The iconic lily pond at historic Tregaron Estate, recently restored by the Tregaron Conservancy at a cost of over $100,000, took a major hit from a towering tulip poplar tree on September 3, 2012. The aeration system in the pond was damaged and the new irrigation lines were severed. Removing the 95-foot tall tree, which straddled the length of the pond, was a major undertaking itself. A lovely bench donated by the New Scotland Garden Club was crushed by the tree and totally destroyed.
“Unfortunately, when a tree falls in the forest, it can smash a pond,” said Bonnie LePard, Tregaron Conservancy’s executive director. “We’ve made great progress in restoring this historic woodland garden, but our work is never done, because Nature intervenes.”
Since the Conservancy was founded in 2006, it has become a popular year-round natural resource for neighbors, schools, and visitors to Washington, many of whom have given time as well as money to support the restoration. But for the efforts of the Friends of Tregaron and a preservation-minded D.C. Historic Preservation Review Board, the property might have become a crowded urban development. The Tregaron Conservancy’s land surrounds the Washington International School and is located between Macomb Street and Klingle Road.
