VOLUME 29, NUMBER 1
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The Membership Magazine of the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
A Brighter Future OUR LIVING COLLECTION
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RESILIENCE OF RARE PLANTS
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ANNUAL IMPACT REPORT
IRONWOOD Volume 29, Number 1 | Spring | Summer 2021 ISSN 1068-4026 Editor: Taylor Keefer Designer: Kathleen Kennedy Contributors: Rita Boss, Becky Curtis, Michelle Cyr, Scot Pipkin, Nick Resler, Joe Rothleutner, Heather Schneider, Ph.D., Matt Straka, Heidi Whitman, Steve Windhager, Ph.D., Randy Wright Ironwood is published biannually by the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, a private nonprofit institution founded in 1926. The Garden conserves California native plants and habitats for the health and well-being of people and the planet. The Garden is a member of the American Public Gardens Association, the American Alliance of Museums, the California Association of Museums, and the American Horticultural Society. ©2021 Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. All rights reserved.
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden 1212 Mission Canyon Road Santa Barbara, CA 93105 sbbg.org GARDEN HOURS March – October: 10am - 6pm November – February: 10am - 5pm Members Only 9am - 10am
CONTENTS
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Letter from the Executive Director
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Our Living Collection
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Resilience of Rare Plants
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Rare & Endangered
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Oral History Tradition
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Annual Impact Report
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Ways to Help
27
Budding Botanists
PHONE (805) 682-4726 DEVELOPMENT EXT. 133 EDUCATION EXT. 160 GARDEN NURSERY EXT. 112 MEMBERSHIP EXT. 110 REGISTRATION EXT. 102 VOLUNTEER OFFICE EXT. 119 BOARD OF TRUSTEES Valerie Hoffman, Chair John Gabbert, Vice Chair Mark Funk, Treasurer Kathy Scroggs, Secretary Sharon Bradford Samantha Davis Elaine Gibson
Sarah Berkus Gower George Leis William Murdoch Gerry Rubin Helene Schneider Warren Schultheis Jesse Smith Ann Steinmetz
LEADERSHIP TEAM Steve Windhager, Ph.D., Executive Director Heidi Whitman, CFRE, Director of Development & Communications Joe Rothleutner, Director of Horticulture & Facilities Denise Knapp, Ph.D., Director of Conservation & Research Scot Pipkin, Director of Education & Engagement Kathy Castaneda, Manager of Volunteer Programs
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Need more Garden news? Sign up for our biweekly Garden Gazette e-newsletter at sbbg.org and follow us on social media for the latest updates from the Garden. @sbgarden @sbbotanicgarden
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
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ON THE COVER Santa Cruz Island Malacothrix grows precariously close to the edge of a shell midden on Santa Cruz Island. Photo: John Knapp
DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE Dear Friends, I reflect on the past year with a mixture of grief and gratitude. Grief for all of the lives, livelihoods, and moments we lost. Gratitude for our communit y, for essential workers and health-care professionals, for the technology that has kept us connected, for modern medicine and science, and of course, for Mother Nature who stepped up and heeded societ y’s call for respite and recovery. In fact, Mother Nature began to regain her rightful place in our collective eyes this past year. Time outside became the leisure pursuit of choice for more Californians than ever before. Demand for outdoor spaces like our Garden and local trails “went viral” as more of us sought low-risk places to stretch our legs and our minds and connect with nature. Over 1,400 new members joined the Garden in 2020, a testament to this shift and to the increasing importance of our work. To those of you who are new and just getting to know us – Welcome! We are so grateful to have you in the Garden family. With more of us are vaccinated each day, this Spring is a season of renewed hope and opportunit y. Our Garden’s living collection (pages 4-5) abounds with new growth and color once again, as do the forests, meadows, mountainsides, and islands we help to conserve all across the State (pages 8-11). The transformations of Spring – from darkness to light, from cold to warmth, from grey to full-spectrum color, and from soil to tender green seedlings– remind us that we too are beginning to reemerge, full of opportunit y and hope. In her poem, The Summer Day, Mary Oliver asks us “What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” In this moment of renewed opportunit y for both humans and nature, perhaps a better question is, “What can I do today to protect both human health and wellbeing and the future of our planet?” There are plent y of simple ways to make an impact – from developing a deeper connection to your environment, to using native plants in your home Garden (page 7), to sharing the magic of Earth’s many creatures with a child (page 27). And as you will read in our 2020 Donor Impact Report (pages 16-24), your support of the Garden advances those goals every day. I hope you will take pride in all that you have helped us to accomplish over the past year and take advantage of the opportunit y ahead. See you in the Garden,
Steve Windhager, Ph.D. Executive Director P.S. Did you know that the Garden turned 95 this spring? Be sure to read about how we’ve captured first-hand stories from the Garden through the years with our Oral History Program (pages 12-15)! Background Photo: Greg Trainor
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our
from Seed to Specimen By Joe Rothleutner Director of Horticulture & Facilities
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he Santa Barbara Botanic Garden is a living collection of California’s native plants and an accredited museum one of 57 public gardens that currently hold accreditation through the American Alliance of Museums.* Most of the plants you encounter on our grounds have roots in the wild, being directly collected by garden staff who explore across the state to seek them out. They often spend days backpacking and camping, looking for handfuls of seed or cuttings that need to be stored in a cooler to keep them fresh for propagating. With each collection, notes are taken that will be transcribed into the plant records database once the seeds and cuttings make it back to the Garden.
The first stop for new plant material at the Garden is meticulous documentation with the Living Collections Coordinator, Betsy Lape. Betsy takes the plants through a process in museum terms called accessioning, where the new item receives a unique number. Each accession is a new record with stacked layers of metadata describing it, when and by whom a plant was collected, notes about the habitat, and other plants where the parent population was growing. Over the lifetime of the plant, more layers are added and it is these layers of data that give the collection a true purpose. We can use this data to generate stories for interpretive themes, to allow educators to use the Garden as an outdoor classroom, for these plants to be representatives of their wild cousins in the Garden’s research projects, and to enable the plants from the Garden to be founders for reintroductions that save species from extinction.
Living Collections Coordinator Betsy Lape examines a Lophocereus schottii cactus, collected in 1996 on the San Benito Islands. Photo: Taylor Keefer
Rare Plant Technician Sean Carson collects seed at Leo Carrillo State Park. Photo: Matt Guilliams
and as the plant grows, ongoing inventory notes are compiled on the planting’s condition. We note any observed diseases, and sometimes even finer details like the sex of the plant are documented. The team of gardeners who tend the Garden make up our museum conservators, ensuring that each accessioned plant of the living collection receives the best care the Garden can offer through daily horticultural care; watering, weeding, and pruning the plants. “Caring for the Garden is rewarding because we are creating a beautiful space for visitors and our members, but we also are sharing and preserving a part of California’s natural history that most people would not otherwise have a chance to experience,” says Gardener, Julian Lavelle. Julian tends the Island View Garden that holds plants from all eight Channel Islands and Baja California.
Once assigned an accession number, collected seeds will move to the Living Collections Nursery, where they will germinate and grow to an appropriate planting size. “One of the biggest challenges in the nursery is that there is a lack of published knowledge on how to grow many of these plants. We might be the first people growing them in a nursery and garden,” says Jessica Fernandez, the Garden’s Propagator. The Garden has a history of expertise in leading and publishing plant propagation methods for California native plants that we aim to continue. In the nursery, more layers of data are added to the records for reference the next time we need to grow that species. The layers of data grow deeper as we plant out these collections on the Garden grounds. The planting location and date are recorded,
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Jessica Fernandez and Taylor Luckenbach at work in the Garden’s Living Collections Nursery.
