Mary Garden, Annapolis,
Maryland
       .


     Dedicated on Mary's birthday, September 8, 1988, the Mary Garden
in Annapolis, Maryland, is located behind St. Mary's Church, in the
quadrangle formed by the church, the rectory and the historic John
Carroll House.  St. Mary's Church, on narrow Duke of Gloucester
Street in the heart of old Annapolis, stands on the site of the first
private Catholic chapel in Maryland, built in 1822 by Charles
Carroll. 
 A Visit to the garden

               
           
      .

      Red brick steps and a brick walk lead to the Mary Garden from
the parking lot in the rear of the church. The walk, along the left
side of the garden, leads to the Mary of Nazareth statue at the end
of the garden. 

     The very old crepe myrtle tree, hundred year old boxwood circle
and the surrounding red brick walls of the church, rectory and
Carroll House all help to give this garden the appearance of being
much older than it is. In front of the boxwood circle a wooden
information box tells us of the plants growing here and their Mary
names. 

      To the right, bright yellow Stella Dpro day lilies remind us of
St Joseph's faithfulness; behind them we see the Lord's Candle
(yucca). Continuing to the right clusters of weeping lantana flowers
call to mind the Sorrowful Face of Mary.

                .

Next we see St. Joseph's staff (hollyhock), and more day lilies.
Later in the season the Virginıs flowers (zinnias) and  Mary's Flower
(shasta daisies) will bloom and Mary's  Shawl (Russian sage) will
blanket the area. We feel Mary's presence as we enjoy her flowers.

                   .

     On our immediate left as we enter we see the Rosary, where a
variety of rose bushes (Her Flower) have been planted. The Hail
Mary's of salvia echo our own. Climbing roses adorn an arbor in the
middle of this space and manger bed straw (creeping thyme ) forms a
border.  We remember that roses, as well as lilies, grew in Mary's
time and that roses have long been associated with Mary.

           

      A walk leading to the church building separates the Rosary from
the herb garden, which ends at another walkway, this one to the
chapel where there is perpetual adoration. An angel watches over  the
Herb of Grace (rue) and other herbs, planted in a geometric design.
We associate rue with regret, sorrow and pain and think of Mary's
heartache and her anguish. Here we see manger bedstraw, Our Lady's
Pincushion (sweet scabious), Our Lord's Back (yarrow) and stroke Our
Lady's Fingers (lamb's ears).

                    .

      Beyond the path to the chapel, in an area called Mary's Garden,
we sing Our Lady's Praises with the petunias as we contemplate Mary's
apple tree (Lady Apple), the Gentle Virgin (pink geranium ) and
Virgin's Bower (pink clematis).  A recently installed marble fresco
of two angels guarding the Eucharist looks down from the low brick
wall to the left. 

     To the right  tulips proclaim Mary's Prayers and pansies tell us
of Our Lady's Delight. Here the Blue Lenten Flower (squill), Lenten
Rose (helleborus) and a dogwood tree (The Cross) remind us of Mary's
sorrow at the end of Jesus' life on earth. Along the edge we find the
Crown of Thorns of barberry.

                    .

     The garden opens up now into a wide grassy path leading to the
statue of Mary and Jesus. In a large area on the left a very old
crepe myrtle tree (Her Virginity) presides over Madonna lilies and
Our Lady's Rose (peony).  The Ave Maria sings out from beautiful
hydrangea, some of it in a large pot.  Lady fern, myrtle ground cover
and Bishop's Weed ground cover (aegopodium) are luxurious here. 

     In this area, along a wrought iron railing, we see Where God Has
Walked (ground ivy) and remember the Holy Family's Flight into Egypt
(lavender). We can reflect on Joseph, the faithful companion, with
the day lilies and Maiden Grass (Japanese plume grass) and enjoy Our
Lady's Frills (primrose). 

     Looking to the right we might meditate on Mary's Faith
(veronica), the Trinity (Japanese iris) or Mary at the Cross (Cross
wort, loosestrife). Phlox reminds us of  Our Lady's Wedding, and we
see the Virgin's glove (foxglove), Our Lady's Frills and Maiden Hair
(sedum).

                    .
       
      Further to the right, in the center of the garden, is a
circle of 100-year-old Candlemas greens (boxwood). Inside the circle
school children plant their own garden each spring, each child naming
her plant for her mother.

            .

      Straight ahead now is the four foot Mary of Nazareth statue,
sculpted from polished Vermont granite. Mary stands with one arm
around Jesus, who looks up at her. Her expression is one of love and
concern and she holds his hand protectively.

                      .

      Three heart-shaped basins at the base of the statue form a
circulating pool. We see Mary's Eyes (forget-me-not) in front of the
statue and know that she loves us as she loved Jesus. 

       Two crepe myrtle trees (Her Virginity) and Mary's Berry tree
(hawthorn) shade this area. The hawthorn tree was a gift of the
parish kindergarten class of 1988. To the right of the statue Our
Lady's Tears (lily of the valley) and Mary's Sword of Sorrow (iris)
remind us of the sadness in Mary's life, while the Assumption Lily
(hosta) and Heavenly Bamboo (nandina) tell us that Mary is in heaven.
Seeing Our Lady's Roses (peonies) we share her joy. 

       On the rectory wall behind the fountain is a bronze plaque
with names of those who contributed significantly to the garden. Nan
Sears points out that her parents, who loved flowers and Mary, are
listed first, while she and her husband are listed last.  Among the
names are those of Mary Garden advocates John Stokes, Bonnie
Robertson and Edward McTeaghe, the latter two remembered with a gift
from Stokes. 

