The Garden Dirt | Winter 2020-2021

WINTER 2020–2021

the garden dirt FOR FRIENDS OF BIRMINGHAM BOTANICAL GARDENS

Cultivating Hope Thanks to thoughtful design and the devotion of a caring volunteer community, a once-forgotten garden space now serves as a place that allows thousands of families to remember, find comfort, and heal

Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens

WINTER 2020–2021

2020 Board of Directors

John Smith T ���������������������������������������������������������������������� Chair Beverley Hoyt �������������������������������������������Immediate Past Chair Wally Evans ����������������������������������������������������������������� Treasurer Emily Bowron �������������������������������������������������������������Secretary D.C. Coston ����������������������������������� Chair of Communications & Marketing Peyton King ������������������������������������������� Chair of Development Chris Boles ������������������������������������������������� Chair of Education Bill Ireland ����������������������������������������������� Chair of Governance Cathy Adams �������������������������Chair of Government Relations Lee McLemore ������������������������������������������Chair of Operations

Members at Large Brian Barr Craig Beatty Uday Bhate Sharon Brown Stephanie Cooper Norm Davis Bob de Buys Wendy Evesque Kirk Forrester Helen Harmon

Chris Hastings Janet Kavinoky Natalie Kelly Caroline Little John Miller Blevins Naff Tiffany Osborne Jim Pickle Sharon Sherrod

Director Emeritus John Alex Floyd, Jr.

Our Mission

The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens seeks to protect, nurture, and share the wonders of Birmingham Botanical Gardens. We are dedicated to serving the Gardens, serving the community, serving our visitors, and inspiring a passion for plants, gardens, and the environment.

Staff

FINDING THE PERFECT GIFT IS OH SO EASY AT ONE OF BIRMINGHAM’S BEST GIFT SHOPS, LEAF & PETAL AT THE GARDENS • HOLIDAY & HOME DECOR • GIFTS • ORIGINAL ARTWORK • DISTINCTIVE JEWELRY • PLANTS & CONTAINERS Support the Gardens while you shop. Members of the Friends save 10% on regularly priced merchandise.

Leaf & Petal at the Gardens 205.877.3030 • leafnpetal.com

Tom Underwood ..............................................Executive Director Stephanie Banks ���������������������������������������� Chief Financial Officer Mindy Keyes Black ������������������������� Director of Communications and Marketing Dawn DeFrank ���������������������������������Donor Services Coordinator Jamie Haas ������������������������Communications and Marketing Associate Ellen Hardy �������������������������������� Education Program Coordinator Penney Hartline ������������������������������������ Director of Development Molly Hendry ��������������������������Garden Assessment Project Leader Jason Kirby ������������������������������������ Library Assistant and Archivist Dawn Coleman Lee ������������������������ Education Activities Specialist Hope Long �����������������������������������������Director of Library Services John Manion ����������������������������� Kaul Wildflower Garden Curator Brooke McMinn ���������������������������������Director of Education and Visitor Experience Alice Thompson Moore... �������������������������� Volunteer Coordinator Michelle Phillips ���������������������������������������������Office Coordinator Drew Rickel �������������������������������������������� Donor Relations Officer Jane Underwood ��������������������������������������� Director of Operations Editor: Mindy Keyes Black Art Design: Ellen Padgett Cover Photo: Graham Yelton Contributors: Susan Emack Alison, Dawn DeFrank, Jamie Haas, Ellen Hardy, Penney Hartline, Molly Hendry, Dawn Coleman Lee, Brooke McMinn, Michelle Phillips, Drew Rickel, Graham Yelton ©2020 Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

All rights reserved. 2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, AL 35223 205.414.3950 | bbgardens.org communications@bbgardens.org A facility of the Birmingham Park and Recreation Board, Birmingham Botanical Gardens is the result of a public/private partnership between the City of Birmingham and the nonprofit Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens, a mission-driven membership organization that seeks to protect, nurture, and share the wonders of the Gardens. We hope you enjoy this issue of the Friends’ award-winning quarterly publication, The Garden Dirt. Thank you for visiting and supporting the Gardens!

Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens practices a policy of equal opportunity and equal access to services for all persons regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, orientation, or sex identity.

WELCOME Dear Friend, Over and over in our lives, we look to nature for comfort and peace. During this extraordinary year, as so many of us have turned to the Gardens to stay well, stay strong, and stay positive, we have seen time and again that green is the color of hope.

Birmingham Botanical Gardens inspires and uplifts us in powerful ways, and our community’s need for this urban oasis and welcome retreat has never been greater.

This community treasure provides solace and connects us not only to the world around us but also to one another.

We take to heart the role that the Friends plays in making these connections and continue to reinvent ourselves—expanding our online offerings and reimagining our programs—to ensure we remain relevant, true to our mission, and focused on serving the Gardens community during these unprecedented times.

Each of our spaces tells a compelling tale of renewal. During this meaningful time of year, we hope you enjoy “Cultivating Hope” (page 4), a heartwarming story of the origins and ongoing impact of our Little Ones Memory Garden. Created to provide solace to families who have lost infants, the garden was recently reimagined with input from the volunteers who view the garden as a place of healing and of hope.

At the Gardens, wonders sometimes grow from chance encounters. Meet our newest “volunteer” in the Bruno Vegetable Garden (page 3), a reminder of nature’s resilience. Be sure not to miss the memorial tribute to devoted volunteer gardener Kathy Connolly by fellow volunteers who found a meaningful way to celebrate her passion for the Gardens (page 16).

Thank you for the generosity and passion that you have shown this year. Your membership support and donations help us sustain this special place and all that it makes possible: a promise of perpetual hope that grows thanks to your commitment.

We invite you to plan a visit soon to explore the Gardens’ fall and wintertime wonders. May your holidays be filled with comfort, peace, and hope.

Member-Exclusive Holiday Storytime CELEBRATING NATIONAL POINSETTIA DAY AND FEATURING THE LEGEND OF THE POINSETTIA BY TOMIE DEPAOLA Saturday, December 12 | 2–3 p.m.

