Over a hundred years ago, a pioneering American landscape architect blurred the lines between gardening and agriculture combining native plants with a European-based style of axial garden design.

Who was this avant-garde designer, lecturer and author? Martha Brooks Hutcheson, 1871-1959. Her gardens, lectures and writings, however, have largely been lost to history.

Susan Cohan decided to set the record straight. Her exhibit, “Kindred Spirit” in this year’s Philadelphia Flower Show, pays tribute to Hutcheson’s works.

The garden, arranged with structure and symmetry, overflows with native plants growing with abandon. Focal points created by rustic stonework draw the visitor’s eye through the exhibit; a small pond echoes the larger pool found in Hutcheson’s original garden on her farm.

Hutcheson’s work resonated with Cohan’s own sense of design.

Hutcheson was a firm believer in axial design—once an axis has been established, the garden can be filled with plants.

Both women consider structure and focus critical elements within a garden. Once that has been established, native plants can roam.