Event rooted in founder Henry Francis du Pont’s family tradition of walking along the March Bank to Magnolia Bend to marvel at the first waves of color in his wild garden
WINTERTHUR, DE (March 9, 2026)—Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library kicks off the 2026 season and the Museum’s 75th anniversary year with Bank to Bend on March 14, featuring a guided walk through the early spring garden and the bulb display on the March Bank, a plant sale, clivia exhibit, library open house, and a talk by local author and horticulturist Rick Darke, who will speak on the dynamic nature of Winterthur’s renowned “wild garden” and how the style is relevant in a range of modern landscapes.
The event gets its name from the long-standing du Pont family tradition of walking the path along the March Bank to Magnolia Bend to find and report the first flowers of the new year.
Winterthur’s March Bank is a superb example of the wild garden concept promoted by 19th-century British gardener and writer William Robinson, whose 1870 book “The Wild Garden” advocated for planting native and exotic hardy plants in groupings that mimic wild landscapes.
Robinson challenged the English gardening tradition of arranging plants in fixed patterns by suggesting that naturalizing plants in self-perpetuating communities would enable plants to become established, take care of themselves and create durable, resilient landscapes.
Winterthur’s founder Henry Francis du Pont embraced Robinson’s ideas in his plans for the March Bank, which du Pont began planting in 1902 when he was 22 years old. Begun with a few thousand bulbs under a canopy of woodland trees, the bank has grown into an extensive naturalistic display that is now a showcase for millions of late winter-flowering bulbs.
Bank to Bend March 14, 10 am–3 pm
Admission on March 14 includes access to a plant sale of snowdrops, cyclamens, and perennials, a clivia exhibit, and a Director’s Garden and Estate Walk with CEO Chris Strand. Guests can also wander through the garden paths on their own, enjoy the self-paced “An American Legacy” tour of the museum and attend the library open house.
10:00 am–3:00 pm: Plant Sale of cyclamens, perennials and unusual snowdrops. Clivia exhibit
11:00 am–12:00 pm: Talk by Rick Darke “The Wild Garden in Our Time” Copeland Lecture Hall ($10) additional
12:15 pm–1:00 pm: Book sale and signing
1:00 pm: Director’s Garden & Estate Walk: Snowdrops and Other Minor Bulbs (start at Visitor Center Patio)
1:30–3:00 pm: Library Collection Open House
Local Author, Garden Designer to Speak on “The Wild Garden in Our Time”
For an additional $10, visitors can attend “The Wild Garden in Our Time” lecture presented by Landenberg, Pennsylvania-based Rick Darke from 11:00 am–12:00 pm.
Darke is an accomplished design consultant, author, and photographer who blends ecology, horticulture, and cultural geography to steward living landscapes. His projects include public parks and gardens, transportation corridors, and residential landscapes.
In this lecture, Darke will illustrate the dynamic nature and continuing relevance of wild gardening in a wide range of modern global landscapes.
Darke wrote additional chapters and contributed 112 photos to “The Wild Garden: Expanded Edition,” a 2009 redesign of Willam Robinson’s book.
His other books include “The American Woodland Garden: Capturing the Spirit of the Deciduous Forest;” “The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden, co-authored with Doug Tallamy;” and “Gardens of the High Line: Elevating the Nature of Modern Landscapes,” co-authored with Piet Oudolf.
March Bank’s Cascade of Color
The March Bank color scape, which evolves from late January through early May, begins with white giant snowdrops followed by yellow Amur adonis and winter aconite, mixed with white common snowdrops and spring snowflakes. Du Pont planted these bulbs in large drifts of separate mass plantings.
The bank then transitions to a brilliant carpet of lavender blue glory-of-the snow and royal blue squills. Both are excellent multipliers in the wild garden. Interplanted by H. F. du Pont in large numbers, the latter two are delightful when they flower together. In some years, they instead emerge in succession.
Sprinkled along the March Bank are several drifts of yellow daffodils. Purple and white Dutch hybrid crocus then make their appearances, while white bloodroot arrives later. By the end of March, the bank is thick with the leaves of emerging Virginia bluebells, Italian windflowers, and other naturalized plants.
Maintaining the Wild Garden
One of the last 20th century wild gardens in the United States, the practice of managing its authentic wildness remains a core principle of the garden at Winterthur today.
The flora, naturalized exotics and natives planted in large drifts and grouped with other plants that harmonize in color and form, is arranged to appear as if it grew spontaneously.
“Color is the thing that really counts more than any other,” du Pont once said of the garden he designed, grew and maintained for nearly 70 years.
Much evolves on its own. Winter aconites and merry bells continue to spread. Joe-Pye weed and white wood asters add more color now for summer and fall. However, maintaining the full 60-acre garden in the manner du Pont envisioned takes quite a bit of time, expertise and intervention from garden staff.
“It’s a meticulous process that requires an understanding of the original design intent and keen observations to preserve its character,” says Linda Eirhart, Alice Cary Brown Director of Garden at Winterthur. “The wild garden style requires continuous care to maintain its desired appearance.”
Eirhart says garden staff maintain color combinations, historic cultivars, and vistas to ensure the garden remains a true representation of du Pont’s vision.
In April of each year, for example, Garden Manager Carol Long watches for developing seed heads of spring bulbs that she wants to increase on the March Bank. As they ripen, Long distributes the seeds where she wants them to grow. Later in the year, she helps spread wildflowers the same way.
Long calls this practice Johhny Appleseeding. It’s a refinement of the theories of William Robinson, who advocated allowing plants to spread as they would naturally.
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About Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
Winterthur—known worldwide for its preeminent collection of American decorative arts, naturalistic garden, and research library for the study of American art and material culture—offers a variety of tours, exhibitions, programs, and activities throughout the year. Admission includes a self-paced house tour, exhibitions, a narrated tram ride (weather and space permitting), and the Winterthur Garden.
Winterthur is located on Route 52, six miles northwest of Wilmington, Del., and five miles south of U.S. Route 1. Winterthur is committed to accessible programming for all. For information, including special services, call 800.448.3883 or visit winterthur.org. Winterthur is closed seasonally from early January through late February.