Birmingham Botanical Gardens Free for members of the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens Members of the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens at the Family level and above are invited to join storyteller Carol Haygood in the Gardens for a reading of The Legend of the Poinsettia, a cultural classic by beloved Newbery Medal-winning author and Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Tomie dePaola. In Mexico, the poinsettia is called flor de la Nochebuenao—flower of the Holy Night. This Mexican legend tells how the poinsettia came to be, through a little girl’s unselfish gift.* This special storytime will take place outdoors; attendees will receive a commemorative book.

Registration is limited, so reserve your spot today. bbgardens.org/classes *© 2020 Penguin Random House

Tom Underwood Executive Director Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens

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WINTER 2020–2021 Around the Gardens:

Structure in the Gardens

Cool-weather months allow us to appreciate plants and trees that add structure to outdoor spaces.

Watch for these garden-defining standouts on wintertime walks through the Gardens.

By MOLLY HENDRY

What it is: Weeping taxodium (Taxodium distichum ‘Cascade Falls’) What we love about it: The weeping form of the bald cypress provides an arching shape in the garden while also creating a favorite nook for kids beneath the enveloping branches.

Where to find it: flanking both sides of the Conservatory

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CRAPE MYRTLE What it is: Crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) What we love about it: With their strong muscular limbs and exfoliating bark, crape myrtles contribute an arching canopy.

Resist the urge to “crape murder” the top of this classic Southern tree this winter, and allow its graceful natural structure to stand out in your garden.

Where to find it: Formal Garden

FOAMFLOWER What it is: Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia) What we love about it: This hardworking native perennial stays evergreen in our mild winters and boasts of a long spring bloom.

It is a perfect groundcover for those shady bits of your garden.

Where to find it: Kaul Wildflower Garden

Photos by Graham Yelton

WEEPING TAXODIUM

A New Volunteer From last year’s compost comes a reminder of nature’s perseverance

By BROOKE McMINN LIFE IS PERSISTENT. That is the thought that occurs to me whenever I see this particular plant. I think back to earlier this year when its life began. There is no denying this spring had a bit of a rough start. Even still, amid the spreading pandemic and social strife, a tiny seed from last year’s garden refuse, intended to decompose, began instead to grow.

In gardening, we call a plant that grows on its own without being deliberately planted by someone a volunteer. Unlike weeds, which are undesirable, a volunteer plant may be encouraged and cared for by gardeners. They are nice surprises in unexpected places—like this impressive specimen of Luffa cylindrica.

Nestled snuggly in the warmth of Bruno Vegetable Garden’s compost bin, this little volunteer luffa seed didn’t consider the state of the world that awaited it. It knew only what it was meant to do—live. And has it ever! From that single, small seed a wall of luscious green foliage dotted with cheery yellow flowers and curious elongated fruit sprang forth. Visitors, staff, and volunteer workers alike have been awed by her beauty, inspired by her success, and perhaps most importantly, reminded by her obstinate existence that, in spite of opposition, life continues on its course.

DAWN REDWOOD What it is: Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) What we love about it: This prehistoric tree resembles the bald cypress, but its stature is incomparable. Its fernlike foliage turns bronze in autumn and then drops, leaving the bold trunk and horizontal limbs like stairsteps up to the sky.

Where to find it: Formal Garden, Japanese Garden

ABOVE AND OPPOSITE: This striking volunteer luffa plant grew from the compost in our Bruno Vegetable Garden in 2020, a garden success story and symbol of resilience during this extraordinary year. Did you know? The immature fruit of Luffa cylindrica is a nutritious vegetable popular in Asian cuisine. When harvested, it can be eaten raw or cooked and eaten like cucumber or squash.

PAPERBUSH What it is: Paperbush (Edgeworthia chrysantha) What we love about it: The paperbush has strong stems that fork repeatedly at the tips, creating a striking silhouette in the winter landscape. What it lacks in winter foliage it makes up for with buttery yellow blooms that can be smelled from quite a distance.

Where to find it: Curry Rhododendron Garden

JAPANESE PIERIS What it is: Japanese pieris (Pieris japonica) What we love about it: Pieris supplies evergreen bones in your garden with an added bonus in winter, when its drooping, pearl-like flowers are highlighted against the deep glossy-green foliage behind their delicate white blooms.

Where to find it: Southern Living Garden

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In late fall, the Little Ones Memory Garden billows with the soft blooms of ‘Ryan’s Pink’ mums and rosemary.

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cultivating hope

THANKS TO THOUGHTFUL DESIGN AND THE DEVOTION OF A CARING VOLUNTEER COMMUNITY, A ONCE-FORGOTTEN GARDEN SPACE NOW SERVES AS A PLACE THAT ALLOWS THOUSANDS OF FAMILIES TO REMEMBER, FIND COMFORT, AND HEAL By

MOLLY HENDRY

l

Photographs by

GRAHAM YELTON

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The site of the Little Ones Memory Garden, prior to the garden’s 2005 installation

Volunteer Staci Self plants a heuchera, part of the 2019 redesign.

T

he only notable feature of this undeveloped corner of the Gardens was a rutted-out ditch, carved out from years of rushing water making its way down the backside of Red Mountain. This particular spot was still recovering from straight-line winds that decimated the northern areas of the garden during a storm in the early 1990s. It was hard to imagine this small space as anything particularly memorable, or really as any place at all.

But 20 years ago, a passionate group of women were able to look beyond the damage and imagine a place, one that would take the ravaged leftovers from a storm and transform them into a garden, a source of healing for those suffering from the pain of infant loss. This was the creation of the Little Ones Memory Garden, a place to remember and a place to heal, an offering of hope.

It seems fitting that a forgotten corner of the garden would be reimagined as a place of remembrance, doesn’t it? While the Little Ones Memory Garden has been growing for 15 years, this story begins more than 30 years ago with a visionary named Martha Turner. Working as a labor and delivery nurse at Princeton Hospital, she watched couples from all over the city experience infant loss, a sorrow that 1 in 4 women will walk through during their pregnancy journey. Whether through a miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal loss, each day families are confronted with the heartbreaking reality that they will be leaving the hospital without their little one in their arms.

