The History, the Vision and a Plan
At the time the Mansion and Carriage House were being built, the hillside overlooked a large open meadow. To enhance the Prairie Style architecture, Susanne retained landscape architect Jens Jensen to complete the estate. Mr. Jensen was born in Denmark and had come to this country in 1884 at the age of 24.
As Jens Jensen’s design talents became apparent, he began to work on both public and private landscapes. Jensen believed it was important for people to maintain a connection with the natural heritage of their region. To achieve this, his designs emphasized native plantings in a natural setting.
The landscape Jensen designed for the Hauberg Estate is in sections: the Terraced Garden, an open meadow, a woodland forest and a formal rose garden.
From numerous landscape renderings, notes and photographs, the Friends of Hauberg Civic Center Foundation and hundreds of volunteers have begun the enormous task of diligently restoring the gardens and grounds to their original design.
The careful organization of an effort of this size is necessary and volunteer botanists, ecologists and organic growers lend their skills in restoration of the estate. The Hauberg Estate is a perfect example of the Jens Jensen philosophy of landscape architecture. The landscape combines the elements of sky, sun, clouds, wind, water, native flowers, shrubs, trees and organic structures to create a living landscape that is beautiful, understandable and on-going.
