Enchanting Springtime Flowers
At the Adair, our perennial gardens are putting on a show after the long winter months, with lilacs, lupines, tulips and peonies leading the parade. Adair's gardens were designed by the Olmsted Brothers, sons of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead, the designer of New York City's Central Park and Boston's Emerald Necklace. Some of our flowers, like the long-lived peonies, hearken back to the garden's creation in the early 20th century.
Head just across the road to The Rocks Estate and meander along the nature trails where you're bound to spot spring wildflowers and unfurling ferns. The Dells in Littleton is also a nice place to visit to see wildflowers, along with migrating birds.
Lupine Season Is A Celebration in Purple!
As May turns to June, the region's lupines begin to wave their long, spikey flowers and visitors flock to the area to see an amazing sea of purple.
Flowering lupine can be found blooming in fields and along roadsides throughout the White Mountains region. The lofty spires range in hue from deep purples and lavenders to rarer pinks and some whites, creating a stunning palette of color wherever they grow.
Our map [157 KB pdf] will help you navigate our region's Scenic Roads and By-ways on a self-guided tour, where you can view the flowers in many places right from your car. For an on-the-ground experience during early to mid-June, mosey over to Sugar Hill, a picturesque town just minutes from the Adair, where visitors are welcome to stroll through the lovely fields of blooms in several locations.
The most visited viewing spots are the large field on Sunset Hill Road, which includes expansive mountain vistas, and a smaller field on Route 117 bordered by a stonewall, where a field of yellow wildflowers just beyond the flowering lupines offers a stunning contrast to the mostly purple blooms. Expect to rub shoulders with photographers and artists painting en plein air as you wander through the fields.
- Lupine Tour info
- Lupine Tour Map [157 KB pdf]
