Press Release
THE AMENIA GARDEN CLUB PRESENTS: THE REAL GARDENS OF AMENIA
For immediate release:
Contact: [email protected]
AMENIA, NY - JULY 12, 2025
The Garden Club of Amenia will hold its annual garden tour on July 12 th (rain or shine) from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm and will feature four private gardens and a local nonprofit public garden: the garden of Jim Flaherty, the Stefanopoulos family compound, the garden of Thomas Tunk, Teeniepaw Cottage, and
Wethersfield Estate and Garden.
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased on the Garden Club’s website at www.ameniagardens.org. The Club’s annual tour has been a community favorite for over 25 years. The theme for this year’s tour is once again “The Real Gardens of Amenia” and will feature a wide range of gardens, including three new
gardens, an old favorite, and an Amenia institution.
Emily Fuller’s Teeniepaw Cottage has been on the tour a number of times as she continues to add new features. As an artist, Emily is inspired by form, texture, and color. What was once just lawn surrounding her mid-1960’s house, is now a beautiful oasis filled with plants that attract insects, birds, and small animals. The three new gardens are all quite different. Jim Flaherty’s garden is a continuing testament to his late partner, Bob Skibsted’s love of land and all the beauty it produces. It includes a rustic arcade with climbing roses, an arc-shaped garden with irises, as well as columbine, day lilies, Shasta daisies, hostas, sedum, butterfly bush, lilacs and honeysuckle, and large sweeps of hydrangeas. Thomas Tunk has been gardening in the hamlet of Wassaic since January 2020, but you would think he had been there for decades based on the number of plants in his postage-stamp sized property. He has created a series of garden rooms containing many different perennials, shrubs and especially trees, to give more vertical interest and a little more shade to a mostly very sunny property. And we are excited that the Stefanopoulos family, owners of many restaurants in our area, are welcoming visitors for the first time
to their compound in Amenia. Located high on a hill off Route 343, the property has sweeping views of the surrounding area. There is an orchard of fruit trees, a large vegetable garden and numerous perennial beds. There are also plantings around the family’s private chapel at the top of the property.
Lastly, Wethersfield Estate and Garden, which occupies 1,000 acres in Amenia, is the highest point in the region with an elevation of 1,200 feet. From that vantage point, it offers majestic views of the Berkshires, the Catskills, and the Taconic Hills. The Estate is comprised of a Georgian-style house, classical gardens, a carriage house, and a conservation farm. The Wethersfield garden is generally considered one of the finest examples of Italian Renaissance gardens in the United States. Wethersfield hosts a variety of formal and native-inspired garden spaces, such as an Arts and Crafts English perennial garden, cut flower garden, hedged yew topiaries, mature tree specimens, and 20 miles of trails for equestrian activities and hiking.
The Garden Club of Amenia is a registered 501(c)(3) organization. In addition to its annual garden tour, the Club carries out community projects with its volunteer members. Most recently it installed a native plant pollinator garden at the Amenia Free Library.
For immediate release:
Contact: [email protected]
AMENIA, NY - JULY 12, 2025
The Garden Club of Amenia will hold its annual garden tour on July 12 th (rain or shine) from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm and will feature four private gardens and a local nonprofit public garden: the garden of Jim Flaherty, the Stefanopoulos family compound, the garden of Thomas Tunk, Teeniepaw Cottage, and
Wethersfield Estate and Garden.
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased on the Garden Club’s website at www.ameniagardens.org. The Club’s annual tour has been a community favorite for over 25 years. The theme for this year’s tour is once again “The Real Gardens of Amenia” and will feature a wide range of gardens, including three new
gardens, an old favorite, and an Amenia institution.
Emily Fuller’s Teeniepaw Cottage has been on the tour a number of times as she continues to add new features. As an artist, Emily is inspired by form, texture, and color. What was once just lawn surrounding her mid-1960’s house, is now a beautiful oasis filled with plants that attract insects, birds, and small animals. The three new gardens are all quite different. Jim Flaherty’s garden is a continuing testament to his late partner, Bob Skibsted’s love of land and all the beauty it produces. It includes a rustic arcade with climbing roses, an arc-shaped garden with irises, as well as columbine, day lilies, Shasta daisies, hostas, sedum, butterfly bush, lilacs and honeysuckle, and large sweeps of hydrangeas. Thomas Tunk has been gardening in the hamlet of Wassaic since January 2020, but you would think he had been there for decades based on the number of plants in his postage-stamp sized property. He has created a series of garden rooms containing many different perennials, shrubs and especially trees, to give more vertical interest and a little more shade to a mostly very sunny property. And we are excited that the Stefanopoulos family, owners of many restaurants in our area, are welcoming visitors for the first time
to their compound in Amenia. Located high on a hill off Route 343, the property has sweeping views of the surrounding area. There is an orchard of fruit trees, a large vegetable garden and numerous perennial beds. There are also plantings around the family’s private chapel at the top of the property.
Lastly, Wethersfield Estate and Garden, which occupies 1,000 acres in Amenia, is the highest point in the region with an elevation of 1,200 feet. From that vantage point, it offers majestic views of the Berkshires, the Catskills, and the Taconic Hills. The Estate is comprised of a Georgian-style house, classical gardens, a carriage house, and a conservation farm. The Wethersfield garden is generally considered one of the finest examples of Italian Renaissance gardens in the United States. Wethersfield hosts a variety of formal and native-inspired garden spaces, such as an Arts and Crafts English perennial garden, cut flower garden, hedged yew topiaries, mature tree specimens, and 20 miles of trails for equestrian activities and hiking.
The Garden Club of Amenia is a registered 501(c)(3) organization. In addition to its annual garden tour, the Club carries out community projects with its volunteer members. Most recently it installed a native plant pollinator garden at the Amenia Free Library.