WELCOME TO THE
Gardens at Clermont

Cutting Garden

The Cutting Garden (sometimes called the Upper Garden by Alice) was created by her father-in-law, Clermont Livingston (1817-1895), where he had his 19th century vegetable garden. Alice began working in this garden shortly after she married John Henry Livingston in 1906. It received little attention during the years the family was living in Europe, but she jumped into the task of redesigning this area following the death of her husband in 1927 and actively worked on it well into the 1950s.

This garden provided the Livingston household with a variety of fresh flowers throughout the growing season. Beds of iris, peonies, and rosebushes were alternated with beds of massed annuals, assuring a profusion of color from May through October. Adjacent to the garden was a greenhouse and potting shed. Nearby, you’ll see a small outbuilding that was used in the early 20th century as a playhouse by Alice and John Henry’s daughters, Honoria and Janet.

Behind the playhouse, a lane framed by towering tulip trees leads to the gardener’s cottage. Alice moved into the cottage, which she called Clermont Cottage, after the outbreak of World War II. She decided not to move back into the mansion after.

GARDEN PLANTINGS

South Spring Garden

Alice planted the South Spring Garden in 1908, shortly after marrying John Henry Livingston (1848-1927). Utilizing massed perennials, rose bushes, geraniums, zinnias, and cacti planted in urns, this garden features the stone retaining wall, stone bench, and winding stairway which were all part of Alice’s design.

The garden could be seen from the library, where Alice often sat thinking about future garden plans.
In 1940, the garden was replaced with ground cover and flowering shrubs when Alice turned her interest to the gardens north of the house.

Walled Garden

Planted around 1930, this garden was influenced by the Italian gardens enjoyed by the Livingston family during their residence in Firenza (Florence) between 1923 and 1926. The formal layout of her flower beds and her use of statuary and wrought iron gates point to this Italian influence. The dwarf Alberta spruce on the northeastern hillside in the garden duplicate the effect of the cypress she saw in Italy.

Although the layout of the garden bears the imprint of Italy, the planting of the garden was more influenced by contemporary English ideas. Alice was a serious gardener who constantly sought new information and plant material. She had an extensive gardening library, but relied in particular upon William Robinson’s The English Flower Garden (1905), Gertrude Jekyll’s Wall and Water Gardens (1928), and, later, Liberty Hyde Bailey’s The Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture (1935).

The use of a mixed border with masses of one perennial juxtaposed against masses of others, advocated by both Robinson and Jekyll, was a prominent feature of this garden.

GARDEN PLANTINGS

Wilderness Garden

In the 1930s, Alice also created the Wilderness Garden. The influence of English garden design is evident. Inspired by the work of Robinson and Jekyll, she created a naturalistic landscape centered on a meandering grass path. This path connected the Walled Garden to the south with a cutting garden and greenhouse to the north, guiding visitors through a carefully composed “wilderness.”

On either side, the plantings were designed to appear informal and spontaneous, with drifts of scilla, snowdrops, snowflakes, daffodils, and forget-me-nots.

A small stream winds through the garden, crossed by a rustic wooden footbridge. To the east, Alice added a pond planted with white water lilies and stocked with goldfish, its edges softened by iris and other perennials.

GARDEN PLANTINGS

Children’s Garden

Adjacent to the playhouse, Alice and John Henry’s daughters, Honoria and Janet, maintained their own garden between 1913 and 1920. Set apart as a space of their own, the garden provided an opportunity for the girls to engage directly in planting and care, while echoing the broader horticultural character of Clermont.

Both playful and purposeful, it reflected the period’s belief in gardening as a meaningful part of a child’s education, fostering independence and a lasting connection to the landscape.

Lilac Walk

Connecting the mansion with the Locust Avenue, the Lilac Walk was planted in the 1820s by Chancellor Robert R. Livingston’s
son-in-law, Edward P. Livingston (1779-1843).

A century later, Alice added heavily-scented French lilacs along the west side of the path. Her new lilacs expanded Clermont’s spring floral display and complemented the early blooms in her favorite South Spring Garden.

Visit

The gardens are open year-round, from 8:30 a.m. until sunset. Explore at your own pace, with interpretive panels that share their history and design, or join a guided garden tour during the summer season.

Here's a map to get started.

Volunteer

Volunteers play a vital role in keeping Clermont’s gardens thriving. We welcome people of all experience levels to help care for the gardens. We’re always looking for enthusiastic individuals to join us and make a difference.

Coming soon! Our new Garden Guide, made possible through the generous support of Ballston Spa National Bank, will be available in the Visitor Center this spring.

GET TO KNOW

MEET ALICE

Alice Delafield Clarkson Livingston

Visitor Center
Mansion
South Spring Garden
Walled Garden
Wilderness Garden
Cutting Garden (Upper Garden)
Greenhouse
Children’s Garden
Children’s Playhouse
Lilac Walk

Clermont’s Botanical Treasures

A partial listing of the historical garden plantings
Note: this isn't a current list of plantings. Some of these plants are now considered invasive species and are no longer permitted to be planted in New York State.

