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Community Corner

A Path of Pink Heaven

Sagtikos Manor hosts Peony Path Tour

A visit to any Long Island historic home is always an event, but a tour of its garden is an extra special treat. And if peonies are a favorite flower of yours, then perhaps you saw them in full bloom at the Peony Path Tour recently at Sagtikos Manor.

"This was our first year for peonies because after four years of working to restore the gardens to what they were, we got one path of the peonies fully restored," said Celeste Topazio, the current chairperson of the Friends of the Manor Gardens (FMG) who founded the group in 2007. "But they bloomed so early this year I was almost afraid they would be gone by the time the tour came around, but luckily they were still beautiful."

FMG meets every Tuesday morning from 9-11 a.m. Every April, the group begins cleaning up the garden, planting the annuals and permanent plants that are based on some historic connection to the home. The weekly meetings for the rest of the spring and summer consists primarily of weeding, watering, planting and other garden maintenance. The group also runs plants sales at some of the Manor's events like next month's Antique & Classic Car show on Sunday, July 11. Some of the plants they sell include dahlias, canna, buttercups, sweet woodruff and ground covers.

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Topazio, who spent 35 years as an art teacher in Babylon Village before becoming a volunteer at the Manor five years ago, also conducts cultural landscape tours of the historic home's grounds. "People can see and learn about how land changes and shifts according to the needs and wants of its owners," she said.

Topazio also recently completed a master gardeners program at Cornell Cooperative Extension Program of Suffolk County. "Part of our mantra is to educate the public and on the Peony Path tour; people were very interested. They asked questions for at least an hour after the tour was over," Topazio said.

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FMG is always looking for volunteers. In addition to the weekly meetings, the group holds two main meetings a year, in February and September. For the Christmas tours, the group sell homemade boxwood wreaths to help raise money for the Manor's restoration. In between July's Classic Car show and the Christmas tours on December 11 and 12, other events being held this year at the Manor include an art show on August 22 and a fall festival on October 3.

Sagtikos Manor was built in 1697 and, over the span of more than 300 years, was owned by various members of the Thompson and Gardiner families with each generation expanding and improving the home to accommodate their own lifestyles. The British Army used the Manor for meetings and as living quarters after they won the Battle of Long Island during the Revolutionary War. In April, 1790, George Washington spent a night at the Manor during his tour of Long Island. Suffolk County purchased the historic home in 2002 when it was in danger of being sold to a developer.

FMG and the Sagtikos Manor Historical Society have spent years trying to restore the home and the grounds to its former glory. Even with grants from the state and county as well as donations, volunteers are always welcome and needed for the entire Manor and the grounds. If you would like more information on supporting the Manor or on its history, visit www.sagtikosmanor.com/gardenrestoration.html.

 

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