collection at Mt. Wilson in the Sierra Madre Mountains. At 86 years old, these noble giants are maintaining good health and will likely remain a part of the collection well past their centennial. But even when components of the living collection near the end of their lives, the story does not stop. Many accessions will return to the nursery and live on through cuttings, divisions, or grafts, maintaining their contribution to the living collection as the next generation of plants that strike roots. *Accreditation through this organization showcases the Garden’s commitment to maintaining a standard of excellence in education, public service, and collections care. This requires collaboration among much of the Garden’s staff. Gardener Julian Lavelle at the Island View Garden generously waters in newly planted De La Mina verbena. These cuttings of a selection of Verbena lilacina were collected by garden staff on Cedros Island in 1996. De La Mina was introduced to the nursery trade in 1998 because of its dark purple flowers and long blooming season. Photo: Taylor Keefer
The Garden has maintained accession records since 1934, just eight years after the first garden plantings in 1926. Without complete records, some of our earliest history is somewhat vague. For example, the planting of the iconic Redwood Section with the now towering coastal redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) began sometime in 1926 or 1927 with more trees added in the early 1930’s - but we aren’t certain which trees were first. We do know that some of the oldest plants at the Garden with definitive birthdays date back to 1935: two California fan palms (Washingtonia filfera) planted in the Desert Section with roots in the Coachella Valley, and a bigcone Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga macrocarpa) at the south end of the Manzanita Section from a
One of the Garden’s might y coast redwoods, planted with great foresight nearly a century ago. Photo: Joe Wheatley
Grounds Manager Stephanie Ranes inspects an accession label. These metal tags have a 5-digit code that connects this planting to records in the Garden to the living collections database. Photo: Taylor Keefer
California fan palms, photographed before the Jesusita Fire of 2009 left them singed but still standing in the Garden’s Desert Section.
Cameron Williams, Rikke Reese Naesborg, and Scot Pipkin measuring the Bigcone Douglas-fir at the south end of the Manzanita Section, 2020.
Photo: Frank L. Lambrecht
Photo: Randy Wright
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Home Gardening DRY YEAR in a
By Matt Straka, Retail Manager
Establishing new plants P Properly watering your freshly installed
plants is key to their long-term survival. The first watering is critical and one of the only times you can’t overwater a native plant. After planting your plant in the ground, build an irrigation berm about 1 foot around the plant’s drip line and generously soak it. I leave a hose in there on low so the water never crests the berm for at least 15-20 minutes. The idea is to get that water to go deep with the roots soon to follow.
P After that first soaking, you can take down the irrigation berm
so the plant won’t remain soggy. If it continues to be a dry year, you can continue to water the plant 1 or 2 times a week. The best way to water is by mimicking natural rain fall with micro emitters or low volume sprinklers with the water falling on the drip line of the plant. Let the top inch or two of soil dry out before watering again. After the first 3 months start to water less but with deeper watering. Once the plant doubles in size it will be fairly established. For the first year, check the soil down about an inch or two, once a week. If it’s dry, water it to 18 inches deep. If it’s moist, don’t water it.
P Until the plants natural leaf litter creates
an ideal mulch underneath your new plant, you may want to add some kind of mulch around the drip line as well. Don’t let the mulch get up around the crown or stem of the plant and don’t add too much. Just a light layer of mulch is fine until the natural leaf litter accumulates. Adding a few rocks, stones and gravel around the base is also a good idea. After the first year of watering and your plant has doubled in size, you should be able to ween it off artificial watering altogether. If you do add supplemental water, always water within the months of November through April.
Visit our Water Wise Home Demonstration Garden to learn more about planting for drought tolerance A majorit y of the native plants you will find in this section are also available for sale in our Nursery, making it a great area to stroll and get ideas for plantings in your own home garden! Though most California native plants can be considered drought tolerant and water wise – due to long, dry summers and brief, wet winters – the plants featured here in our display were specifically selected by our horticulture staff for their ease of care and maintenance, for their hardiness and adaptabilit y to many conditions and soil t ypes, and of course for their low water requirements.
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water
wise display highlights By Nick Resler, Gardener
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lawn!? In a water wise garden!? -- That’s right, not all lawns need to be ripped up for a drought tolerant landscape. Check out our blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) lawn in the back of the cottage. It’s handsome, tough, and water wise!
Sages for all occasions – They’re fragrant, deer and gopher resistant, pollinator magnets, and virtually indestructible, what’s not to love about sages? Two of our favorites: hummingbird sage (Salvia spathacea) for deep shade and under oaks (and like the name suggests, hummers love ‘em too) and Allen Chickering sage (Salvia ‘Allen Chickering’) for full sun and tough slopes.
