Eva Grall 
New Jersey is called the Garden State for good reason. As we head into the final full month of summer, there are a few ways to get outside and enjoy everything this season has to share. Blooming tulips, flowering trees, and carpets of daffodils are just some of the highlights of our state’s gardens. Read on to learn more about some of the best gardens in our area and how they make New Jersey really feel like a garden state.
Brookdale Park Rose Garden | Brookdale Park, Montclair
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Just a short walk from most homes in Montclair is the Brookdale Park Rose Garden, an often overlooked area of our beloved Essex Park. Don’t be fooled by its size, the rose garden here is exceptional. Over 500 healthy, full rose bushes are ripe for photography, while several nearby benches allow views of the flowers and wafts of pleasing fragrance.
Cora Hartshorn Arboretum + Bird Sanctuary | 324 Forest Drive South, Short Hills
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Do we have bird sanctuaries in New Jersey? Surprisingly, yes! There are many nature lovers in this state, including the workers and volunteers at the Hartshorn Bird Sanctuary. Here, you can birdwatch and hike the property’s miles of trails, all the while enjoying a diverse woodland that helps scientists further understand the relationship between people and our environment.
Read More: This Montclair Garden Hosts Afternoon English Tea – Montclair Girl
Cross Estate Gardens | 61 Jockey Hollow Road, Bernardsville
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On the site of Morristown National Historical Park is the Cross Estate Gardens. Open from dawn to dusk and accessible to the public, the gardens are characteristic of the Arts and Crafts period. Stroll through a formal perennial garden, a mountain laurel allee, and marvel at their large specimen trees. The self-guided walk shares knowledge of the historic trees and their historical importance to Native Americans and early American colonists.
Davis Johnson Park + Garden | Corner of Engle Street + Westervelt Avenue, Tenafly
Davis Johnson Park + Garden, nestled in the small town of Tenafly in Bergen County, is a picturesque seven-acre site featuring beautiful gardens and walking paths. A highlight of the park is its redesigned rose garden, which has become a major attraction for visitors.
Deep Cut Gardens | 152 Red Hill Road, Middletown Township
Located next to Tatum Park in Middletown, Deep Cut Gardens is a 54-acre public botanical garden focused on home gardening. The gardens attract about 100,000 visitors each year, making it a popular spot for anyone looking to spend time outdoors.
Duke Farms | 1112 Dukes Parkway West, Hillsborough
Duke Farms boasts over 1,000 acres of New Jersey land as the setting of its magnificent gardens and woodland. You can walk or bike this fantastic conservation area thanks to Doris Duke, an environmentalist, and plant lover. There are tropical orchids on display, a waterfall, and countless trails and ruins to wander through. Get lost on the property and then find yourself at their cafe for an afternoon refreshment.
Freeman Gardens | 644 Hawthorne Avenue, Glen Ridge
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Devoted volunteers maintain this petite rose garden. A short walk through this corner garden can become a much longer visit if you take time to soak in all the beauty these roses offer. This park is a beloved spot for family events, botanical photography, and respites from Zoom work calls.
The Frelinghuysen Arboretum | 353 East Hanover Avenue, Morristown
The arboretum boasts nature and horse trails surrounding a Colonial Revival mansion and formal gardens. Perfect for a brisk hike, a horseman’s cantor, or pedaling on bikes, the park preserves a wide variety of native and ornamental trees. Concerts are held on the grassy lawn in warm months like in an old English estate.
The Gardens of Wycoff | 150 Crescent Avenue, Wyckoff
This 12.8-acre nature sanctuary, deeded to the Township of Wyckoff in 1993 by longtime resident Warner W. Brackett, features walkway-laced gardens, woodchip-strewn paths, a small pond + brook, and diverse flora and fauna. The Gardens of Wycoff are open from dawn to dusk during the spring and summer.
Greenwood Gardens | 274 Old Short Hills Road, Short Hills
Tucked off a quiet street in Short Hills sits the exceptional Greenwood Gardens, a remnant of an old estate with the acreage to prove it. The serenity in this garden is twofold, both for its general solitude and lack of visitors and its division into several garden rooms. Enjoy sweeping landscapes of London plane trees, whimsical chess pieces ensconced in ferns, and walk through the garden’s many well-kept paths.
Grounds For Sculpture | 80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township
Photo Credit: Bruce Beasley, Horizon II, 2006, bronze, 26 in x 126 in x 40 in, Grounds For Sculpture, Purchase with Funds Provided by the Birney Family Foundation in Memory of Leeshan Birney + Mayling Birney, © Artist or Artist’s Estate
Truly a spectacular garden, the Grounds For Sculpture provides an amazing intersection between art and nature. With over 400 pieces made of wood, bronze, stone, steel, and even paper, this sculpture museum and garden is an inspiration. Art comes to life through unexpected shapes in tree groves, dancing figures out of paintings, and abstract expressions in the gardens. However, nothing is quite as remarkable as the Monet Bridge, recreated in the likeness of Monet’s famous painting, Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies.
Laurelwood Arboretum | 725 Pines Lake Drive West, Wayne
This Wayne-located public park is a favorite spot for locals. It was once a commercial nursery but is now maintained through a non-profit called Friends of Laurelwood Arboretum and the Township of Wayne. The garden is “30-acres of botanical oasis,” specializing in native rhododendrons and azaleas, and shrubs that bloom in early spring.
