Learn about Bard's oldest trees. Join Amy Parrella '99, Bard's Arboretum Director, for a virtual walk through Bard's campus to learn about these living legacies and the history they witnessed.
https://youtu.be/VZqG4vBQjTEVideo by Melvin Brinson. @ValleyVagrant | @hudson.stills
Video by Melvin Brinson. @ValleyVagrant | @hudson.stills
Video by Melvin Brinson. @ValleyVagrant | @hudson.stills
On Sunday, April 23, the Friends of Blithewood Garden, the Garden Conservancy, and Bard College hosted “Vision & View: Creating a Classical Landscape on the Hudson,” a panel discussion and film premiere focusing on the rehabilitation of the historic Blithewood Garden at Bard College.
Interviewed by Helene Tieger '85 and Amy Parella '99, Elizabeth White, the great grand-daughter of Andrew C. Zabriskie–who, with his wife Frances, built Blithewood in 1899—recounts four generations of her family’s history. “My memories [of Blithewood] really are of being in the garden—as a place you could run around and play—and being allowed to splash a bit in the fountain.” The beautiful landscape she recalls was maintained by a team of gardeners who were recruited for their skill. As one of few who remember the mansion as a home, Elizabeth helps us clear some of the fog that has accumulated around memories of Blithewood.
Hedge (2023), a novel by Jane Delury, is set in the modern-day Montgomery Place gardens. The book explores the story of Maud, a devoted mom to daughters Ella and Louise and a talented garden historian, who accepts a summer job restoring the garden of a lush, 19th-century estate in the Hudson Valley to reignite her career and escape her troubled marriage. The author Jane Delury was interviewed on the following two podcasts:
Jennifer Jewel's interview with Jane Delury for "Cultivating Place"
Zibby Owen's interview with Jane Delury for "Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books"