Photo Galleries

No new photographs today, just a little trip down memory lane to revisit a few special spots and the plants that make them so. A beautiful Acer palmatum cv. Sango Kaku in all its autumnal glory in the Japanese Maple collection; a majestic Green Giant Arborvitae, one of two in the relaxing pool garden next to the Mansion; Asters, fall colors and fallen leaves in the perennial gardens behind the Haggerty Education Center. Autumn is such a special time of year, when Mother Nature paints a brilliant canvas for us to enjoy, although fleetingly. Emily Bronte put it beautifully: “Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree”.

Make time to visit the Arboretum soon, you won’t regret it!

Fall is here and so is the annual Morris County Park Commission’s Scarecrows in the Garden  exhibit. This free exhibit is available through the end of October, so bring the family, stroll the gardens and see how many you can find – there are dozens of ghoulish, historic and colorful creations! Here’s a small sampling.

We got this batch of beautiful flowers transmitted by this email:

Good Morning,

As summer ends and hints of Autumn begin there is nowhere more perfect to admire the beauty of the new season than at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum.

Happy Autumn 

Elizabeth Brannin

Thanks, Elizabeth, for these lovely images.

The days are getting shorter, there’s a hint of autumn in the air and the trees at the Arboretum are beginning their annual transition into fall by changing leaf color. The fall blooming Anemone ‘Honorine Jobert’ presents her dainty white blooms with yellow stamens for all to admire and the bees continue searching for pollen wherever they can. Some plants, however, are not ready to give in to the season’s change, Roses continue blooming and the Agapanthus in pots is still flowering.

It’s a lovely time of the year to visit the Arboretum.

This week’s lovely photographs are by Katharine Boyle. Thank you!

During a recent trip to Nashville, Tennessee, I was lucky enough to visit Cheekwood Gardens, one of the American Horticultural Society’s Reciprocal Admissions Program (RAP) participants. Membership with the Friends of The Frelinghuysen Arboretum waived my entrance fee to the Gardens, a savings of almost $30!

Cheekwood is distinguished as one of the leading American Country Place Era estates and was the home of Mabel and Leslie Cheek. The 55 acres of cultivated gardens include a serene Japanese garden, a stream garden, perennial gardens, a sculpture walk (including Sophie Ryder’s Crawling Lady Hare) and a children’s garden to name just a few. During my visit, the Arboretum’s lawn was decorated as a pumpkin village including a variety of pumpkins, Chrysanthemums, and even a pumpkin house!

This was definitely a great benefit of membership with the Friends of The Frelinghuysen Arboretum!

Katharine Boyle sent this batch of lovely pictures from her visit to the Arboretum this past weekend.

Thanks Katharine for the reminder of how beautiful the Frelinghuysen is as summer winds down.

A couple more examples of the lovely trees on the Arboretum’s grounds.: A spectacular Acer saccharum ‘Bonfire’ (Bonfire Sugar Maple) ablaze with fall colors and a lovely Heptacodium miconioides (Seven Sons Tree). A small ornamental tree (13-30 feet tall) with interesting exfoliating bark, and small fragrant flowers that bloom in September – the tree is attractive to butterflies and bees. And a Cercis chinensis cv. Don Egolf (Chinese Redbud) showing off her lovely lavender spring blooms, so easy to see because it flowers before the leaves appear.

In anticipation of the Tree Symposium in November, here are just a few examples of the variety of trees in The Frelinghuysen Arboretum’s collection. A lovely Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca’ (Blue Atlas Cedar) in front of the Mansion, a majestic Quercus rubra (Red Oak), an ornamental Cornus Kousa (Kousa Dogwood) and an Acer palmatum cv. Sango Kaku (Coral Bark Japanese Maple) in full fall attire.

Picture credits: Margery Ennist.

A month ago we posted photos of the missing arbor and newly repaved walk into the Haggerty Education Center. We’re happy to share the news that the new arbor has been installed and it is a thing of beauty, as can be seen in Bruce Crawford’s photo below. A closeup of the new walk’s  paving design is also attached.

Make sure to visit soon to see the new arbor/walk as well as all the lovely end of summer and early autumn flowering plants.