Many feel unsure of how to carry on, lost in where to go, wondering how to heal. The grief

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can be disorienting and paralyzing. Many times these families suffer silently amidst the pain that feels so isolating.

During a training on how to care for mothers and fathers experiencing loss, Martha heard of an annual memorial walk at a garden in Salt Lake City to honor little ones lost and give families a place to mourn, to remember, to hope. This sparked an idea in Martha. “Seeing the loss and knowing that some people didn’t have anywhere to go, I just felt that if we could give them an opportunity to come together it would at least be something, even if it was a small something.”

This was the birth of the annual Walk to Remember, which had a humble beginning in a borrowed courtyard outside the former Trinity Medical Center with about 10 people in attendance. As Martha began to network with other nurses, social workers, and chaplains at surrounding area hospitals, the walk grew. They planted a magnolia tree in the courtyard the first year, commemorated it with a plaque the next, and dedicated a bench the third year.

But soon the walk had grown so much they

were borrowing the Southern Living Garden at Birmingham Botanical Gardens for their service each October. And with each passing year, the word spread and more and more families came. It wasn’t long before the walk outgrew this borrowed garden, and the committee members began to imagine what it would take to create a garden of their own at BBG. They dreamed of a space that would go beyond their once-a-year walk and be a place for these grieving parents to go any day of the year.

In 2005, this dream took root with the dedication of the Little Ones Memory Garden and the celebration of the first Walk to Remember in their own garden. It is an inspiring journey from one magnolia tree in a courtyard to a dedicated space at the Gardens, all from one woman’s conviction that, simply put, she just needed to do something. That little something has grown for 15 years now, and as with any garden, was in need of a renewal. That is where I crossed paths with this special place. We set out to reimagine the plantings, and what I found is a place that has grown into so much more than simply a garden.

It’s spring …

… on a glorious afternoon, one of those first warm days that gives you hope that winter’s grip is loosening. I am standing with Susanne Lambert in the Little Ones Memory Garden amongst a small group of garden staff that have gathered to brainstorm a refresh of the planting beds. Susanne has been involved with the garden since its inception, so I am eager to hear her thoughts.

My notepad is at the ready.

“You see, what we really need is color. Seasonal color,” Susanne says. “Especially in October, when our annual walk takes place.”

“Color—October,” I write down.

“We want it to feel beautiful, no matter when a family visits!”

I scribble year-round interest in my notes.

I pause and step back to take a look at the surrounding context. This garden is in a bright clearing in the woodland canopy, tucked away above the Rhododendron Gardens, sloping down the hillside facing the bright southerly sun. I note how tired the planting beds look with remnants of a coherent design muddled by plants that had been plopped in to fill gaps.

The most striking features of this garden are the concrete retaining walls that slice into the hillside, creating a dry creek bed out of what was once a worn drainage ditch.

I hear Susanne continue, “And the walls, they are the most prominent thing right now. Is there a way to soften them?”

Soften walls…

I realized in this moment it is hard to speak with Susanne and not feel an overwhelming sense of peace. Her eyes are kind and steady, and her voice overflows with a gentle and grounded confidence. Her laugh is light and her smile infectious.

I learned that Susanne first joined the group 25 years ago after a providential connection with Martha through Susanne’s personal artwork.

Although Susanne was already retired as a nurse, it was through her newfound community in the Little Ones group that she was offered the opportunity to return to the healthcare field as a bereavement nurse at Brookwood Baptist Hospital. She was back in the same occupation but with a new goal: to comfort families who were experiencing infant loss.

She describes this opportunity as a full-circle moment. She was once the grieving mother in the hospital bed after experiencing the loss of her son Eli, who was stillborn more than 40 years ago. Now she was the one kneeling at the bedside ready to be a voice of hope to the mothers walking the painful road she had travelled before them. Although she has now retired again, that has not quenched her passion for supporting grieving families through the Little Ones group.

As Susanne speaks, I felt instinctively that her care for this garden goes deeper than the beauty of the plantings and is rooted in her love for the

community that surrounds this special place.

Standing on top of one of the walls and reviewing my notes, I was feeling pretty good about the task at hand. The needs of the garden seemed very manageable: seasonal color that adds year-round interest and softens the hard lines of the retaining walls. Nothing that hasn’t been done before, right? That is when Susanne hits me with one final thought.

“The garden is the last place we tell these couples about when they leave the hospital.” Then she adds, “It is hope! There is somewhere you can go, and a group of people who understand.

It is hope; how do you explain that?”

That question reverberated in my mind.

How do you explain hope?

And even more, how does hope manifest in a garden?

It’s summer …

… when I sit down in our Library’s Archives & Rare Book Room to study original maps of the Little Ones Memory Garden. It was a pretty simple design concept to grasp. The old washed-out drainage ditch had been turned into a dry creek bed to channel water during storm events, with tiered planting beds adjacent to the streambed. This garden has solid bones, so its needs really were a question of planting design.

This meant that each plant chosen needed to pull its weight and contribute to the overall goal.

Which brought me back to that original question: What does hope look like in a garden?

I couldn’t shake the idea of the seasons. From winter to spring, summer, and fall, each new season brings a renewed promise. Despite anything that is happening in the world, spring bulbs emerge, the leaves reappear on the trees, and a thin layer of green pollen covers everything in sight.

When you can taste honeysuckle in the air it’s time for school to let out, just as oakleaf hydrangeas are blooming and the first watermelons appear at the farmers market. Summertime is a rousing chorus of color and sunscreen application while the air thickens and hums with life. Then autumn comes, the long-awaited respite from the heat for us Southern souls, with that intoxicatingly sweet smell of crisp air and bonfires, the sound of crunching leaves underfoot, and the glowing autumnal light mixed with the resounding echo of people complaining about their allergies.

