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Sometimes the acres of diamonds are right in your own backyard.
On the surface, the three gardens featured in the next few pages—Asticou Azalea Garden in Northeast Harbor, Ecotat Gardens in Hermon, and the gardens at Rogers Farm in Stillwater—are as different as, well, Obama, Clinton, and McCain. But, at their roots, all three gardens were created or are maintained by passionate amateurs with the desire to shape and nurture a corner of God’s living room.
Each is a place that anyone with a drop of chlorophyl in their veins should visit. All three could be vetted in one road trip if your hours happened to be numbered; if not, it is recommended that each place be part of its own perfect summer day.
The Asticou will shock you into silence with its carefully planned aesthetic beauty. Ecotat sings of joy and generosity; Rogers Farm, in full bloom, is like a giant biology experiment where the students (official and otherwise) are having so much fun, it takes total darkness to get some of them to head home. Whether you’re a curious local bloom-lover, a phytophilous tourist, or are simply interested in scoping out what plants can survive in our neck of the woods, we encourage you to attend this free three-garden party. No heels necessary.
ASTICOU AZALEA GARDEN
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: The Asticou Azalea Garden is modeled after a classic Japanese garden, with a raised stepping stone bridge, serene pools, paths, and benches for meditation—and in the spring, a riotous rainbow of azalea blooms. No trip to Acadia National Park is complete without swinging over to Northeast Harbor to take in this lovely labor of love, now owned and maintained by the Mount Desert Land and Garden Preserve.
THE BACK 40: In the late 1950s, Charles Savage, owner of the Asticou Inn and self-taught landscape designer, created this 2.3-acre gem in order to preserve some of the plants from the Beatrix Farrand estate. Beatrix Farrand was a landscape design pioneer known for her use of “rooms” and native plants. Unable to raise the funds to turn her estate into a learning center, she dismantled her Reef Point estate rather than see it fall into disrepair after her passing. Savage, with the help of the John D. Rockefeller Foundation, purchased the plants and created their new home.
LOCATION: Route 3/198 in Northeast Harbor, just outside of town.
ECOTAT GARDENS
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: At Ecotat Gardens in Hermon, irises, lilies, and over 1,500 other perennials peek out like hidden treasures in the little-known gem. The 91-acre property, home to 55 gardens and 280 varieties of trees, was originally the lifelong project of Howard and Ruth Crosby; today it relies heavily on volunteers. Funds from annual plant sales, tea parties, and concerts, along with private donations, help to support this local labyrinth of cold-climate perennials.
THE BACK 40: The Crosbys spent 55 years on the Ecotat property, raising five children and running the Hermon Motor Court. When Howard retired from UMaine, he caught his wife’s gardening fever; in 1995, the couple established the Ecotat Trust, to which they donated all their land and their home.
LOCATION: At the top of Miller Hill on Route 2 in Hermon.
ROGERS FARM DEMONSTRATION
& TRIAL GARDENS
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: Rogers Farm, owned by the University of Maine, Orono, is the home of multiple prolific microcosms. It is the home of the Penobscot County Master Gardener Demonstration Garden, a three-quarter-acre plot used by 40 to 50 master gardener volunteers to fulfill their study requirement through various projects, from a luminescent “Moon Garden” (left), to pedagogical patches of herbs, perennials, ornamental plants, and shrub roses. Rogers Farm also features annual plant trials (see above and opposite page). These instructive rows give locals a priceless glimpse into what ”hot” plants and seeds actually make it in these parts.
THE BACK 40: UMaine students also use Rogers Farm to run a community-supported agriculture program called the Black Bear Food Guild. The guild grows organic vegetables in a student-managed three-acre garden, with 60 shareholders partaking of the bounty. Extra produce is sold at the Orono Farmers Market and at a farm stand at Rogers Farm.
LOCATION: Bennoch Road in Stillwater, the road connecting Stillwater Avenue and Gilman Falls Avenue in Old Town.
