Landscape architect Rodney Robinson, AG '75, is able to indulge his passion for plants while enjoying the diversity of his profession.

Robinson, principal of Rodney Robinson Landscape Architects in Wilmington, Del., has been practicing for 22 years, and examples of his work can be found locally--from the home demonstration garden exhibits at Longwood Gardens to the courtyard garden at Winterthur Garden and Museum.

However, a project recently completed in Washington, D.C., is one of Robinsons's most significant, and probably most popular, achievements.

In 1992, George White, then the Architect of the Capitol, reviewed the firm's qualifications and asked Robinson to help renovate and restore the U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory and its facilities, including the design of exhibits and exterior landscaping.

Established by Congress in 1820 to collect, preserve and exhibit plants important to a growing nation, the U.S. Botanic Garden was once abandoned due to lack of interest, and twice moved because of access to better resources. In 1997, the conservatory building, which dates to 1933, was deemed unsafe and closed. Following a $33.5 million restoration and renovation project authorized by Congress, the U.S. Botanic Garden Conservatory was reopened to the public this past December.

Today, the 36,000-square-foot garden, located on First Street and Maryland Avenue, S.W., sports a restored Conservatory with about 4,000 plants, including rare and endangered specimens. The associated Bartholdi Park, an historic public park located across Independence Avenue, features a cast iron fountain, which was created for the Centennial Exhibition of 1876 in Philadelphia by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, sculptor of the Statue of Liberty.

According to Robinson, the exhibits in the conservatory communicate two educational themes. The first theme stresses the importance of plants as a part of a community and illustrates their ability to compete and adapt to various habitats. The new exhibit features a tropical tree, called a strangler fig, which, Robinson says, germinates in branches of a host tree, then sends out aerial roots that wrap around the host tree, stealing light, nutrients and support. Robinson says the largest exhibit features an abandoned tropical garden where an artificial tree has been planted with young strangler figs to show their unique adaptation.

The second theme communicates the connections between plants and people, from medicinal to economic to aesthetic. One entire display house is filled with plants that produce commercial products. This garden, under a long glass hallway, features two original fountain pools and economically valuable plants like vanilla trees, rubber trees, palm trees, banana trees and rice growing inside containers.

Robinson says he is particularly proud of two portions of his work in the U.S. Botanical Garden. The first is the orchid house in which the plants flourish in a naturalistic environment of continuous bloom. A profusion of orchids surrounds the viewer as the plants grow out of a fallen tree, a bog and a rocky grotto that drips water. "Visitors are unaware that the orchids are planted in pots so that as their flowers fade, they are instantly replaced with fresh blooming specimens," Robinson says.

The other is what he calls the jungle, which looks like an old, abandoned garden that is being taken over by the forest. Robinson says he enjoys this exhibit because "it is very big and always appears to look different depending on the vantage point," he says. "You're encouraged to explore."

Some conservatories, he says, look the same all the time, quickly losing the interest of repeat visitors, but introducing variety and change in the exhibits keeps people coming back.

Robinson also is the lead consultant of the nearby Bartholdi Park restoration team, which is restoring the cast-iron fountain, replacing pavement and bringing the park into conformity with today's accessibility codes, as defined by the American Disabilities Act.

When he entered the University of Delaware, Robinson says he was unsure of what major he would
choose to study. However, he says, in his sophomore year, his curiosity about the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources landed him in the office of then plant science department chairperson Merle Teel. After sitting with Teel for 45 minutes as the enthusiastic professor described the offerings of the college, Robinson says his decision to major in ornamental horticulture was made.

"Having walked in without an appointment, I was overwhelmed by the attention I received from the professor and other faculty," he says.

Conrad Hamerman, a practicing landscape architect who taught landscape design courses at the University, also contributed the Robinson's choice of career. As a member of the first class Hamerman taught, Robinson says he was placed in a stimulating environment that increased his interest in design. "Hamerman's course exposed me to a world I didn't know existed--landscape as the integration of art, architecture and the natural sciences."

Robinson says for Winter Session he planned to do some fieldwork fusing photography and landscape design, but because the winter conditions offered limited garden subjects, Hamerman suggested that Robinson could work with him on an assignment at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania.

After receiving a bachelor of science degree in agriculture at UD, followed by a master's degree in landscape architecture from the University of Pennsylvania in 1978, Robinson worked for two firms in Philadelphia, George Patton Landscape Architects and Wallace, Roberts and Todd Landscape Architects, before starting his own design firm in 1985.

Relocating to Wilmington six years ago, Robinson's firm employs seven landscape architects. "I wanted to see if I could be successful doing work that interested me," Robinson says, "which was to take only projects with a strong horticultural emphasis." Two local examples of his work are the renovation of Rodney Square in downtown Wilmington and a restoration of Gibraltar Gardens, an historical garden on the former estate of H. Rodney Sharp, located at the intersection of Greenhill and Pennsylvania Avenues.

As principal of the firm, Robinson says he is involved in all active projects, which range from 10 to 20 at any given time. However, he says, depending on the complexity of each project, his day-to-day involvement varies. He is primarily responsible for setting the design direction and working with the owner to make sure needs are met.

Robinson's current commitments include a project in Ames, Iowa, that involves the construction of a butterfly flight house. The structure will create a tropical forest environment, allowing tourists the opportunity to walk among hundreds of butterflies.

Another current project, located in Richmond, Va., entails designing major new gardens for the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and helping in the planning, programming and design of its new conservatory.

Robinson attributes much of his interest and love of landscape to the enormous amount of time spent at White Clay Creek while growing up in Newark, Del.

"My father has always loved trees, and so I was very aware of the forest that grew along the creek valley," he says.

The deep loamy soils grew large and strong trees, he adds, particularly sycamores, which he thinks of as "patriarchs of the flood plain."

"They are well-adapted for the seasonal abuse of floods, erosion and bruising ice jams. This is why they make such great street trees in our cities," he says.

In addition to fishing, Robinson enjoys investing in his own garden, which he admits is not exactly as "big and beautiful" as one might expect. However, he says he enjoys growing favorite plants or plants he wants to get to know better.

His current interest is in woody plants, including evergreen and deciduous holly, and shrubs that are out of favor like weigelas and hydrangeas.

"My wife would like me to have a little more polished garden," he says, laughing. Robinson met his wife, Sue, in 1972 while both were students at the University. Sue Robinson, AS '74, is chief judge of the U.S. District Court of Delaware and a member of UD's Hall of Fame.

Robinson says the most rewarding aspect of his profession is the satisfaction he gets from creating beautiful places in the landscape. "I enjoy the challenge to be creative and the association of people who share my interest in plants," he says.

--Imani Powell, AS 2002