Native container gardens – Not enough space for a garden? Only have a balcony in your apartment? Or just love the ease of potted plants? We’ve got natives for that too! Be sure to check out our favorites Canyon Silver Lace (Constancea (Eriophyllum) nevinii ‘Canyon Silver’) for its gorgeous silver foliage and the Island Bush Snapdragon (Galvezia juncea ‘Gran Cañon’) for its beautiful spray of bright red flowers that bloom all year round!
Did you know? The focal point, the ‘home’ of the Water Wise Home Demonstration Garden is the oldest building on Garden grounds. It was constructed onsite in 1926 from a Sears craftsman kit and was originally the caretaker’s residence. The cottage is now used primarily as a workspace and meetinghouse for our dedicated and diligent crew of over 100 garden volunteers. The gardens surrounding the cottage comprise the water wise display. The original layout of the hardscape and flower beds was designed by landscape architect Ron Lutsko in 1991.
Moving the Cottage building, with greenhouse in background, 1942. SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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RESILIENCE of Rare Plants
14 Federal and State-listed Rare Plant Species: Santa Rosa Island manzanita (Arctostaphylos confertiflora) Island barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis) Hoffmann’s rockcress (Boechera hoffmannii) Soft leaved Indian paintbrush (Castilleja mollis) Island rush-rose (Crocanthemum greenei) Beach spectaclepod (Dithyrea maritima) Santa Cruz Island Dudleya (Dudleya nesiotica) Santa Barbara Island Dudleya (Dudleya traskiae) Slender flowered gilia (Gilia tenuiflora ssp. hoffmannii) Santa Cruz Island Malacothrix (Malacothrix indecora) Island Malacothrix (Malacothrix squalida) Lyon’s Pentachaeta (Pentachaeta lyonii)
By Heather E. Schneider
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ometimes called “California’s Galapagos,” the Channel Islands are a hotspot for biodiversit y. More than 10% of the islands’ plants are endemic to the Channel Islands – meaning that they are found nowhere else on Earth. This unique plant diversit y creates essential habitat for wildlife, many of which are also endemic to the islands. This exceptional diversit y is also vulnerable, and 110 different kinds of invertebrates, reptiles, birds, mammals, and plants on the Channel Islands are classified as Species of Greatest Conservation Need by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Nevertheless, there is reason to be hopeful. After enduring the impacts of feral pigs, cattle, sheep, and other introduced mainland vertebrates for more than 170 years, all but one island is now free of those herbivores. The islands are on a trajectory toward recovery, but sometimes nature needs a little help. In 2017, the Garden, along with island and mainland partners, developed a comprehensive, collaborative project to conserve and recover 14 different federal and state-listed rare plant species on seven of the eight Channel Islands, including Santa Catalina, Santa Barbara, San Nicolas, Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel. The project objectives focus on rare plant conservation and recovery, implementing targeted actions designed to move from species status updates to on-the-ground restoration. Dr. Heather Schneider, the Garden’s Rare Plant Biologist, is leading the project, with field, lab, and greenhouse assistance from Sean Carson and Kevin Mason, the Garden’s Rare Plant Technicians. The first phase of the project is focused on exploration and conservation, using field surveys to find, map, and assess the status of wild rare plant populations. Field expeditions were launched on all seven islands in 2019, and the results were inspiring. On Santa Cruz
Island phacelia (Phacelia insularis var. insularis) Santa Cruz Island lacepod (Thysanocarpus conchuliferus)
Above: Rainbow on Santa Cruz Island. Left panel: Santa Cruz Island Dudleya is endemic to Santa Cruz Island, growing nowhere else on Earth.
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Photos: Heather Schneider
(Pentachaeta lyonii) on Santa Catalina Island and, in 2020, our partners at the California Institute for Environmental Studies used aerial surveys to locate new and expanded populations of Santa Barbara Island Dudleya (Dudleya traskiae) on the cliff faces of Santa Barbara Island. Seeds were collected from our target species for long-term storage in the Garden’s conservation seed bank. These collections act as an insurance policy against extinction and can be used to restore or reintroduce populations that decline or disappear in the future. Although we will continue to conduct surveys and collect seeds opportunistically, this phase of the project is largely completed. Kathryn McEachern (USGS) and Dirk Rodriguez (Channel Islands National Park) collect monitoring data for Santa Rosa Island manzanita.
