A stroll through the Glenstone Gardens in a historic area of Northern Virginia takes visitors through seven gardens, each with its own spirit, enhanced throughout with sculptures and follies. The walk begins in the major Parterre, a series of garden rooms enclosed by a twelve-foot hedge of American boxwood established by the family in the 1920s. English, eighteenth-century, wrought iron gates allow entrance to the White Garden and its tranquil Lily Pool. Two belvederes provide an elevated view of the White Garden, as well as the established topiaries of the Grey-Green Garden, the sixty-foot rose pergola, and perennial circle. The stroll continues past the Spring House nestled in the shade of a centuries-old tulip poplar, the Eastern Garden with its luminous Moon Gate, the Secret Garden accessible only to those shown its secluded entrance, and on to the charming rose arbor leading to the Tea House. Adjacent to these more formal gardens are the natural gardens of the Pond Wood, featuring azaleas and rhododendron, as well trees and shrubs native to the eastern Piedmont.



This is the story of how the gardens began and how they evolved, tended by multiple generations of the same family.