As frequent visitors will attest, in addition to the lovely gardens, a variety of different locations on the grounds of The Frelinghuysen Arboretum offer areas for rest, casual strolls and relaxation. The Marsh Meadow Observation Deck is a combination gazebo and deck overlooking the marsh meadow – the view changes with the seasons, but there’s always something to see, flowers, birds or hovering dragonflies. Another lovely destination is the garden to the right of the Mansion. As you walk through the arbor you’re welcomed by the soft splashing sounds and sights of the raised fountain and lush plantings; the benches in this garden room offer a nice spot for rest and quiet contemplation. For those looking for something less sedentary, the paths through the woods and through the meadow behind the Mansion offer a different perspective, you might see wildlife (squirrels, rabbits), hear bird song and enjoy the less manicured areas at the Arboretum.

Thanks to Member Gerry Pappalardo for this week’s photos.

Speaking of trees, have you ever observed the complex architectural form of some tree branches? Here’s a wonderful photograph of the branching on a Japanese Stewartia tree (Stewartia pseudocamellia). Squirrels are among the fauna frequently seen at the Arboretum, this one is overseeing its domain from the branches of a Maple tree (Acer). Another frequent visitor to the gardens at the Arboretum are butterflies, this lovely Swallowtail was seen nectaring on the flowers of a Butterfly Bush’s (Buddleia).

Thanks to Heather Emelander for the Stewartia photo and to Gerry Pappalardo for the Squirrel and Swallowtail shots.

This week we’re featuring some of Member Gerry Pappalardo’s photos, the variety of plants in the Arboretum’s gardens is clearly evident by the following shots:

The interesting flower of Aechmea fasciata, commonly called Silver Vase or Urn Plant is native to Brazil. This plant is in the Bromeliad family and is often grown as a houseplant. The flowers can last for months.

The architecturally interesting seed pod on a Magnolia grandiflora ‘Victoria’; these pods are large, cone-like fruits that open to reveal seeds that are often red and waxy.

The pretty Okra flower reminds us of a mallow, as they are in the same family. Abelmoschus esculentus produces an edible green seed pod, often used in Gumbo.

Thank you Gerry!

Can you tell from these photos what’s missing and what’s new? The old arbor on the way into the Haggerty Education Center (HEC) was in pretty bad shape, so it has been removed and will be replaced with a new one sometime soon. The walkway from the old arbor into the HEC had become hazardous and has been replaced with a brand new, attractive and safe one. A gorgeous, bold and bright tropical Rushfoil (Croton) can be seen on the right as you work your way to the HEC’s front door. Out by the first parking bay, the leaves of a Cotinus (Smoke Bush) glisten with raindrops from the storm that blew through on Sunday afternoon.

You may know that the meadow behind the Mansion is under restoration; this is a time consuming but very worthwhile undertaking using a variety of native plants. Here’s a photo showing progress to date. The wet area behind the Marsh Meadow Deck is full of Marsh Mallows (Althaea officinalis) in bloom, not edible, but a very pretty sight nonetheless!  Foliage as well as flowers contribute to the beauty of our gardens, as evidenced by the lovely Balloon Flowers (Platycodon grandiflorus) in the Blue Garden in front of Matilda’s cottage and the purple and green leaves of the Persian Shield (Strobilanthes dyeriana).  Persian Shield is native to Myanmar and is an annual in our New Jersey gardens.

Photos of the meadow and Balloon flower courtesy of Heather Emelander. Member Gerry Pappalardo provided the photo of the Marsh Mallows. The Persian Shield photo is from Sandy Brighouse, also a member of the Friends. Thanks to all!

The Haggerty Education Center’s raised beds are a cheerful mix of bright and sunny annuals in shades of red, yellow and blue, all beautifully displayed against the evergreen shrubs in the background. Several tall Bronze Fennel plants (Foeniculum vulgare) are in full bloom in the gardens next to Matilda’s Cottage, and the bees are busy pollinating their flowers. It’s mid-summer and the Hardy Hibiscus plants are putting on their annual show with a variety of large, colorful flowers; this week we’re featuring the gorgeous pink flower of Hibiscus moscheutos cv. Copper King with its red center and veining. Each flower only lasts a day, but the show goes on for weeks with new flowers opening daily. There are many other Hardy Hibiscus plants at the Arboretum; plan a visit and see them all!

Thanks to Valerie Scarinci for the Hibiscus photo.