July 30, 2020
Dear friends of Untermyer Gardens,
The fruit of our labors can be seen throughout the garden. It is truly exhilarating!
The restoration of the Temple of the Sky is in full swing, ably executed by Milcor Construction under the guidance of Integrated Conservation Resources. Giant blocks of Alabama marble are being backfilled, repointed, patched, tooled, and reinforced with the addition of helical pins, stainless steel cable, and a massive curved steel lintel! Pictures speak louder than this technical jargon:
Dear friends of Untermyer Gardens,
The fruit of our labors can be seen throughout the garden. It is truly exhilarating!
The restoration of the Temple of the Sky is in full swing, ably executed by Milcor Construction under the guidance of Integrated Conservation Resources. Giant blocks of Alabama marble are being backfilled, repointed, patched, tooled, and reinforced with the addition of helical pins, stainless steel cable, and a massive curved steel lintel! Pictures speak louder than this technical jargon:
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Meanwhile, the garden has exploded in color, with gorgeous annuals lining the canals and aquatics in full bloom in the north pool of the Walled Garden. The mild winter made for the best year ever for our forty-plus types of hydrangeas on the lower Terrace.
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Our summer intern program is well under way. Seven outstanding high school students from Yonkers are excavating the future ornamental vegetable garden to reveal the elaborate parterre pattern laid out in 1917, long buried by erosion from the hillside above. When the interns aren’t working there, they are building a new woodland path. Located in the woods in the recently renovated Tulip Grove, the path is anchored by a fabulous rustic bench made by the designer Laura Spector.
While work was proceeding in the vegetable garden area, Jessica Norman found an artifact there, a button dating to the 1860s. While the garden didn’t exist then, perhaps a gardener around 1900 was wearing an old jacket that popped a button.
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There was a funny moment in the garden when I noticed that a panel of black-eyed Susan vine (thunbergia) in front of the amphitheater was missing. I asked Timothy Tilghman, our head gardener, why they hadn’t grown properly there, and he explained that the wind sometimes lifted them up and over the adjacent annuals, something like a windswept floral combover. All he had to do was flop them back down into place.
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The Conservancy is thrilled to welcome a new member to the Board, Abraham Ofer, who lives in Westchester and is a longtime supporter of our work. Abe’s financial expertise will be most welcome as we navigate these treacherous times.
Admission to the garden on Friday through Sunday is FREE and by timed entry only; you can sign up here. Here also is our tour schedule for the rest of the year, with ticketing required in advance.
Finally, we conclude with an article by the noted garden writer Margaret Roach from the New York Times, hot off the press, with extensive commentary from Timothy and beautiful photos by Jessica.
Admission to the garden on Friday through Sunday is FREE and by timed entry only; you can sign up here. Here also is our tour schedule for the rest of the year, with ticketing required in advance.
Finally, we conclude with an article by the noted garden writer Margaret Roach from the New York Times, hot off the press, with extensive commentary from Timothy and beautiful photos by Jessica.
Kind regards,
Stephen F. Byrns
President, Untermyer Gardens Conservancy
Stephen F. Byrns
President, Untermyer Gardens Conservancy
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