Rock and Water Garden

The Rock Garden was one of Bessie McKee’s favorite places on the property. Early pictures indicate a stone-strewn garden in full sun while later pictures show a woodland wildflower garden with rock paths winding around large shrubs, and under shady trees. Because the garden is becoming more and more vulnerable to high storm tides and heavy-rainfall flooding, the plants have had to prove their ability to survive a range of extreme conditions including baking summer sun, salt, and wet feet in winter.

The Water Garden is the lowest point on the property. The pond was dug out of brackish marshland and is rain, rather than spring, fed. The pond provides habitat for thousands of tadpoles and frogs, fish, dragonflies and waterbugs. Whenever the pond dries during a dry summer, frogs wait out the drought tucked in the ground. The garden is planted with trees such as golden willow, cottonwood, and Japanese maples; and shrubs such as button bush, winterberry and blueberry that thrive in moist soil.

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