Maryland Gardens

 Adkins Arboretum: 12610 Eveland Road, Tuckahoe State Park, P.O. Box 100, Ridgely, MD 21660 (410)634-2847.

This 400 acre arboretum consists of dry, upland wooded, bottomland forests, streams, and upland meadows and specializes in forest and meadow ecology and the native flora of the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain. A Visitors' Center and four miles of trails through a variety of forest and meadow habitats welcome visitors to the site.

 Baltimore Conservatory: Druid Hill Park, Gwynns Fall Parkway and McCulloh Street, Baltimore, MD 21209 (410)396-0180.

Now undergoing renovation and expansion, the Conservatory, currently featuring a palm house, four greenhouses and outdoor gardens, will become a 7 acre botanic garden.

 Brookside Gardens: 1800 Glenallan Avenue, Wheaton Regional Park, Wheaton, MD 20902 (301)949-8230.

This marvelous 50 acre public garden includes an azalea garden, a rose garden, a yew garden, a formal garden, a fragrance garden, a Japanese style garden, a trial garden, two conservatories and a visitor center. Check the web site to see what's in bloom this month.

 Christ Church Biblical Garden: 3100 Broomes Island Road, Route 264, Port Republic, MD 20676 (410)586-0565.

This historic Gothic Revival Church features a biblical garden.

 Civic Center Park and Glenview Mansion: Baltimore Road and Edmonston Drive, Rockville, MD 20847 (301)309-3001 or 3007.

This 153-acre is the site of historic Glenview Mansion as well as lovely terraced gardens.

 Cylburn Arboretum: 4915 Greenspring Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21209 (410)367-2217.

This 176 acre nature preserve offers guided tours of the nature trails and gardens including a garden of the senses for the disabled, a formal perennial garden, an All America Selections Display garden and an herb garden.

 Evergreen House: Johns Hopkins University, 4545 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21210 (410)516-0341.

This extravagant Italianate mansion, situated on 26 acres, includes a private theatre, carriage house, and formal gardens.

 Hampton National Historic Site: (Exit 27B off I-695), 535 Hampton Lane, Towson, MD 21286 (410)823-1309.

Hampton preserves a vast agricultural estate (once 25,000 acres, now 43 acres) from the 1700s with a Georgian mansion set amid formal gardens and shade trees (including state champion trees). The impressive grounds reflect formal English landscape design principles.

 Helen Avalynne Tawes Garden: 580 Taylor Ave. at Rowe Boulevard, Next to Dept. of Natural Resources Building, Annapolis, MD 21401 (410)260-8189 .

This lovely five acre garden reflects the state’s various geographic areas including a Western Maryland forest, a streamside environment and an Eastern Shore peninsula.

 Historical Society of Talbot County Gardens: 25 S. Washington Street, Easton, MD 21601 (410)822-0773.

The grounds of the Museum contain Federal style gardens maintained by the Talbot County Garden Club.

 Ladew Topiary Gardens: 3535 Jarrettsville Pike, Monkton, MD 21111 (443)557-9570.

Ladew features fabulous topiary plus 15 theme gardens on 22 acres. The Gardens include the Woodland Garden, the Victorian Garden, the Berry Garden, the Croquet Court, the Pink Garden, the Formal Rose Garden, the Cottage Garden, the Orchard, the Waterlily Garden, the Red Garden, the Yellow Garden, the White Garden, the Teahouse, the Sculpture Garden, the Iris Garden, and the Terrace Garden.

 Lilypons Water Gardens: 6800 Lilypons Road, Box 10, Buckeystown, MD 21717-0010 (800)999-5459.

The growing gardens for this retail nursery of water plants includes over 500 ponds.

 London Town House and Museum: 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater, MD 21037 (410)222-1919.

This garden on the banks of the South River offers an 8 acre naturalistic woodland garden with special collections of narcissi, magnolias, hollies, native azaleas and peonies. Plants which thrive in a wooded, tidewater setting are featured.

 McCrillis Gardens and Gallery: 6910 Greentree Road, Bethesda, MD 20817 (301)365-1657.

This lovely 5 acre shade garden features more than 750 azaleas planted among ornamental trees and shrubs. Bulbs, groundcovers and shade-loving perennials extend the season. The Garden is managed by Brookside Gardens, above.

 Mount Clare Museum House: Carroll Park, 1500 Washington Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21230 (410)837-3262.

This 1760 Georgian mansion, home to a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was the center of an 800 acre Patapsco River plantation.

 National Colonial Farm: Piscataway Park, 3400 Bryan Point Road, Accokeek, MD 20607 (301)283-2113.

Presenting the life of middle-class tobacco farmers of 1775, this Farm displays an extensive garden with 18th century varieties of herbs, flowers, and vegetables, as well as historic varieties of field crops such as Orinoco tobacco, Virginia Gourdseed corn and Red May wheat.

 Pell Gardens: Ferryslip Road, Chesapeake City, MD (410)885-2415.

A public park with benches, gardens and fishing.

 Perkins Azalea Garden: Landon School, 6101 Wilson Lane, Bethesda, MD 20817-3199 (301)320-3200.

The school opens its 2 1/2 acre formal azalea garden to the public one weekend a year so visitors may enjoy the 15,000 azaleas and also the rhododendron, pieris, rare tree peonies and a collection of native wildflowers.

Rash Field Flower Garden: Inner Harbor South, Baltimore, MD (410)244-1030.

Part of Baltimore's bustling waterfront.

 Salisbury State University Arboretum: 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801-6861 (410)543-6323.

SSU's campus with its brick buildings and abundant greenery (including 750 plant species) has arboretum status from the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta.

 Schifferstadt Architectural Museum Gardens: 110 Rosemont Avenue, Baker Park, Frederick, MD 20701 (301) 663-3885.

This 1756 German colonial house is surrounded by grounds that include a young apple orchard, flower beds, and a fenced four-square garden. The raised beds feature herbs and include 18th century varieties of vegetables and small fruits.

 Sherwood Gardens: 4100 Greenway St. at Stratford Road, Baltimore, MD 21212-0677 (410)323-7982.

In addition to the glorious 80,000 tulips, this garden features 6 acres of azaleas, English boxwoods, flowering cherries, dogwoods, magnolias, wisterias, some plants dating back to the 18th century.

 Sotterly Plantation: Route 245, P.O. Box 67, Hollywood, MD 20636 (301)373-2280 or (800)681-0850.

This colonial Plantation on the banks of the Patuxent River consists of 70 acres of rolling fields, gardens and riverfront. Visitors will delight in the formal garden (with a children's corner) and herb gardens.

 Surreybrooke: 8537 Hollow Road, Middletown, MD 21769-8522 (301)371-7466.

This 15 acre nursery farm includes 3 acres of gardens open to the public.

 William Paca Garden: 1 Martin Street, Annapolis, MD 21401 (800) 603-4020 or (410) 263-5553 .

This elegant Georgian residence, built as a town home for a signer of the Declaration of Independence, displays a lovely 2 acre pleasure garden featuring five terraces, a fish-shaped pond, a Chinese Chippendale bridge, formal parterres, heirloom plants and a wilderness garden.