Keeping the Lights On

One of the greatest misperceptions about Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion State Historic Park is that it is directly funded by the State of New York. It is not the State but the activities of its non-profit organization that provide the funding for everything at Sonnenberg.

• Those operational costs amount to $2500/day and those funds are needed to run the park, turn the lights on, put paper in the copier, mow the lawns, clean the bathrooms, as well as preserving the historic structures we have. 

• The greenhouses alone cost $200/day to heat and our cold weather, heating season spans a 6-month period.

• During the busy garden season the tram service that helps our guests visit the site use $100 of gasoline/day. 

• Even the electricity, internet service, computer, and staff time used to create this message were costs covered by the non-profit's fund-raising.

So why doesn't the State pay? The non-profit "friends" organization at Sonnenberg is proud to have achieved the highest level affiliation with the State which means all park operational needs are managed by the non-profit. That also means fund-raising is a key activity at Sonnenberg and includes collecting park admission & membership dues, applying for grants, holding special fund-raising events, renting the site for weddings, and seeking donations.

Every dollar that comes in helps to keep the park open to the public and puts new glass in our greenhouse. It also keeps flowers growing and allows you to walk through the beautiful home of Frederick and Mary Thompson. Your support and donation today to our "Share Your Love" fund will help to share Sonnenberg's beauty and history for generations to come. Click the "donate" button to make your gift.

A Sea of Flowers

Each growing season sees a veritable sea of colorful foliage and blooming plants added to our gardens. More than 10,000 are planted each spring in the Italian Garden alone -- and that is only one of the garden areas we maintain. Many of the plants we add each season are tender annuals and perennials. These are plants that cannot survive our bitter and snowy winters and so we overwinter some in our greenhouses but others we buy or grow each season to be planted when the chance of frost is past.

More than 10,000 colorful annuals are planted each spring to
create the floral carpet patterns in the Italian Garden

We also plant and maintain a wide range of hardy perennial plants throughout our park. These are plants that can survive the cold winters to sprout up anew as winter looses its grip and warm days return. These include a wide range of different looks, habits, and blooming times. Some favorite perennials include roses, peonies, coneflowers, hibiscus, balloon flowers, water lilies, tulips, daffodils, lenten rose, bloodroot, and more. 

While these plants do not need special winter care to survive, they do require care throughout the growing season to keep them lush and beautiful. They will also occasionally need to be replaced as the lifespan of green plants vary widely from peonies that can span over generations (they can live to be a 100 years or more) to items like clary sage that is a biennial and dies after blooming in its second year.

The Old Fashioned Garden features a wide variety of blooming
perennial plants from late spring through fall.

Our Rose Garden provides not only another sea of blooms but it perfumes the air once the roses start to bloom in mid to late June. This garden features 2500 white, red, and pink roses -- Mrs. Thompson's favorite colors. Botanically speaking, all roses are perennial shrubs as they have a main woody trunk even though most don't refer to them this way. (Only specific types of roses are generally referred to as "shrub roses.") Like all such woody plants, careful pruning is needed for best shape, health, and blooms plus other care throughout the season is required to maintain the best health and showy display. 

Over 2500 rose plants are featured in our Rose Garden

Besides the flowers in our nine historic gardens, color and floral delights are all throughout the site in small corner gardens, containers, and in our arboretum. A changing tapestry of color and shapes greets every Sonnenberg guest every day.

Spring bulbs add bright color 

While we operate in cooperation with New York State, we are not funded by the State. All gardening needs at Sonnenberg -- and there are many -- are funded through the efforts of our nonprofit organization. Your donation will help to keep the flowers blooming and growing at Sonnenberg for years to come. To make your gift, click the donate button below.

"Happiness will grow if you plant the seeds of love in the garden of hope 

with compassion and care."

- Debasish Mridha