Family, Food and Home

by Beth S. Buxbaum

Andrew and Mary Lou Abruzzese’s Bucks County farmhouse in Upper Makefield on top of Jericho Mountain with its renovations and additions is a tribute to family, food and home

To Andrew and Mary Lou Abruzzese family is everything. Andrew’s love of family was nurtured at a young age growing up in Baltimore. Family dinners, holidays and cooking with the family matriarchs planted the seed for what was to come. His adult life in Bucks County took course with one life-changing event. It was when he met and married Mary Lou.

Andrew and Mary Lou have built a wonderful life together. As a young married couple they started out in a little apartment in Bensalem Township. From there they bought a townhouse in Holland where they raised their two sons, Drew and Phillip. They had no thoughts of moving in their near future and had completed renovations on their townhouse in 1979. The focus of that renovation was designing a new kitchen to satisfy Andrew’s passion for cooking. Fortuitously, it was around this same time that Andrew and Mary Lou heard about a property coming on the market. “We were not even thinking about moving,” he says. They did consider the possibilities.

Andrew confesses that he has carried with him a very personal dream of where he really would love to live one day. “I always knew I wanted a five-acre farmhouse on Jericho Mountain,” Andrew explains. Fate took its course and Andrew heard about this homestead on top of Jericho Mountain. Even though it was an inopportune time for the family to move, he was curious to see the property. “I called my realtor and Mary Lou and I went to see it,” adds Andrew. This property was not even officially on the market yet and the owner was actually thinking of renting it. For Andrew this property was what he had envisioned, with some land and privacy, as well as the perfect location.

Sitting high above the landscape in Upper Makefield, on 13 acres, the home was a modest white stucco structure built in 1933. “It was the first cinder block house built in Bucks County,” Andrew adds. He explains that it was the home of Ralph Walker, son of Howard Walker, owner of Howard Walker and Son, an animal rendering plant established in the 1850s that removed dead animals. Ralph Walker built this house near the family business. With around 1700 square feet of living space, this home consisted of a living room, dining room, kitchen and powder room on the first floor and three second floor bedrooms. They made settlement in

Set for a delightful summer meal, the wisteria covered bluestone patio, enveloped in a stone wall, is perfect for family meals or gatherings with friends. The outdoor kitchen offers a stone fireplace with a pizza oven, fireplace grill and stone sink embedded in a side wall.

SITTING HIGH ABOVE THE LANDSCAPE IN UPPER MAKEFIELD, ON 13 ACRES, THE HOME WAS A MODEST WHITE STUCCO STRUCTURE BUILT IN 1933

1980 and moved into their new home. At the time the house was a perfect fit for their little family. After living there for years, Andrew and Mary Lou decided to have an addition built. One factor that enticed them to expand their living space was Andrew’s passion for cooking. The tiny kitchen was not adequate. Andrew explains that they could have added much more but thought against it. “We wanted the house to be comfortable for us, “he says, “and we can always build other buildings for guests.”

Once the decision was made to build an addition, they knew immediately who was perfect for this project. Andrew and Mary Lou enlisted Andrew’s lifelong friend, Jim Hamilton, the former owner of the Hamilton Grille in Lambertville, to design the addition. Known as a visionary, and an expert in his design craft, Hamilton was well established in several other design-focused endeavors. In addition to being a restaurateur, Jim designed showrooms for several world-renowned fashion designers and window displays for Tiffany & Co. and Steuben Glass. As the owner and operator of Design Associates, he produced scenery for Broadway plays and built touring sets for David Bowie, Tina Turner, and the Rolling Stones. In the early 1980s, he opened Jim Hamilton & Company, an architectural design studio that designed restaurants, homes, and various commercial projects. Jim Hamilton’s visionary ideas began the blueprint for the addition to the Abruzzeses’ home. With the blueprints complete, they worked with local architect, Joe Belikiewicz, and Jim

Mershon and Sons to build the addition.

In 1979 they started the project, with a plan to add a great room, kitchen, sun room and second floor bedroom. Several details were incorporated into the blueprint to orchestrate a blended transition from the original house’s footprint to the addition. The walls were built thicker to match those of the older part of the house. The floors in the great room and kitchen are oak hardwood to blend with the living room and dining room. One element that changed the feel of the home was the addition of many more windows in the blue- print of the newer rooms. With a more expansive feel, the addition was designed to add living space for greater comfort, accessibility and function. Most importantly, the kitchen was designed for optimum use.

Top, the kitchen was designed like a commercial space with stations for prep, cooking and clean-up. The center island is topped with a 10” thick quarry cut black marble. Bottom left, dinner is almost ready. Bottom right, a view of the kitchen from the breakfast nook into the dining room on the left and the sun room on the right. Opposite, the dining room, in the original section of the house, flows from the new addition and the kitchen. Visually dividing the kitchen and the dining room is an antique buffet outfitted with a copper sink and six drawers.

