Sunday, April 22, 2012

Brookgreen Garden Tour

This weekend I went to another of the garden estates around the area.  Like its English forebearers great estates were established here in the 17th-19th centuries, and also similarly, they are now the sites of some of the wonderful gardens in this area. From the website:
This was a rice plantation, one of the largest crops grown in antebellum times.

"During the Seventeenth Century, English settlers first came to the Carolina territory from Barbados and other Caribbean islands.  A plantation economy was well established on the islands, and the planters were looking to expand their holdings.  From the beginning, they brought enslaved Africans to work the new lands. The planters at The Oaks, Brookgreen, Springfield and Laurel Hill plantations (the four former plantations that make up the present-day Brookgreen Gardens) established family dynasties and were leaders of the rice planting elite during the antebellum years.  However, the success of these great rice plantations rested on the backs of the enslaved Africans.  As early as the mid-eighteenth century, a majority of the population in the Lowcountry of South Carolina were enslaved Africans and during the late antebellum period they accounted for almost 90 percent of the population in the region. They provided physical labor, skill and technology required for rice cultivation and production and infused the environment with their customs, traditions, crafts, and language known today as Gullah-Geechee culture."


Obviously this was a time of great wealth and fortune for a few, at the cost of freedom and hardship of the many.  

Today, its a sculpture garden
I was very taken with this statue and pool

Ballerina Roses and Daisies

Not all of the sculptures were classical!

What are considered weeds here have their own place!
Quite a bit of woodlands too

In the Child's Garden

Slightly cooler than Charleston, the tall snapdragons are still alive!

A scenic view on the walk

Love this pool

....a lot

The White Border (with Griffon)
One of the few copper statues

Foxgloves are at their height of glory

more Foxgloves

More snapdragons, with a larkspur or two

I think this is a Monsieur Tiller

The Muses in Fountain form

Another shot, it was beautiful
I was particularly taken by this sculpture holding a sculpture

Knockouts!

Snapdragons, foxglove
Its a formal garden but many portions have that slightly wild abandoned look that I love

I visited on a stormy day, in the 'in-between' season... after the spring magnificence but before the summer abundance... but still it was beautiful and informative.  You need about 2 hours to explore the formal gardens, and an additional 2 to walk the nature walks, plantation/rice fields area, see the butterflies and the zoo.

26 comments:

  1. I have been trying to go there for the last few years, it is 3+ hours from us, so a long drive back and forth and walking around. Looks beautiful, still going to try to get there.

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    1. Its a haul, but I'm sure you'd enjoy it. I think I'm going to go back next year during the azalea season. It must be spectacular. There's also a lot of different hydrangeas that are going to be out pretty soon, and I imagine they are going to be awesome too.

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  2. love Brookgreen. A beautiful respite (get-a-way) from sitting on the beach in Litchfield during family get-a-ways

    Just discovered your blog...looking forward to a rainy day of exploring your posts!

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    1. That is one of the nicest compliments! Enjoy and welcome!

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  3. we went in June one time ... don't go in the Summer - before it rains - and the humidity reaches Charleston proportions! It is beautiful though.

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    1. I can imagine. Jun-Aug aren't for the faint of heart here..its the price we pay for the rest of the year of lovely weather.

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  4. This is just gorgeous! I can imagine seeing it in person would be a wonderful experience. It would make me want some sculptures in my garden!

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    1. I really wanted the Diana one. It was slightly large for my back garden, like maybe 15 feet tall, but hey, whats a few extra feet?

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  5. Wow, stunning. I'd love to see this garden in person. I don't think I've ever heard of it before this.

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    1. There really is so much to do there, its amazing...I didn't even cover the arboretum they have of amazing southern tree specimens. I found that very cool, and had fantasies of somehow replacing my horrible pecan tree with one of those trees!

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  6. Thanks for the tour of a fabulous garden. I really like all the sculptures, but the one of the hog made me smile!

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    1. Me too. There must be 100 sculptures there... not one of the ones featured on the website did I take a picture of. And for that many sculptures the layout is really well done where it doesn't seem at all overwhelming. The place is huge though.

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  7. Beautiful garden, and wonderfully photographed. Thank you for the tour.

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    1. Your very welcome! I used to go to these things all the time but my job has sucked up so much time lately I don't usually feel I even have enough time to be in MY garden, but glad I went.

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  8. What a gorgeous walk you had. I had to admit, I kinda like the big pig. he's adorable.

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  9. A gorgeous garden. The pig sculpture made me laugh out loud, I love it! Actually, I think what I'd really want is that wooden entrance to the Child's Garden. I love it's rustic charm, and I'm sure we must have enough fall branches around here to make one ;)

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    1. Its a true child's entrance too... of course I went through it but I had to duck a little! Perfect magic entrance for the short set!

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  10. Beautiful gardens. Lots of statues. The foxglove and snapdragons are stunning and so big.

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  11. What an interesting place. I love that it's so rife with history. Lovely flowers and statuary.

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    1. Though I envy the British at every step with their garden heritage, we really aren't half bad with some of these old plantations around here.

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  12. i haven't been to brookgreen gardens in years but you've given me a push to schedule it in next time i'm at the coast. i wonder how it would be in the fall? that's probably my favorite time down there.

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    1. It is my favorite time weather wise too, but hit or miss gardenwise. (April is garden holy grail here) If we are having a normal fall, nice to come early November, you'll have the Sasanqua's blooming at the very least, and all the roses.

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  13. The sculptures are magnificent. Thanks for the virtual tour and the history.

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  14. What an amazing, cool, and beautiful place. Wow. I wish I lived closer so I could drop by!

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