The Fountain Beds are reimagined each season to showcase compelling color combinations and design themes. Past designs have included a meadow of feathertop grass (Pennisetum villosum) and Queen Ann’s Lace (Ammi visnaga ‘Green Mist’), a romantic garden inspired by the colors of pink lemonade and a whimsical display that mimicked the surrounding water gardens.

This season, the three beds spotlight the beauty and diversity of “summer bulbs,” a catchall for plants with thick underground stems that store nutrients. These comprise plants with true bulbs or balls of fleshy tissue (lilies); corms -- swollen round, flat structures at the base of stems (Gladiolus and Crocosmia); rhizomes -- enlarged stems that grow horizontally (Canna and gingers); and tubers -- thick stems that either grow from roots (Dahlia) or stems (poppy anemone).

Each bed highlights a different combination of popular summer bulbs, from prized dahlias varieties and large-flowering gladiolus to Asiatic and hybrid lilies that are hardy in our climate, and lesser known gems, such as giant star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum saundersiae), Mexican shell flower (Tigridia pavonia), poppy anemone (Anemone coronaria) and Peruvian lily (Hymenocallis × festalis). Mixed in are a cast of supporting annuals and perennials that help bridge one bulb variety with another and fill in between blooms.

The Fountain Beds are situated by the historical Four Towers Fountain. Built-in misters create the feel of a Moorland fog in the early morning, while the sound of the falls creates a soothing ambience in the afternoon.

For a list of plants in the Fountain Beds, click here.