Weekend, March 26-27, 2022 – ENTER THE FANTASY WORLD OF WISTERIA IN BLOOM ON 105TH STREET

By admin

FROM THE ARCHIVES


WEEKEND, MARCH 26-27,  2022


THE  633rd  EDITION

CENTRAL PARK 

CONSERVATORY GARDEN


TIME TO CELEBRATE SPRING

THE CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

ENTER AT 105th STREET AND FIFTH AVENUE

A destination for neighborhood residents and visitors from all over the world, its six acres are well-known for plantings of tulips, lilacs, crabapple trees, summer perennials, and chrysanthemums. Its more formal design and specular floral displays have also made it a popular destination for small weddings.

The Garden opened in 1937 and is named for the glass conservatory that was built at this location in 1899 to offer seasonal plant displays to the public. Even earlier, this area had a horticultural function—it housed a large greenhouse designed by Park co-designer Calvert Vaux for growing plants for the Park’s landscapes.

The Conservatory Garden is composed of three areas, each with a distinct design: the French-style North Garden, the Italianate Center Garden, and the English-style South Garden. The main entrance is marked by an ornate gate, known as the Vanderbilt Gate, which was donated to the City by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney and once adorned the mansion of Cornelius Vanderbilt II at Fifth Avenue and 58th Street

Through the gate is the Center Garden, influenced by Italian Renaissance gardens. Its symmetrical design features a central lawn with a single jet fountain, behind which is a semicircular pergola covered in wisteria. The lawn is bordered by yew hedges and flanked with allées of crabapple trees, which burst into pink and white blooms every spring.

The North Garden offers spectacular seasonal displays of tulips each spring and Korean chrysanthemums in autumn. At its center stands the Untermyer Fountain, featuring the Three Dancing Maidens by German sculptor Walter Schott, which is surrounded by an intricate French parterre garden.

The South Garden is arranged in concentric planting beds in the style of an English perennial garden. It contains a diverse array of plantings that bring interest and beauty to every season, including bulbs, annuals, perennials, and numerous flowering trees. This garden also features the Burnett Fountain, a memorial to the author Frances Hodgson Burnett, that stands at one end of a waterlily pool.

FORMAL GARDEN

WISTERIA PERGOLA

Statue of Mary and Dickon from Frances Hodgson Burnett’s “The Secret Garden” at the reflecting pool of the Conservatory Garden in Central Park, New York City 

WEEKEND PHOTO

SEND YOUR ANSWER TO:
ROOSEVELTISLANDHISTORY@GMAIL.COM
OR JBIRD134@AOL.COM

FRIDAY PHOTO OF THE DAY

THE MURAL BUILDING AT HARLEM HOSPITAL
CLARA BELLA, ALEXIS VILLAFANE,  HARA REISER, ED LITCHER,
GLORIA HERMAN, LAURA HUSSEY ALL GOT IT RIGHT.

FROM ED LITCHER:
Harlem Hospital Mural is a mixed media by Terry Wallace which was uploaded on May 22nd, 2014. This Mural comprises 429 completely unique, laminated, insulated, digitally printed pieces of glass coming together in one 13,000 sq. ft. modern masterpiece that pays homage to historic murals.
PS. I only found this information because the name of the hospital is above the door in the picture.

SOURCES

CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY

Funding Provided by:
Roosevelt Island Corporation Public Purpose Funds
Council Member Ben Kallos City Council Discretionary Funds thru DYCD
Text by Judith Berdy

Edited by Deborah Dorff
ALL PHOTOS COPYRIGHT RIHS. 2022 (C)
 PHOTOS IN THIS ISSUE (C) JUDITH BERDY RIHS

Copyright © 2022 Roosevelt Island Historical Society, All rights reserved.Our mailing address is:
rooseveltislandhistory@gmail.com