History of the MG Tour Committee By Pat Lagunas The MG Tour Committee has been functioning since 1994 and continues to this day. There have been 169 tours conducted within the twenty year history from 1994 to 2013. Conducting these tours were 10 different Master Gardeners. Marjorie Merriam acted as chair for four years and co-chair for one with Sharon Knill. Louise Witonsky, who acted as chair for six years from 2002 to 2007, proudly states that within that time she never repeated a tour. Mary Lee Eldridge and Pat Lagunas also acted as co-chairs for six years, from 2008 to 2013, and abided by Louise Witonsly’s rule of never repeating a tour within the six years they were co-chairs. Chairs Year Tour Committee Chair 1994 Marjorie Merriam 1995 Marjorie Merriam 1996 Marjorie Merriam/Sharon Knill 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan 1999 Marjorie Merriam 2000 Marjorie Merriam 2001 Judy Hemley 2002 Louise Witonsky 2003 Louise Witonsky 2004 Louise Witonsky 2005 Louise Witonsky 2006 Louise Witonsky 2007 Louise Witonsky 2008 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas 2009 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas 2010 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas 2011 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas 2012 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas 2013 Mary Lee Eldridge/Pat Lagunas Tour Spreadsheet The spreadsheet that accompanies this narrative lists all of the tours ever offered, showing when each was conducted, month and year, and noting the location. The spreadsheet was devised to help future tour co-chairs plan their tours. Recording the year notes how long it has been since a tour to the location was conducted and the listing of the month notes the season when visited. If recent tours to a popular location have taken place in the spring, it might be time to visit in the fall. 1 of 9 Favorite Tour Locations The favorite spots to visit are probably gauged by those most frequently visited. Mt Cuba and Wave Hill are tied for the most frequently visited, 4 each within twenty years. Eight other locations were visited at least 3 times and 19 at least twice. The remaining 130 out of 169 tours given in 20 years were held only once. Tours Conducted at Least Twice within Twenty Years Location Number of Times Conducted Mt. Cuba 4 Wave Hill 4 Bartrams 3 Chanticleer 3 Cloisters 3 Duke Gardens 3 Leonard Buck 3 Morris Arboretum 3 Mueller’s Bulbs 3 NYBG 3 Bowman’s Wildflower Preserve 3 Rare Find Nursery 3 Winterthur 3 Brooklyn Botanical 2 Colonial Park 2 David Culp 2 Derek Fell 2 Drumthwacket 2 Eve Thyrum 2 Frelinhuysen Arboretum 2 Green Acres Country Club 2 Hortulus 2 Kube Pak 2 Liz Filo 2 Longwood 2 Medford Leas 2 Sayen Gardens 2 Scott Arboretum 2 Stonecrop 2 Lawrenceville School 2 Willowwood 2 2 of 9 Tour Trivia • Longest distance traveled (154 miles one way) - Dumbarton Oaks & National Arboretum in Washington DC 1997 • Favorite locations - Mount Cuba in Delaware & Wave Hill in NYC visited 4 times • Favorite private gardens in PA - Eve Thyrum’s, David Culp’s, and Derek Fell’s each visited twice • Bucks County favorites - Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve, Derek Fell’s Garden, Mille Fleur, Linden Hill Garden, and Hortulus • No longer in existence– Greenhouses at Duke Gardens in Somerville, NJ and Mueller’s Bulbs in New Hope, PA • Favorite NJ Parks – Sayen Gardens in Hamilton, Willowwood, and Leonard Buck Garden in Far Hills, and Colonial Park in Somerset • Favorite NJ private gardener - Liz Filo - tours at two different locations in Princeton in 1995 and 2011 • Nurseries that bear repeat visits – Kube Pak in Allentown, NJ and Rare Find in Jackson, NJ • Still in development and worth another visit – The Highline in NYC • Of historical significance – Bartrams in Philadelphia • One of the most unique tours – Herbarium at the NYBG in 2012 • Can never tire of repeat visits – Chanticleer in Wayne, PA • Collector’s gardens – Ed Shinn and Japanese maples in Wall, NJ ; Wyn’s Eden and hosta in Chadds Ford, PA and dwarf conifers at Watnong Garden in Parsippany, NJ. • One bus tour offered each year since 2007 3 of 9 Tour Location Month Year Chairs Cloisters & Wave Hill NYC, NY May 1994 Marjorie Merriam Stonecrop & Boscobel Cold Sprig, NY/Garrison, NY June 1994 Marjorie Merriam Robin Meadow Farm Ringoes, NJ July 1994 Marjorie Merriam Rodale Institute Kutztown, PA August 1994 Marjorie Merriam Trees of Lawrenceville School Lawrenceville, NJ August 1994 Marjorie Merriam Mt. Cuba Hockessin, DE May 1995 Marjorie Merriam Stony Brook Farm & Marquand Park Princeton, NJ June 1995 Marjorie Merriam Derek Fell's Garden Pipersville, PA June 1995 Marjorie Merriam Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve New Hope, PA May 1996 Marjorie Merriam/Sharon Knill Mueller's Bulb Garden New Hope, PA May 1996 Marjorie Merriam/Sharon Knill Joanna Reed's Garden Malvern, PA May 1996 Marjorie Merriam/Sharon Knill