Mario Bautista
In Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic children’s book, “The Secret Garden,” the author paints such a vivid picture of her intimate, fictional sanctuary that the reader can almost feel leaves brushing one’s skin or smell the roses growing within the garden walls.
We in Central Mass. have our own version of a secret garden, but one that most Worcesterites miss entirely as they drive at high speed through the West Side. Walkers among us, however, can enjoy a stunning eyeful of riotous color every time we reach the intersection of Salisbury Street and Whitman Road. It is there that IT consultant Tim Corrinet and landscape painter Chris McGovern cultivate magnificent displays of flowers three seasons of the year.
How they came to Worcester is a matter of real estate. The men had been living in Framingham when they began to invest in property here, buying “a couple of fixer-uppers.” But because it was inconvenient to commute back and forth while maintaining the houses, they decided to move west.
The pair knew that a big, old house anywhere in the Boston area would be unaffordable. But here they found a large brick beauty on the West Side with a somewhat neglected yard. Once they purchased the home, they faced a massive amount of rehabilitation.
Our community has reaped the benefits.
‘Different every year’
Tim describes the scene. “Before we moved in, the hedges were all gone. And there were 60, 70-foot pine trees.”
They planted new hedges and cleared the grounds and, as Chris says, “It’s just evolved completely over time. I love to change things and make it different every year. Every year the grass patch gets smaller because my hope is the path that comes up through the yard will eventually be the width of a lawn mower.
“And it changes every day because flowers will die, and new ones will be in their place. So, it’s constantly, constantly different.”
Tim adds, “I’ve put in a row of apple and pear trees, and I put in a row of bamboo last year. I was trying to block out Salisbury Street. It has gotten so busy and noisy and I’m really trying to screen it out as best I can.”
For design inspiration, the men love visiting historic gardens.
“On one of our trips to Europe, we actually went to Monet’s garden at Giverny,” Tim says. “Once we hit it in the fall, so the garden was in full bloom. He has a pathway that goes up to the main house that’s filled with nasturtiums. Well, we loved it, so we try to do that every year.”
‘If it grows, it grows’
If you walk by during the summer “show,” you will see that the walkway to the house is lined with nasturtiums, along with other annuals in “amazing” colors.
While Chris does most of the designing, he explains that the bulb selections are completely up to Tim.
“He just does whatever he wants, decides the color, where he’s going to put them, and I get surprised every year. We’ll try anything. You try it and if it grows, it grows. If it doesn’t, you try something else. We buy new plants when we want to try new things.”
Tim says, “We treat the bulbs as the annuals. I just put more bulbs in every year.”
As proof of that statement, sixteen different varieties of lilies grace the garden, and dahlias have joined the mix this year.
‘Performers’ only
Tough taskmasters, Chris and Tim give everything they plant a three-year trial. Chris explains their process. “If you’re not a performer, you’re out. So, first year you sleep, second year you creep, the third year you leap. After your third year if you’re not leaping, you’re outta here. We’ll dig it up and give it away or put it in the compost and we’ll try something new.”
Among the “performers” is a pale lilac wisteria climbing a trellis that stands along the walkway to the front door. Inspired by the vines they saw while visiting another historic garden, North Carolina’s Frederick Law Olmstead-designed Biltmore Estates, they sowed seeds they picked from spent blooms there.
Only about 1% of the garden is taken up by annual plantings. But aside from flowers, this year the pair have planted a vegetable garden for the first time. One of Tim’s fond childhood memories was the motivation behind this new project.
“I had an aunt up in Maine who was 102, and she used to make her own pickles. I decided I’m going to make dill pickles, but I want to do it from scratch, so, I said I’m going to grow cucumbers.”
But, wait! There’s more! This garden isn’t just for flowers and vegetables. As of last spring, a fishpond takes pride of place on one side of the yard.
Chris explains that he had always wanted both goldfish and the lily pads that go along with a traditional fishpond. So, last spring he began digging in one corner of the yard. His excavation resulted in a two-foot-deep hollow that he has filled with water.
“The water has a nice sound. It attracts the birds.”
‘Everybody’s in such a hurry’
As if thousands of splendiferous flowers and a fishpond with water lilies weren’t enough, tucked into another corner of the garden are two beehives whose 100,000 bees recently produced their first batch of honey.
And plants aren’t even restricted to the out of doors. A light-filled sunroom on the southwest side of the house is home to dozens of plants, standing in pots on the floor and hanging from the window frames. And artist Chris has brought gardens, ponds, and water lilies indoors with his paintings that evoke Monet’s own Impressionist works.
Surrounded by such lush colors and fragrances, it’s no wonder that early morning is the pair’s favorite time in the garden. They like to go out to pick up the newspaper and walk around, enjoying their maastepiece. But many others also take advantage of its beauty. The men often find strangers standing at the opening in the hedge, pointing to the beauty within. They love the fact that other people are enjoying their garden, and it’s been an opportunity to meet many people.
Chris and Tim are also deep believers in the heritage of a home, so they chronicle everything they do, both inside and out. They’ve been making books for every renovation they undertake and for every garden expansion, and plan to leave the books with whoever comes next.
“Everybody’s in such a hurry,” Chris says. “They’re driving by. They don’t know it’s there until they walk by it and see it. You can’t appreciate what’s on the other side of the hedge. Once those hedges are full, then people won’t see it. Only people who walk can see it. So, it’s a secret garden.”
A secret our readers now know about.
Note: In 2020, then City Manager Edward Augustus presented the pair with the Worcester Preservation Award for residential preservation.
