Local Green

Blaine House, Augusta
Designed by the nationally known Olmsted Brothers landscape architectural firm, the grounds are divided into four sections, including the Governor’s Garden and a shrub garden. Open Tuesdays through Thursdays from 2 to 4 p.m. Corner of State and Capitol St. 207-287-2121.

Blaine Memorial, Augusta
A three-acre park designed by the Olmsted Brothers in 1920, the resting place of former presidential candidate James G. Blaine has fine views to the Kennebec and many original plantings. Blaine Ave. and Green St. 207-287-2301.

Kennebec Valley Garden Club Park, Augusta
Two acres of perennials, birdhouses, trees, and a children’s butterfly and hummingbird garden. Augusta Civic Center. 207-622-1124.

Viles Arboretum, Augusta
The state’s official plant collection includes three hundred species of trees and shrubs, which share the landscape with a rock garden, lilacs, rhododendrons, and hostas. Open year-round from dawn to dusk. 153 Hospital St. 207-621-0031. www.vilesarboretum.org [2]

Mount Hope Cemetery, Bangor
Established as the second garden cemetery in America in 1834, Mount Hope sits on three hundred acres of greenery dotted with ponds and monuments. 1048 State St. 207-945-6589.

College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor
The library grounds of the progressive school include terraces designed by Beatrix Farrand. 105 Eden St. 207-288-5015. www.coa.edu/index.htm [3]

Jordan Pond House Flower Gardens, Bar Harbor
The toil of Scott Hadley’s work includes perennial beds of dahlias, delphiniums, monkshood, and more. Some people think the gardens are better than the famous popovers made inside. Park Loop Rd. 207-288-3338.

City Park, Bath
This community green of five acres features 1880s Victorian-style landscaping, a pond, and a fountain. Overlooks the Kennebec River. Summer St. 207-443-5143.

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay
The largest botanical garden in New England boasts 248 acres that include display gardens, native plant collections, a library, and a visitor’s center. Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Adults $12,
Seniors (65+) $10, Children (3-17) $6, Children under 5 are free. Members are admitted free year-round. Barter’s Island Rd. 207-633-4333. www.mainegardens.org [4]

Amen Farm Garden, Brooklin
An arboretum with 150 trees uncommon to Maine. Naskeag Point Rd. 207-359-8982.

Camden Public Library Garden
The colorful perennial garden in front of the venerable Camden Public Library manages to look fresh and interesting regardless of the month or the weather. Also worth perusing is the amphitheater next door, designed by Fletcher Steele in 1929; across the street is a park laid out at about the same time by the famed Olmsted Brothers. 55 Main St. 207-236-3440. www.librarycamden.org [6]

Merryspring Nature Center, Camden
The center’s sixty-six acres include herb, rose, and perennial gardens, as well as meadows, woodlands, a ten-acre arboretum, and an educational center with one of the finest libraries of gardening books in the region. Open from dawn to dusk. 30 Conway Rd. (off Rte. 1 near Camden-Rockport line). 207-236-2239. www.merryspring.org [7]

Lyndon Park, Caribou
A grassy half-acre in busy downtown Caribou planted with perennials. Main St. 207-493-4225.

Christina’s Garden at Olson House, Cushing
The Farnsworth Museum, which maintains the famed Olson House, has re-created the small annual garden on the premises from historical research. Hathorn Point Rd. 207-354-0102.

Colonel Black Mansion, Ellsworth
The formal garden at the 1824 house museum was laid out in 1903 and restored in the 1990s based on the original plans. Also on the grounds are 185 acres threaded with community walking trails. Open daily from sunrise to sunset. 81 West Main St. 207-667-8671. woodlawnmuseum.com/site/index.php

Gilsland Farm Sanctuary, Falmouth
Headquarters of the Maine Audubon Society, Gilsland Farm sits on sixty-five acres of fields, woods, and marshes along the Presumpscot Estuary. Wildflowers and peony gardens attract flower folks. Open year-round, Mondays through Saturdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sundays 1 to 4 p.m. 20 Gilsland Farm Rd. 207-781-2330. www.maineaudubon.org [8]

Harrington House, Freeport
Gardens with antique roses and perennials are among the draws at this circa 1830 Federal, which now houses a gift shop that benefits the local historical society. 45 Main St. 207-865-3170.

