Most Delawareans have visited the DuPont gardens at Winterthur, Hagley, or Nemours, or the gorgeous horticultural paradise that is the Mt. Cuba Center – but there’s one more garden in Wilmington that you may not have even heard of. The Goodstay Gardens are a part of the University of Delaware’s Goodstay Center, halfway between Wilmington and Greenville. Visit this spring for an experience you won’t soon forget.

The Goodstay Gardens are an amazing retreat from the busy New Castle County life.
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They're famous for the magnolias, peonies and iris displays that take over the grounds in the springtime. These gardens are Tudor-style, planed in the early 19th Century, and partitioned into "rooms" with gravel paths and boxwood hedges.
The original Magnolia walk (shown here in the 1940s) is in the process of being restored.
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The newer trees from the restoration project aren't quite this big, but they're still absolutely beautiful. The area was originally called The Park, and it was added to the gardens in 1938.
Even in winter, the garden is worth visiting.
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The Goodstay Gardens are gorgeous in all four seasons. Ellen du Pont and her husband, Robert Wheelwright (who was a landscape architect) restored the property in the early 1920s. It was originally a vegetable site, and the Wheelwrights transitioned it into the stunning iris, rose and peony paradise that it is today.

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The wildflowers here rival Mt. Cuba.
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There is such a great variety of flowers here that you're almost certain to spot something you haven't ever seen before.
Walk the grounds here and take in the scent of fresh air and gorgeous flowers.
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The property was donated to the University of Delaware in 1968, as part of Mrs. Wheelwright's legacy. Today, the Friends of Goodstay Gardens and the University work together to keep the property maintained and open to the public.
There's nothing that could be more relaxing than sitting on a bench and taking in nature.
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Visit the Goodstay Gardens at 2600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Wilmington, Delaware. Call (302) 831-2214 for hours and visitor information.

Of course, if you’re in the area, you might want to visit the Enchanted Woods at Winterthur, too. Delaware is full of horticultural wonders.

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