Stop and smell the roses - Take a tour of Fuller Gardens

A botanical garden lined with meticulously kept hedges and looming trees lies right off the coast in North Hampton. Fuller Gardens, an early 20th-century relic with a rich history, will be open throughout the summer for visitors to get some fresh air while maintaining social distance.

“It’s one of those little-known secrets of the Seacoast,” said Jamie Colen, the director of Fuller Gardens.

Originally designed as a cutting garden by Arthur Shurtleff in 1927, Fuller Gardens was a decorative piece for Alvan Fuller’s summer estate. Fuller had purchased several parcels of land including the garden in the Little Boars Head district of North Hampton, including the gardens we see today.

“Fuller wanted his garden to be viewed as a real botanical garden, not just a piece of land that would produce flowers for vases,” Colen said.

Fuller took what was left of the Shurtleff design and added another acre and a half to the property. He asked the Olmsted Firm of Boston to redesign and expand the grounds and to add rose gardens as a tribute to his wife, Viola.

“That’s pretty much what you see today with very few modifications,” Colen said.

Following Fuller’s death in 1958, the Fuller Foundation of New Hampshire was created to “keep the gardens running forever,” Colen said, referencing Fuller’s wishes. “The Fuller Foundation funds the Fuller Gardens, but we bring in about half of our operating costs, and the other half is made up through the Fuller Foundation.”

Colen lives at the garden year-round and has been the director for 22 years.

“It’s really awesome, but it’s a lot of responsibility,” Colen said. “There’s never really a dull moment; there’s never a day off.”

The garden features 1,700 rose bushes, which bloom from June to October, a dahlia display, a conservatory of tropical and desert plants, and a Japanese garden, an area Colen says people are always surprised to see.

“A Japanese garden basically has the elements of the Earth in it,” Colen said. “We have a shishi odoshi, which means ‘deer chaser,’ and that’s a bamboo-water element that has movement and sound. It’s a very traditional Japanese garden element.”

The Japanese garden also has a koi pond with eight large koi, some of which are upwards of 45 years old.

Visitors will also find cactus plants that have been collected from around the world.

“I’d say there are 200 to 300 different species of cacti succulents in our greenhouse,” Colen said.

Spanning nearly three acres, this garden is far from low-maintenance.

“I think people are most surprised by the care that a public garden like this gets,” Colen said. “The grass is perfect, like the quality you find at a golf course, and the hedges are all meticulously pruned. The care is pretty unbelievable.”

Colen says the high-maintenance nature of Fuller Gardens inspires people to take action in their own backyards.

“I think people see that and change their own backyard,” Colen said. “They get more involved being outside and enjoying their own gardens.”

The garden is more than its aesthetically pleasing exterior, though. Its main purpose is to serve as an escape from everyday life.

“I think parks and botanical gardens are a place where you can take a deep breath and forget about everything for a little while,” Colen said.

Though keeping up with the maintenance is a big part of the job, Colen spends a lot of his time sharing his gardening knowledge.

“Part of our goal here is to educate as well,” Colen said. “We spend a lot of time talking about planting and common garden myths.”

Visitors can find more information on gardening through the books that the gift shop offers. Mementos and keepsakes are also available.

“The fact that this place still exists is a great testament to the generosity of the foundation and the people who come support it,” Colen said.

— Shane Jozitis

Fuller Gardens

Where: 10 Willow Ave. in North Hampton

Hours: 10 a.m to 5:30 p.m every day

Tickets: $9 for adults, $8 for seniors,
$6 for students, $7.50 per person for groups of 10 people or more, $4 for children 12 and under

More info: fullergardens.org