Volunteer group was recently awarded for its horticultural work at the Glenmont Estate in West Orange.
WEST ORANGE -- It's a natural display that would make the father of electricity proud.
A group of trained volunteers from the Rutgers Master Gardeners of Essex County says it has been restoring the flowerbeds at the Glenmont Estate, the former home of inventor Thomas Edison, since 2009. Once robust, the gardens on the 15.7-acre grounds of the estate, located in the gated Llewellyn Park section of West Orange, had fallen flat by the 2000s, the group said.
"There really wasn't much there beforehand," Pat Hewitt, the president of the Rutgers Master Gardeners of Essex County, said of the estate's landscaping. "The gardens had lapsed into just a grassy area."
ALSO: 4th graders testify for their bill naming Thomas Edison as N.J.'s official inventor
The work to restore the garden over the past six years has been extensive, members said. The group has planted beds of flowers where they previously thrived, and has added companion gardens to the land, it said. The grand oval flowerbed that greets visitors to the national historic site as they enter the main drive was another of the group's additions to the property.
For their work, the group recently received the "Award of Excellence" from the statewide Rutgers Master Gardeners Association of New Jersey, which trains volunteers throughout the state to engage in local horticultural projects.
Each year, Rutgers recognizes projects from each of its county associations, said Jan Zientek, the school's Agricultural Senior Program Coordinator. He called the Glenmont project a "unique collaboration" between the master gardeners and the National Parks Service.
"This project (is) really helping the estate shine," he said.
According to the national park service, Edison purchased Glenmont in 1886. Trees dating back to at least the 1840s were incorporated into the estate's landscape design, it says.
The group says it plans additional projects at the site in the future.
Jessica Mazzola may be reached at jmazzola@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessMazzola. Find NJ.com on Facebook.