Open and airy, the two-story great room is filled with natural light. This space showcases walls of Palladium windows. These towering windows were built by piecing together a series of windows from an old church that Jim found at Antique Artifacts. Andrew mentions that in one corner of this room they planned a floor-to-ceiling library space. After adding an outdoor gathering and entertainment area, Jim persuaded them against creating the library wall. “He wanted us to look out onto the landscape and our patio and outdoor kitchen,”

Andrew adds. This expansive space is filled with an interesting array of furniture and art pieces. Of note is the glass topped coffee table by Paul Evans, a mid century furniture designer. Covering most of the wall space, not only in the great room, is their extensive collection of local artists, another passion they share. Andrew and Mary Lou have covered the walls of all of their living space with landscapes, still lifes, portraits and some abstract pieces from local artists. Art pieces are on display from floor-to-ceiling in this two-story space.

Another eye-opening feature of this space is the new loft bedroom that floats over the kitchen area and overlooks the great room. Andrew notes that they enjoy the heat and aroma of the fireplace from above. This was another architectural design added in vision of the use of space. Just beyond the great room is the new kitchen, clearly a chef’s delight, conceptualized and designed like a commercial space. “Jim created stations with one for prep, one for cooking and one for cleanup,” Andrew explains. Another feature of this space is accessibility of all cooking apparatus, supplies and ingredients. With few cabinets, an intentional design element, all that is needed to prepare a meal is at your fingertips. A cluster of well-used pots and pans hang above the center island. In place of closed cabinets, a wall of open shelves displays all their spices, cooking ingredients, dishes and other necessary utensils. A focal point of the space is a massive 10-inch-thick black marble topped center island functioning mainly as a prep area with a few seats for gathering. Squaring off the kitchen’s design is another work island established as the clean-up area. This utilitarian space is topped with seamless stainless steel. A must for their new kitchen is the huge commercial oven with a charcoal broiler and six burners. Another added feature is a huge walk-in refrigerator, in addition to the traditional one. The new kitchen is designed and built to meet the needs and vision of the Abruzzese’s love of cooking and gathering.

With the addition complete, they set as their next goal to add space for guests and family to stay. In 2005 they decided to tear down a chicken coup that was original to the property, and build a guest house. This large stone and wood framed carriage house, a barn-like structure, features a large living space including a great room, dining area, eat in kitchen, private office, powder room and loft. There is also a one story wing off the rear of the building with two bedroom suites, separated by a full sized laundry room. Years ago this carriage house was home to Mary Lou’s parents. Another structure is a three-car garage they had built in late 2000, which also had a one bedroom studio apartment. In 2020 they added a bluestone patio, surrounded by a stone wall and beautifully landscaped grounds. Perfect for family meals or gatherings with friends, the outdoor kitchen was designed with a stone fireplace that has a pizza oven, fireplace grill and stone sink embedded in a side wall. This addition created a perfect venue for outdoor cooking, gathering and entertaining. Cooking their signature meals and gathering with family and friends is at the core of their lives together.

With food, cooking and entertaining in their blood, Andrew and Mary Lou had another life changing event in 1989. Andrew had an opportunity to enter into a partnership to purchase a local tavern. Owning a restaurant was something that he had envisioned in his future. Andrew talks about how both his grandfathers were chefs. “My family cooked everywhere,” he adds, “and I grew up cooking so I always wanted to own a restaurant.”He and his partner purchased the Pineville Tavern and have been going strong ever since. Whether indoors, or on their patio, Mary Lou and Andrew are enjoying their tiny slice of Bucks County.v

Opposite, filled with natural light from the walls of windows, the sun room’s inviting setting is accented with brick radiant heat floors and a variety of plants. Top, a cozy corner of the great room is accented with floor-to-ceiling art and comfy seating areas. Bottom, in the home office, which was the original living room with a fireplace, there are a few notable pieces of furniture purchased from Nelson Zayes’ Blue Racoon in Lambertville. The desk is an all-glass mid-century modern piece.

Bowman’s from page 32 for larger picnics, parties or reunions. Rental includes use of fourteen picnic tables, a wood-burning fireplace, restrooms, the surrounding lawn and parking. The adjacent meadow is accessible but remains open to the public.

No longer Bucks County’s best kept secret, Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve has enjoyed an increase in visitors as people of all ages have embraced gardening, particularly gardening with ecology and conservation in mind.

According to Marissa Smith, Marketing and Communications Coordinator, the educational programs at Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve cover a wide range of topics that include the identification, ecology, and biodiversity of native plants and wildlife; basics of botany; and how to use native plants, trees and shrubs in the garden and landscape.

“The Preserve responded to covid with virtual programming and saw a huge increase in participation from people living both in our local area and all over the world,” Executive Director Peter Couchman told me. A grant was awarded to purchase technology equipment so they can stream and better capture video and audio. Programs are a hybrid of in-person and virtual. Another silver lining to covid is that people discovered the Preserve when looking for a safe outdoor space to visit.

