Camellias (Camellia japonica) are well-known evergreen shrubs in warmer climates, but it is obvious from this shrub at Polly Hill Arboretum that they will thrive on the Vineyard as well.

Friday

Check into one of the many island inns and bed-and-breakfasts that have lovingly tended grounds and striking gardens. A few suggestions are, in Vineyard Haven, Lambert's Cove Inn and the Doctor's House B and B; and, in Edgartown, the Charlotte Inn and the Hob Knob Inn. Make plans--and reservations, if necessary--for dining out. Chef/owner Michael Brisson's menu at L'etoile in Edgartown honors the seasons and showcases native produce, herbs, and berries, shellfish from the surrounding waters, fresh game birds, and lamb and other meats from local farms. Before or after your meal at L'etoile, stop to admire professional gardner Jeff Verner's walkway flower border. There are no gardens at Détente, another fine restaurant for dinner that focuses on local ingredients, but the masterfully prepared food will distract you from that! For breakfast, lunch, or a light dinner, snag an outdoor table on the lovely patio at Espresso Love.

Saturday

MYTOI

Let me make a suggestion: when you visit Mytoi for the first time, walk around the entire garden twice. Yes, you should take the guide map when you arrive, and follow the plan as you stroll around the garden. Should you want to learn which plants people commonly inquire about, follow the diagram past all of the numbered trees. Then return the map and walk through the garden again. Slowly. You will have a completely different encounter the second time around. It is worth making that subsequent trip, for then you'll experience the true scope and purpose of this garden.

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Mytoi is not about learning which new shrubs and trees you can plant in your landscape, although you certainly can do that here. It's not about beds of dazzlingly bright annual flowers, or English perennial borders. And finally, it's not a replica of a traditional Japanese garden, although it has elements of, and inspiration from, such plantings. To my mind, Mytoi is all about seeing, slowing down, and being in the moment.

Today's garden is completely different from the original that was planted in the late 1950s. Mary Wakeman originally bought land on Chappaquiddick where she was to build a summerhouse, and it came with a three-acre property across the street. She hired Hugh Jones, who was an architect in Edgartown, to create the plans, and she later sold the three-acre plot to him for $1. Hugh created a Japanese-style garden on the land, and when he died in 1965 his heirs sold it back to the Wakeman family, with the agreement that it would be kept open to the public.

Mary Wakeman gave this original garden, along with an endowment that would pay for its upkeep, to The Trustees of Reservations in 1976. Eleven more acres of land was donated in 1981, and the Japanese-inspired garden remained open to the public. In 1991, however, Hurricane Bob devastated this pine-shaded landscape. Once the wreckage was cleared, only a few shrubs and trees remained and the land was open to the sun.

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Mytoi was redesigned and restored through the talents and dedication of three people: Don Sibley, Julie Moir Messervy, and Lindsey Allison. The Trustees hired Don because of his knowledge of Japanese gardens. Don is an artist who has lived in Japan and has a wide range of experiences with both plants and design. Lindsay Allison had been a volunteer gardener at Mytoi since 1986, and as a summer resident at Chappaquiddick she had been visiting the garden since she was a girl. The Trustees also hired Julie Moir Messervy, a well-known landscape designer and author, to provide a master plan for the renovation of the storm-torn garden. Gardens that are open to the public have particular challenges that private gardens don't, and Julie is especially talented in designing a garden so that it elicits the desired behavior from the public.

Don, Lindsay, and Julie wanted people to slow down and truly experience Mytoi. Garden designers struggle with how they can prompt people to pay attention to the spirit of the landscape without chiding them with an arrray of warnings and signs. At Mytoi this was masterfully accomplished in several ways.

The land was divided into a series of garden rooms, so that visitors are presented with small, intimate spaces and broader vistas. Paths are frequently narrow, forcing people to slow down and walk in single file. The bridge, which Don designed to replace the original garden's signature red arched structure, does not go straight across the pond, which is the centerpiece of the garden. And there are several places to sit and enjoy the views.

People who are used to visiting arboreta and botanical gardens where all plants are labeled may be puzzled about the lack of such nametags at Mytoi. This was a careful and wise decision made by the designers and the board, because when people are presented with text they tend to read the signs instead of experiencing the garden. It is the color and texture of each plant, and the juxtaposition of those plants, that we are meant to notice. It is the experience of moving through this lovely island oasis, what it prompts us to remember, and how it makes us feel, that are special here.

