M. Victor and Frances Leventritt Garden
A collection of Shrubs and Vines
A
new garden has taken shape at the Arnold Arboretum. Construction of the
Leventritt Garden was finished in 2002. It promises to be one of the most
significant additions to the collections in the 130 years since the Arboretum's
founding in 1872. When fully planted, terraced beds will feature a diverse
array of over 500 sun-loving ornamental shrubs and 116 vines. Plants have
been selected for noteworthy horticultural or botanical features, with
particular emphasis on exceptional species and cultivars of interest to
the home gardener.
Highlights include the genera Daphne, Viburnum, and Ilex, and dwarf members of the acid-loving rhododendron family. Flowering vines such as Clematis, Actinidia, and Wisteria are well represented; other vines, and even some herbaceous perennials, are included for their horticultural interest. Preference is given to plants displaying multiseasonal interest, making the garden a destination at all times of year. Most important, the collection creates new opportunities for research and teaching in botany, ecology, conservation, horticulture, and landscape design.
The four-acre site, located adjacent to the Dana Greenhouses and Larz Anderson Bonsai Collection, has a character distinct from the shady, parklike grounds of the rest of the Arboretum. Designed by the prize-winning landscape architecture firm of Reed|Hilderbrand Associates, in collaboration with Maryann Thompson Architects, the garden's form was inspired by agricultural landscapes; features include linear planting beds, terrace walls constructed of New England fieldstone, and modular, steel trellis systems for growing and training vines. An open-air pavilion provides a gathering place and additional surfaces for flowering vines. Our renovated collection of dwarf conifers has been sited near the bonsai house as a complementary planting to this exhibit. Planting of the terrace beds began in 2002.
Construction of the garden has been made possible by the generous gift of Frances Leventritt and her son, Daniel, in memory of M. Victor Leventritt, Harvard '35.
Three articles focusing on this garden are available online in Arnoldia volume 62, number 2, 2003.