Mill Neck -- Mill Creek

The house built in 1956 on four and one-half acres overlooks Mill Neck Creek, a tidal bay of the Long Island Sound. There are wetlands filled with reeds bordering the property and a daily 8-foot tidal change, and the natural setting and view are part of this garden's story. In 2001 other family members took ownership and had the house redesigned and mature gardens rejuvenated, maintaining thriving plants and replacing others. Starting from the road there are Yoshino cherries on either side of the driveway, viburnum, lace cap hydrangea, and box bordering the driveway, and two mature apple trees at the entrance to the courtyard. The entrance garden has mature Kousa dogwood, Japanese stewartia, locust, cherry, Yoshino cherry, Norway spruce, crepe myrtle, large holly trees, mountain laurel, boxwood, yew, shadbush, rhododendron, azalea, and pachysandra. At one side of the house there is a brick wall with New Dawn rose, climbing hydrangea, and a wrought iron fountain, with Green Velvet boxwood and little leaf boxwood understory. A large, low dry-stone wall of Pennsylvania fieldstone surrounds a perennial garden designed in 2007 with a color palette of blues, pinks, and white. Irregular flagstone steps bisect the garden and lead to the swimming pool. Different plant varieties have been tried in the rock garden for continuous bloom from spring to fall. Some that have been chosen are blue aster, Montauk daisies, knock-out roses, peonies, allium, wild indigo, iris, anemone, lady's mantle, phlox, lavender, salvia, hydrangea, balloon flower, and liriope. Parsley, mint and sage grow here, and willow dock is used as ground cover. A weathervane presented to the owner by her garden club is sited in this garden. The lower path to the pool is bordered by clethra, winterberry, burning bush, Rose of Sharon, holly, witch hazel, astilbe, and rhododendron. The pool area, surrounded by a white picket fence except for the side facing the creek, houses another perennial and shrub garden. Here there are knock-out roses, yellow day lilies, salvia, nepeta, lilac, spirea, and butterfly bush. Blue star creeper grows between stepping stones. There is a dolphin fountain at the deep end of the pool. An expansive lawn below the house and pool slopes down to the phragmites (reeds) in the marsh. River birch and silver birch are pruned to open the view. Other trees in this area include a commemorative white swamp oak, maples, locust, and amelanchier (serviceberry), with laurel along the fence line. A driveway from the back of the house to the courtyard is bordered by euonymus, birch, spruce, crepe myrtle, holly, mock orange, Leyland cypress, and spring daffodils. Persons associated with the garden's design: Sandra Webel, Innocenti & Webel (landscape architect, 2000-2001, 2007); Philip Baldino (contractor, 2001-2002); C & A (mason, 2008).