There is a palpable rhythm, day to day, month by month, year after year. That rhythm washes over us, with the sights, smells, sounds, and feelings of each fleeting moment. The seasons are the beating drum to which our life falls in step, their seemingly mundane predictability an anchor amidst disorientating pain. I knew this design must shout the seasons so that any family, any day of the year, would walk away with a rooted hope that there is softness against the harshness of life, there is rhythm when life feels so dissonant.

The first design question was structure. What would be there when the herbaceous layer faded?

Remembrance is the core of this garden, and Shakespeare said it best in Hamlet: “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance ...” Rosemary it is. Next up, spring. The garden needed something brilliant yellow that sings a bold springtime melody. Daffodils would do the trick. Summer harmonizes melodies of pink coneflowers, yellow black-eyed Susans, white kalimeris, soft lamb’s ears, building to the final stanza. In October comes a crescendo of ‘Ryan’s Pink’ mums that spill over the concrete wall backdrop and cascade down the edges of the creek bed, just in time for the Walk to Remember. There is an air of softness as blush mums thread the spiky rosemary, remembrance laced with hope.

By the end of summer the plants were chosen, the quantities were sourced, and dozens of crates sat in lathhouses waiting for the air to cool for planting. The garden was left teetering on what had been and what was to come.

It’s autumn …

… on a lovely crisp morning when the Little Ones volunteer group works to clear the garden in preparation for the new planting. It is amazing to see how so many people have been brought together through this little garden. On any given workday you might meet a family who has experienced infant loss, a labor and delivery nurse or chaplain from a local hospital, or a member of a local infant loss support group.

This particular morning I am working alongside Gene Gilmore, a father touched by infant loss, cutting back overgrown forsythia, clearing fallen branches, weeding the woodland edges, cleaning up the tattered fronds of ferns, and laying pine straw. I learn that Gene and his wife, Lucy, were the instigators of this volunteer group. After losing their little boy in 2012, the couple came to the Little Ones garden one Easter Sunday shortly after being released from the hospital. Upon seeing the garden they approached the group with an idea: What if the Little Ones group actually began working in the garden? Since 2012, one Saturday each month during the growing season, families from all different walks of life kneel next to one another, getting their hands dirty in the Little Ones garden.

“It’s extremely therapeutic,” Gene tells me.

“Working alongside other couples that have experienced the same thing as you, there is a bond.”

Lucy adds, “Not knowing each other but knowing that you have something so painful in common, it is really easy to be candid while we are digging in the dirt.”

And that is what makes this garden a little different, because the garden doesn’t just grow to be passively appreciated. It grows in order to connect families to one another. Each family is a thread colored with its own story, woven into the tapestry of the garden.

“There is a place for everyone,” says Rev. Dorothy Gerr, a spiritual care provider at Grandview Hospital. She became connected to

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CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: Pollinators

find ‘Ryan’s Pink’ mums an autumn favorite. Volunteer Susanne Lambert helps spread pine straw on the freshly planted beds. Garden Assessment Project Leader Molly Hendry stakes mums for the 2019 Walk to Remember.

Photo caption goes here mi, si cloriorepra volup taspe coreium haritectatur rapre. OPPOSITE: inihilis aligendendi cum ilicis simolor um ea nos ium apitatia voloriam, quiatinvel mi, con nobisqu to adductu rnimis.

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There is an air of softness as blush mums thread the spiky rosemary,

remembrance laced with hope.

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As I think back to that forgotten corner of the garden, wounded by the storm and scarred with an eroded ditch, it amazes me that

this garden has blossomed in its place.

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Susanne Lambert

Molly Hendry

A TIME + PLACE TO REMEMBER

Devoted volunteers talk about their passion for the garden Brittany Hogan

Dorothy Gerr

the group after working closely with Susanne at Brookwood to provide comfort to families suffering from a loss. Dorothy has walked alongside families from all parts of the city experiencing all types of infant loss. She is quick to add, “To be in this garden, to see renewal every year, to see the garden change and bloom with the seasons, to experience that, and to put our hands in the dirt and be part of that creative process also renews our hope.”

After hearing the stories of each family’s journey to this garden, I marvel at how the threads of each story are not only woven into the garden but also interlaced with each other. Susanne recounts how breathtaking it is to watch how families begin to heal through their ties to one another. “I always get this wonderful feeling when I am here,” she says, “and particularly when I am with these families that come back. I have seen the ones that come in raw and hurting become the next ones that reach out. And this just happens year by year by year.”

She finishes with words that seem to echo through every conversation: “This truly is a place of healing and such hope.”

While healing and hope have come from intentional support in this community through the years, they have also come in little ways, small somethings that are actually quite important somethings. Lucy told me how their little girl, such a beautiful gift to their family after walking through loss, had the idea of donating some of her chalk for the Walk to Remember in 2018. With her chalk, families wrote messages on the walls and drew colorful pictures of encouragement that enveloped the garden. Unbeknownst to Lucy and her daughter, that year at the walk Brittany Hogan and her husband were grieving parents who were healing from the recent loss of their two daughters.

Two years later when asked about how the garden has been a place of healing for her, Brittany eagerly recounts how that chalk gave her and her husband the opportunity to write their daughters’ names on a wall during the service.

“That sounds so small, but it was very significant for us to write their names and remember them.”

She then adds, “This garden feels so hopeful.”

I realized that fall morning in the garden that

space that provides comfort to families year-round: youtube.com/birminghambotanicalgardens

I am just getting a glimpse of all the threads that come together in this space, because with each Saturday workday, with each Walk to Remember, more threads are added to the tapestry. Now, one week later, it was finally cool enough to usher in a new era for the garden, the new planting design that I was hoping would accomplish the mission: to provide hope.

As I run around setting out plants, I see Susanne is already on her hands and knees planting the first hellebores at the top of the stream. Crates of ‘Ryan’s Pink’ mums perfectly in bloom line the tops of the walls, and 3-gallon pots of rosemary dot the beds. We work our way from bed to bed leaving a trail of empty plastic pots as we move down the hillside.

