Conclusion

This project has been the Preservation Foundation’s first foray into the history of landscape architecture in Palm Beach, and we hope it inspires more research on the subject. In working on this report, we discovered that Palm Beach residents have been using non-native plants to cultivate the town into a tropical paradise for more than a hundred years. However, we also found that they have been leaving existing growth untouched or intentionally incorporating it into landscape designs for just as long. Many historic residences, including the ones featured in this report, seem to have met or even exceeded the current 35% native benchmark long before it was put in place. The town in general was not always as manicured as it is now, and the aesthetic appeal of non-native materials has always been enhanced by the preservation or incorporation of native plants. In light of this, we hope to set historic precedence for the use of plants which support the ecological health of Palm Beach in new landscape development. The value of native plants is only just beginning to be fully realized in Palm Beach, where natives have consistently been used as a legitimate element of the island’s beauty, health, and character.

“I’ve always felt that the architecture came first and the landscaping had to follow. We have to get away from today’s tendency to fill every space with great masses of flowers, bushes, and shrubs.”

- George Spencer, landscape architect for the Boynton Landscape Company, 2003.