Dear Friends of Untermyer Gardens,
The garden is very quiet these days, blanketed in snow amid the cold weather at last. As a Michigan boy, I look forward to the snow. I figure that if you must have winter, you should at least enjoy its polar beauty. Our garden cat Anar is not afraid of snow either.
The garden is very quiet these days, blanketed in snow amid the cold weather at last. As a Michigan boy, I look forward to the snow. I figure that if you must have winter, you should at least enjoy its polar beauty. Our garden cat Anar is not afraid of snow either.
The gardeners have recently cleared an area next to our evolving service area. A number of invasive trees have been removed to make way for a new planting of trees and shrubs that will screen off an unattractive view year-round.
Right now, I am doing research for a new lecture about Samuel Untermyer that I will present in March. While his progressive views in favor of economic reform and women’s suffrage and against Nazism are well known, I’ve only just learned that he was an outspoken supporter of the newly formed Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and its drive for increased wages. In 1926 he was a speaker at what was described as the “first inter-racial labor dinner ever given by the first national negro labor union.”
Last December, the City of Yonkers made another improvement to our parking area. Gone is the awkward dead end that made leaving the front lot a challenge. Now the two lots are connected in a much more rational layout. Thanks to the City!
Last December, the City of Yonkers made another improvement to our parking area. Gone is the awkward dead end that made leaving the front lot a challenge. Now the two lots are connected in a much more rational layout. Thanks to the City!
We continue to reclaim the site of our future meadow. Working alone during his first two years at the garden, Timothy Tilghman cleared it of invasive trees, leaving an accumulation of trunks and branches. Added to the heap were a large number of invasive trees that were removed for the restored Vista. Now it is time to eliminate this wood. Later, a truly herculean task will be to clear several acres of Japanese knotweed.
There is gathering excitement as we plan this new meadow, which will take shape in stages over the next five years. Meadows are easier to imagine than to achieve, and many practical details have to be considered. Tickets are selling quickly for our symposium on February 13, The Making of a Meadow, and I encourage you to join us. Afterward, ticket holders can view it at their leisure for a month. Last call!
Warm regards,
Stephen F. Byrns
President, Untermyer Gardens Conservancy
Stephen F. Byrns
President, Untermyer Gardens Conservancy
RSS Feed