Pettengill Farm Garden, Freeport
An 1810 saltbox overlooks 140 acres of fields, woods, salt marshes, and antique apple orchards on the Harraseeket River. Its gardens feature historic wild roses, lilacs, cedars, and new plantings of old-fashioned perennials. 45 Main St. 207-865-3170.

Stone House Conference Center, Freeport
A demonstration center for organic gardening, this former estate has perennial and tulip beds and heather and rhododendron gardens overlooking the Harraseeket River and Freeport Harbor. 642 Wolfe’s Neck Rd. 207-780-5961.

Tidebrook Conservation Trust, Freeport
Old orchards fill with summer wildflowers, native and ornamental flowering shrubs blossom, and formal gardens sit near the house on this forty-five-acre conservation easement. 38 Bartol Island Rd. 207-865-3856.

Ecotat Gardens, Hermon
An eighty-nine-acre land trust with gardens of more than 1,500 perennials, woodlands with more than 140 species of trees, and on-site libraries for both gardeners and birders. Open from dawn to dusk. Rte. 2. 207-848-3485.

Kennebunk Free Library’s Children’s Garden
Seacoast Garden Club designed this award-winning children’s garden, which includes herbs, flowers, and even a touch and sniff section. Open from dawn to dusk. 112 Main St. 207-985-2173. kennebunklibrary.org

St. Anthony’s Shrine and Franciscan Monastery, Kennebunk
Designed by the Olmsted Brothers in the early twentieth century, this estate, which is now home of Franciscans, is known for its rhododendrons. The grounds sprawl for twenty-five acres with walking paths, a boardwalk, and a pavilion overlooking the Kennebunk River. Beach Ave. 207-967-2011.

Cottage Garden, Lubec
Pathways, benches and even a gazebo can be found within these two acres of old-fashioned roses, delphiniums, and wildflowers, all situated not far from beautiful Cobscook Bay on property owned by two former Vermont nursery owners. Open to the public daily from dawn to dusk. North Lubec Rd. 207-733-2902.

Acadia National Park, Mount Desert Island
From the flower gardens of Jordan Pond House to the Wild Gardens of Acadia at Sieur de Monts Spring, the state’s only national park has a lot to offer flower fans. And its landscape architecture — designed with help from the Olmsted Brothers and Beatrix Farrand — is not so bad either. Across Mount Desert Island. Entrance fees are $20 from June 23 to early October; $10 from May 1 to June 22 and early October to October 31. 207-288-3338. www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm [9]

Asticou Azalea Garden, Northeast Harbor
Charles Savage designed this Japanese-inspired garden, which includes plants rescued from Farrand’s Reef Point estate. Open from the middle of May to end of October, dawn to dusk daily; a $3 donation is suggested. Corner of Rte. 198 and 3. 207-276-3727.

Petite Plaisance, Northeast Harbor
At the former home of French literary great Marguerite Yourcenar, the garden is full of wild flowers, fruit trees, and walking paths. Visitation allowed by appointment. South Shore Rd. 207-276-3940.

Thuya Gardens and Thuya Lodge, Northeast Harbor
Designed by Charles Savage, Thuya incorporates specimen trees and shrubs from Farrand’s Reef Point estate, along with its long beds of perennials and annuals. Open until 7:30 p.m. $3. Rte. 3. 207-276-5130. www.acadiamagic.com/ThuyaGarden.html [10]

Fay Hyland Botanical Plantation, Orono
The ten-acre parcel along the Stillwater at the University of Maine features woody plants labeled with scientific and common names. College Ave. 207-581-2540.

Lyle Littlefield Ornamentals Trial Garden, Orono
Sixteen acres of plantings — 2,500 in all — from lilacs, rhododendrons, and magnolias to woody herbaceous plants and crabapple trees. University of Maine. 207-581-3112.

Roger Clapp Greenhouses, Orono
Ten thousand square feet of tropical and desert plants from around the world on the campus of the University of Maine. Open Mondays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 207-581-3112.

Mary Ann Lancey Manson Park, Pittsfield
Yet another Olmsted Brothers’ creation, the forty-acre park sits on the Sebasticook River. 207-487-3136.