Leonard J. Buck Garden | 11 Layton Road, Far Hills
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Hatched in the 1930s, the Leonard J. Buck Garden is one of the most splendid rock gardens on the East Coast. Alpine and woodland gardens flourish on the 33-acre property, showcasing many natural outcroppings. Wildflowers dot the wooded trails that lead to a collection of exotic plants.
Macculloch Hall Historical Museum Gardens | 45 MacCulloch Avenue, Morristown
The gardens at Macculloch Hall date back to 1810, when George and Louisa Macculloch established a traditional kitchen garden and orchards on their 26-acre property. Today, visitors can spot several historic features throughout the grounds, including a wisteria vine gifted by Commodore Matthew Perry in 1857, a sundial installed in 1876, and one of New Jersey’s oldest and largest sassafras trees. The gardens are also home to a collection of heirloom roses, continuing a tradition that began when the first roses were planted on the property in 1810.
Morven Museum + Garden | 55 Stockton Street, Princeton
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This National Historic Landmark in the heart of Princeton was once the home of Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. With art exhibits and a fantastic garden outside, it is a unique historical garden steeped in the early-American landscape. The beautiful garden wall is a highlight, likely erected during the 1850s to serve as a kitchen garden.
New Jersey Botanical Garden | 2 Morris Road, Ringwood
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New Jersey doesn’t get enough credit for having its own botanical gardens, perhaps because it is located northern, in the upper reaches of the state. The gardens and manor house have an incredible array of volunteers who keep the grounds as magical as ever. The magnificent perennial garden showcases feature trees and shrubs, but there is much more to see. There is a lilac garden, as well as an Italianate garden, a wildflower garden, and an annual garden — so a visit anytime this spring will yield gorgeous flowers.
Peony’s Envy | 35 Autumn Hill Road, Bernardsville
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Started in 1997, Peony’s Envy has grown into one of the largest peony collections in the United States. The Bernardsville nursery and display garden spans 13 acres and features thousands of peonies, including more than 500 unique cultivars. Visitors can stroll through trails lined with woodland, tree, herbaceous, and intersectional peonies, with blooms appearing in succession throughout the garden’s six-week flowering season. The most spectacular display typically arrives around Memorial Day, when the herbaceous peonies reach their peak.
The Presby Iris Gardens | 474 Upper Mountain Avenue, Montclair
The iris gardens might not be much to see in the off-season, but your eyes will enjoy a feast of color from mid-May to early June. Presby Iris Gardens is the world’s most extensive specialty iris garden, complete with rare specimens and unique breeds that are only found here. Check the website for bloom updates so that you can plan a visit during ‘peak bloom’ and see why the flowers are named after the Greek word for rainbow.
Reeves-Reed Arboretum | 165 Hobart Avenue, Summit
The Reeves-Reed Arboretum is “dedicated to preserving the past and imagining the future of American gardening.” The lush setting showcases a variety of gardens, including a unique rock garden that was installed around 1925. The arboretum is well known for its outstanding events, including its popular and greatly anticipated daffodil lawn, which blooms for the four weeks of April.
Rutgers Gardens | 112 Log Cabin Road, North Brunswick Township
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Open all year round, Rutgers Gardens is one of the few botanical parks that has free admission. The collection of American Hollies is one of the largest in the United States, but it is just the tip of the flora iceberg. There are as many unique gardens as any other state-run botanical garden, with sun and shade plants, a bamboo grove, a succulent garden, and around 60 acres of woods for wandering.
Sapienza Gardens | Holdrum Brook, Hillsdale
The Sapienza Gardens, located behind Pascack Valley High School in Hillsdale, aims to benefit the community by promoting the values of Dr. Barbara Sapienza through education, volunteer support, and environmental awareness in a garden setting.
Sayen House + Garden | 155 Hughes Drive, Hamilton Square
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With over 250,000 flowering bulbs and blooming trees, spring really shines at Sayen House and Garden. There are fish ponds, gazebos perfect for weddings, and even a yearly Azalea Festival during the blooming season.
Skylands Manor Gardens | 5 Morris Road, Ringwood
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Designed in the mid-1920s by architect John Russell Pope, the Tudor Revival Mansion at Skylands was built to look centuries old, with a weathered stone facade and slate roof details. All stone was quarried on the estate. Guided tours of the ground floor take place on select Sundays and usually last 60 to 90 minutes. Surrounding the mansion are the gardens of the New Jersey State Botanical Garden, set within Ringwood State Park in the Ramapo Mountains.
Thielke Arboretum | 460 Doremus Avenue, Glen Rock
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The Thielke Arboretum of Glen Rock is a designated wetland forest dedicated to conserving its native plants and natural wildlife habitats. The arboretum relies entirely on donations and volunteers to operate, preserve, and maintain the grounds.
See More: A Guide to Floral Arrangement Classes in Northern New Jersey
Van Vleck Gardens | 21 Van Vleck Street, Montclair
In the center of Montclair is the old Van Vleck estate, a classical structure that now generously houses non-profit organizations and events. The grounds are open every day to the public and boast incredible azaleas, lush greenery, and the most spectacular wisteria blooms in the whole state. It is the perfect garden for a picnic and a tranquil walk, where one can simply admire what nature has to offer.
Willowwood Arboretum | 300 Longview Road, Chester Township
Here, you’ll find New Jersey’s most comprehensive and longest-operating Arboretum, which is delightful from spring to fall. There are 130 acres of rolling farmland and 2,100 types of native and exotic plants. With formal gardens and an undisturbed forest, any tree lover will be right at home navigating the blooming branches.
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