On the surface, the three gardens featured in the next few pages—Asticou Azalea Garden in Northeast Harbor, Ecotat Gardens in Hermon, and the gardens at Rogers Farm in Stillwater—are as different as, well, Obama, Clinton, and McCain. But, at their roots, all three gardens were created or are maintained by passionate amateurs with the desire to shape and nurture a corner of God’s living room.
Each is a place that anyone with a drop of chlorophyl in their veins should visit. All three could be vetted in one road trip if your hours happened to be numbered; if not, it is recommended that each place be part of its own perfect summer day.
The Asticou will shock you into silence with its carefully planned aesthetic beauty. Ecotat sings of joy and generosity; Rogers Farm, in full bloom, is like a giant biology experiment where the students (official and otherwise) are having so much fun, it takes total darkness to get some of them to head home. Whether you’re a curious local bloom-lover, a phytophilous tourist, or are simply interested in scoping out what plants can survive in our neck of the woods, we encourage you to attend this free three-garden party. No heels necessary.
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ASTICOU AZALEA GARDEN
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: The Asticou Azalea Garden is modeled after a classic Japanese garden, with a raised stepping stone bridge, serene pools, paths, and benches for meditation—and in the spring, a riotous rainbow of azalea blooms. No trip to Acadia National Park is complete without swinging over to Northeast Harbor to take in this lovely labor of love, now owned and maintained by the Mount Desert Land and Garden Preserve.
THE BACK 40: In the late 1950s, Charles Savage, owner of the Asticou Inn and self-taught landscape designer, created this 2.3-acre gem in order to preserve some of the plants from the Beatrix Farrand estate. Beatrix Farrand was a landscape design pioneer known for her use of “rooms” and native plants. Unable to raise the funds to turn her estate into a learning center, she dismantled her Reef Point estate rather than see it fall into disrepair after her passing. Savage, with the help of the John D. Rockefeller Foundation, purchased the plants and created their new home.
LOCATION: Route 3/198 in Northeast Harbor, just outside of town.
ECOTAT GARDENS
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: At Ecotat Gardens in Hermon, irises, lilies, and over 1,500 other perennials peek out like hidden treasures in the little-known gem. The 91-acre property, home to 55 gardens and 280 varieties of trees, was originally the lifelong project of Howard and Ruth Crosby; today it relies heavily on volunteers. Funds from annual plant sales, tea parties, and concerts, along with private donations, help to support this local labyrinth of cold-climate perennials.
THE BACK 40: The Crosbys spent 55 years on the Ecotat property, raising five children and running the Hermon Motor Court. When Howard retired from UMaine, he caught his wife’s gardening fever; in 1995, the couple established the Ecotat Trust, to which they donated all their land and their home.
LOCATION: At the top of Miller Hill on Route 2 in Hermon.
ROGERS FARM DEMONSTRATION
& TRIAL GARDENS
THE BASIC LANDSCAPE: Rogers Farm, owned by the University of Maine, Orono, is the home of multiple prolific microcosms. It is the home of the Penobscot County Master Gardener Demonstration Garden, a three-quarter-acre plot used by 40 to 50 master gardener volunteers to fulfill their study requirement through various projects, from a luminescent “Moon Garden” (left), to pedagogical patches of herbs, perennials, ornamental plants, and shrub roses. Rogers Farm also features annual plant trials (see above and opposite page). These instructive rows give locals a priceless glimpse into what ”hot” plants and seeds actually make it in these parts.
THE BACK 40: UMaine students also use Rogers Farm to run a community-supported agriculture program called the Black Bear Food Guild. The guild grows organic vegetables in a student-managed three-acre garden, with 60 shareholders partaking of the bounty. Extra produce is sold at the Orono Farmers Market and at a farm stand at Rogers Farm.
LOCATION: Bennoch Road in Stillwater, the road connecting Stillwater Avenue and Gilman Falls Avenue in Old Town.
