Greenwood -- Tiverton Farm

Tiverton, a 466.67-acre property in Greenwood, Virginia, dates to the early 1800s when it was part of extensive farmland owned by James Marshall Bowen and his wife Frances Starke Bowen. After changing hands multiple times, Marie Owsley purchased the farm in October 1900, tore down the existing house, and built a mansion that was completed in 1906. At that time there also were various barns, silos, and outbuildings, and a greenhouse built circa 1896.

There are photographs taken in 1912 that show a traditional, colonial style "falling" garden consisting of three terraces on the east side of the house that connected to a series of formal garden rooms to the south, however it is not known whether Marie Owsley commissioned those gardens, or if they were already there.

In 1935 a fire damaged the house interior. Then-owner Mariska Owsley hired architect Carl Max Lindner to restore the house and commissioned Virginia landscape architect Charles F. Gillette to redesign the tired, old garden. Gillette reconfigured the three terraces into two, built brick retaining walls, each topped with a brickwork balustrade, and a wide brick stair with a demilune landing to link the two levels. Gillette's upper terrace had a central brick path flanked by Magnolia grandiflora trees planted in 1936. The landing's half-moon shape is echoed in the lower terrace by the curved form of the brick terrace at the eastern end of this level, and in the arcs at the east-west ends of the central pool. The drama of this space is in its simplicity: a horizontal plane comprised of a lawn, a centrally placed pool, and a brick patio at the far end. Axial paths to the north and south lead to formal garden rooms When Coran Capshaw purchased the property in 2008, the Gillette garden was overgrown, and the brick walls were crumbling. He and his wife Parke recognized the importance of Gillette's designs, and fortunately had the original blueprints. In 2013 they commissioned the nationally recognized Gillette expert, landscape architect Rachel Lilly, to restore the Gillette gardens and create additional garden spaces. Working with architect Adams Sutphin, Lilly rebuilt the leaking pool and crumbling brick walls. They used three different bricks to recreate the original Gillette look. Lilly simplified Gillette's more complex planting schemes to reduce maintenance. The mixed borders in the lower terrace are now planted with a row of boxwoods (Buxus sempervirens) fronted by a hedge of Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia). The parterre rose gardens in Gillette's formal garden rooms are now axial brick paths running through lawn and edged with single pink Knock Out® roses. Shrubs add interest in the corners of these spaces. Lilly also designed additional gardens, including a butterfly border and an enclosed vegetable garden with seven raised beds and custom hoop covers. To take advantage of the view of the Blue Ridge Mountains, she designed a terrace on the west side of the house near the kitchen. Enclosed by low-growing boxwoods, it is paved with blue stone laid in a diamond pattern, and has a 70-inch-wide cast stone "Lagoon" planter from the English company Haddonstone in the central brick roundel. To the south is a swimming pool complex designed by Lilly and architect Adams Sutphin. It features a covered pool house with kitchen, a fireplace, arbor, spa area and panoramic mountain views. To the south is a swimming pool complex designed by Lilly and architect Adams Sutphin. It features a covered pool house with kitchen, a fireplace, arbor, spa area and panoramic mountain views.

Persons associated with this property include: Colonel James M. Bowen (former owner, 1850); Carl Max Lindner (architect, 1935-1936); Charles Gillette (landscape architect, 1935-1945); Andrew Sutphin (architect, 2008-2016); Rachel "Rusty" Lilly (landscape designer, 2013—2016); Maggie Stemman Thompson (head gardener, 2015– ); Edward Pelton (metalwork for gate repair and other ongoing projects); Jim Smith (technical and historic consultant for greenhouse restoration, 2013-2016).