There is just something to wandering around a garden. You step onto the path and are transported to another world, air thick with the scent of flowers and a sense of timelessness. If you pause, you'll hear the happy hum of bees visiting each flower, drunk on nectar. I have this notion that nothing bad can happen in gardens — that they are exceptionally romantic places, whether kept wild and almost overgrown or regimented like architecture. They're a sort of museum, if you will, of plants. A museum without wall text or security, where you can touch the artworks and breath in their heady smell.
So when I found myself in Hartford, CT the other weekend, I lucked out in it being 'Rose Sunday' at Elizabeth Park. It was exceedingly hot, but can you really pass up a rose garden on an early summer day?
Elizabeth Park is a lovely area in West Hartford, filled with paths, little ponds and various gardens. If you'll be there in the summer, particularly in mid-to-late June, I highly recommend the rose garden.
Across the little street that runs through the park, step into the perennial garden.
Wander by the greenhouses where new varietals are safely being cultivated.
And if it gets too hot or too close to lunch, The Pond House Cafe sits within the park and offers options from an outdoor ice cream bar to sit-down dining by the pond.
A summer day spent in a garden — sounds lovely!
Looks very pretty. I had heard of the Rose Garden but believe it or not in 40 yrs of living in CT I never visited it once. Shame on me and thanks for bringing it to my attention