On a recent summer Saturday morning, a group of photographers came to George Washington’s Ferry Farm for a hike on the trails around the property. A lot of wildlife call Ferry Farm home, and we hoped to capture some of it. We saw many birds, a turtle, and a rabbit eating breakfast in the grass as well as plenty of beautiful flowers. Unfortunately, many animals – including the doe and fawn that have been spotted frequently on the property this year – seemed shy that morning, but we are planning another wild photography session at Ferry Farm in the fall.
If you’d like to explore wilds of Ferry Farm yourself, you can purchase a self-guided grounds only tour upon arrival at the Ferry Farm Visitor Center. Ferry Farm is currently open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Saturday and from Noon to 5 p.m., Sunday.
Jessica Burger Manager of Marketing, Communications, and Information Technology
While Historic Kenmore remains closed temporarily because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, nature’s seasons move forward as normal. One of the highlights of spring in Kenmore’s gardens is the first blooms of our tulips and other flowers. Since visitors cannot see the beauty of these flowers in person, we wanted to share some photos for everyone to enjoy.
While the various restorations of Kenmore itself over the years are usually the star attraction for visitors to the site, there was another restoration, equally as important, that occurred on the property in its early years as a museum. Kenmore’s gardens are well-known for their beauty now, but when the Kenmore Association acquired the property in the 1920s, the grounds were in a sad state. It would take generations of work and ingenuity from a variety of people and groups to return the gardens to their former glory.
Perhaps the most important moment in the history of Kenmore’s gardens was when the Garden Club of Virginia decided to tackle them as their first-ever restoration project in 1929. The Garden Club established Virginia Garden Week specifically to raise funds for the project. Their success in both completing the first restoration of Kenmore’s gardens, and in creating a significant annual event across the Commonwealth of Virginia lead to more than 50 historic garden restorations since, and the celebration of its 83rd Historic Garden Week next week.
In 1940, the next phase of Kenmore’s garden restoration began when the Garden Club agreed to fund the implementation of designs by the renowned Southern landscape architect Charles Gillette. His plans included the “secret garden” area in the northeast corner of the grounds, the brick wall that currently surrounds the property, and Kenmore’s iconic brick gate on Winchester Street. Gillette would continue his work at Kenmore into the 1950s.
Page 1 of a letter from Hetty Harrison to Annie Fleming Smith dated June 26, 1940 informing the Kenmore Association that the Garden Club of Virginia had selected Kenmore as its restoration project and that renowned Southern landscape architect Charles Gillette would provide the design.
Page 2 of the Harrison-Smith letter
Ceremonial tree-planting on the Kenmore grounds, 1938.
Most recently, the Garden Club of Virginia undertook another restoration of the gardens in 1992. The Club remains a vital supporter of Kenmore’s landscape efforts to this day.
During Historic Garden Week, enjoy Kenmore’s gardens and experience the house in a new way! On Tuesday, April 26, try a specialty tour highlighting one of three topics—the restoration of Kenmore at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., American Revolution at Noon and 3:00 p.m., and ceramics at 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. For more information and to view the specialty tours monthly schedule, click here.
Meghan Budinger
Aldrich Director of Curatorial Operations
Historic Kenmore’s beautiful grounds and gardens require much work to remain beautiful. On a recent morning, staff mowed and weeded flower beds in the unending effort to make the flowers and grounds look their best.
Historic Kenmore and George Washington’s Ferry Farm always need volunteers to help with our gardens. If you might be interested in volunteering, visit http://kenmore.org/foundation/volunteers.html for more information.
George Washington’s Boyhood Home at Ferry Farm offers a wonderful blend of woods, fields, wetlands, and riverfront. Fox, groundhogs, snakes, lizards, turtles, and deer make Ferry Farm their home. In the meadows, bushy heads of grass seeds provide an important source of food for birds. Beautiful flowers and majestic trees abound across the landscape. A few weeks ago, we set out on a nature walk around Ferry Farm to enjoy the flora and fauna.
Ferry Farm
Cherries on the cherry trees in the Demonstration Garden.
Daylilies in the Demonstration Garden.
The tickseed variety of Coreopsis.
Magnolia bloom
Magnolia fruit
Tall grass
Groundhog near the river.
The Rappahannock River
Trail through the woods along the river.
Wild strawberry
Ferry Farm’s Wild Meadow
Bluebird peaks from inside a birdhouse.
Bluebird in flight.
Yarrow
Crown vetch
Trail through the Meadow.
Learn more about Ferry Farm’s natural environment here.
Scenes from the Demonstration Garden at George Washington’s Ferry Farm on a peaceful summer morning. The garden contains a variety of colonial-era plants that would have been grown by the Washington family like tobacco, corn, and squash. There are also modern flower species plus birds and other wildlife.
Lives & Legacies 
