Explore The Layered Garden With David Culp

There is no finer source of inspiration for a gardener than David L. Culp, the creator of the famed gardens at Brandywine Cottage in Downingtown, PA, in the area outside of Philadelphia known as the Main Line. The Cottage is the circa-1790 stone farmhouse adjoining two acres that David bought in 1990 and restored to include a multilayered garden. Listed in the Smithsonian Institution Archives of American Gardens, the garden draws hundreds of visitors each year, from March through July, and has been featured several times in Martha Stewart Living and on HGTV.

David is a recipient of the Distinguished Garden Award and the Award of Merit, both from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. A former contributing editor to Horticulture magazine, a prolific writer and chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Hardy Plant Society, David is also vice-president for Sunny Border Nurseries in Kensington, Connecticut, a leading wholesale grower, and a herbaceous perennials instructor at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA.

David, who has been lecturing about gardens nationwide for more than 15 years, will be giving a free talk on Wednesday, May 29, from 7–8:30 pm at Penn State Great Valley, Malvern, PA. He'll share tips for how to recreate the majestic display of Brandywine Cottage and offer a lesson in layering, the concept behind his garden. Layering is the interplanting of many different species in the same area so that as one plant passes its peak, another takes over. The result at Brandywine Cottage is a nonstop parade of color that begins with a tapestry of heirloom daffodils and hellebores (David personally developed the Brandywine Hybrid strain of hellebores) in spring and ends with a jewel-like blend of Asian wildflowers at the onset of winter.

His talk will include how to choose the correct plants by understanding how they grow and change throughout the seasons, how to design a layered garden and tips on maintaining one. As he writes in his book, The Layered Garden (Timber Press), "The key to creating a many-layered garden is understanding and taking advantage of the ways plants grow and change through the seasons and over the years, providing different textures, colors and effects and evoking a variety of feelings. Garden layers are made up of a variety of plants, some with complementary or contrasting colors, others with interesting shapes or textures. Layers are more than just perennials, or annuals, or bulbs, or groundcovers—they are more than just the ground layer of plants that is the sole focus of many gardeners." To illustrate how layering works, David will take attendees on a virtual tour through each part of his celebrated garden.To register for the Malvern talk, go to http://layeredgarden.eventbrite.com/

For more events, including appearances throughout the northeast through the fall, visit David's website at http://www.davidlculp.com/events.htm and to explore his book, which is filled with the exquisite photography of Rob Cardillo, go to www.timberpress.com/books/layered_garden/culp/9781604692365

About the photographs. From Brandywine Cottage, one of the ruins, top left, and a spectacular terrace, top right, photographed by Rob Cardillo and courtesy of the photographer. To see more of Rob's lush photography, visit www.robcardillo.com