IU10 Day Two Part One-Landcraft Environments

Out of all the places we were scheduled to visit during IU10, I was most excited about the personal garden of Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith, owners of Landcraft Environments, a wholesale grower of tropicals, tender perennials and unusual annuals located in Mattituck.  Those of you who live in the northeast and buy lots of tender plants may recognize their signature HOT PLANTS brand nursery containers.  In my neck of the woods only the more discriminating nurseries stock them.  Every year I buy a ***few***.

A quick google search will show that I'm not the first blogger to visit Dennis and Bill's garden and I likely won't be the last. Pictures don't do the garden justice though so if you ever get a chance to visit in person, jump on it. Last weekend they participated in The Garden Conservancy Open Days.  If my memory serves me this is a once a season event.

From the shady side street, the attractive restored saltbox home gives few clues to the garden within.  Not until you begin to stroll up the driveway to the garden gate do you realize that this is no ordinary garden.  Along the way you pass beds stuffed with artistic combinations of bodacious tropical plants.  Emphasis is on foliage.  Excitement and anticipation build.  This is going to be good!

With the exception of the front of the house the entire garden is fenced to keep the hooved minions of Satan at bay.  Just outside the entry gate was this large tree draped in a cloak of Hydrangea petiolaris with a supporting cast of shady characters at it's feet.

 

 

 

Window boxes were overflowing with a creative medley of tender plants.  Oh to have a commercial greenhouse filled with tropical treasures at one's disposal!  

 

 

 

 

Once inside the gate we gathered in this impeccably maintained courtyard overflowing not only with plants but with attention to detail.  

 

 

 

 

 

Details like this playful mixture of foliage against the garage wall.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sun drenched deck and patio areas created the perfect stage to display succulent collections.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And if the garden wasn't fabulous enough, check out the house.

 

 





 

 

 

 

 

I loved the house. 

 

 

 

 

L-O-V-E-D the house.

 

 

 

 

Anyone relaxing on the covered back deck is treated to this long view of the garden.  In the distance is a garden area Dennis and Bill referred to as the controlled meadow. 

 

 

 

 

Flanking the lawn on the walk to the meadow are more beds chock full of tender and tropical plants.  A chilly, wet spring and late start left these plants sulking a bit in mid June but come August I imagine this garden is just an explosion of color. 

 

 

 

 

Bill and Dennis couldn't have been more generous and gracious with their time and knowledge.  Our group consists almost exclusively of zone pushing plant geeks who couldn't have been more appreciative.

 

 

Bill talks plants with part of our group

 

 

 

 

While Dennis leads the rest of the group through the meadow

 

 

 

  

 

Not too many roses make me stand up and take notice but this huge purple rambler got my attention.  Unfortunately this picture does not do it justice.  Weather conditions were beautiful for this trip but the clear sunny days made picture taking a challenge.  Most of mine came out overexposed to a point where no amount of photo editing could recapture the actual details.

 



 







 

 

Succulents in containers lurked around every corner.  I've just recently begun dabbling in this genre of plant design.  Fortunately for me I don't have all that much sun or interest to tend to plants indoors because I could see how quickly collecting these could become an obsession.



 

 

 

 

One of the many garden rooms we encountered throughout the three acre garden.

 

 

 

 

The Tiki House was an unexpected surprise in the middle of the garden.  At this point I would have been perfectly content to declare that it was noon somewhere and crack open a bottle of wine but we still had places to go and gardens to see.

 

 

 



 

Yes, we're still on Long Island.

 

 

 

 

What better place for a bunch of plant geeks to spend a beautiful summer morning?  Even if this garden was the only one I visited during the trip I would have gone home happy.  Thanks so much Dennis and Bill!  Please keep stocking CT nurseries with your Hot Plants.

 

And what better way to conclude a swoon worthy garden tour than some good food.  Following Dennis and Bill's suggestion, we had a delicious lunch at Love Lane Kitchen in downtown Mattituck.  Once again I have to give kudos to a restaurant for efficiently handling a group of 12 on such short notice.  Timing is everything though and we usually try to eat on the early side of mealtimes.

 

Since I've already rambled om long enough, I'm going to save the second half of this day for another post.  With four bloggers on this trip, good coverage was guaranteed.  My friend Deanne posted her take of the Landcraft garden weeks ago and although we probably took some of the same pictures, hers are infinitely better than mine.  When I took a looked at the calendar and realized over a month has passed since this visit I was honestly floored.  Life is so much about too much to do, so little time, isn't it?

 

Sue~