Yahoo News A Former Christmas Tree Farm Finds Its Calling as a Cultivated Getaway in Hudson Valley
"What a farmer does is never wrong.” Such is the premise Connecticut-based landscape architect Janice Parker relied upon in resurrecting an abandoned Christmas tree farm in the Hudson Valley. The more than 40-acre property was in a state of disarray, its gently sloping grounds dotted with derelict farm buildings and runaway irrigation ditches. But Parker and the property’s owners, designer Darren Henault and his husband, attorney Michael Bassett, didn’t simply see the gentleman’s farm it could be, they saw shadows of what had arisen there over half a decade.
“This had been a farm for a long time, and in trying to figure out what to do with hundreds of Christmas trees, we began looking more deeply at the survey and trying to imagine what the property would have looked like in earlier years,” says Parker. She searched for geometry in the trees that remained. “Farmers create symmetry by simply laying out rows of trees,” she notes. “It’s an iconic landscape we can all understand.”
She found the probable grids and began using these as a road map for reintegrating approximately 600 of the Christmas trees into the landscape in a more symmetrical pattern, but also for adding other natives like maples and crab apples that would have also been there. This formed the architecture for a series of expansive, grassy rooms, vegetable and flower gardens, and low fieldstone walls.
Success hinged on patience. “You see what’s working, and you add a little at a time,” Parker says. “It’s a living, breathing landscape, and that requires compromise and a healthy respect for the classic vernacular.”
A Grassy Pool Deck
“Avoid the ‘suburbanization’ of a landscape. For instance, setting a pool in grass keeps it rooted in its surroundings.”
Generational Hardscape
Broad terraced steps built into a gentle slope are deliberately overgrown and give the appearance of having always been there.
A Riff on a Legend
Borrow inspiration from garden greats. This urn room was inspired by Beatrix Farrand’s work at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C.
Color Bonanza
Creating a fenced flower garden off-limits to deer means you can have a lot of fun. “We planted everything from sunflowers and zinnias to dahlias.”
Respect for the Orphans
Repurpose everything you can. Distinct layers of Douglas firs, Normandy spruces, and concolor firs give this farm a singular beauty.
A Historic Farmhouse
The house is always the starting point. This circa-1800 home is “rooted in so much tradition, it sets the tone for the property.”
Ornamental Symmetry
Limestone finials set in rows between the house and pool echo the agrarian grid patterns reestablished throughout the property.
Humility of Materials
Walls crafted of local fieldstone cut in random rectangular patterns are just 30 inches tall. “This makes them look more natural and allows the flowers to spill over them.”
This article originally appeared in the March/April 2020 issue of VERANDA.
hearstmags.com
VERANDA2020 World's Most Beautiful Gardens winner for Magnificent Farm Rescue
Design by Janice Parker Landscape Architects, with Darren Henault
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