Some come to Mytoi to meditate or paint. Others travel here to experience the blending of a Japanese and Chappaquiddick sensibility, or to appreciate plants and nature. All of this and more can be experienced at Mytoi, and those who make their way here will be delighted by this lovely garden.

Sunday

POLLY HILL ARBORETUM

Polly Hill is a beautiful but unassuming arboretum where more is going on than immediately meets the eye. This garden in West Tisbury is a tremendous resource for island residents and the horticultural world far beyond the Vineyard, but the chance visitor might overlook its unique history and the importance of what currently takes place.

Purchased as a summer home for Polly's parents, Margaret and Howard Butcher Jr., the original forty acres of land was christened "Barnard's Inn Farm" after one of the previous owners. Polly and her husband, Julian, inherited the farm and at the age of fifty Polly became intrigued with growing trees and the possibility of turning the property into an arboretum.

In 1958 Polly Hill began planting seeds in a nursery bed on the farm, and soon Polly began to plant a wide range of genera and species.

Many of the plants that Polly grew were not known to be hardy as far north as the Vineyard, but she demonstrated that they would survive and even flourish on the island. In addition to pushing the limits of winter hardiness, Polly also selected seedlings that had characteristics that were unique among plants of the same species. These plants were frequently named for family members and grown not only on the twenty acres that Polly cultivated, but also at nurseries and other public gardens throughout the world.

Polly Hill's life is indeed an inspiring example of the power of an individual to make a difference in the world. In the pursuit of a personal passion, horticulture, she created a place of beauty, dozens of new shrubs and trees, and an organization that nurtures people as well as plants. It is inspirational to know that Polly Hill didn't start to grow and select plants until she was in her fifties, and that through her sixties and beyond she was still starting seeds and growing plants that would take many years to mature. This dedication and optimism are part of the history of this property that a casual tourist may not discover.

What everyone will encounter is a Vineyard property complete with lichen-covered stonewalls and classic island architecture. There are open fields and shrub borders. There is an allée made of Kousa dogwoods (Cornus kousa) and an arbor made out of living hornbeam trees (Carpinus betulus var. columnaris). There is a beautiful, flower-filled garden called the Homestead Border between the house and the road, and there are countless mature specimens of shrubs and trees that most people never see in ordinary landscapes. And there is Polly's Play Pen, a fenced area that is 35 feet wide by 286 feet long. The Play Pen was made to keep out rabbits and deer, and it contains a combination of Polly's plant introductions and a wide assortment of rare and remarkable species.

At Polly Hill Arboretum (PHA) all the plants are labeled, which makes it easy to learn about shrubs and trees even when wandering solo on the grounds. There are also regular guided tours for those interested in learning about the arboretum's collections. Don't expect to see a bright green monoculture lawn, however. Tim Boland, director at PHA, explains that this wouldn't be in keeping with the philosophy at the arboretum. "We have a Vineyard lawn, part grass, part wild weeds," Boland says. "We promote sustainable horticulture, so we use organic fertilizers and do not use lawn herbicides or irrigate turf. These practices are counterintuitive, lead to pollution to our one island aquifer, and are not in keeping with good land stewardship."

Naturally, a garden that is open to the public needs to be kept attractive. But Thomas Clark hopes that visitors to Polly Hill remember that the appearance of the plants is not the entire focus of this garden. "I think the most important thing for people to know is that the arboretum is so much more than just a pretty place," Clark says. "The trees and shrubs are to the arboretum what animals are to a zoo, or works of art are to a museum. They're the first things people see. But behind the scenes at all of these institutions there's much happening--research, conservation, education, and, of course, all that goes into managing and maintaining them. In the end, each individual who experiences the arboretum appreciates it in their own way, but knowing that there's more than meets the eye may enhance the experience."

C.L. Fornari is a garden consultant and the host of GardenLine on WXTK radio. She is also the author of A Garden Lover's Martha's Vineyard (Commonwealth Editions, 2008), from which this excerpt is taken, and A Garden Lover's Cape Cod (Commonwealth Editions, 2007).