I’m jealous. Amy typed this up sent this in – thank you! <\/p>\n
“J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 tale catapulted a short furry-footed homebody hobbit into a journey through the wonders and dangers of a mystical made-up land. With Tolkien’s text in mind, Bryce Bandstra, general foreman of the Chicago Park District conservatories, put pencil to paper and set out on an adventure.<\/p>\n
Bandstra sent his fancy flying to mythical Middle-earth, piecing together plants and hardscapes for this year’s Hobbit Garden at the 2001 Chicago Flower and Garden Show. The 2,800-square-foot exhibit–a serendipitous prequel to the movie adaptation of Tolkien’s further Middle-earth novel, “The Fellowship of the Ring,” that is to be released in December–recreates homebody Baggins’ hobbit-hole and the surrounding Shire.<\/p>\n
“Everyone knows ‘The Hobbit,'” says Bandstra. “It was an opportunity to do something entirely imaginary and to entertain more members of the family….”
A horticultural tie-in to the upcoming film, the garden is a Middle-earth illusion blending from-the-book settings with details drawn from Bandstra’s imagination and Old English garden designs.<\/p>\n
In Bandstra’s fairy-tale countryside, there is, of course, the hobbit-hole, complete with door, chimneys and windows, nestled into a verdant hillside. A man-made stream–standing in for Tolkien’s The Water–flows past a birch grove and a meadow composed of turf grass, primrose and dame’s rocket. A winding brick path leads to the hobbit’s door and his cottage gardens, spilling over with scented geraniums, rosemary, thyme, scented viburnums, foxgloves, bleeding hearts and forget-me-nots. Quotations from “The Hobbit,” written on signs throughout the display, guide those unfamiliar with Tolkien’s story down both the literary and the garden path.”<\/p>\n
Chicago Tribune, Sunday March 4, 2001 Section 17- Chicago Flower andGarden Show Page 13<\/p>\n
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