Wave Hill and Cloisters NYC, NY June 1996 Marjorie Merriam/Sharon Knill Dumbarton Oaks Washington, DC April 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Bartram's Garden Philadelphia, PA May 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Sayen Gardens & Barbara Bromley/Agnes Naughton Hamilton, NJ May 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Trees of Lawrenceville School Lawrenceville, NJ June 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Brooklyn Botanic Garden Brooklyn, NY October 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Drumthwacket & Morven Princeton, NJ December 1997 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow Duke Gardens Hillsborough, NJ February 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Winterthur Winterthur, DE April 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Leonard J. Buck Garden & Pvt. Garden Far Hills, NJ May 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Last Stop Garden ? June 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Stover Mill Daylily Gardens Bucks, PA July 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan NY Botanical Garden NYC, NY September 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Morris Arboretum Philadelphia, PA October 1998 Sharon Knill/Gail Critchlow/Karen Colihan Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve New Hope, PA April 1999 Marjorie Merriam Mueller's Bulb Garden New Hope, PA April 1999 Marjorie Merriam Chanticleer Wayne, Pa May 1999 Marjorie Merriam Trenton Marsh Trenton, NJ May 1999 Marjorie Merriam Lawrenceville School Arboretum Lawrenceville, NJ June 1999 Marjorie Merriam 4 of 9 Tour Location Month Year Chairs Lewis Barton Arboretum - Medford Leas Medford, NJ June 1999 Marjorie Merriam Chanticleer Wayne, Pa September 1999 Marjorie Merriam Mt. Cuba Hockessin, DE October 1999 Marjorie Merriam Frank Lewis's garden ? May 2000 Marjorie Merriam Willowwood Arboretum Morristown, NJ May 2000 Marjorie Merriam Colonial Park/Rudolf van der Goot Rose Garden Somerset, NJ June 2000 Marjorie Merriam Meadowbrook Farm Meadowbrook, PA September 2000 Marjorie Merriam Princeton Nurseries Allentown, NJ October 2000 Marjorie Merriam Duke Gardens Hillsborough, NJ February 2001 Judy Hemley Scott Arboretum Swarthmore, PA May 2001 Judy Hemley Rare Finds Nursery Jackson, NJ May 2001 Judy Hemley Princeton University Campus Princeton, NJ August 2001 Judy Hemley Swiss Pines Japanese Garden Malvern, PA September 2001 Judy Hemley Longwood Gardens Kennet Square, PA September 2001 Judy Hemley Philadelphia Horticultural Center Philadelphia, PA November 2001 Judy Hemley Drumthwacket Princeton, NJ December 2001 Judy Hemley Stony Brook Orchids Pennington. NJ January 2002 Louise Witonsky Kube Pak Nursery Allentown, NJ February 2002 Louise Witonsky Stony Brook Orchids Pennington. NJ March 2002 Louise Witonsky Skimmer boat trip -Maurice River Millville, NJ April 2002 Louise Witonsky Peek Preserve Millville, NJ April 2002 Louise Witonsky Winterthur Winterthur, DE May 2002 Louise Witonsky Mt. Cuba Hockessin, DE May 2002 Louise Witonsky Frog Hollow Garden Wilmington, DE May 2002 Louise Witonsky Wave Hill Bronx, NY June 2002 Louise Witonsky Hortulus Wrightstown, PA July 2002 Louise Witonsky Dam sites and parks Mercer County August 2002 Louise Witonsky Scott Arboretum Swarthmore, PA September 2002 Louise Witonsky Tyler Arboretum Media, PA September 2002 Louise Witonsky Rutgers Ext. Cranberry/Blueberry Gardens Chatsworth, NJ October 2002 Louise Witonsky Cranberry Harvest Haines, NJ October 2002 Louise Witonsky 5 of 9 Tour Location Month Year Chairs Green Acres Country Club Lawrenceville, NJ November 2002 Louise Witonsky Waterford Gardens Saddle River, NJ April 2003 Louise Witonsky James A. McFaul Environmental Center Wyckoff, NJ April 2003 Louise Witonsky Benner's Moss Garden New Hope, PA May 2003 Louise Witonsky Hilltown Twp. Bucks County Pearl Buck House & Garden PA May 2003 Louise Witonsky Mueller's Bulb Garden New Hope, PA May 2003 Louise Witonsky Temple U. Ambler Campus Garden Philadelphia, PA June 2003 Louise Witonsky Brooklyn Botanic Garden Brooklyn, NY July 2003 Louise Witonsky Willowwood Arboretum Morristown, NJ August 2003 Louise Witonsky Chanticleer Gardens Villanova, PA September 2003 Louise Witonsky Meadowbrook Farm Philadelphia, PA October 2003 Louise Witonsky Green Acres Country Club Lawrencevill, NJ November 2003 Louise Witonsky Rutgers Eco Complex Bordentown, NJ March 2004 Louise Witonsky Rosade Bonsai Studio New Hope, PA April 2004 Louise Witonsky Peony Land Quakertown, PA May 2004 Louise Witonsky Leonard Buck Gardens Far Hills, NJ June 2004 Louise Witonsky Hackensack River Hacensack, NJ July 2004 Louise Witonsky Longwood Gardens Kennet Square, PA August 2004 Louise Witonsky Bartram Gardens Philadelphia, PA September 2004 Louise Witonsky Dancer Farm New Egypt, NJ October 2004 Louise Witonsky Dragon Agro Nursery Somerset , NJ December 2004 Louise Witonsky