socialwhirl.com is honored to present
A Woman's Garden
presented by
The Women's Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden

Visit the Women's Council Official Website for information on membership, meetings,
board of directors listings and more.

Entry to A Woman's Garden at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden

Funds are raised by sales of naming features in A Woman's Garden and fundraisers sponsored by the Women's Council of the Dallas Arboreetum and Botanical Garden, like the Mad Hatter's Tea.

Funds raised by the Women's Council are placed in an endowment fund created especially for A Woman's Garden.

"A Woman's Garden - presented by the Women's Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden - is distinguished as the only public garden funded and fully endowed by a women's organization.

"Phase I, which was completed and opened in 1997, was funded and endowed for $2.3 million. Phase II was funded for $1.6 million with an additional endowment of $1.5 million for a total Phase II cost of $3.1 million.

"The entire garden represents a gift of $4.5 million by the Women's Council to the Arboretum, to the City of Dallas and to the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Arboretum each year." Patricia Cowlishaw, Seventh Vice-President, Women's Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden

A Woman's Garden is designed by Morgan Wheelock of Boston, Massachusetts.

Wheelock’s perspective on his design commission as noted on his website states that
“A Woman’s Garden … is a balance of broad formal grandeur and richly textured human scale elements. It offers garden “rooms” for broad vistas or for quiet contemplation ... the garden engages the adjacent lake and appears to pull this major element into its composition at the reflecting pool. In its understated elegance it is “Garden as Art”, which features art pieces within. Most importantly, it is a garden, which conveys a deeper symbolic meaning – its inspiration derived from the various
qualities of a woman.”

Left: Nude Bronze by Joe Rosenthal 1996, given by Doris and Kirt Anton

Recently featured in
D Home's July/August 2006 Issue:

A Woman’s Garden At The Dallas Arboretum
by Roger Brooks

A Steel Magnolia
A Woman’s Garden at the Dallas Arboretum expresses beautifully, through nature, the feminine qualities of strength and gentleness — traits that are inherently found in all of us.
Photography by Dave Shafer. Courtesy D Home.

The Pecan Parterre Garden, seen here, features a 100-year-old pecan tree. The locale is one of several small gardens designed for quiet reflection in Phase I. Harriet Frishmuth’s “Playdays” sculpture is on loan from the Dallas Museum of Art. Photography by Dave Shafer

Read the article.

October 2006 - A Woman’s Garden –
Update on Phase II Features

Taken from Cheryl Buckles, Newsletter chairman, interview with Patricia Cowlishaw, published in the Winter 2005 and Fall 2006 newsletter.

The Bridge: a crescent-shaped span of architectural interest linking the meadow and grotto providing views into the meadow, woodland and the water source.


Maidenhair Falls View: Immediately after crossing The Bridge, enter on a bark path into a secluded alcove with a stone bench to view the waterfall – surrounded by Bald Cypress, Dawn Redwoods and Japanese Maple, amid a floor of hostas, ferns and ginger.

The Rockery: The steepest garden within the Arboretum, a cliff faced strata of natural patina limestone provides 140 linear feet of hanging gardens; beginning beneath the bridge, with a display of sun-loving, blooming wetland plants, and traversing down the rugged limestone boulders in the shade of a stand of tall oaks.

The Cistern: Constructed of rough old stone, the Cistern, located at the western edge of The Rookery, receives the water flowing from beneath The Bridge and along The Rookery. The water spews through a trough, splashes into the swale and is then recirculated.


The Conifer Crag: Located immediately past the North Portal entrance to Phase II and adjoining The Rookery, a collection of upright Blue Atlas Cedars, White Cloud Desert Willows, Prostrate Cedars, Apache Plum and magnificent Orido Nashiki Japanese Maple.

The Grotto (The Genesis Garden): a wellspring and inspiration for the entire garden . both a sanctuary and a source. The symbol of life force and the essence of life, the grotto is a beautiful two-level
pool surrounded by boulders of varying sizes, walkways and bench areas.

The Meadow: an area sloping away from the Pulpit to create a panorama of all the gardens below. Border plants include a multi-colored display of German Iris; groupings of upright Blue Atlas Cedar dot the southern edge.

The Fernwood Fold: a lush U-shaped area with a stream emerging from a cleft in the boulders to flow into a mature Bois d’Arc on the south bank; fern-covered stream bank and Bald Cypress trees with fern-like foliage.

The Loop: beautiful pathway following the stream distinguished by a coppice of Paper Barked Maples and Dwarf River Birch whose exfoliating bark create an area of special interest.

The Ravine: adjacent to the pathway from Phase I and the curved bridge, one of the steepest areas in the Arbore-tum; provides views of cliff-faced strata of natural patina limestone; planted with sun-loving, blooming wetland plants.

Engraved Stones: Embedded in the walkway connecting the Bridge and the Genesis Garden; bluestone 14” x 16” with engraved donor recognition. (Nine stones available.)

In addition to these features, the Women’s Council is pleased to offer naming opportunities for the magnificent Japanese Maples, Dawn Redwoods and Blue Atlas Cedars located within Phase II. These trees may be purchased individually. These naming opportunities are available to Women’s council members.

For further details, please contact Patricia Cowlishaw at : (972) 239-1702; by FAX: (972) 960-8799; or by email at patriciacowlishaw@sbcglobal.net

Details on more features will be here soon!