Friends Committee G Winter 2010 azette www.FortTryonParkTrust.org FORT TRYON PARK’S 75TH YEAR Painting with Plants in the Heather Garden Jennifer M. Hoppa, Administrator of Northern Manhattan Parks eing a trained artist sive, as well as give a blueprint has been very im- to those who will be tending “B portant to my work,” the garden daily to help guide says Lynden B. Miller, an the ongoing maintenance.” acclaimed public garden de- Both Miller and Brands signer and champion of public appreciate the uniqueness parks. This year, Miller is help- of Fort Tryon Park with its ing develop a Framework Plan Photo by Marechal Brown views of the Hudson River, for enhancing and sustaining the Rockefeller family con- Fort Tryon Park’s 75-year-old, nection, and its expansive gar- Heather Garden. dens. “Ronda’s ¼ scale draw- “Gardening is an art form ing of the perennial bed hung using many of the same ele- over my ten foot long draft- ments as painting,” says Miller, ing table,” Miller exclaimed. adding, “I paint with plants The Heather Garden’s pe- using line, form, color and rennial bed is 600 feet long. texture.” Miller also used to Both designers see the need make large abstract landscape for large swaths of plants and collages. “When I began to repetition as keys to making design gardens,” she says, “I the long perennial bed suc- realized that a garden is also a cessful. “We want to create collage — a group of disparate a consistent and congenial elements brought together to Experts assess soil issues, from left, Ronda Brands, relationship between the pe- form a composition made of Lynden Miller and Fort Tryon Park Gardener Marcia Garibaldi. rennial bed and the heather living plants.” bed, while ensuring they read Miller’s associate designer, Ronda message in her new book, Parks, as individual pieces of a larger whole,” Brands, comments that in the Plants and People: Beautifying the says Miller. historic Heather Garden, many col- Urban Landscape: “Good parks make In conjunction with the Fort Tryon lage elements are already in place: the good cities.” Miller and Brands are Park gardeners, Miller and Brands rocky topography, the extensive heaths currently working on projects at the have mapped the garden’s existing con- and heathers and the unique collec- Museum of Modern Art, Columbia ditions, helped tackle soil remediation tions of perennials. Brands says, “One University, Princeton University, in problem areas, and identifi ed ways to of the challenges of improving the Stony Brook University, Hudson ensure year round interest throughout the garden is that it is already established. River Park, Hanover Square, and the garden. With the support of the Fort We want to reinvigorate it through US Supreme Court. Tryon Park Trust and the collabora- the Framework Plan, but make it true Despite their collective wealth of ex- tion between Miller, Brands and the to the history of the park’s design and perience, Miller and Brands recognize Fort Tryon Park gardeners, the larg- ensure strong structure and form.” the expertise of the Fort Tryon garden- est heath and heather collection in the In addition to numerous horti- ers and are working closely with them Northeast will be enjoyed for genera- cultural awards, Miller may be best on all plant selections and developing tions to come. known for reclaiming the histor- maintenance and operations plans for Come see the garden collage unfold ic Conservatory Garden in Central the garden’s long-term needs. “So much this spring. Park in the early 1980s and for help- knowledge and material already existed,” If you would like to help support the ing revitalize Bryant Park. The Wall says Brands, “Now we can document it, Heather Garden Framework Plan, please Street Journal summarized Miller’s strengthen it, and make it more cohe- contact [email protected]. ■ Nancy’s Letter: Refl ections Dr. Ruth on the This year we will celebrate the 75th anniversary of Fort Park’s 75 Years Tryon Park, and it seems to be a good moment to look back “There’s been a lot of ‘progress’ in the last 75 and refl ect upon what the park has meant to me for the past years, but as someone who can barely fi gure ten years. out how to make a call on her iPhone, when Without a doubt, the park is one of the main reasons I I come to the Heather Garden and see the improvements that have been bestowed by moved to Washington Heights in the fi rst place. I remember our Parks Department and the Fort Tryon the exact point in time when I realized I had to move back to Park Trust on this little piece of heaven, that’s New York City from California: I was soaking up the sunset progress I can relate to,” says