Burpee Open Returing To Fordhook Farm In Doylestown This Weekend

DOYLESTOWN TOWNSHIP, PA ? A long-time Bucks County tradition is back.

The Burpee Open, dating to the 1800s, will return to the grounds of the historic 61-acre Fordhook Farm and botanical garden at 105 New Britain Road in Doylestown Township on Saturday, July 29 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Open offers a rare opportunity to visit the birthplace of the W. Atlee Burpee Company, today one of the world?s foremost home garden seed and plant companies breeding and growing plants and producing seeds worldwide at locations in the United States, the United Kingdom, Holland, and India.

"Through many different lenses you can see this beautiful botanical garden," said proprietor and gardener George Ball, who encourages everyone to visit to the farm on Saturday. "You can see it through the lens of a family and its history. You can see it through the lens of horticulture and American history. And you can see it through a lens of a great gardening company," said Ball.

According to Ball, while Burpee isn't the oldest gardening company in the nation, it was the first that focused on research. And that's where it earned its reputation.

"The reason why we're a household name today is that Mr. Burpee saved American farms from diseases and lack of production because he bred American vegetables for the American latitudes," said Ball. "Burpee essentially bred the first vegetables for our climate here.

"And this is what we continue to do at Fordhook Farm. It's the home of Burpee's breeding. It's the home of Burpee's seed production. And it's the historic home of the Burpee family," said Ball.

During Saturday's Open, visitors will get to see much of the farm with the exception of the research facilities, which will not be open to the public. They will, however, get to see the test garden area, pop their heads into several greenhouses, and explore the farm's extensive gardens and its seed house.

"We have trees and bushes and herbaceous plants. We have woody ornamentals. We have a whole tree garden that we just built in the last three years," said Ball.

"We also have a brand new garden that's only a year old and that's our stumpery," said Ball. "This is something King Charles made fashionable in the United Kingdom. It's a garden filled with overturned stumps where you grow mosses, lichens, and fungi that feed off of the stumps."

The farm also boasts an arboretum containing rare trees from all over the world; the main farmhouse; and also a seed house, which Ball said many mistake for an old school or a meetinghouse. "The building is canted toward late summer and early fall capturing as much light as possible. It's a very historic work of architecture," he said

Saturday's Open is "all about showing you things that you've never seen before and making you feel things that you've never felt before and opening up new worlds for you," said Ball. "That's the goal of every visit."

The Burpee Kitchen Garden. (Contributed)

The free, fun-filled day will also feature special speakers, children?s activities, music, food trucks, and much more.

Burpee Open Event Schedule

• All Day. Plant and herb sale. (Cash only)
• 10:15 a.m. Guest speaker Venelin Dimitrov (Burpee horticulturalist) in the kitchen garden. Topic: All-Season Extenders with a focus on fall plantings.
• 11:30 a.m. Guest speaker Anne Milonis (Penn State Master Gardener) at Burpee Hall. Topic: Vegetable gardening
• 12 to 4 p.m. Food trucks (FSF Philly, Bonjour Creperie, and the Water Truck)
• 12 to 5 p.m. Live music by SoulShine Acoustic
• 1:30 p.m. Guest speaker Jerry Fritz (Bucks County Garden Design) in the Stumpery. Topic: Stumpery

The Burpee Open dates back to the 1800s when it was an annual tradition to open the grounds of Fordhook Farm to the public for a ?Farmer?s Picnic.? It is said that more than 500 guests came from the surrounding towns and villages in Bucks County to explore the farm and meet the Burpee master gardeners.

In 1888, Atlee purchased several hundred acres in Bucks County, which he named Fordhook Farm. Within a few years, Fordhook Farm was transformed into a world-famous showcase of experimental gardens that developed outstanding new varieties for American farmers and home gardeners.

The farm served as the Burpee family home, an outdoor laboratory for horticultural innovation, and a magnet for visiting horticulturalists from around the world. By the 1890s, Burpee was a household name. In 1915, the 200-page Burpee catalog was sent to a million American gardeners.

Today, the land at Fordhook is still used as ?trial fields? for the company?s new seeds. Also located on the farm is a kitchen garden where the company grows seeds that are up and coming.

For additional information follow this Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/events/112012085209484