After all the crates have disappeared from atop the walls, the plastic pots have been carted off, and the plants are watered in, we step back and admire the freshness of new life in the garden. Although small, the new plants will grow with time, and we feel the anticipation of what has been set into motion. I can hear the faint beat of the seasonal drum starting, the heartbeat of the garden.

It’s now winter …

… and in the Little Ones Memory Garden the mums that cascaded down the edges of the stream have been cut back, and the garden drifts into its seasonal slumber. Yet, the rosemary still stands tall, the anchors for the winter, pillars of remembrance.

Winter is a season when we slow down, we pause in thankfulness, we celebrate our blessings, and we reflect on the year with gratitude. As I think back to that forgotten corner of the garden, wounded by the storm and scarred with an eroded ditch, it amazes me that this garden has blossomed in its place. The ditch was not hidden or ignored; instead, its waters were channeled. And along its edges a glorious creation provides daily comfort.

In the same way, 2020 has taught us we can’t control the storms that come or the raging waters that roll through our lives. But we can control what we do in the wake of those storms and how we channel those waters that wash

through. Instead of defining, they can be the backdrop for a glorious new garden. Although there is a winter, we know that spring is coming.

It is hope; how do you explain that?

Maybe the answer to Susanne’s question is that hope cannot be explained simply with words. Perhaps hope must be cultivated as well.

And now when I enter this garden, I can hear the unwavering voice of Lucy saying, “Challenge yourself to make purpose out of your little one’s life.” For Gene and Lucy, that cultivated purpose was starting the Little Ones volunteer group, leading the charge for that hands-in-the-dirt healing. For Susanne, it has been planning the Walk to Remember year after year, helping establish the garden, and kneeling by the bedside of mothers in need of hope.

For Brittany, it started by writing her daughters’ names in chalk but culminated in speaking about her and her husband’s healing journey at a Walk to Remember service, an opportunity to offer hope to hundreds.

It begins by doing something, even a small something, as Martha did 30 years ago. One day you may look back at your small offering of a magnolia tree in a borrowed courtyard and see the garden that grew in its wake. You may meet a mother who found hope in your box of chalk.

You may watch your walk of 10 people grow to 200+ people, touching thousands of lives in the span of three decades. It may be small at the start, but it could blossom into something far beyond what you could ever imagine.

So come to the Little Ones Memory Garden.

By remembering, we heal, and by hoping, we push on. No matter the storm-ravaged ground you encounter or the waters that have billowed your way, by creating gardens we forge with our hands the hope we hold fast to in our hearts.

This garden, it is hope, and together we can cultivate it.

Get involved! Volunteer (email volunteer@ bbgardens.org), learn more about the annual walk (email susanneclambert@gmail.com), and make an honorary or memorial gift (visit bbgardens.org/donate).

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WINTER 2020–2021 CALENDAR

We continue to monitor CDC, local, and state recommendations for gatherings of people in response to COVID-19 and to plan class offerings with safety as our top priority. Please visit bbgardens.org/classes, sign up for our biweekly e-newsletters, or follow us on social media for the latest details on in-person and virtual offerings.

MEMBER-EXCLUSIVE OFFERINGS December 2 WREATH-MAKING WITH HOLLY CARLISLE December 5 BIRD WALK WITH ALABAMA AUDUBON December 12 STORYTIME FEATURING TOMIE DEPAOLA’S LEGEND OF THE POINSETTIA

FAMILY PROGRAMS December 4 FAMILY FRIDAY: WINTER WOODLAND EXPLORATION December 5 FAMILY YOGA January 8

FAMILY FRIDAY: HOW DOES A SEED GROW? February 12 FAMILY FRIDAY: FLOWER POWER

NATIVE PLANT STUDIES

NATIVE PLANT STUDIES:

WINTER IDENTIFICATION OF NATIVE WOODY PLANTS FIELD CLASS Identifying plants in winter, when many have lost their foliage for the season, can be challenging. Using the Gardens’ extensive living collections as a hands-on resource, we will focus on attributes and identification features of woody plant species found naturally or in cultivation in Alabama. Attendees will examine and learn to identify approximately 20 woody plants whose key traits are evident this time of year.

Sunday, December 13 • 1–3 p.m.

Birmingham Botanical Gardens Friends: $40 | Non-members: $50 bbgardens.org/classes

December 13 WINTER IDENTIFICATION OF NATIVE WOODY PLANTS FIELD CLASS Check bbgardens.org/classes for 2021 Native Plant Studies offerings!

SATURDAYS IN THE GARDENS December 19 GET TO KNOW NATIVE HOLLIES WEBINAR January 16 SOURCE YOUR SEEDS WEBINAR February 20 REPOT & REJUVENATE ORCHIDS WEBINAR

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CHILDREN’S VALENTINE GARDEN KIT

Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to brighten someone’s day with flowers! Our Education team has designed this kit with everything children need to have fun planting a flowering bulb to grow indoors and design cards using heart-shaped seed paper.

Each garden kit will be individually wrapped with holiday-themed ribbon. Includes: clay pot with stickers, soil medium, flowering bulb, planting instructions, and two paper hearts with seeds. Kits will be available for pickup at Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

Friends: $20 | Non-members: $25 bbgardens.org/valentine

9 Pros of Native Plants Discover some of the numerous benefits that native plants can provide to your garden, your planet, your bank account, and more!

By BROOKE McMINN

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ADD BEAUTY Many native plants offer beautiful showy flowers, abundant colorful fruits and seeds, and brilliant seasonal changes in colors from the pale, thin greens of early spring to the vibrant yellows and reds of autumn.

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CONSERVE WATER The growth habits of native plants reduce the stormwater that overflows waterways, storing water where it’s most needed and minimizing flooding. Native plants are also well-adapted to local climate extremes and require little to no irrigation during drought.

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REDUCE EROSION Native plants’ extensive root systems hold soil in place during heavy rain and flooding, reducing the amount lost from landscapes and deposited into waterways.

