Longwood Gardens:
Premier Horticultural Display

Longwood Gardens, near Wilmington, Delaware, is one of the world's premier horticultural display gardens. Mark Springer, who recently visited the site, shares these photographs he took there.

A visit to Longwood can easily last several days -- there's so much to see. Check out the Web site www.longwoodgardens.org to discover the delights. This well-organized site offers several maps of the gardens, a virtual tour, a downloadable brochure, and all the information you need to plan your trip. Longwood Gardens is open every day of the year and adult admission ranges from $8 to $15, depending on the season.

Created by industrialist Pierre S. du Pont, it consists of more than a thousand acres of gardens, woodlands and meadows; 20 outdoor gardens; 20 indoor gardens in four acres of heated greenhouses; 11,000 different types of plants; spectacular fountains; extensive educational programs including horticultural career training and internships; and 800 horticultural and performing arts events each year, from flower shows, gardening demonstrations, courses, and children's programs to concerts, organ and carillon recitals, musical theater, and fireworks displays.

Longwood's founder, Pierre S. du Pont (1870-1954), was an industrialist, conservationist, farmer, designer, engineer, impresario and philanthropist. He turned the family business (the DuPont chemical company) into a corporate empire and used his resulting fortune to develop the Longwood property.

The farm was purchased in 1906 by du Pont so he could preserve the trees. The site was known by 1850 as one of the finest collections of trees in the nation. The du Pont family had a long tradition of gardening, and Pierre would turn out to be one of its greatest gardeners.

From 1907 until the 1930s he created most of what is enjoyed today. He set up a foundation to run the gardens in 1946, and provided a generous endowment at his death in 1954. Since that time Longwood Gardens has matured into a magnificent horticultural showplace.

Du Pont was influenced by his travels --- particularly the new technology displayed at the monumental world's fairs of the late 19th century. At age 6, he was mesmerized by a huge display of water pumps in action at Philadelphia's 1876 Centennial Exposition.

At 19, he enjoyed the Exposition Universelle in Paris with its new Eiffel Tower. At 23, he was awed by the grandiose architecture and illuminated fountains at the World Columbian Exposition in Chicago. These influences can be seen today at Longwood Gardens.

At the age of 36, du Pont began creating what would become Longwood Gardens. Longwood's Conservatory is one of the world's great greenhouse structures. It shelters 20 indoor gardens and 5,500 types of plants. After the massive Conservatory opened in 1921, du Pont turned his attention to another great love -- fountains. He based his Italian Water Garden on the Villa Gamberaia near Florence, but he added 600 jets of recirculating water. At the Open Air Theater, he replaced the old waterworks with 750 illuminated jets. His hydraulic masterpiece was the Main Fountain Garden in front of the Conservatory: 10,000 gallons a minute shot as high as 130 feet and illuminated in every imaginable color.

Longwood Gardens includes a peony garden, wisteria garden, meadows, lakes, topiary, an oak and confier knoll, a caryopteris allee, a cascade garden, bonsai, a Mediterranean garden, orchids, roses, hibiscus, an acacia passage, an orangery, a desert house, 13 outdoor waterlily pools, greenhouses devoted to tropicals, a plant breeding program, a Visitor Center and gift shop, a palm house, and a 400-seat restaurant.

Events include performing arts, flower shows, guided tours, horticultural courses, garden symposiums, children's programs, tountain displays and fireworks four times during the summer.