The Bartlett Arboretum is Awesome!!!

Bartlett's legacy lives on at preserve
By Rebecca Haynes Weekend Editor Stamford Advocate

You can hike the Black Birch Trail or wander through the Sundial Garden. Or if you prefer, stroll down Azalea Road or take a walk to the Meadow.

With names so inviting and scenery to match, it's hard not to relax on the grounds of Stamford's Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, a 91-acre preserve on Brookdale Road that is a refuge and educational resource.

"It's so nice and peaceful here," Stamford resident Delia Fine said on a recent sunny morning, sipping coffee and reading the newspaper while sitting in an Adirondack chair under the shade of a Korean Evodia Rutaceae tree. "It's a great spot, whether you want to walk your dog or just read the paper. What they do here with trees and plants is extraordinary. More people need to know about it and support it."

Fine said she people-watches during her sojourns to the arboretum once a week or more.

"One day, I felt like I wandered into 'The Sound of Music' when I looked and there was a group of nuns in their habits jogging by," she said. "It's worth the drive over. Fairfield County is pretty fortunate to have a place like this."

Originally the home and research laboratory of Francis Bartlett, the property, then 64 acres, was purchased in 1965 by the state and designated as the Connecticut State Arboretum. Bartlett, founder of the F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Co. and a noted dendrologist, used the property as his home, training school and research laboratory. He assembled a large collection of woody plant specimens from all over the world and created a hybridized blight-resistant chestnut tree now named for him.

After the state bought the property, volunteers spearheaded its transition to the Bartlett Arboretum, creating a foundation that would become the Bartlett Arboretum Association. When it opened in 1966, the grounds were managed by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Operations and programming were managed by the University of Connecticut's Department of Plant Science.

In 2001, the city obtained the title to the land and turned over management responsibility to the Bartlett Arboretum Association. An adjacent 27 acres of city property was added, bringing the total acreage to 91.

Today, 15 acres are lawns and formal gardens. The remaining land includes 10 hiking trails, a 7-acre Red Maple wetland, a pond and a 3-acre wildflower meadow. The arboretum showcases collections of conifers, Champion trees, nut trees and pollarded trees - deciduous trees kept small and compact through rigorous pruning.

The method is common in Europe and Asia and was begun on the property by Bartlett to study pest management, said Jack Dillon, arboretum executivedirector.

"They also provide a really cool-looking sculptural garden," Dillon said.

The most valuable tree on the property is a weeping Japanese hemlock, he said. The tree is a graft created by Bartlett, who inserted a hemlock shoot into the base of a butternut tree. The new tree thrived under Bartlett's care and is now about 80 years old.

Aside from gardens that feature native plants, the arboretum has a tropical garden with plants from Asia and South America.

"Essentially, we want to show people as much diversity as possible," said Eric Morgan, plant collections manager.

Guided hikes and tours are offered regularly. Informal classes on horticulture and gardening also are offered. School and Scout programs engage young people. There also are classes for professional horticulturists.

A farmer's market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. will be offered each Wednesday through September. Summer Music Sundays presents classical music from 10 to 11 a.m., featuring students from the Yale Graduate School of Music. Evening concerts from 5 to 7 p.m. will feature The Wilfers on Sunday; Richard "Cookie" Thomas, July 20; Orrin Star & The Sultans of String, July 27; Ellen Woloshin & Jim Dawson, Aug. 3; Citigrass, Aug. 10; Big Apple'achia, Aug. 17; and Red Molly, Aug. 24. Sunday morning concerts are free with garden admission; evening concerts are $5 for members, $10 for nonmembers and free for ages 16 and younger.

A summer camp program also is under way.

Todd DuPont, director of summer camps, led a group of Saplings - 4- and 5-year-olds - on a nature walk recently. As he helped the young hikers over the rocks embedded in the Rose A. Thielens Memorial Nature Walk and Trail, he began answering questions and reinforcing the themes he raised during their classroom time.

"I see the blue thing," one camper said as the group made its way up the trail, pointing to a small blue triangle painted on a tree.

"What is the blue thing?" DuPont asked, drawing their attention to the trail marker.

Singing birds, buzzing bees, groups of damselflies, chipmunk holes and animal tracks all held the attention of the six small campers during their walk, which included a jaunt through the Red Maple swamp, courtesy of a boardwalk that keeps hikers from getting wet.

"Look at the dragonflies," one young charge said as campers grabbed the binoculars hanging around their necks for a closer look. "No, they're damselflies," said another.

"Is there any butterflies?" one camper asked DuPont.

"If you look for trees with flowers, then you'll see bees and butterflies," DuPont said.

Kate Sutin of Stamford brings her son, Peter, 3, every Wednesday, when admission is free. Recently, they walked through the Sundial Garden, looking at the flowers in bloom.

"He likes the flowers and the trails, the pond and the tulip trail," Sutin said. "He loves the greenhouse the most. My son loves everything that grows. Every day he says, 'Mom, I want to plant something.' "

- Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, 151 Brookdale Road, is open year-round from 8:30 a.m. to sunset. The Visitors Center, which houses a small art gallery and a horticultural resource library, is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday but closed on national holidays. Leashed dogs are welcome on the woodland trails. Admission is free for members, $6 for nonmembers and free for ages 16 and younger, and for everyone on Wednesdays. Call 322-6971 or visit www.bartlettarboretum.org.