The second phase of the project is ongoing and focuses on research and analysis. A soil seed bank study is being conducted by partners at Channel Islands National Park and
Photo: Sean Carson
Island, four previously unknown locations of Hoffmann’s rockcress (Boechera hoffmannii) Seeds of soft leaved Indian paintbrush. were identified by our Photo: Sean Carson partners at The Nature Conservancy and Wildlands Conservation Science, representing hundreds of plants that were not previously documented. The Garden’s Rare Plant Conservation Team conducted surveys for Santa Cruz Island Dudleya (Dudleya nesiotica), which is endemic to just one location on the island, and found that the number of individuals has doubled compared to surveys in 2005. The number of known Santa Cruz Island lacepod (Thysanocarpus conchuliferus) populations increased by more than 50% in 2019, when at least six new occurrences were discovered by survey teams. Surveys and monitoring on Santa Rosa Island included Santa Rosa Island manzanita (Arctostaphylos confertiflora), soft leaved Indian paintbrush (Castilleja mollis), and island phacelia (Phacelia insularis var. insularis). The Catalina Island Conservancy is leading the survey effort for Lyon’s Pentachaeta
Surveys and restoration of Santa Barbara Island Dudleya are the focus of the work on Santa Barbara Island. Photo: California Institute for Environmental Studies
Dr. Kathryn McEachern (USGS), Dr. Heather Schneider (the Garden) and a volunteer conducting annual monitoring for soft leaved Indian paintbrush on Santa Rosa Island. Photo: SBBG
Island rush-rose is distinguished from its common relative by thin leaves and glandular hairs on the floral parts. Photo: Heather Schneider
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the US Geological Survey to determine whether Santa Rosa Island manzanita (Arctostaphylos confertiflora) has established a soil seed bank now that ungulate browsing has been removed, which would signal that the population is on a trajectory toward recovery and becoming self-sustaining. Concurrently, Dr. Kristen Hasenstab-Lehman, the Garden’s Conservation Geneticist, and Dr. Matt Guilliams, Tucker Plant Systematist and Herbarium Curator, are leading an investigation into the genetics of island rush-rose (Crocanthemum greenei). Island rush-rose is found on Santa Catalina, Santa Cruz, and Santa Rosa Islands. The goal of the study is to assess the genetic diversit y within and bet ween islands to provide insight into the relatedness of populations across islands and to help identify conservation priorities. Garden scientists and project partners are currently collecting leaf tissue from wild plants on the islands, while lab work and DNA extractions are ongoing in the Garden’s genetics lab. The final phase of this project builds on what we have learned from field surveys and research to grow and restore plants in the wild. The propagation and restoration phase is ongoing, with much of the propagation happening in the Garden’s nursery. Jessica Fernandez, the Garden’s Plant Propagator, is overseeing the effort to grow plants from seeds and cuttings for conservation and future restoration. Five species, including Santa Cruz Island Dudleya (Dudleya nesiotica), Santa Cruz Island Malacothrix (Malacothrix indecora) and Santa Cruz Island lacepod (Thysanocarpus conchuliferus), are being grown from seed for seed increase – the process by which we grow plants from seed and pollinate them to produce more seeds than we started with. Island barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis), which does not produce seeds in the wild, is being grown from cuttings and Dr. Denise Knapp, the Director of Conservation and Research, is conducting a pollination study using the Garden’s living collections to determine whether seeds can be produced by deliberating crossing t wo distinct genot ypes. Propagation and Conservation and Horticulture staff work together to transplant Santa Cruz Island Dudleya from plug trays to 4” pots. Photo: Heather Schneider
Santa Cruz Island Dudleya in the Garden’s nursery.
