Pecan Parterre Project: The Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden Breaks Ground on a New Vision
(Featured photo: Warren Hill Johnson, Landscape Architect; Sabina Carr, President and CEO, Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden; Lisa Meyer, Advisor, Endowment Oversight Committee, Women’s Council; Therese Rourk, President, Women’s Council; Linda Spina, 7th Vice President/Donor Development, Women’s Council; Dave Forehand, Principal Gift Officer and horticulturalist, Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden.)
Behind the construction fence in A Woman’s Garden, a new vision for the garden room known as Pecan Parterre is underway. Joining in the groundbreaking which was held to celebrate the new improvements on behalf of the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden were Therese Rourk, President; Linda Spina, 7th Vice President/Donor Development and Lisa Meyer, Advisor, Endowment Oversight Committee. Representing the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden were Sabina Carr, President and CEO, along with Dave Forehand, Principal Gift Officer and horticulturalist. Warren Hill Johnson, landscape architect, who is working with the Women’s Council and the Dallas Arboretum, was also present.
A majestic native Texas pecan tree anchors the garden. It is surrounded by an ornamental arrangement of plantings or a “parterre,” hence this garden’s name. In addition to beautiful trees, a prominent feature in the garden is the “Play Days” statue by artist Harriet Whitney Frishmuth which is on permanent loan from the Dallas Museum of Art. The slope of the garden provides a variety of impressive views of White Rock Lake as the viewer descends the hillside.
Like all of the gardens in the three-acre A Woman’s Garden, the financial responsibility for construction and maintenance belongs to the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. The group’s signature fundraising projects are A Writer’s Garden in the fall and the Mad Hatter’s Tea in the spring.
The landscape design has been completed by landscape architect Warren Hill Johnson with direction from the Women’s Council and Dallas Arboretum Principal Gift Officer and horticulturalist Dave Forehand.
An exciting new feature in this garden will be a walkway that extends from the upper level of the garden to the perimeter path at the lower level. The walkway will be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) making it accessible for all. From this pathway, the visitor will have direct access to The Poetry Garden and The Flowering Vitex Allee, making an easy, connected stroll through the three most newly renovated garden areas in A Woman’s Garden. A new pavestone circular patio along the perimeter path can be used for an entertainment space in addition to being a functional turnaround spot for service vehicles.
The design includes a new, shorter variety of boxwood, Baby Gem (Buxus microphylla japonica ‘Gregem’); adding a new petrified wood base for the “Play Days” statue; using pavestone for the pathways; adding plantings; and highlighting three remarkable specimen trees: a Paperbark Maple (Acer griseum), a Persian Ironwood (Parrotia persica), and a Serpentine Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica x serpentine). It is believed that the Paperbark Maple and the Persian Ironwood are two of the finest examples of these distinctive species available for public viewing anywhere.
The project is slated to be completed by late 2025 and is completely funded by the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden with proceeds from the special events mentioned above, as well as sponsorships and donations from the community.
To learn more about A Woman’s Garden and the Women’s Council, visit www.wcdabg.org
(Article contributed by Linda Spina, 7th Vice President/Donor Development, Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden.)
About the Women’s Council: Celebrating its 43rd Anniversary in 2025.
Since 1982 the major goal of the Women’s Council has been the design, construction, funding and endowment of A Woman’s Garden, the only public garden in the United States conceived by women, funded by the efforts of women and dedicated to the spirit of women. The support of over 600 members of the Women’s Council makes possible the continued expansion and development of A Woman’s Garden. The Women’s Council is an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. www.wcdabg.org
About A Woman’s Garden: Celebrating its 28th Anniversary in 2025.
A Woman’s Garden is the only public garden in the nation conceived, constructed and maintained by the funding efforts of women. Ablaze with color in every season, A Woman’s Garden is a living testament to the passion and vision of the Women’s Council founders and the boundless energy and devotion of its members whose commitment to creating a garden dedicated to the universal spirit of women across generations is realized in its inspired design. Our beautiful garden celebrates the power, creativity, resourcefulness, passion and unwavering commitment of the women who came before us and those entrusted with its care now, and into the future.
(Photos by Karen Faris, Creative Art Director, Dallas Arboretum)
(Sharon Adams, Adams Communications Public Relations, is honored to represent the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden and its special events, Mad Hatter’s Tea, A Writer’s Garden, Membership Meetings and news announcements and post this Philanthropy Lifestyles Scene.)
