The Bartram’s Garden still has a wide range of spring and summer flowers for sale that could grace any Southwest yard or porch. For those which have a shady area, consider some charming white Virginia sweetspire as background for some cool green cinnamon fern. Then in the foreground Bartram’s gardeners suggest some Foamflower, Pennsylvania sedge, or stonecrop sedum. These delightful, low-level plantings provide a “beautiful show of flowers and texture all summer long,” as described in Bartram’s online brochure.*
If you are looking for an outing with friends or family, the Bartram’s website has connections with 30 other gardens with public access – from The Woodlands down the street at 4000 Woodland Avenue to the Hagley Museum in Wilmington, the spectacular Winterthur Museum, or Longwood in the Chadds Ford area (some have entry fees.) Visit www.bartramsgarden.org for details.
If one decides to stop off at Bartram’s Garden there is free boating and kayaking on the broad, placid Schuylkill River as a way to cool down on a hot summer Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (kids with adults; free life preservers provided.)
While one is there, it’s worthwhile checking out the Sankofa Farm down by the river where young volunteers are growing a wide range of vegetables, berries and fruits for sale at the Clark Park on Saturdays and Bartram’s own street-side kiosk outside the entrance at 5400 Lindbergh Blvd. on Thursday afternoons. https://bartramsgarden.org/fill-your-garden-with-plants-from-ours/
