6 p.m to 8 p.m Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Visit to The Gardens at Long Ridge
2488 Long Ridge Road, Stamford, CT 06903
Kevin Catalano, Horticulturist and Garden Owner
Free admission for members of West Fair Hort and new members,
$10 for non-members
Bring horticultural displays for judging by 5:30 PM
Our host, Kevin Catalano, found his dream property and home in the
Long Ridge section of Stamford six years ago. With over two acres, the
landscape had areas and features upon which to build gardens and grow
collections of favorite plants. There are large rock outcroppings in one
area, wooded areas, stone walls, as well as many varying types of lawn
areas.
Kevin has added numerous woodland plants such as lady slipper
orchids, toad lilies, hellebores, as well as a large variety of ferns.
He also built a cutting/vegetable garden surrounded by a white picket
fence with a Nantucket Arbor as its entrance; an oriental garden; and
two ponds for Japanese koi fish, with a streambed flowing into one.
Kevin is a true plant enthusiast, with an interest in plants that are
hardy in this zone, but are seldom planted here, as well as unique and
interesting trees and shrubs. He has planted hardy bananas, kiwi vines,
hardy oranges, and hardy palms. Other trees and shrubs he has planted
include paperbark maple, paw paw, crepe myrtle, Carolina allspice,
Carolina silverbell, bottle brush buckeye, and beautyberry.
Kevin Catalano is a Greenwich native and since childhood he has spent
most of his free time exploring natural areas. He worked for the Parks
Department in Greenwich for about six years, starting out doing
gardening work, with most of his tenure spent working at the Montgomery
Pinetum in Cos Cob. He became a part time foreman and assistant foreman
there. During that time, he took numerous courses at the New York
Botanical Garden School of Horticulture. Approximately twenty-five years
ago, he started his own business in garden design and maintenance. Kevin
is a member of West Fair Hort and also of the Bartlett Arboretum and the
New York Botanical Garden.
Directions to Kevin Catalano’s Garden
From the Merritt Parkway: Exit 34, Long Ridge Road/Route 104. Go
NORTH on Route 104 for about 3.6 miles. Turn LEFT on Gray Birch Road.
PARK ON THE STREET and walk to the first driveway on the LEFT.
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PDF file with meeting notice