       Moving to the right and along the right side of the garden,
back towards the beginning, we find the Tree of the Cross ( yew),
Silver Archangel (lamium) and Maryıs Star (daffodils). Now we come to
the shade garden, a large area that brings us back to the front of
the garden. Here we see Where God Has Walked (ivy) under a linden
tree. We find also Lady of the Snows (viburnum), Mary's Star and St.
Joseph's Plant (azalea). 

       St. Justin the Martyr, who was beheaded sometime between
308-314 AD, is buried at the end of the garden.  It is said that one
of the Redemptorist fathers dug him up and brought him here in 1873
to save his remains from sacrilege or destruction.  The bones were
found in a church safe in 1987 and buried in the garden after the
Vatican said "hey had enough saints and his bones could stay here".


        It should be noted that in this Mary Garden, not all of the
plants are named after Mary but all have religious symbolism.  A few
of the plants were given Mary names by the garden's creators,
consistent with the medieval practice of naming flowers. 

Development of the garden

         A garden club lecturer from Virginia first told Nan Sears
about Mary Gardens in 1945. Having grown up with a family who loved
the woods and the wilds, Nan often thought of Mary when she was
outdoors. "I feel she is there, a part of everything beautiful in the
outdoors", she said. She decided she wanted a Mary Garden as a
tribute to her to and to be closer to her. 

     She immediately established a Mary Garden at home and always had
one, wherever she lived, often improvising to create a shrine for
Mary. One year she chiseled a hollow in the middle of a large lava
rock left over from a garden show and pressed a plastic profile of
the Madonna cradling the Infant Jesus into the recess. An annual
'soft paint' job disguised the plastic.

                   .


     
      The rock was snuggled in Lady Fern and canopied with an
overhang of Mary's Heart (bleeding heart). Our Lady's Delight
(pansies) and Our Lady's Earrings (impatiens) were nestled in front
of the rock, interspersed with the light blue of Mary's Wedding Dress
(phlox). Nan carried the tiny grotto with her when she moved and it
is now the focal point of the Mary Garden in her front yard in
Annapolis.

      It was not until she moved to Annapolis and became a member of
St. Mary's Church that she found a pastor interested in a Mary
Garden. In 1987 she received permission from Father John Murray,
pastor of St. Mary's Church, to turn "a patch of weeds and gum
wrappers behind the church" into a tribute to Mary. "Just don't ask
me for any money", the pastor told her.

         .

     She knew Tony Dove, curator of the gardens at London Town Public
House in nearby Edgewater, from her volunteer work there. With his
help and that of another volunteer,  Laura Van Geffen, she designed
and laid out the garden. Dove, his wife and several of her brothers
donated and brought in tons of dirt for the garden. 


      Nan looked for a sculptor and found him at the Paul VI
Religious Art Center in Washington, D.C.  A statue of Mary and Jesus
was commissioned and she and Laura set out to raise $35,000 to pay
for the garden. The need was announced from the pulpit and as the
masses ended, eager young children with wreaths of flowers on their
heads stood at the entrances with baskets in hand. Generous friends
and parishioners gave money to pay for plants and the statue.
Benches were donated as memorials and many of the permanent planting
were given "in memory of ----."

                   .

      Leo Irrera's design for "Mary of Nazareth", showing Jesus when
he was about nine or ten years of age, was sculpted from pink Vermont
granite. 

      On September 8, 1988, the feast day of Mary's birth, Father
Murray dedicated the garden. The statue was installed and blessed on
Mary's birthday in 1991. 

      In 1994 the area inside the boxwood circle became a children's
garden, designed and planted by fourth-graders. Children had been
slipping into the boxwood circle and making it their own secret
garden, so with the help of Kayla Lehmann, another Mary Garden
volunteer, they made their own garden.  A  bird bath is in the center
of the circle and a weeping angel (in sorrow over aborted babies)
looks on.  Child size benches encourage children to linger.  The
purpose of this garden is to encourage children to learn about Mary
and honor her in their own way.

       

      Volunteers from  the parish tend the Mary Garden, which keeps
changing as they replace those planting that are not too successful,
like the Stella Oro day lilies which replaced liriope. Nan Sears says
she made up some of the Mary names, and figured it was OK since the
medieval people had done the same thing. 
 
Private Mary Gardens


                     .

Nan Sears' Mary garden is in the front yard of her house. The lava
rock which shelters Mary (a friend paints the plastic image for her
every year), came from a garden show in Washington D.C. and is now in
its third home - she moved it twice in Washington. 


Ann Duffy, another Mary Garden volunteer, has her personal Mary
Garden behind her house. It is a small area with blue flowers - a sea
of blue, she said. Lady's Tears (blue spiderwort) surround the statue
and Our Lady's Mantle (blue morning glories) envelopes the pole
holding the image of Mary. The Hail Mary of vibrant blue salvia and
the lavender of Flight Into Egypt are also there, with Virgin Pink
(pinks) and Our Lady's Fingers (lamb's ears) for contrast. Ann
painted the face of Mary on wood, copying it from a holy card, and it
is sheltered in an altar-like wooden box. 
Photos and text by
 
Vincenzina Krymow . Information about this and other Mary Gardens can
be found in Mary's Flowers: Legends, Gardens and Meditations  written by
Vincenzina Krymow and published September, 1999, by St. Anthony
Messenger Press.

This page, maintained by The Marian Library/International Marian
Research Institute, was last Modified June 11, 1999 by Warren
Kappeler III.  Please send any comments to ROTEN@data.lib.udayton.edu.


URL for this page is

     http://www.udayton.edu/mary/resources/poetry/advpoet.html