outplanting are also being conducted by partners on Santa Barbara Island for Santa Barbara Island Dudleya (Dudleya traskiae) and Hoffmann’s rockcress (Boechera hoffmannii) on Santa Rosa Island. The plants and cuttings produced from these propagation efforts will be used to supplement existing rare plant populations and to create new populations in favorable habitat, with the goal of creating redundancy and resiliency for these imperiled plants across the archipelago. This t ype of comprehensive conservation project demonstrates the complex, multi-faceted nature of plant conservation, the strength of collaboration, and the need for long-term funding for this t ype of work. Channel Islands National Park has recognized the value of this project and has awarded the Garden and partners three years of additional funding to continue this effort for plants on Park islands. The work of understanding, protecting and restoring wild rare plant populations is a long-term investment that the Garden made 95 years ago. Our work on the Channel Islands and the mainland continues, as we strive to conserve and recover these invaluable rare plants both in the wild and on the Garden grounds. A Santa Cruz Island Dudleya seedling ready to be transplanted into a 4” pot. Photo: Heather Schneider
Santa Cruz Island lacepod growing in the Garden’s nursery for seed increase. Photo: Heather Schneider
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Photo: Heather Schneider
Conservation Technician Kylie Etter collects flowers of island barberry from the Garden’s living collection so that she can extract pollen for a pollination study. Photo: Denise Knapp
D N A E R RA RED E G N A D N E By Heather E. Schneider
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he island barberry is one of the most endangered plants in California. Once known from Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and Anacapa Islands, the entire wild distribution of this species now exists as just 10 genetically distinct individuals in a handful of remote locations on Santa Cruz Island. For several years, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has been working with partners to understand, protect and restore this rare and imperiled shrub. In early 2020, Garden staff, in collaboration with partners from The Nature Conservancy and Wildlands Conservation Science, traveled across Santa Cruz Island via helicopter and cut through thick brush and poison oak to collect cuttings from island barberry plants for propagation in our nursery. Since this species no longer produces seeds in the wild, these cuttings will be used to increase the diversit y of living collections at the Garden and at partner institutions. Once full grown, these plants will also provide material for future restoration and reintroduction efforts on Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and Anacapa Islands. When visiting the Garden, one can find specimens of this State and Federally Endangered plant in the rare plant display that hugs the Pritzlaff Conservation Center, near the Porter Trail, and in the Arroyo Section.
Sean Carson (SBBG Rare Plant Technician) and John Knapp (The Nature Conservancy) navigate through thick brush to access island barberry plants. Photo: Heather Schneider
Island barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis)
Garden staff carefully collected cuttings from wild island barberry collections, tagging each stem in the field with a unique number so that we can track its fate. Photo: Heather Schneider
Island barberry cuttings were treated with rooting hormone and stuck in perlite to promote root development. Photo: Heather Schneider SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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Oral History By the Oral History Team
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radition
ince its founding in 1926, the Garden has been home to many memorable characters – horticulturalists, landscape architects, botanists, historians, conservationists, and nature lovers of many stripes. These folks and their work over the past 95 years have shaped our collective understanding of the Garden today. We are fortunate that staff throughout the years have captured different voices and experiences through photos, writing, and interviews, and kept these historical resources in archives for us to learn from today. The Garden’s Oral History Program has been led by librarians, interns, and dedicated volunteers to show life through the eyes of the influential figures of our modern history, and ensure that their contributions live on into the future.
as a condition of his job, he could carry around a “surf box” and leave at any time when it alerted him that the waves were good.
Strawberry meadow in 1946.
Photo: Joseph Muench
1985 Nancy Hawver and Dara Emery recording “A Spring Walk” for Oral History Program, Porter Trail 1985. Photo: Shari Smith
1983 With the intention of increasing awareness of the Garden’s history, Nancy Hawver inaugurated an Oral History program in 1983. She began simply with the desire to collect information on the history of the Botanic Garden and discovered as she went along that a wealth of historical information was waiting to be tapped in the memories and reminiscences of local residents. A number of the interviews have been transcribed and bound. These personal narratives capture and preserve a unique aspect of local history and of the Garden’s development. [from Staff Profiles: Nancy Hawver; Librarian Garden Newsletter, p. 6, 1988] At the time, the Gane House was empt y, and in disrepair. Ralph Philbrick (Garden Director 1973-1987) was aware that its history was being lost. A friend of his from UCSB had a son, Don Norris, who needed a summer job, and Ralph proposed hiring him and having him work with Nancy to develop oral histories. Don Norris gained some notoriet y around the Garden because,
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"Since its inception just over two years ago, the Oral History collection has produced 54 taped interviews of people who have been part of the Garden’s development. Sally Gane and Elizabeth Cram shared their recollections of growing up in Mission Canyon in the early part of the century before the Garden was established. Horticulturist Dara Emery covered his 30 years of experiences growing native plants and working at the Garden, and long-time Mission Canyon resident Joseph Muench, who captured early views of the Garden on film, was also interviewed. Many of the interviews, now transcribed and edited, are housed in the Library Annex Special Collections Room.” [from 1984-1985 Annual Report, p.13]
2008 Librarian Joan Ariel with summer intern Will Robinson planned to interview former grounds superintendent, naturalist, and historian E.R. (Jim) Blakley and former director Ralph Philbrick. Unfortunately, Mr. Blakley died before the interview took place, but the interview with Dr. Philbrick was recorded and transcribed and is currently being prepared for publication. In 2008, Randy Wright joined the Garden Staff as the Digital Image and Database Specialist and expanded his role to Libraries Collections Coordinator in 2013. In both of these roles, he found boxes of tapes in storage. He led an effort to digitize these tapes, a process that is not only slow, but fraught with technical glitches.