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Native Plant Conference GROWING RESILIENCE

SAVE THE DATE!

March 11–14, 2021 The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens is pleased to announce the return of our biennial Native Plant Conference. This hybrid conference, Growing Resilience, will highlight the resilience that native plants provide in our gardens and will include virtual presentations, roundtables, and trivia, as well as regional, in-person, small group field trips designed to increase awareness of and interest in Alabama’s native plant species in the landscape. Keynote speaker will be Kelly Holdbrooks, Executive Director of Southern Highlands Reserve in North Carolina, who will discuss how culture and ecology intersect and inform decisions of land use. Professionals and hobbyists alike will gain valuable knowledge and skills from tracks in conservation, design, and education.

205.414.3950 bbgardens.org/npc A facility of the Birmingham Park and Recreation Board, Birmingham Botanical Gardens is the result of a public/private partnership between the City of Birmingham and the nonprofit Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens, a mission-driven membership organization that seeks to protect, nurture, and share the wonders of the Gardens.

OFFER VERSATILITY No matter your project’s size or scope, you can find a native plant for every niche in the landscape.

Numerous selections are available to grow in every planting site, from damp shade to dry rock gardens.

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PROVIDE WILDLIFE REFUGE Since native plants are programmed to produce fruit and nectar, they can provide nutrients to local inhabitants. Attract more wildlife to your landscape by taking advantage of native plant palettes.

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STAY LOW MAINTENANCE Equipped with natural protections, many native plants are resistant to common diseases and pests. Growers typically don’t need to use the pesticides that non-native plants require.

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SAVE MONEY Native plants bloom rapidly and are easy to divide to create more plants for starting new gardens. Since native plants are durable and long-lived, you won’t have to buy replacements as often as you would with non-native plants.

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STORE CARBON Excessive carbon from burning fossil fuels contributes to a warming planet. Native plants sequester, or remove, the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the air. Many native plants, especially long-living trees like oaks and maples, effectively store the carbon they remove for years.

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YIELD HEALTHY PLACES Lawns and other highly manicured landscapes notoriously require profuse amounts of artificial fertilizers and synthetic chemical pesticides and herbicides. By choosing native plants for your landscaping, not only are you helping wildlife, but also you are creating a healthier place for yourself, your family, and your community.

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WINTER 2020–2021 GARDEN SUPPORTERS

Thank You

CAMELLIA JAPONICA ‘DEBUTANTE’

Your support keeps these beloved Gardens growing.

DURING THIS CHALLENGING YEAR, the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens is grateful for the many ways that you have chosen to share your support.

We hope that you have visited the Gardens over the past several months and enjoyed the peaceful pathways, blooming flowers, changing leaves, soothing water features, and new self-guided tours.

Thank you for your membership support, your thoughtful honorarium and memorial gifts for friends and loved ones, your donations and sponsorships, your grants, your plant purchases, and your volunteer time.

Your contributions have allowed us to continue to support the Gardens’ operational needs, to undertake much-needed improvement and enhancement projects, to plant and harvest vegetables to donate to local community kitchens, to produce virtual tours of special gardens for all to enjoy, to create digital field trips and educational programs, and to host a safe and socially distanced outdoor picnic that was enjoyed by many.

As 2020 winds down and you review your charitable giving, please consider a holiday tribute, a gift membership, or a year-end donation to the Friends. We hope you will also consider making a planned gift to the Friends. No gift is too small. We work tirelessly to be good stewards of your support. Every gift is important to maintaining the Gardens, a treasure for our community to enjoy.

May you have a happy and healthy holiday season.

We look forward to seeing you at the Gardens.

—Penney Hartline, Director of Development

PLEASE GIVE GENEROUSLY THIS HOLIDAY SEASON. The beauty, impact, and resilience of Birmingham Botanical Gardens and all that it makes possible are thanks to the commitment of dedicated supporters and a community that cares. We need your support now more than ever. Please show your support of this beloved urban oasis and our work here to protect, nurture, and share the Gardens’ many wonders by making a year-end donation today.

bbgardens.org/donate

HONORARIUMS

Birthday of Cathy O’Sheal Ms. Deborah N. Reid

Gail Barber Ms. Barbara G. Fant

Margaret & Kip Porter Mr. Bill Mcdonald & Mr. Rob Mcdonald

August–October 2020

Alice M. Bowsher Ms. Barbara G. Fant Birthday of Susan Colvin Mr. & Mrs. Tom LeCroy Ms. Cheryl Lewis Beth Curry Ms. Melanie S. Morgan Richard Cybulsky Heatherwood Garden Club Lynn Davis Grimsley Ms. Barbara G. Fant Ellen Hardy Women’s Committee of 100 Penney Hartline Mrs. Annette M. Linder Beverley Hoyt Mary & Jamie French Birthday of Jim Little Ms. Melissa Robinett John Manion New Horizons–UAB Birthday of Jamie Martinez Mr. Dan Colvin Susan, Beau & Alec Colvin

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Drew Rickel Ann & Gary Dutro Tom & Jane Underwood Mr. Fletcher D. Harvey III

MEMORIALS

August–October 2020 Jo Medlin Ballard Marsha & John Markus Nancy Straub Bean Mrs. Frances Blount Marilyn Ruth Everse Beard Mr. & Mrs. Robert E. Cooper Maureen Zanone Buchman Penney & Roger Hartline Jasper Dowe Bynum Mr. Brenen C. Ely Dr. Merrill Eugene Compton, Jr. Dr. & Mrs. Richard S. Cybulsky Mr. & Mrs. William L. Forbes Penney & Roger Hartline The Herb Army

Anne (Wellie) Whitney Welch DeBardeleben Mrs. Frances Blount

Robert L. Eskew, Sr. Mr. & Mrs. John R. Eskew Mrs. Martha Eskew Margaret Elizabeth (Beth) Bailey Ezell The Herb Army David Lawrence (Larry) Faulkner Mrs. Carolyn B. Reed Judge James (Jimmie) Hughes Hancock Penney & Roger Hartline Mrs. Anne Oliver Ann Harvey Mr. & Mrs. William L. Forbes Ms. Gayle Morgan Madelon L. Rushing

