Visiting the Barbie of Gardens
The most anticipated garden visit of 2023 and a celebration of mums
Even before Barbie hit theaters this past summer, everyone was already talking about the film. People were excitedly sharing the teasers and trailers and Allan memes. This was going to be one of the cinematic highlights of 2023.
That’s also how I felt about the Arboretum at Penn State. The buzz around this garden has been building for years. I first heard about it at last year’s PPA conference and just last month I saw Claudia West, planting design director at Phyto Studio, and Dr. Harland Patch, a pollinator expert at Penn State, speak about creating the botanical space that’s not only beautiful but also a carefully assembled pollinator garden informed by serious scientific research. West and Patch weren’t satisfied to go with typical anecdotal evidence like “these asters always seem to have bees on them.” They looked to studies to find out which varieties of plants and flowers actually nourished and supported the most insects and birds.
Brooke and I were driving through central Pennsylvania last week and I realized we’d be driving right by the Arboretum at Penn State so we pulled over for a quick visit. The arboretum is massive but the Pollinator and Bird Garden, Claudia West’s contribution to the garden, is only three acres. Despite its relatively small size, the garden punches above its weight. The paths wind around, passing through subtle changes in topography which make the space feel larger than it is.
Transitional moments in a garden can be so magical and this garden really knows how to get the most out of them. We came around a corner to an incredible natural pond that was perfectly reflecting the sky.
We entered a small wooden structure where you could sit and take in the surroundings. The building framed each direction as though it were a landscape painting: a serene gurgling water feature, a hillside peppered with bird feeders, a marsh populated with dragonflies.
I was struck by this fuzzy monster-like creature that turned out to be a Virgin’s bower (Clematis virginiana) climbing up an Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis).
I was impressed by the constant stream of folks in the garden on a random Monday afternoon. Students were sitting throughout, chatting with friends or simply taking in one of the many serene vistas. If we hadn’t been rushing to get back home, I easily could have sat for an hour and meditated on one of the many natural ponds.
The garden opened a little over two years ago but it already looks so established. Back in 2021, over 600 volunteers planted 143,000 plants to create the immersive landscape. West has created a space that seems both vast and intimate while also feeling interactive.
Margaret Roach wrote a wonderful article about West and her Phyto partner Thomas Rainer’s nature-based designs in the New York Times in August, where she touches on that interactive nature of the garden:
A garden is at its most effective — by both biophilic and ecological measures — the Phyto team believes, when it is “immersive.”
Mr. Rainer remembers having that idea underscored when he and his wife, Melissa Rainer, would take their young son to visit botanical gardens.
“When we’d go to a border or something very cerebral, you could just see his body go limp, and we’re dragging him through,” Mr. Rainer recalled. “And then when we’d get to a place like a little meadow with paths carved through, he would just start running. His body would just react to an interesting space.”
“Instinctively, we all gravitate toward these really rich plantings,” Ms. West said. “The cottage-garden styles where plants are mingling together — they’re social. You can just see how happy they are, full of life.”
Only a Few More Weeks to see Phipps’ Mums
The other week I got a preview of Phipps’ Fall Flower Show, which has been taking place annually since 1894. It’s mind boggling to learn about how many months and how much work it takes to get all these chrysanthemums ready for this brief, three week show.
How are your gardens looking this autumn? Are you growing any mums? I’d love to hear about it!
And one more thing: I got a chance to interview Laura Dowling, who was Chief Floral Designer at the White House during most of the Obama administration. You can see our brief chat here from Pittsburgh Today Live here:
I love the idea of watching a child’s body language to learn how we all react to space! Thank you for a lovely description and breath of fresh air midst a difficult week!
I agree with Carol's comment and YES! I'm in love with my two bright purple/pink mums. 💜