Cutting Garden

Roses
Rosa Hugonis (Father Hugo)
R. Marquise de Bocella (light pink 1842)
R. Celsiana (damask pink 1750)
R. Mme. Louis Leveque (gallica pale pink 1898)
R. Mrs. John Laing (hybrid perpetual pink 1887)
R. Due de Fitzjames (gallica lilac 1885)
R. Jenny Duval (gallica mauve 1836)
R. Cardinal de Richelieu (gallica velvety purple 1840)
R. Madame Hardy (damask white 1832)
R. Louise Odier (Bourbon deep purple 1851)
R. Due de Quiche (gallica violet crimson 1835)
R. George Vibert (gallica stripped 1853)
R. Belle Jois (gallica pink 1845)
R. York & Lancaster (damask vericolor 1551)
R. Madame Plantier (alba 1835)
R. Gross an Aachen (floribunda pink 1909)
R. Antifolia Cabbage (gallica pink 1596)
R. Mutabilius (chinensis 1896)
R. Mundi Gallica (dark crimson stripe 1581)
R. Captain John Ingram (dark crimson purple 1854)
R. Chapeau de Napoleon (gallica pink 1826)
R. White Rose of York (1597)

Annuals and Perennials
Ageratum houstonianum, Ageratum
Alchemilla vulgaris (Lady’s Mantle)
Antirrhinum majus (Snapdragons)
Anemone x hybrida
Artemesia ludaviciana
Baptisia australis (False Indigo)
Boltonia asteroides
Callistephus chinensis (Aster)
Celosia, cristata (Fireplant)
Cosmos bipinnatus
Delphinium hybrids
Dahlia hybrids
Gallardia pulchella
Gomphrena globosa (Globe Amaranth)
Helenium autumnale (Helen’s Flower)
Helianthus x multiflorus (False Sunflowers)
Iris siberica
Monarada didyma (Bee Balm)
Peonies (Early 20th c. Varieties)
Salvia farincea
Scabiosa atropurpurea (Pincushion Flower)
Stachys lanata (Lamb’s Ears)
Zinnia elegans

Walled Garden

Trees and Shrubs
Berberis Thunbergii (Japanese Barberry)
Buxus sempervirens Welleri (Boxwood)
Cotinus coggygria (Smoke Tree)
Cydonia oblonga (Quince)
Dwarf Alberta Spruce
Magnolia stellata (Star Magnolia)
Magnolia virginiana (Sweet Bay)

Magnolia x soulangiana (Saucer Magnolia)
Malus varieties (Apple)
Philadelphus coronarius (Sweet Mock-Orange)
Prunus americana (American Plum)
Rosa (early 20th century varieties)
Spirea
Syringa vulgaris (Lilac)
Thuja occidentalis (Arborvitae)

Perennials & Other Plants
Achillea (Yarrow)
Adiantum pedatum (Maidenhair Fern)
Allium moly, Allium tuberosum
Althaea rosea (Hollyhocks)
A.msonia tabernaemontana
Bergenia cordifolia
Brunneri macrophylla (Siberian Bugles)
Clematis virginiana (Virgins Bower)
Convallaria majalis (Lily of the Valley)
Crocus Bowles, Crocus sativus
Dianthus xallwoodii
Dicentra spectabilis (Bleeding Heart)
Digitalis (Foxglove)
Gypsophila paniculata (Baby’s Breath)
Hemerocallus (Daylily varieties)
Heuchera sanguinea (Coral Bells)
Iris
Leucojum vernum (Snowflakes)
Lillium candidum (Madonna Lily)
Liriope muscari
Lythrum virgatum
Lycorus squamigera (Magic Lily)
Myosotis scorpioides (Forget-me-Nots)
Narcissus (Daffodil varieties)
Papaver (Poppy)
Phlox paniculata
Polemonium coeruleum (Jacobs Ladder)
Pulmonaria augustifolia
Silver Fleece Vine
Tulipa (Tulip)
Yucca

Wilderness Garden

Trees and Shrubs
Acer saccharum (Sugar Maple)
Berberis thunbergii (Japanese Barberry)
Calycanthus floridus (Sweet Shrub)
Cephalanthus occidentalis (Button Bush)
Cercis canadensis (Redbud)
Cotinus coggygria (Smokebush)
Euonymus alatus (Burning Bush)
Exocorda giradi Wilsoni (Wilson’s Pearl Bush)
Ilex verticillati (Black Alder)
Juglans nigra (Black Walnut)
Juniperus virginiana (Red Cedar)
Lindera Benzoin (Spicebush)
Lonicera standishi (Honeysuckle)
Malus species (Apple)
Magnolia virginiana (Sweet Bay)
Prunus americana (American Plum)
Prunus tribola (Flowering Almond)
Rosa Eglanteria (Sweetbriar)
Salix discolor (Pussywillow)
Salix purpurea nana (Purple Osier)
Symplocos paniculata (Turquoise Berry)
Spirea Thunbergii
Syringa vulgaris (Lilac)
Viburnum plicatum

Perennials & Other Plants
Astilbe x arendsii
Aquilegia hybrids (Columbine)
Bergenia cordifolia
Convalleria majalis (Lily of the Valley)
Dicentra eximea (Bleeding Heart)
Galanthus nivalis (Snowdrops)
Helleborus orientalis (Lenten Rose)
Hemerocallis (Daylily varieties)
Hosta varieties
Iris pseudacorus (Yellow Flag)
Leucojum vernum (Snowflakes)
Myosotis scorpioides (Forget-me-Nots)
Narcissus (Daffodil varieties)

Nymphaea odorata alba (Waterlily)
Phlox divaricata (Wild Sweet William)
Polemonium coeruleum (Jacob’s Ladder)
Primula (Primrose)
Pulmonaria augustifolia
Tradescantia x andersoniana (Spiderwort)
Trollus asiaticus (Globeflower)
Tulipa (Tulip varieties)
Trillium erectuin, Trillium grandiflorum