of the Walled Garden will be reserved for you and your little ones, so please indulge them.

Timothy Tilghman is back to share progress in the Stumpery.

Kind regards,

Stephen F. Byrns, President

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Spring Projects

Palpable Sense of Energy

Family Legend

Arctic Winter

Ring in the New

Grand Holiday Illumination

New Sculptures

Good News

Understory Plants

Last Hurrah

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