2012 Henry Adams came to volunteer at the Garden three days a week in 2012, working with many staff/volunteers and contributing to our Library & Collections department and Conservation & Research. Henry also was a skilled audio technician – skills developed through his association with the Film Music Societ y. He agreed to work with Randy to digitize the old Oral History Tapes in 2016. As the digitization progressed, Henry realized that Oral History was a way to capture the insights of several of the recently retired Garden scientists. He gave a substantial grant to the Garden in 2017 to restart the Oral History Program.
Henry Adams 2019 R. Wright: So Henry, what was your goal, what is the purpose for the Oral History Program that you had in mind with your most generous grant? H. Adams: Given the fact that the Garden did start with an Oral History Program several years ago and given the fact that there are many staff members and crew that need to be interviewed that could give some insight into the Garden’s history while they are still with us, I felt that this was a good opportunit y to reinvigorate the Oral History Program, and to catch up on those staff and personnel that are still with us but, are advanced in years and that we hope to catch their testimony as part of a continuation of the Oral History series. Starting with Dieter Wilken, we know have an inroad or a way to start anew the Program, and we have many candidates, including Steve Junak, Betsy Thies, and many others who we need to be interviewed for their recollections of their experiences. R. Wright: How do you see the Oral History being used in the future?
Oral History team members Carolyn Pidduck, Randy Wright, Henry Adams, Lauren Fleming, and Pat Saleh in 2018.
2018 In Spring 2018, with the support of Manager of Volunteer Programs Kathy Castaneda, volunteers were recruited to help to restart the Oral History Program. The Team researched and adopted the Best Practices of the Oral History Association and developed an SBBG Oral History Program Description: The goal of the Oral History Program is to interview people who have long relationships with the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and have had an impact on the Garden or its mission. This includes the transcription and publication of interviews conducted in the 1980’s and recording new interviews. The volunteer team has developed an end-to-end process for producing new oral histories. Candidates are contacted to learn about their interest in being interviewed. With the subject’s guidance, a set of questions is developed that covers their background and experiences. One or more recording sessions may be needed to cover all of the questions. The recordings are submitted to an online transcription service, and the resulting transcripts are reviewed and edited for factual content and clarit y by both Oral History Team members and the interviewee. The completed transcript is then published in bound form, copies of which are added to the Library collection.
H. Adams: Well, we have our current generation of staff members if they are still with the Gardens, [such as] Betsy Collins who will have built up a resume of experience. We have the next generation of personnel that can continue to provide service to the Garden and build up a resume of experience. And, we want to certainly keep open the program to where it will be on-going; be on-going for the next 10-20 years. History is always on-going it does not necessarily always have to repeat itself.