Michael John Swain Gayle W. Leitman

LIBRARY DONORS August–October 2020 Laura Denver Mary Foy Robert F. Henry, Jr. Paula & Mike Rushing

LIBRARY MEMORIALS August–October 2020

James David Brown, Jr. Oak Street Garden Shop Employees

James Garfield Lambert, Jr. Ragnhild, Andrew & Kyle Bairnsfather Ms. Cynthia Cooley Pete & Pam Holby Ellen & Dick Jewell Ms. Ellen Pfeiffer Mr. & Mrs. John Picard Mary & Sam Russell Carol & Charles Waites Mr. Carlos A. Womble

Judge James H. Hancock Oak Street Garden Shop Employees

Charlotte Gail Butler Langley Mr. & Mrs. E. Daniel Swanson

August–October 2020

Margot Kessler Marx Mr. Lee R. Adler BRM Services Mr. & Mrs. John B. Elliott Mr. Adam Sigman & Ms. Anna Erdreich Mr. & Mrs. Stanley M. Erdreich, Jr. Carolyn & Henry Frohsin Dr. & Mrs. Glenn Hunt Mr. & Mrs. David Kimerling Ms. Virginia Mann Dr. & Mrs. Scott Margolies Ms. Rosa P. Morrow Mrs. John W. Poynor Mrs. Carolyn B. Reed Ms. Stefanie Silverman Mr. & Mrs. William E. Smith III Mary Stewart Steiner Mr. & Mrs. Kennon Walthall Ruth O’Neal Mary Beth, Brett, Katie, Lindsey & Nicole Payne Lyndon Leslie Pearson Tremont Garden Club Edith Tynes Quarles Mrs. Frances Blount Oliver Gordon Robinson, Jr. Mrs. Frances Blount Donald Roelse Mr. & Mrs. Barton Cummings David Owen Rogers Dr. & Mrs. Mark Buckner Frances Estes Seibels Mrs. Frances Blount Mrs. Kitty Scott Urquhart

Ann H. Harvey Oak Street Garden Shop Employees John H. Mears Oak Street Garden Shop Employees

LIBRARY HONORARIUMS Jason Kirby Cahawba Chapter, National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution Chapel Creek Home & Garden Club Flower Show Judges—Council 8 Kiwanis Club of Homewood– Mountain Brook Sallie Lee Jim Jacobi Bethany O’Rear

PERENNIAL LEGACY GIVING CIRCLE

As of November 20, 2020 Recognizing those who have made or pledged a planned gift Mr.* & Mrs. Edgar G. Aldridge Mr. & Mrs. Michael Balliet Ms. Camille A. Becker Mrs. Lucille S. Beeson* Peggy Bonfield & Orrin Ford* Ida C. & D. Joseph Burns* Mr. & Mrs. Arthur I. Chenoweth* Mary Carolyn Gibbs Cleveland Suzanne G. Clisby Mrs. Martha Stone Cobb Daniel* The Daniel Foundation of Alabama Dr. L. Aubrey* & Elizabeth Drewry The Dunn-French Family Dr. John D. Elmore* Martha B. & Robert L.* Eskew Mrs. Trudy Evans

Mr. & Mrs. Wally Evans Mrs. Claire H. Fairley* Bernadine Rushing Faulkner Mr. F. Lewter Ferrell, Jr.* Dr.* & Mrs. Charles P. Grant Patti Hammond Jody & Don Hamre* Penney & Roger Hartline Mr. R.R. Herbst* Mrs. Jimmie Hess* Mr. J. Ernest Hill & Mrs. Ora Lee Hill* Mrs. Jane Hinds Fay B. Ireland* Mr. George L. Jenkins Bobbe & Hugh Kaul* Ms. Pamela Kaul* Mr. Jason C. Kirby & Mr. Benjamin J. Faucher Fran Lawlor Dr. Bodil Lindin-Lamon* Hope Long Dr. Michael E. Malone Annie Lee Buce Matthews* Ms. Louise T. McAvoy* Linda & Douglas McCullough Margaret H. McGowan* Mrs. Mary Jean Morawetz Mr. Philip Morris* Thelma Vaughan Mueller* Mr. & Mrs. Fred W. Murray, Jr. Dr. James L. Newsome* Dr. & Mrs. A. I. Perley* LeAnne* & Steve Porter Mrs. Carol P. Poynor Mrs. Dorothy L. Renneker* Deborah & John Sellers Sandra S. Simpson Mr. & Mrs. William M. Spencer III* Frederick R. Spicer, Jr. Mr. Douglas Arant Stockham Janet & Jarry Taylor Dr. Wendell H. Taylor, Sr. * Mrs. Barbara D. Thorne * Dr. & Mrs.* Jack W. Trigg, Jr. Mrs. Carolyn D. Tynes * Mrs. Ann H. “Nancy” Warren* Karen & Dan Weinrib Mrs. Robert Wells Anonymous (2) *Deceased

WINTER 2020–2021

Olivia & Hansell Enloe Mr. & Mrs. William C. Holden

Julia Barron Arbuthonot Strickland Ms. Sarah L. Buchanan Mr. & Mrs. William L. Forbes Mr. & Mrs. Jimmy Haggerty Mrs. Margret O. Little Mrs. Anne Oliver

BLUE MISTFLOWER (CONOCLINIUM COELESTINUM)

Plant the Seeds for Your Lasting Legacy at the Gardens JOIN OUR PERENNIAL LEGACY GIVING CIRCLE You can help us perpetuate the wonders of Birmingham Botanical Gardens and all that it means to our community and region by including the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens in your planned giving. Gifts to the Friends, a vibrant organization with strong roots in the community, ensure that this botanical treasure will remain a place of beauty and source of inspiration to all who visit for generations to come.

Every gift makes an impact. Please consider designating the Friends as a beneficiary of your estate through your will, charitable trust, or retirement beneficiary designation.