Dr. Ruth, adding, on Linden Terrace, looking west, the trees below silhouetted by “Everyone whose soul could use a little pick me up should come and visit and join in some of the blazing red-orange of the sky. I had never seen anything the 75th Anniversary celebration events.” so beautiful. Right then and there, I made up my mind I was coming back. The Hudson River view over the treetops was calling to me more strongly than the equally breathtaking view across San Francisco Bay. Since then, the park has become my refuge in times of trouble and despair. It’s been my backyard where I express my inner gardener and sink my fi ngers into the earth. Through my volunteer work with the Friends of Fort Tryon Park and now with the Fort Tryon Park Trust, it has become a kind of social club, introducing me to hundreds of my neighbors and members of the Trust’s board. And fi ve years ago, it became my big green gym, a lovely place to become healthier and to help others become healthier Photo by Malcolm Pinckney, NYC Parks & Recreation Photo by Malcolm Pinckney, through our organized fi tness programs, as well as impromptu walks and rounds of ping pong in the subway terrace. As this unique and glorious park has become more and more a part of my life, it has changed it for the better. I simply can’t imagine living without it. Can you? See you in the park, Nancy Bruning Dr. Ruth Westheimer, accompanied by Parks Chair, Friends Committee Commissioner Adrian Benepe, is a Trust Board Fort Tryon Park Trust Member and the Honorary Chair of the 75th Anniversary Committee. Fort Tryon Park Trust’s mission is to promote the restoration, preservation, and enhancement of this historic and scenic landmark for the benefi t and use of the surrounding community Mission and all New Yorkers. • Fort Tryon Park Trust Website: www.FortTryonParkTrust.org • Friends Committee Email: [email protected] • To volunteer in the Heather Garden: [email protected] • Northern Manhattan Parks Administrator, Jennifer Hoppa: 212-795-1388, Ext. 300 or [email protected] • Council Member Robert Jackson: 212-928-1322 • To report dangerous conditions or graffi ti and other vandalism: 311 • Forestry (tree pruning, dead tree and limb removal): 311 • For event permits, parties of 20 or more and professional photography, please visit www.nycgovparks.org, and click on special events. Contacts 2 Friends Committee Gazette Volunteers Plant 1,000 Bulbs Mike Klein Fort Tryon Park 1935 to 1945 he fi nal beautifi cation events of 2009 yield- ed a great number of newcomers to Fort Tryon T Park. On September 13 an energetic group of about 40 volunteers turned out despite the intermit- tent rain. Many of these volunteers were recruited by Street Project (www.streetproject.org), which has ral- lied volunteers for these events throughout the year. (Thank you, Street Project!) Volunteers concentrat- ed on cleaning out the abandoned horseshoe pitch area, located just north of the volleyball courts, restor- ing the sightlines and making the area safer. Clean up efforts yielded over 50 bags of leaves and trash. For the bulb planting event on October 30, a record 175 volunteers amassed. Volunteers included employ- Photo courtesy of the Olmsted Archives ees of United Light, members of the fraternities Beta Alpha Psi and Sigma Lambda Beta, as well as students from St. John’s, Fordham, Baruch, Pace and New York Universities, and our regulars from Street Project. The groups prepped and planted bulbs in the Margaret Corbin Circle and the upper Subway Terrace, raked London plane trees shade Anne Loftus Playground in 1935 and today. leaves on the upper and lower Subway Terrace, weed- ed and removed invasive plants from the slope off of n honor of the park’s 75th year, the Friends Committee of the Fort Tryon Fort Washington Avenue, collected trash from behind Park Trust would like to acknowledge and bring to life memories of the the stone walls, and cleared English Ivy off of the Ipark from current and former community members. Susan Daglian, a res- trees. In total, the volunteers planted just over 1,000 ident of 187th Street, shares her story: bulbs consisting of a variety of tulips, Narcissus, Allium “My father, Kourken A. Daglian, worked in Fort Tryon Park as a Playground Globemasters (ornamental onions), and Vanguard Director in the summer of 1942. The playground was the one at Dyckman Crocus Vernus. Rosa Naparstek provided a wonderful and Broadway (Anne Loftus Playground). In 1940 he took the civil service spread of refreshments, bagels, fruit, and granola bars test and placed sixth. First, he worked at a park on East 108th Street, and then for all the volunteers.