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By Todd Lasseigne
Executive Director
I’m sure that some of you, in reading this column, will recall watching Bob Vila on “This Old House” on PBS in the 1980s. It was a show that was ahead of its time in the now-omnipresent “home improvement” genre, and one that left an indelible mark on me. As I’m sure many of you also would feel, there is just something satisfying about cleaning up or restoring a junked-out project or feature.
Well, at over 90 years-old, Bellingrath Gardens & Home has its share of messy areas, accumulated junk, and projects that have been delayed perhaps a tad too many times. This spring and summer, we have begun tackling a couple of these projects, and I find myself invigorated in seeing them progress and be completed.
The Boneyard Transformation
When I came to Bellingrath in 2020, I was made aware by staff of an area known as the “boneyard.” A boneyard, to be precise, represents an area where useful objects are often stored until such time that they can be repurposed. Many old institutions have such places, and many a find of precious objects have occurred in the boneyards of these institutions.
One interesting item that we have in the boneyard is an old fountain that we will utilize in the gardens one day, for instance. Otherwise, though, our boneyard has deteriorated into a junkyard – a catch-all place where virtually anything could be found: discarded, broken wheelchairs, various and sundry bricks and pavers, plywood, plastic stuff, old appliances, etc. I determined from practically my first day on the job that we would clean up this mess. Finally, as of the end of June 2024, I can say that a major portion of it is gone, including a whopping total of 11 junked golf carts and/or people movers!
Restoring the Wooden Fences
Another discovery that I made while wondering the back paths at Bellingrath during my first year on the job was the sad condition of some of our wooden fences. One, in particular, divided public spaces from nonpublic ones near the main parking lot. This fence was set around 3’ above the ground, then extended 6’ upward – an odd design in that you could literally crawl underneath it – but it was planted on the public-facing side with Japanese ligustrums.
The elapse of time had allowed these ligustrums to grow to over 20’ tall – so much so that they were shading our interplanted crape myrtles – and the fence behind them had decayed and rotted such that it was no longer an effective barrier, although it couldn’t really be seen due to the evergreen ligustrum screen.
Never being knowing to ignore a good project waiting to be done, I assigned this task earlier this year to BGH’s Horticulture team. As of late June, I can now say that most of the ligustrums have been cut back to 4’ tall, and the rotted and damaged wood has been removed so that only the supporting beams remain.
Although this area looks a bit rough right now, the only way to handle this project was to handle it by taking the proverbial bull by its horns. We will be rebuilding the fence in the coming weeks, and the ligustrums will sprout anew and be kept at a manageable height. Three cheers to Bellingrath’s Horticulture team for making this project look easy!
Looking Towards the Future
You may wonder where this is all leading. Well, as of this writing, Bellingrath Gardens & Home is nearing the completion of a physical master plan, one that will guide us forward in the years and decades to come. As a beloved cultural and historical destination and organization, we are taking deliberate and highly purposeful steps to bring us into our second century of existence.
However, before that work can even start, we must acknowledge and confront the accumulation of no-longer-needed items and materials, and we must address deferred maintenance projects. Taken all together, these seemingly unrelated goals – setting forth a future through the master plan and dealing with the past and present through maintenance and clean-up – will propel us forward, and we are excited about this.
We hope that you will feel inspired as you come to Bellingrath and see these improvements, and we hope that you will support our work through your memberships, donations, and advocacy to others.
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