The Preserve is excited to re-engage with the community through their creative children’s and family programs, such as falconry demonstrations, wreath making, and how-to-draw classes. For landscape professionals and homeowners, they offer a Land Ethics Symposium. Most offerings that are available in person are also available via Zoom. Here are a few examples of upcoming classes that embody the Preserve’s vision:

Invasive Species ID & Management

What is an invasive plant? What problems do invasive plants cause? Identify the most common and troublesome invasive plant species in the Delaware Valley region. You will also learn about several alternatives for control of these exotic intruders, many without the use of chemicals.

Knowing Native Plants: Meadow

Discover the Preserve’s four-acre meadow. This program will introduce you to native plants that thrive in a meadow habitat, including wildflowers, grasses, sedges and rushes. Learn what defines a meadow, the benefits it provides, meadow successional stages, the actions necessary to maintain a meadow and the animals that depend on this type of ecosystem. Find out why it is important to plant native species and avoid non-native ornamentals that may escape from cultivation.

Why grow native plants? They attract a variety of butterflies, bees and other pollinators to their flowers. Our local birds, amphibians and many other creatures that survive by eating insects are attracted to the plants, and many will stay to nest and raise their young. As they have evolved alongside native plants, they have also adapted to eating their berries and seeds, and to using them as cover and nesting sites. While non-native plants such as daylilies may be beautiful, some can be harmful our local environment, flora and fauna.

Here's the good news. Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve has a nursery that sells only plants native to our beloved area. Donna Dahringer, Nursery and Sales Manager at the Preserve says, “The nursery offers a broad selection of high qualityplants that are predominantly straight species and native to the Eastern Temperate Forest ecoregion. We continually have new offerings throughout the growing season and are open every day the Preserve is open from 10am-4pm from mid-April through the end of October.”

The nursery sells more than two hundred species of high-quality native plants, including perennial wildflowers, vines, ferns, shrubs, and trees. Most perennial species are propagated from the plant collections by the nursery manager and a dedicated team of volunteers.

By purchasing plants grown at the Preserve, you can help spread native plants throughout our region while creating an easily sustainable and care-free garden. The nursery is staffed by gardeners and naturalists to answer questions and help you choose the native plants that will grow best in your garden. Free resource material is also available, including native plant recommendations for your specific growing conditions. The plant sales area also features suggested native plant combinations and demonstration gardens.

What does the future hold for

Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve?

Currently, the Preserve has a forest therapy pilot program–remember shinrin-yoku, forest bathing–for children with special sensory needs. It is the only organization of its kind trying to link special needs with forest therapy, with hopes of using this type of program for other cognitive issues such as dementia, Alzheimer’s and PTSD.

The Preserve is looking to bring in climate change education. Executive Director Peter Couchman feels it is crucial to talk about hundred-year storms happening a few times in a decade (think Hurricanes Sandy and Ida), the increase in tornado activity in our area, and the impact of how human activity affects the ecosystem (think deer overpopulation). “The impact of a community working together making small efforts can enact great change,” he says. “People are thirsty for ecologically responsible education to support a healthy planet, to use that information in their own gardens, and engage with their own landscapes in a meaningful way.”

Visit the website bhwp.org for any information you need or questions you have. Or better yet just go visit the Preserve. Take a walk, take a tour, take a class, buy some native plants. Bring home the Preserve’s vision of “stewardship” – the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care. v

Lori Rose, the Midnight Gardener, is a Temple University Certified Master Home Gardener and member of GardenComm: Garden Communicators International. She has gardened since childhood and has been writing about gardening for over twenty years.

C. 1873 DAIRY BARN ADAPTIVE

Among rolling hills, down a heritage tree-lined path, sits a quintessential Pennsylvania farm with stone bank barn that soars above the surrounding hills. Built as a dairy barn in 1873, the barn’s original agrarian use is a fond memory after the recent renovation designed by Period Architecture. Their design approach was focused on breathing new life into the building while respecting the history of the structure and its surroundings.

Reimagined for modern entertaining, the barn has been transformed into the ultimate private hosting retreat with multiple lounging spaces creating a warm, cozy atmosphere among the vast square footage. Downstairs, as an homage to their former hoofed tenants, the original barn stalls were transformed into restrooms, and a full kitchen allows the homeowners to host family meals. Outside, stucco was removed from the façade to repoint the original fieldstone, most likely sourced directly from the property by the 1870s owner.

During the restoration, the upmost attention was paid to honor the rich history of this property. Creative solutions were found to salvage as many original details as possible. For example, the original floorboards were removed, re-milled and reinstalled to keep the classic character alive throughout the main level.

The evolution from barnyard bastion to an epicenter for entertainment required a respect for the past and an eye for the future. A barn such as this has the power to transcend time. When people walk through the doors, their nostalgia recognizes the authentic details and they allow their imaginations, if only for a moment, to transport them to another world.

For more information or a consultation, visit www.periodarchitectureltd.com.