Three Sisters & Julie Smith
These Gardens commemorate a Cylburn volunteer and board member, Julie Girard Smith and the three sisters- Blanche V. Smith (Julie’s Mother) and sisters Isabelle Viault and Marguerite Hegemon. The space is a treasure trove of unusual plants displayed in pleasing groups and masses. Walk among the stone paths to find a restful retreat one of two stone benches perfectly perched for a view of passersby. In every season, visitors can find something in bloom or of interest. Beginning in spring, visit for the succession of ephemeral blooms featuring snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis and elwessii) and a suite of daffodils. It’s about this time that the Chinese Redbud (Cercis chinensis) erupts into bloom. In early summer, the garden sports Japanese Primrose (Primula japonica), various iris species, and even a tender Bog Sage (Salvia uliginosa). On the occasional Wednesday, you can even catch a glimpse of Caroline Russel working among the gardens she supports as a memorial to her family.
Moudry Woods
This island forest patch is the remnant nursery of Cylburn’s first Chief Horticulturist- Gerard Moudry. It is in this space where he and his staff grew up and stored woody plants grown for collections and elsewhere on the grounds. Aside from the alarming quantity of terracotta pot fragments, we also have living evidence in the form of multi-trunked trees grown from a collection of containers placed next to one another and never moved. My favorite example is the five leader Sweet Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua). The Moudry Woods is also home to a series of rain gardens and Cylburn’s future stumpery.
