The Property

Driftwood cottage is the farmyard barn that became a house within an arboretum. The current house was originally built in 1898 as the animal barn of the Glen Farm Estate of H.A.C. Taylor. The building that became Driftwood Cottage was originally used as the stables for the horses used by the Taylors to tend their fields. In 1952 the original manor house was demolished and the property was subdivided into multiple properties. The horse-barn as one of the subdivisions was converted into a house in the mid 1960’s. Under the care of the current owner the former stable was renovated with a new addition again into its current state in 2015.

The Collections

New gardens were designed by Julie Toland and constructed by Aquidneck Landscaping in 2016 that incorporated and highlighted some of the trees of original conversion in the 1960’s with newer garden plantings. The owner’s preference for native species for pollinators and an open mind to varieties of introduced species originating in Rhode Island’s rich history of ornamental nurseries has led to a Rhode Island themed landscape. The gardens of Driftwood Cottage are a mix of color, shape, and form by using species selected for interesting shapes, profiles, and colors. Even though not considered arboretum species there are also thousands of spring flowering bulbs that highlight the woody species in the yard.

Driftwood Cottage Plant Inventory

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Driftwood Cottage Tree Map - Google Maps

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The Mission

The mission of Driftwood Cottage is to use the gardens as an experiment using a mix of plants that make Rhode Island’s rich horticultural history a revised tradition moving forward, while using the themed collection as a teaching tool.