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Our Evolving Rose Garden
plants in black containers on a bed of soil

Our Evolving Rose Garden

When you return to visit us again, we hope you’ll make the Rose Garden one of your first stops … there is something new to see!

By Judy Stevenson, on June 22, 2020
Together Again

Together Again

It is with immeasurable gratitude that we can begin welcoming our Members, first, on a limited non-public basis, back to our outdoor gardens starting June 18.

By Paul B. Redman, on June 16, 2020
Our Fellows Reflect
a bare tree in a field

Our Fellows Reflect

As part of the Fellows Program, our 2019–20 Fellows spent time at individual field placement sites around the globe. Here, they reflect on their time spent at their host organizations, and their lessons learned along the way

By Shawna Jones, Abra Lee, Becky Paxton, Mae Lin Plummer, Barbara Wheeler, and Nanette Wraith, on June 10, 2020
Conserving the Brilliant Bluebird

Conserving the Brilliant Bluebird

If you live in a place where Eastern bluebirds might thrive, you can support this species at home with your own bluebird house.

By Lea Johnson with George Gallatig and Pat Smith, on June 3, 2020
The Mystery of Longwood’s Iris Garden

The Mystery of Longwood’s Iris Garden

Very little trace of this iris garden survives today (we don’t even know where it was located!), and only by delving deep into the archives are we able to piece together the story of this long-vanished garden.

By Judy Stevenson, on May 27, 2020
Create Your Own Healing Garden

Create Your Own Healing Garden

Gardens not only provide psychological, emotional, and spiritual benefits, but exploring or caring for a garden also reaps the physical benefits of exercise, which in turn can elevate mood.

By Abbey Gau, on May 21, 2020
Resilience, Down to a Science
multiple lab tubes with green plants germinating

Resilience, Down to a Science

Part of the greater Horticulture department, the Research and Conservation team is vital to the growth of Longwood and the health of horticulture as a whole.

By Katie Mobley, on May 18, 2020
Hungry for History: Our Carnivorous Collection
close up image of a carnivorous plant

Hungry for History: Our Carnivorous Collection

With their visual appeal and botanical interest, it is little wonder that carnivorous plants have long had a place on display in our Gardens.

By Gillian Hayward, on May 14, 2020
Farewell to an Iconic Tree

Farewell to an Iconic Tree

This magnificent tree, thought to be nearly 200 years old, was the first tree at Longwood to be designated a state champion tree, meaning it was deemed the largest of its kind of Pennsylvania—and then went on to be deemed the largest in the nation.

By Katie Mobley, on May 11, 2020
Getting Started with Vegetable Gardening
row of green leafy vegetables planted in mulch

Getting Started with Vegetable Gardening

With more time at home this spring, there has never been a better time to start that home vegetable garden you’ve always wanted.

By Alex Correia, on May 6, 2020
The Glue that Binds Us
oval outdoor fountain without water

The Glue that Binds Us

As long-stemmed flowers require staking in order to thrive, Longwood has long depended on the stability of the complex system of our 210 buildings and structures, as well as our infrastructure, that together make up our Gardens—and without which our plants would not be able to grow.

By Katie Mobley, on April 29, 2020
The Power of Local Conservation
a cluster of wild orchids covering the ground in a forest

The Power of Local Conservation

At Longwood, we have developed an orchid conservation program that addresses the science, research, and curation of locally, nationally, and globally rare species.

By Peter Zale, on April 22, 2020
Preparing for a Future Flourish

Preparing for a Future Flourish

We can draw an interesting parallel between the dormancy of a plant and the temporary closure Longwood Gardens is experiencing right now … as well the necessary pause our region, our nation, and the entire world is now taking.

By Katie Mobley, on April 15, 2020
Giving Our Azalea Bonsai a New Home

Giving Our Azalea Bonsai a New Home

I’m excited to share that our azalea bonsai has reawakened, and in early March, just after shaking off the last yawns of its dormancy period, has found itself in a new home, thanks to the next step of the bonsai training process: repotting.

By Kevin Bielicki, on April 8, 2020
How to Start a Cut Flower Garden at Home

How to Start a Cut Flower Garden at Home

By creating a cut flower garden at home you can have the luxury of creating bouquets to take inside … and to enjoy them even when you’re not strolling through the garden.

By Roger Davis, on March 31, 2020
Calculating Beauty: Our Main Fountain Garden Lindens
three rows of linden trees without their leaves

Calculating Beauty: Our Main Fountain Garden Lindens

Our trees—including the 168 linden trees in our Main Fountain Garden’s south, east, and west allées —are among the most exceptional parts of Longwood’s past, present, and future.

By Tyler Altenburger, on March 25, 2020
A Beautiful Distraction

A Beautiful Distraction

After patients expressed a desire to view local scenes during treatment, ChristianaCare hired NAPCO Video of Philadelphia to capture footage at Longwood Gardens to show to patients via VR while receiving chemotherapy.

By Abbey Gau, on March 19, 2020
A Community Read Conversation with Chris Thorogood
Painting of large hollow red plants with pitcher-like openings on a green hillside with misty hills in the background

A Community Read Conversation with Chris Thorogood

Chris Thorogood invites you to engage with plants that have long captured his imagination, inspired his art, and shaped his career.

By Lynn Schuessler, on March 11, 2020
A Community Read Conversation with Sue Burke
cover of book, "Semiosis" by Sue Burke perched in front of plants

A Community Read Conversation with Sue Burke

Now in its seventh year, a rousing discussion has always been a defining feature of our Community Read. But this year marks a few firsts, including our first science fiction selection by debut novelist Sue Burke.

By Lynn Schuessler, on February 25, 2020
The Clear Beauty of the Late Winter Landscape
A delicate white bud dangles from a small, spring green flower stem on a field of pine needles

The Clear Beauty of the Late Winter Landscape

Wintertime allows the clear details of the garden to come forward and highlights the harmony that a garden builds with its surrounding landscape.

By Andrea Brunsendorf, on February 20, 2020