We are grateful to those who have made this special commitment.

Please join them in supporting and protecting this beloved community resource. Call Director of Development Penney Hartline at 205.414.3950, ext. 103, to learn more.

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WINTER 2020–2021

A Giving Spirit Remembered

By DREW RICKEL

SHE BREATHES IN DIRT & EXHALES FLOWERS. So reads the inscription on the bench dedicated to longtime volunteer Mary Katherine “Kathy” Connolly. The sentiment captures the transformative feeling that Kathy left with all those who knew and worked with her. The bench was dedicated, a setting made especially for it, and the wording crafted by the many people involved with the Gardens whom Kathy touched, befriended, helped, educated, and uplifted during her time as a volunteer here.

Birmingham Botanical Gardens is a series of collaborations. Disparate groups with common interests convene to nurture the plants, gardens, and unique people that make the Gardens a community treasure and beloved tourist attraction.

In particular, our volunteers are invaluable to the machinations and success of our organization and all that we provide for the people of Birmingham and beyond.

Kathy was a volunteer who not only nurtured and cared for the flora here; she also cultivated relationships. Starting as a volunteer in 2013 to fulfill her Master Gardener certification requirement, she continued to volunteer beyond that certification, becoming a staple, a ubiquitous presence whose contributions were as invaluable as the bees that dance from flower to flower. As City of Birmingham gardeners would move on, Kathy and her friends would fill the gap, lending their labor and informatively candid recommendations to ensure continuity in service and care.

Working in the Fern Glade, Kathy garnered

KATHY CONNOLLY

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the reputation as the “Smilax Queen,” an expert in digging up the roots and rhizomes of those thorny weeds. Doing the tough work, noticing the unnoticed, tending to the neglected, and giving attention to the “forgotten” were Kathy’s specialties in and out of the Gardens.

The Curry Pool was a favorite of Kathy’s, and she worked many hours helping clean up, clean out, prune, and weed multiple times despite Mother Nature’s protestations. That is why her bench was placed there. Except for the bench itself, the footing and platform for the bench were all made from repurposed cast-off materials.

In addition to the bench, her friends also created a Master Gardener scholarship in her name. Her legacy endures in that scholarship, providing educational opportunities for those who need it, and the bench, a serene place of reflection amidst a backdrop of gardens that owe so much to her commitment and generous spirit.

If you too would like to establish a legacy at the Gardens, keeping them green and growing for future generations, you can volunteer by contacting Volunteer Coordinator Alice Thompson Moore at volunteer@bbgardens.org, or you can donate at bbgardens.org/donate.

For more information on dedicating a tree or bench, please contact Donor Relations Officer Drew Rickel at 205.414.3950, ext. 102.

Special thanks to volunteer Hope Cooper for sharing her remembrances of her friendship with Kathy that informed this article.

CECE TODD

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF ‘CAN YOU DIG IT?’ Fall 2020 marks a wonderful milestone of our partnership with the Junior League of Birmingham, whose “Can You Dig It?’ service track has enabled the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens to share these beloved Gardens with tens of thousands of local schoolchildren. Over the past two decades, thanks to the commitment of the Junior League and dozens of volunteers, our Discovery Field Trip program has expanded and grown from one field trip offering (Barber Alabama Woodlands) to now seven field trips.

JLB has been a faithful supporter and has been the cornerstone for what is the Friends’ flagship education program.

By providing fantastic volunteers, materials for teachers, and school bus transportation, JLB continues to enable us to offer a curriculum-based science experience tailored for Birmingham City Schools grades K-6 in the unique and beautiful setting of Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Science comes alive for students while outdoors in our many garden settings. This fall, as many Alabama schools have chosen to limit field trips and embrace socially distant learning to slow the spread of COVID-19, JLB has pivoted with us, allowing us to bring our field trips and companion storytimes to students during these challenging days. We continue to work together to light a spark for science and the many important lessons—and promise—that nature provides. —Ellen Hardy

BIRMINGHAM BLOOMS

The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens celebrated and thanked dedicated supporters and sponsors at Birmingham Blooms, a private, sunset picnic supper held on Sunday, October 4, in the Dunn Formal Rose Garden and Hill Garden. As a sign of the times, face masks and social distancing were de rigueur for this festive event, which honored Director Emeritus and former Southern Living Editor-in-Chief Dr. John A. Floyd, Jr. and was organized by former Board Chair Beverley Hoyt and her dedicated committee. Special guests James Farmer and Mark D. Sikes signed copies of their latest books and enjoyed the beautiful, cool fall evening. Our sincere thanks to presenting sponsor IBERIABANK (A Division of First Horizon), lead corporate sponsors Red Diamond, Inc., and Alabama Power Company, Inc., and all who gave for your generous support. Because of you, Birmingham Blooms.

TOP ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Stephen and Lucy Spann and Beverley and Chris Hoyt. Cindy Barr and Wendy Simmons.

Emily Wood Bowron, Bill and Emily Bowron. SECOND ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Bill Barrick, John Floyd, and Katy Moss Warner. Mark D. Sikes, Shannon Lisenby, Stephanie Lynton, and James Farmer. Mark and Tequila Smith. BOTTOM ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Tom Underwood and John Smith T. Carolyn and Bill Satterfield. Janie and Wally Evans.

For a full listing of Birmingham Blooms sponsors and donors, visit bbgardens.org/blooms. Thank you for your support!

Non-Profit Org. US Postage

PAID

Birmingham, AL Permit No. 2513

2612 Lane Park Road Birmingham, Alabama 35223 205.414.3950 bbgardens.org

Found throughout Birmingham Botanical Gardens, the oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)— Alabama’s state wildflower—shines through the seasons. In winter, delicate dried blooms recall the shrub’s summertime splendor.

The Garden Dirt is printed using vegetable-based inks. Please recycle.

Thank you for your commitment to this community treasure. Your support is vital for the Gardens and those we serve.

Please renew or upgrade your membership at bbgardens.org/membership.