Detours Spring has Sprung!
Issac Rotstein (1947-2022).
CALGARY IN BLOOM T H E C A L G A RY H O RT I C U LT U R A L S O C I E T Y ’ S JOANNA TSCHUDY SHARES THREE OF THE MOST PROMINENT L O C A L B L O S S O M S T O L O O K O U T F O R T H I S S E A S O N.
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ince its founding in 1908, the Calgary Horticultural Society (celebrating its 115th anniversary this year), has been a primary source of gardening knowledge in the city, brightening our landscapes and connecting green-thumbed residents to expert resources, community gardens, plant
shares and more. “We strive to be a city of excellence in the world of gardening,” says Joanna Tschudy, the Society’s community development coordinator. Whether you’re a gardening enthusiast, or simply an admirer, here are Tschudy’s picks for the top Calgary blooms to experience this spring.
Prairie Crocus/Pasque Flower ( Anemo ne Patens))
Li lac Bush (Syring Vulgaris)
Hardy Tulip (Tulipa Tarda)
Sometimes referred to as “the harbinger of spring,” this member of the buttercup family typically arrives right after the snow melts, and is able to withstand cold springtime temperatures and frost because of the white exterior hairs that insulate it. You can find these small blueor purple-flowered perennials in natural areas like Nose Hill Park, says Tschudy.
If you’ve lived in Calgary for even a short time, you’re bound to have smelled lilacs — the fragrant blooms are so prolific there’s even an annual springtime festival named after them (this year’s 4th Street Lilac Festival is on Sunday, June 4). According to Tschudy, the purpose of the bush’s bright purple flower is to spread its seeds, something it has clearly succeeded at here. Look for bushes all over the city, especially in historic neighbourhoods like Ramsay and Mount Royal.
This atypical tulip’s flower is long and pointy. Usually yellow and white, you won’t find this varietal in the wild, but instead in the city’s gardens at Prince’s Island Park, Reader Rock Garden and others. Tschudy says this bulb is great for first-time gardeners: “You just pop ’em in the ground and they do their thing!” —Amber McLinden To learn more about the Calgary Horticultural Society, including 115th anniversary events, visit calhort.org MAY/JUNE 2023
I S A A C R O T S T E I N P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F T H E R O T S T E I N F A M I LY ; F L O W E R P H O T O S B Y D E B O R A H M A I E R
for 22 years — Rotstein’s passion for plants was spurred when he worked at UCalgary’s herbarium; it was there he learned how to collect and preserve them. When Rotstein died last August at the age of 75, shortly after being diagnosed with cancer, his family didn’t know what to do with his basement lab, replete with 35 boxes of textbooks on botany and toxicology, and notebooks containing more than 4,000 plant specimens collected over 50 years from all over the world, including Hawaii, South Africa, Morocco and the Amazon. It turns out, UCalgary’s herbarium was interested. Now, the Rotstein family is donating the collection, valued at roughly $40,000, to the Department of Biological Sciences. “We’re very grateful,” says UCalgary professor Jana Vamosi. “His collection will positively impact our international representation.” In particular, Vamosi says she is grateful for the Australian specimens, which help fill gaps in the herbarium’s inventory. Family and friends of Rotstein have also established an award in his memory, to support students’ work in the herbarium — fitting, as Rotstein was indeed a lifelong student. “We’d be sitting at the table and all of a sudden notice that my dad wasn’t there,” says Nagan. “He’d be in the basement playing with his plants. That was his domain.” —Danyael Halprin
