Planting Fields Foundation will open its new Oudolf Garden on October 17, the latest landscape addition to the historic property and the most important enhancement since the 1930s when the Olmsted Brothers completed their work on site. Internationally acclaimed landscape designer Piet Oudolf is renowned for his innovative practice integrating sustainability, resilience, ecology, biodiversity, and beauty. He is the leading proponent of the pioneering “New Perennial” movement, cultivating perennials and grasses chosen for their seasonal offerings, structure, and color.
His scheme for the one-acre garden creates a stunning public place for reflection, learning, and community engagement while responding to the site’s horticultural and artistic legacy. Featuring over 25,000 plants and grasses meticulously arranged, the project also marks Oudolf’s first public garden in New York in over a decade, expanding his portfolio of must-see destinations that includes The High Line and The Battery.
Dr. Gina J. Wouters, President and CEO of Planting Fields Foundation, said, “Watching the Oudolf Garden take shape has been incredible. With thousands of plants already in the ground, the landscape is beginning to reveal itself as both a work of art and a living ecosystem. This garden is designed for our community – to be explored, learned from, and returned to throughout the seasons. It reflects the Foundation’s commitment to stewarding this historic landscape while creating new spaces that deepen connection to nature. The Oudolf Garden is poised to be Long Island’s most beautiful acre, and that is already evident on site.”
Preparing the quadrants surrounding the historic and iconic Rose Arbor began in fall of 2025. Plant beds, pathways, and undulating berms were established in early spring and planting began in June. Oudolf has described his process as “a complicated layering of seasonality, energy, endurance, and reward – both before, during, and after flowering.”
Nearly 90% of the garden is now planted, with the team completing the meadow matrices anchored by prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis). Visitors can already enjoy seasonal highlights including threadleaf bluestar (Amsonia hubrichtii), pale purple coneflower ‘Hula Dancer’ (Echinacea pallida ‘Hula Dancer’), and purple lovegrass (Eragrostis spectabilis). Throughout the block plantings, yarrow ‘Moonshine’ (Achillea ‘Moonshine’), calamint (Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta), and ornamental onion ‘Summer Beauty’ (Allium lusitanicum ‘Summer Beauty’) are putting on a spectacular display among more than 100 carefully selected plant species that will continue to evolve and flourish throughout the seasons.
The Foundation invites the public to help bring the new garden to life by sponsoring specific plants, trees, benches, and more. Click below for further details.
The Oudolf Garden is supported by funding from the following organizations, corporations, and funds: Bank of America, The Margaret D. Sullivan Fund, The Prospect Hill Foundation, The PHF Foundation, Inc., Dutch Culture USA, The Netherland-American Foundation, On White Wall, GEM, Risk Strategies, as well as numerous anonymous donors.
About Piet Oudolf
Piet Oudolf was born in 1944 in Haarlem, Netherlands. Since 1982, he has lived and worked in Hummelo, a tiny village in east Netherlands, where he started a nursery with his wife Anja, to grow perennials. His garden has since become renowned for its radical approach and ideas about planting design.
Oudolf also co-founded Future Plants, a company specializing in selecting, growing, breeding and protecting plants for landscaping and public areas. Oudolf’s projects include No. 5 Culture Chanel, Paris, France; The High Line, New York, NY; Lurie Garden, Millennium Park, Chicago, IL; Serpentine Gallery, London, England; and the Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy.
Oudolf has co-authored numerous books including: “Planting: A New Perspective” (2013); “Landscapes in Landscapes” (2011); “Gardening with Grasses” (1998); “Designing with Plants and Planting Design” (1999); “Dream Plants for the Natural Garden” (2000); “Planting the Natural Garden” (2003), and “Planting Design: Gardens in Time and Space” (2005). In his 35-year career, Oudolf has achieved international acclaim and was awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) for developing radical ideas in Planting Design (2012) and the Prince Bernhard Cultural Foundation Award (2013). oudolf.com
Visitor Information
Planting Fields is located at 1395 Planting Fields Road, Oyster Bay, NY, on Long Island’s North Shore. The park is open every day from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (closed December 25). The Main House is open Friday – Sunday, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm. Learn more and book tours here. Both the Main Greenhouse and Camellia Greenhouse are open Wednesday – Monday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm.
Parking fees are collected on weekends and holidays April 4 through April 27; daily from May 3 to Labor Day; on weekends and holidays from Labor Day to November 16.
Parking fees are payable through self-serve pay stations in the parking lot. Pay stations accept credit or debit cards as well as cash in the exact amount. The parking fee is $8 per car, $35 per bus. Free parking for Seniors (62+) on weekdays only. Pay stations allow seniors to swipe their driver’s license to confirm senior status, at which point a receipt is printed for dashboard placement. 516-922-9210 | plantingfields.org
About Planting Fields Foundation
Through a balanced approach to preserving and creating, the Foundation stewards the built and natural environment of Planting Fields as a public center of learning and life. Planting Fields is a dynamic and vibrant site that features numerous historic structures, Olmsted Brothers-designed landscapes, and world class art and horticultural collections. Established in 1952 by W.R. Coe as a 501(c)(3), Planting Fields Foundation works in partnership with New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation to steward Planting Fields. As a former Gold Coast estate, it is preserved today as a celebration of art, architecture, landscape, and the people who resided on its land. Annual festivals and seasonal 5Ks, as well as year-round programs, lectures, symposia, exhibitions, concerts, performances, and family events take place on the property, welcoming over 200,000 visitors each year.
Thousands of school-aged children engage with Planting Fields to learn about the sciences and humanities through varied offerings that are uniquely reflected at the site. Learn more at plantingfields.org
