Sunday, December 13, 2009

Sleeping Rooftop Garden

Can you visit a garden any season of the year and appreciate its beauty? I know many people that only focus on the flowers. However a die-hard gardener like myself can see beyond the bloom to the structure and bones of the garden. This weekend I found an unexpected surprise in New Hampshire - a sleeping rooftop garden at the Mount Washington Resort.

The Mount Washington, a beautiful hotel built in 1902, has a very storied history. Over the last decade the current owners have given the hotel new life.  I was pleasantly surprised to find the original character and atmosphere of the hotel in tack after they added a huge addition to house a spa and conference center.

Upon arrival at the hotel, there was little snow on the ground due to a recent warm spell. The weather was just right to venture out and check out the views from the roof of the new addition. As I climbed the long staircase, I was surprised to find a whole series of raised gardens - think massive troughs.  And even though it is winter, I could see the signs of alpine plants – no surprise considering this is a mountain resort with a cool climate, short growing season and probably fairly harsh growing conditions.

These gardens have piqued my interest. I am looking forward to making another visit to the hotel next summer to see the plants in the rooftop gardens in all their growing glory.

Here are a few more pictures of the beautiful Mount Washington Resort.  A snow fall the second evening of my visit enhanced the festive holiday air of the weekend.







2 comments:

  1. Thanks for that lovely little tour. That hotel is certainly 'grand'. I loved the two scenes that were almost identical, one without snow and the other with. What a nice time you must have had there.

    FlowerLady

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  2. Thank you for following my blog - all the way over in France... this hotel's setting is gorgeous and even prettier in my mind with all the snow... we've certainly had our fair share of snow this year - far more than normal - it's just so pretty! Hope you're having a good weekend... just off to do some work in the garden now - Miranda

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