THE SHADE GARDEN
The Edmund Mezitt Shade Garden is meant to inspire people to plant under their trees by showcasing beautiful companion plants that attract wildlife and celebrate the trees. The garden is made up of four primary garden beds including a bluebell field, a main garden bed, and smaller areas filled with Japanese painted ferns (Athyrium niponicum), False goatsbeard (Astilbe spp.), Winter Rose (Hellebore spp.), and more.
Another highlight of the Shade Garden are the Moss Steps. Verdant and enticing, the shaggy floor of the Moss Steps has been created by a carpet of moss that has grown onto the Castalia stone steps underneath. The rocks were harvested from farm fields that were once part of Lake Erie in Sandusky County, Ohio. Because of the moisture-retaining properties of this calcareous (limestone-based) stone, it is the perfect substrate for mosses to grow. Some of the plants in the area framing the steps include mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia), false anemone (Anemonopsis macrophylla), and Japanese wood poppy (Glaucidium palmatum). The steps are a recreation of a similar set designed by famed landscape architect Fletcher Steel in the garden of Worcester County Horticultural Society patron Helen Stoddard.
