Area plant sales send pieces of the past to Corridor gardens

CEDAR RAPIDS - Brucemore's gates not only open the doors to a mansion full of many rooms, but to an estate with even more rooms outdoors.

'Part of the country design was to have space enough to have what they call specialty gardens” scattered throughout the 26-acre historic estate fronting First Avenue SE, said head gardener David Morton, 52, of Cedar Rapids.

The formal gardens command a regal presence from spring to fall, but wandering the parklike grounds, visitors will find secret gardens tucked among the soaring sentinel trees. That's what Morton hopes people will do Saturday morning, when hundreds are expected to peruse perennials, annuals and hanging baskets at Brucemore's annual plant sale.

Some of the offerings are culled from the property, so buyers can transplant a slice of history at their homes.

It's not just event days when the public can stroll the grounds and luxuriate in nature's bounty. Whenever the gates are open, hikers can explore its hidden gems from dawn to dusk.

The Night Garden on the far southwest side is designed to shimmer silver and white under a full moon. A grape arbor near the formal gardens shelters blossoming ground cover, but the juicy berries overhead won't be stomped into Brucemore wine any time soon. Too many rules and regulations to make that feasible, Morton said. The orchard across the lane from the swimming pool is shedding its delicate, white petticoats to make way for summer apples, cherries, peaches, pears and plums from nearly 50 trees.

'A lot of people don't see this orchard,” Morton said, noting that the fruit does get harvested.

'The plums get eaten right away, because they are so good,” he said. 'The apples are the ones that fall to the floor the most, because there's a lot of them.”

While it's the looming Queen Anne mansion built between 1884 and 1886 atop a sweeping hill that commands a visitor's view, much of the property was designed around three Civil War-era trees - two maples and an oak - behind the orchard.

'You can tell by the way the roads are and where the buildings are. I like that idea,” said Morton, adding that the trio, marked by plaques, are 'our most prized possessions.”

Another treasure near the formal gardens is a Chinese chestnut, with its sprawling, gnarly limbs, that an arborist deemed the oldest such tree in Iowa, if not the nation.

Other little treasures are hiding in plain sight, as well.

Benches and chairs nestled hither and yon offer picturesque places to sit, read and reflect, or beckon leisurely picnics by the Duck Pond. That charming spot opens the door to one room discovered by thousands of visitors over the years: a natural amphitheater, where theatergoers spread out blankets, chairs and picnics on the lawn, to watch operettas, classic dramas, comedies and original children's shows unfold under warm summer skies.

'This is a perfect example of one of those rooms,” Morton said. 'The trees (make) just a perfect wall.”

Nearby trails covered in wood chips lure walkers and deer, but beware of the poison ivy. It's good for the ecosystem, Morton said, but not so good for tender human flesh. 'We try to keep it out of the main paths,” he added.

The indoor-outdoor 1915 Lord & Burnham Greenhouse, however, will be the hub of activity for Saturday's sale. Known as the LAB, it's one of two greenhouses on the property, where Morton and his crew can tend the plants that will be sold or placed around the property. Five cold houses behind the LAB also shelter plants during their winter slumber.

Down the lane in what was called 'Servants Village” is the larger second greenhouse, dubbed the Lude, installed in 1996 or '97. Morton starts seeds there in February for annuals and for the cutting garden of flowers and vegetables in front of the building. The vegetables are divided among staff and volunteers, with surplus donated to Foundation 2.

'This has always been the working part of the estate,” he said, in the vicinity of the Carriage House.

Anything blooming is in demand for the spring plant sale, as well as hostas, coral bells, bluebells, showy coleus for borders, shade-loving plants, flowering impatiens, fuchsias and annuals. Especially popular is the Bill Quarton plant, named for the late philanthropist who would bring his plant to the greenhouse for cuttings and winter storage.

It takes a lot of people-power to make it all happen, with 15 to 20 volunteers, a group from Goodwill of the Heartland, as well as Morton and two seasonal employees tending the gardens. Brucemore also has groundskeeper who lives on-site, in a tradition dating back to the days when the estate was a private residence.

FRIENDS OF NOELRIDGE

A legion of volunteer also helps keep Noelridge Park blooming, as well as nurturing plants for today's Mother's Day Open House from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the greenhouse, 4900 Council St. NE. Other specialty groups - from orchids and to butterflies to bonsai - add gardening goods, crafts, demonstrations and expertise to the event.

The timing is right for this annual tradition, said Becki Lynch, 66, of Cedar Rapids, president of the volunteer Friends of Noelridge Park Greenhouse and Botanic Center Inc.

'It's right at the beginning of the planting season,” she said. 'It's a great time to get inexpensive plants that are essential in your gardens.” And the plants haven't been treated with pesticides, which she said will kill pollinators. 'These are safe in your garden for all the creatures that come around.”

Pollinator is the buzzword this year, and visitors to the Noelridge event will receive free tropical milkweeds, which are especially good to plant among perennial milkweeds. The annuals will attract butterflies and bees while the perennials are taking root and getting established in local landscapes, Lynch said.

MASTER GARDENERS

Lynch also is a Linn County Master Gardener, and that group will be holding its annual plant sale Saturday (5/14) morning at the Linn County ISU Extension and Outreach office, 383 Collins Rd. NE, Suite 201, Cedar Rapids. More than 100 members will be donating 'a full spectrum” of annuals and perennials from their gardens. Pollinators also will be highlighted at the sale, and Master Gardeners will be on hand to offer expert advice.

Johnson County Master Gardeners will be setting up their sale the same morning at the Johnson County Fairgrounds in Iowa City, also offering a wide variety of plants, as well as a flea market.

Proceeds from both events support Master Gardener programs, many of which focus on education.

PLANT SALES

' Noelridge Greenhouse: Mother's Day Open House, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 8, 4900 Council St. NE, Cedar Rapids; annuals, perennials, vendors, exhibits, expert advice, free tropical milkweed plants while supplies last; friendsofnoelridge.com

' Brucemore Plant Sale: 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 14, Lord & Burnham Greenhouse behind Brucemore mansion, 2160 Linden Dr. SE, Cedar Rapids; annuals, perennials and hanging baskets, with cuttings from Brucemore's formal gardens, $2.50 to $50; expert advice; brucemore.org

' Johnson County Master Gardeners: 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 14, Johnson County Fairgrounds, 4261 Oak Crest Hill Rd. SE, Iowa City; for details, search Facebook for Johnson County Master Gardeners of Iowa

' Linn County Master Gardeners: 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 14, ISU Extension and Outreach - Linn County, 383 Collins Rd. NE, Suite 201, Cedar Rapids; Extension.iastate.edu/linn/news/2016-master-gardener-plant-sale