Longwood Gardens gives update on Granogue after toasting new winery purchase

Sometimes the grass is greener on the other side, even for a global destination like Longwood Gardens.

Many years after selling a small piece of their land, Longwood spokesperson Patricia Evans confirmed that the Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, destination has repurchased the property from Galer Estate Vineyard and Winery. The vineyard closed its doors in late September.

The 7.4 acres of land Longwood bought is at 700 Folly Hill Road. The space was listed by Kurfiss Sotheby’s International Realty with an asking price of $3.395 million.

Evans said Longwood won't announce how much it paid for the property, a piece of land they're excited to bring back into the fold.

"It allows us to acquire 7 acres that were adjacent to us ... and we're very much about preserving green space and agricultural land, which is what this was. So, we didn't want to see this get developed," she said.

The Longwood spokesperson said the internationally acclaimed garden, which sits on over 1,000 acres, originally owned the property until their former director sold it in 2002.

Folly Hill Vineyards opened its doors there in 2003. The land was later bought by Brad and Lele Galer, who opened their award-winning Galer Estate Vineyard and Winery in 2011.

When will Longwood Gardens own Granogue?

Longwood's reacquisition of the Folly Hill property comes at a time when the famous public garden is in the process of growing and enhancing its botanical empire through its $250 million revitalization project: "Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience."  

The project debuts to the public in fall 2024 and promises to reimagine 17 acres of the venue's Conservatory and land grounds.

Longwood also announced in February plans to buy Granogue. That's the stunning 505-acre private estate near Centreville, Delaware, owned by the late Irénée du Pont Jr., that Longwood wants to keep as open space.

The premier garden has entered into a binding agreement with Granogue Reserve Ltd. LLC to buy and operate du Pont's estate in northern New Castle County. GRLLC is the limited liability company that owns the 100-year-old Granogue property. 

Longwood still doesn't officially own Granogue, which it anticipates will happen before the end of this year or at the beginning of 2024, Evans told Delaware Online/The News Journal on Oct. 20.

Will Longwood turn new property into winery?

Like the Folly Hill property, Evans said they don't yet have specific details to share about how they'll utilize Granogue.

As Longwood also tries to figure out how to preserve its repurchased land from the Galer vineyard, Evans said guests shouldn't expect the beloved garden to wine about that path forward.

"I don't think we want to get into the wine business. We don't have any immediate plans to do that."

If you have an interesting story idea, email lifestyle reporter Andre Lamar at alamar@gannett.com. Consider signing up for his weekly newsletter, DO Delaware, at delawareonline.com/newsletters.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Longwood Gardens toasts buying winery, before famous Christmas event