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Quotes
In William Shakespeare's play, The Taming of the Shrew, he wrote: "I knew a maid married as she went to the garden for parsley..." In Trolius and Cressida, he wrote "..prouder than Blue Iris." In Much Ado About Nothing, he wrote: "...honeysuckles ripped by the sun. Forbid the sun to enter." "There's rosemary, that's for remembrance." from Hamlet. "When I have pluck'd the rose, I cannot give it vital growth again." from Othello.
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The Shakespeare Garden, one of seven such major gardens in the USA, features plants and flowers mentioned in Shakespeare's plays, such as Roses from Romeo and Juliet, Narcissus from Anthony and Cleopatra, and Lavender from The Winter's Tale. Visitors find Leafy Bowers woven with Willow, Honeysuckle and White Roses clinging to clam-shaped Willow arbors. Annual flowers such as Pansies, Violas, Marigolds and Poppies provide seasonal color, while perennial ground covers supply a lush green background. Fragrant perennial herbs including Wormwood, Chives, Rosemary and Lavender give the air a spicy ambience. Stroll the garden paths under the canopy of shade trees providing a seasonal color of their own. Among the hundreds of garden shrubs and trees visitors will find Red Maples, Eastern Red Cedars, Sweetgums, Athena Elms and Chinese Flame Trees as well as Dwarf Yaupons, Hollies, Serviceberries and LaMarque Roses.
The landscape design for The Shakespeare Garden was created by Edwina vonGal and Company of New York and features plants and flowers, such as Roses, mentioned in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Narcissus from Anthony and Cleopatra, and Leek from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Medlar and Pomegranate trees will also grow in the gardens. Leafy Bowers, woven with Willow, Honeysuckle, and white and red Roses clinging to clamshell shaped willow arbors provide a shady place for park visitors to sit and relax. Flowers will be changed several times each year.
An astonishing number of lush plants and delicate blooms have been installed in the secluded Shakespeare Garden venue. Among them are 8,000 Narcissus bulbs covering 6,700 square feet. Another 1,000 square feet of bulbs include Asiatic Lilies and Chives. Surrounding a six-tiered 325-seat amphitheatre with rock ledge seats are 4,000 Catlin Sedges, 4,790 Yellow Archangels, and 1,285 Moneyworts used as ground covers, along with 570 Rosemary and Lavender plants.
A canopy of 55 trees will shade the garden and amphitheatre and will be at their height of color at different seasons of the year. Among them are Trident, Species, and October Glory Red Maples, Eastern Redcedars, Sweetgums, Athena Elms, Chinese Flametrees, Medlars and Pomegranates.
More than 200 magnificent garden shrubs include Dwarf Yaupons, Foster Hollies, Serviceberry plants, LaMarque vines, and Honeysuckles. Among the fragrant perennials are Tangerine Wormwoods, Red Poppies, and Rues.
Karen Weber, a Master Gardener from Montgomery, will supervise the on-going care of The Shakespeare Garden.
The aromatic gardens are surrounded by uniquely woven willow wattle fences built by Marc Stinchcomb, a craftsman from Marc's Vine Yard of Millbrook, Alabama. He also built several trellises and arbors which are in the gardens over its numerous benches.
Public rest rooms for park visitors have been added as part of the new Cultural Park venue. The facility features a stone building and, like the amphitheatre stage building, is covered by a conical shaped thatched roof and features special Medieval chandeliers. About 12 inches of special thatch roofing consist of Turkish water reed and English combed wheat. The thatching was provided by WettStart International, Ltd. of England and was installed by a team of master thatchers from England. These are the same thatchers who installed the roof at the New Globe Theatre in London.
The English-style buildings in the Garden were designed by Robert McAlpine of McAlpine Tankersley Architects of Montgomery. Overall construction was managed by Taylor Dawson of Andrew and Dawson Construction Company of Montgomery.
The amphitheatre features two crow's nest lighting poles typical of the period except for the construction material.
The extensively lighted amphitheatre and garden in the Wynton M. Blount Cultural Park is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. for individuals and group tours. It is available for admission-paid events, musicals, lectures, and private rentals for weddings and receptions by appointment. During scheduled events, the Garden will be closed to the public.
For additional information on The Shakespeare Garden, please contact the Alabama Shakespeare Festival at 334-271-5300.
QUOTES ABOUT THE SHAKESPEARE GARDEN FROM ITS CREATORS:
Landscape Designer Edwina vonGal
"Shakespeare Garden is but the tip of the iceberg for the Cultural Park. This is just the beginning. We've tried to be horticulturally correct, but one thing we found out is that it is hard to find plants that grow in England that will also grow well in Alabama. While we've had to make some substitutes, we stayed close to the original plants. Gardens in medieval times were basically for function and not for amusement. People typically grew flowers for medicinal purposes, to eat, or for aromatic use to make their homes and clothes smell better. People then did not garden for fun; it was not a society thing. They stayed with small, closed spaces, grouped plants by what they were. While pleasing to the eye, that was secondary to the purpose of gardens in Medieval times. Thanks to extensive research done by the staff at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, we were able to capture most all of Shakespeare's references to plants and have included them in the Garden. Much of his work drew on the vernacular, common usage and allegory. Each plant stood for references commonly understood in those days. We searched extensively for the plants to be used in the Garden. We found the Quinces in California and the Athena Elms from the University of Georgia's Elm Tree program. The Elms have beautiful bark and will be twisted as they grow in the same style done in the 1600s."
Architect Bobby McAlpine
"My goal was to create romantic buildings of a beckoning and tender nature inspired by the picturesque English countryside ...to arrest the soul of any visitor and transport him or her to a place longed for but too seldom possessed ...to plant modest dreams in the hearts of all who witness it."
Building Contractor Taylor Dawson
"This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate in a world-class building project two years in the making. Anybody can build the ordinary; few are granted the opportunity to help execute the extraordinary. This was a special gift from Red and Carolyn Blount that is truly educational. Just how many people could ever say they've visited a legitimate English garden, seen thatched roof buildings or stood on a theatre stage reminiscent of the 1500s? Now, we can do it all right here in Montgomery."
Fence Craftsman Marc Stinchcomb
"I'm excited to have been asked to participate along with the many craftsmen worldwide who've been a part of this unique project. The low, wattle fences were typical of those used to keep livestock from the gardens in Shakespeare's time and before boxwood became a more common fencing."
Head Gardener Karen Webber
"The Garden is spectacular, unlike any ever seen for most people. Formed mostly of herbs and antique plants around for hundreds of years, and mostly used for medicinal purposes, we trust they will draw people from all over the world who come to the Theatre, to tour area gardens or to enjoy other aspects of the Park. Our challenge is to maintain plants noted by William Shakespeare and not typically used in Southern climates. The Garden is a great opportunity to share in history revisited and history in the making."
Benefactor Wynton M. (Red) Blount
"Just as Shakespeare was the inspiration for the Cultural Park, we envisioned reaching back hundreds of years in design and content with this garden to create a place where people can stroll, relax, and be inspired to likewise create greatness for future generations."
Benefactor Carolyn Blount
"I can imagine this garden as a place where the peace and beauty of nature combine to take us from our busyness and everyday concerns to put us in a more tranquil world."