Lost on Long Island, New York, and nary a high rise or even
traffic signal in sight! Instead, there were plenty of produce
stands, quaint farmhouses, pumpkin patches and vineyards. Yes, my
first-ever visit to New York was shocking to say the least.
Expecting high rises, traffic, crowds and rude people, I was
treated to Green Acres. I almost expected to see Mr. Kimball or
Arnold the pig at any moment!
Lost on Long Island, New York, and nary a high rise or even traffic signal in sight! Instead, there were plenty of produce stands, quaint farmhouses, pumpkin patches and vineyards. Yes, my first-ever visit to New York was shocking to say the least. Expecting high rises, traffic, crowds and rude people, I was treated to Green Acres. I almost expected to see Mr. Kimball or Arnold the pig at any moment!
It was all part of the Garden Writers Association’s annual symposium on Long Island. The GWA has nearly 2,000 garden writers across North America. We include newspaper garden columnists like myself, as well as radio and television garden hosts. Even actress Bette Midler is an honorary member for her work with rooftop gardens in New York City.
Amazingly, there are 3 million people living on Long Island (it includes two boroughs of New York City), yet some of the areas the garden writers visited on our garden tours were completely country. We visited the famous Hamptons on the east end of Long Island. I almost expected to see Martha Stewart walking down the street. We also went to the so-called Gold Coast.
Of course, no visit to Long Island would be complete without a journey into New York City. Hopping the Long Island Railroad for the 45-minute trip, I arrived at Penn Station, which is directly underneath fabled Madison Square Garden. I walked to Times Square amid the huge jumbotrons and high rises. I was immediately caught in a mass of humanity that would make a summer visit to Disneyland seem like kindergarten. I could walk faster than the taxis and other vehicles caught in traffic. However, I learned very quickly that a red light really doesn’t mean stop – either for drivers or pedestrians. I caught some of a famous fashion show, which was part of New York Fashion Week in midtown Manhattan. I walked down 42nd Street, and was surprised to find “Chicago,” “Mama Mia,” “Wicked” and other Broadway theaters located within a stone’s throw of each other. I took my picture outside the Ed Sullivan Theater where The Late Show with David Letterman is taped.
My visit into the city also coincided with the third anniversary of the Sept. 11 tragedy. I went to Ground Zero, where I got a close-up view of the giant laser lights that shot up into the sky as high as one could see. I even took my picture with a
group of New York City firefighters there.
Through it all, one thought overwhelmed me. The people of New York City really aren’t any different from us. I never did meet one rude New Yorker. All were more than
willing to give directions to a lost stranger.
Since this is a garden column, I’ll conclude with a little of the garden tours. The Hamptons tour included Ivy Acres Nursery, the largest grower of impatiens on the East Coast, as well as a major grower of geraniums and poinsettias. Owners Jack and Alice Van de Wettering opened their personal garden that included a woodland garden and impressive water lily pond. We also visited the Tarr Garden, which was honored this year by the American Society of Landscape Architects. It featured an impressive alley of 100-year-old plane trees and a reflecting pond.
The Gold Coast tour featured one of the premier public gardens on Long Island: Planting Fields Arboretum Historic State Park. It boasted magnificent specimen trees, a marvelous dahlia garden and an A to Z planting of trees and shrubs.
A great trip indeed!
