Women Who Shaped Garden History
Washington, D.C. Designed by Beatrix Farrand for Mildred and Robert Woods Bliss, Dumbarton Oaks is one of the great gardens of the 20th century, descending a steep slope through a series of terraces from formal flower gardens to naturalistic woodland.
Farrand began work at Dumbarton Oaks in 1921 and continued refining the garden for nearly three decades. The site presented a dramatic challenge: a steep hillside behind a Georgian house in Georgetown. Farrand responded with a series of terraces, each with its own character and planting scheme, connected by staircases, paths, and changes of level.
The upper terraces, near the house, are the most formal: the Rose Garden, the Fountain Terrace, the Herbaceous Border. As the garden descends the slope, it becomes progressively less formal, moving through the Lovers' Lane Pool and Forsythia Dell to the naturalistic woodland plantings at the bottom. This progression from formal to informal is one of the hallmarks of Farrand's design philosophy.
The Blisses donated Dumbarton Oaks to Harvard University in 1940. The gardens, house, and collections (which include major collections of Byzantine and Pre-Columbian art) are open to the public. Farrand's Plant Book for Dumbarton Oaks, written after the transfer, provides detailed guidance for the garden's maintenance and has been followed by subsequent gardeners.