An Afternoon at Planting Fields Arboretum

Hello again, friends! Let’s look at how my family and I spent Mother’s Day afternoon (after eating those yummy strawberry shortcakes).

My parents, my brother Stephen, my almost sister-in-law  Emily, Andy and I visited Planting Fields Arboretum in the town of Oyster Bay, on Long Island. Planting Fields is one of several Gold Coast estates (think early 20th century + wealthy NY businessmen + gorgeous gardens & mansions) on Long Island’s North Shore. It is among the few of the remaining mansions that have been turned into parks; two of my favorite such parks are Caumsett State Historic Park and Coindre Hall, both within twenty minutes of my childhood home.

The Arboretum, which was the home of railroad executive William Robertson Coe, sits on 409 acres. Coe Hall is the rather grand structure you see peeking out at the back of the first picture. It was built between 1918 and 1921,  and is open to the public for tours. I hope to visit again in the not-too-distant future so we can check out the interior, too!

Since it was Mother’s Day and sunny, the park was understandably crowded with families. At first it felt a bit claustrophobic, namely in the greenhouse. But what a greenhouse it was! Sort of maze-like, with a tropical feel…and every other person was holding up their phone or camera, trying to get The Perfect Shot of every single flower/plant (I admit, it got a bit frustrating. Didn’t they understand that we wanted the place to ourselves?).

Of course, Andy managed to snap some gems:

The architecture (Tudor Revival) makes you feel as though you’ve traveled to another time:

And how freakin’ cute is this garden cottage at the other end of the pool??

I was experiencing some camera difficulties and had to let that go to just enjoy being in the moment. We had perfect weather and couldn’t have asked for a more ideal time of year for our first visit to the Arboretum. And my parents enjoyed us making the trip down to see them for a change (I might be getting a tad nostalgic for ‘home’ lately since they put their house on the market…sshh)

Here’s my dad and me:

Stephen, Dad, Mom, me:

And Andy and me in a carpet of flower petals:

Lastly, another shot of the pool from the opposite end:

 

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• Random corny humor via one of my favorite web comics, Cyanide & Happiness
• If you ever find yourself insanely bored, Top Documentary Films might keep you occupied for waaaay too long (I warned you!)
• Two and a half weeks until my San Francisco getaway! This site is a great resource for finding quirky spots all over the city.