Object Details
- General
- Wilson Country Garden is located on 14 acres of land in Long Lake, Minnesota, just north of Lake Minnetonka. Susan and Steven Wilson bought the property in 1997 and began the gardens with the plants they brought with them. The Wilsons added to the landscape and worked with Bradley Agee, a landscape architect, to create new gardens. The property features a variety of areas to explore of the Minnesotan landscape, with a vegetable garden, mixed cutting gardens with sculptures, meandering wood paths, fairy gardens, and a child's playhouse. The farmhouse is surrounded by beds filled with perennials, bulbs, annuals and shrubs. Old and new trees such as tall maples, oaks and other deciduous trees, are scattered throughout the landscape with a split rail fence encircling the entire property. Many areas are manicured; mowed and formal, while other parts are left wild and natural. The manicured lawn slopes down to the native prairie and wetlands. The edge of the property near the wetland is a tall grass prairie that supports wildlife and pollinators. Tall prairie grass was planted, and invasive species such as buckthorn, garlic mustard, and thistles were removed with Prairie Restoration, Inc. At the property's entrance is a long allée of trees that ends in a circular driveway. The entrance garden has shrubs, annuals, bulbs, and perennials. The hillside near the garage is held by boulders and spring ephemerals such as snow trillium (Trillium nivale Riddell) and yellow trout lily (Erythronium americanum Ker Gawl.). The walkway to the front door is flanked by gardens and brick paver pathways. These paths wind through the flowers and foliage which is dotted with small animal sculptures and birdbaths. The garden file includes site and garden features plans.
- Persons associated with the garden's design: Bradley Agee (landscape architect, 1997), Susan D. Wilson (homeowner and designer, 1997-), Prairie Restoration, Inc. (prairie gardeners, present), and Redpath Gardeners (gardeners, present).
- Photographer
- Magid, Mitzi
- Owner
- Wilson, Susan D.
- Wilson, Steven
- Sculptor
- Ryan, Barbara
- Landscape architect
- Agee, Bradley
- Prairie Restorations, Inc.
- Redpath Gardeners
- Provenance
- The Lake Minnetonka Garden Club
- Collection Creator
- Garden Club of America
- Place
- Gardens – Minnesota – Long Lake
- Wilson Country Garden (Long Lake, Minnesota)
- United States of America -- Minnesota -- Hennepin County -- Long Lake
- Topic
- Butterfly gardens
- Children's gardens
- Courtyard gardens
- Cutting gardens
- Herb gardens
- Kitchen gardens
- Meadows
- Native plant gardens
- Rock gardens
- Woodland gardens
- Photographer
- Magid, Mitzi
- Owner
- Wilson, Susan D.
- Wilson, Steven
- Sculptor
- Ryan, Barbara
- Landscape architect
- Agee, Bradley
- Prairie Restorations, Inc.
- Redpath Gardeners
- See more items in
- The Garden Club of America collection
- The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Gardens / Minnesota
- Sponsor
- A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
- Custodial History
- The Lake Minnetonka Garden Club facilitated the submission of this garden's documentation in 2024.
- Archival Repository
- Archives of American Gardens
- Identifier
- AAG.GCA, File MN051
- Type
- Archival materials
- Digital images
- Collection Citation
- Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
- Collection Rights
- Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
- Genre/Form
- Digital images
- Scope and Contents
- 47 digital images (2022) and 1 digital file folder
- Collection Restrictions
- Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
- Record ID
- ebl-1696950603137-1696955025620-1
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