Deering Oaks, Portland
This fifty-one-acre park is at the heart of Portland’s park system. Designed by William Goodwin in the 1870s, Deering Oaks is on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s distinguished by its high canopy of oaks, pines, spruces, and ornamental trees, and it’s home to a hybrid tea rose garden with more than six hundred species. It’s best to visit during the day though; locals avoid the park at night. Deering and Forest Ave. 207-874-8793.

Deering Oaks Rose Circle, Portland
Thirty-eight varieties of roses provide a summerlong sensory overload in this collection of six hundred bushes. Open 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Corner of Deering and Forest Ave. 207-874-8793.

Evergreen Cemetery, Portland
Laid out in 1854, this three-hundred-acre park is popular with strollers and dog walkers. It’s also on the National Register of Historic Places. 672 Stevens Ave. Open 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. 207-874-8793.

Longfellow Arboretum, Portland
Three acres of trees not native to Maine, planted in 1976 by the Longfellow Garden Club and the City of Portland. Payson Park. Open 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. 207-874-8793.

Post Office Park, Portland
A postage-stamp-sized park on the site of the city’s first post office features plantings of native trees and shrubs and a boulder display representing the islands of Casco Bay. Corner of Exchange and Middle St. 207-874-8793.

Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland
Two small gardens built in the late 1990s in two styles are among the many draws at the Farnsworth: one is Victorian in style, the other features native plants and perennials. 356 Main St. 207-596-6457. www.farnsworthmuseum.org [11]

Vesper Hill Children’s Chapel, Rockport
A nondenominational chapel in a garden setting, the Children’s Chapel overlooks the ocean and is extraordinarily popular for weddings. Open 9 a.m. to sundown. Chapel Road, off Calderwood Lane. 207-236-2239.

Sanford Parks
Two parks designed by noted Boston landscape architect Arthur Schurcliff in the 1930s: Gowen Memorial Park, site of an impressive stone gazebo, and Central Park, where stands a statue of local mill owner Thomas Goodall. Main St. 207-324-9130.

Coburn Park, Skowhegan
These twelve acres along the Kennebec are planted with more than two hundred species of trees, and Skowhegan citizens add flowers and shrubs to them. Open 7 a.m. to dusk. Lower Water St. 207-474-3324.

Hamilton House, South Berwick
The Colonial Revival garden at this 1785 manse overlooking the Salmon Falls River reportedly dates back to 1898, and it was renovated in the late nineties. Walking trails wander through the thirty-five-acre grounds, which are open from dawn to dusk. June 1 – Oct 15. 40 Vaughan’s Lane. 207-384-5269.

Bernard McLaughlin Garden, South Paris
The McLaughlin Foundation continues to preserve the vast perennial gardens planted and maintained by the late Bernard McLaughlin. May 1 – Oct., daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 97 Main St. 207-743-8820. www.mclaughlingarden.org [12]

Spring Point Arboretum South Portland
On the campus of the Southern Maine Community College, this one-acre arboretum was planted by the city of South Portland in 1981 and features seventy species of trees, shrubs, vines, and groundcovers. Fantastic views of Casco Bay and places to picnic and walk are also on-site. 207-767-7670.

Marrett House, Standish
An extensive perennial garden complements a house museum that dates to the 1700s. June 1 – Oct. 15. Rte. 25. 207-642-3032.

Rogers Farm, Stillwater
The demonstration garden of the Penobscot County Master Gardeners’ program features a white garden, a children’s garden, a perennial border, annuals, herbs, vegetables, and small fruits. University of Maine, Stillwater Ave. 207-942-7396.

Perkins Arboretum, Waterville
The entire campus of Colby College is a state wildlife preserve, and the school’s 128-acre arboretum is dedicated to birds as well as trees. Mayflower Hill. 207-859-4000.

Nickels-Sortwell House, Wiscasset
Next to the noted Sunken Gardens of Wiscasset, this 1807 house museum has landscaping originally designed in 1926 by Charles Eliott II. Open Fridays through Sundays, June 1 – Oct. 15. Rte. 1. 207-882-6218.

Sunken Garden, Wiscasset
This hidden perennial garden, just off Route 1 in the foundation of the former Hilton House hotel, was a gift from Alvin Sortwell to his wife and is now open to the public. Corner of Main and Federal St. 207-882-8200.