Dr. Matt Guilliams, Tucker Herbarium Curator & Plant Systematist, had these words to share about Henry: Henry was a stalwart volunteer at the Garden, bringing his positive attitude and dry sense of humor to everything he did here. As his main task with the herbarium team, Henry worked at the transcription of field notes, most of which belonged to Steve Junak. Last time I attempted to figure out how many he had personally processed; the number was well over 8,000! He loved to exchange witty banter with the mounting crew, especially Ky, and was at his happiest deciphering Steve’s field notes at the computer with the view of the Channel Islands. I will always see him at that chair. What an incredible person, whose death is a great loss for Santa Barbara and for us personally. SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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Oral History Highlights Dara Emery with Nancy Hawver
1985
Defining a new “disease” foot blight – plant damage caused by stepping on a plant. D. Emery: Well, over the years we’ve had a great deal of trouble with foot blight, and it has become more acute as the number of people coming through Dara and Nancy Hawver in early the Garden increases, 1985. particularly around the pool. You’d come in Monday morning and the paths would look well-worn, you know, but the fellows raked and straightened them out and they were okay again. Camera people, photographers seem to think they’re in a class by themselves, and they have no compunction about getting right out into the flowers and trampling on six to photograph one. They’ll set their big equipment down on them. Very inconsiderate, so we have to be after them more or less all the time.”
Geege and Carol Ostroff
1986
C. Ostroff: “Our daughter, Ariel, was born under an oak tree. My instincts told me I needed to be outside for this baby, and it was prett y magical.” G. Ostroff: “I made a campfire, and the baby came fast. Our goats were peering over the fence of our corral. We slept the night with Ariel, and as it grew light, and we heard the bells from the Mission, we hiked back to the Gane House.”
Carol, Geege, and baby Ariel (born on Garden grounds in 1986)
Nancy Vivrette N. Vivrette: Well, I grew up in the desert, but boy I didn’t know the name of anything out there. And that was when the infamous, “What’s that tree?” He [CH Muller] said, “It’s a Quercus.” I said, “What’s Aquercus?” He said, “It’s an oak.” I said, “What’s an oak?” He said, “You need to go to the Botanic Garden. Go talk to Jackie Broughton Nancy received her Ph.D. from and get yourself some books UCSB in 1973, and was an Assistant Professor of Botany at UC Berkeley. to help you out.” So I’m thumbing through the books, looking under “A” for “Aquercus.” And Jackie says, “Oh, maybe you should start with these.” And she had the four Munz picture books, that’s what she had me buying. I said, “I still need to know how to do this.” So I bought the Munz as well. But that was my beginning. I knew nothing. Absolutely nothing. [From Oral History Nancy Vivrette – conversation occurred in 1969 when she was a first year Graduate Student at UCSB].
Are you interested in oral history? Many more interviews are planned. Contact Manager of Volunteer Programs Kathy Castaneda if you would like to be an Oral History Volunteer! “I joined the Oral History Team at the Garden in the spring of 2019. It has been a wonderful and eyeopening experience. I’ve learned a lot about the history of the Garden and the volunteers and scientists who have worked here. I’ve been able to use my editing skills working on the various digitized interviews. Right now, I’m editing Dara Emery’s interviews totaling more than 300 manuscript pages. He not only describes his work at the Garden but his childhood growing up in Hollywood. I love his “old-school” language and his descriptions of L.A. during the Depression.” – volunteer Susan Keefe
Oral History Team Members
14
Randy Wright (2008- )
Elaine Madsen (2021- )
Maria Wallis (2019- )
Lauren Fleming (summers 2017-2018)
Lydia Deems (2018- ) Susan Keefe (2019- )
Jeanne Mudrick (2020- )
Carol Weingartner (2019- )
Carolyn Pidduck (2018- 2019)
Pat Saleh (2018- )
Henry Adams (2016- 2019)
Ironwood SPRING | SUMMER 2021
Oral History Bibliography Previous Oral Histories can be found in the 1986 Index to Oral Histories 1.
Dara Emery SBBG: Horticulturist and Plant Breeder 1956-1991 Interviewed by Nancy Hawver, 19 interviews from September 1984-June 1985 Manuscript of 1984-85 Interviews being prepared by all the Oral History Team Members Status: To be Published Summer 2021
2.
Ralph Philbrick SBBG Biosystematist (1964-1972; Director 1973-1987 Interviewed by Will Robinson, Summer 2008 Status: To be Published Fall 2021
3.
Dr. Dieter Wilken SBBG 1993-2013 - Retired as Director of Conservation Currently a Research Associate working with Herbarium Specimens Interviewed by OHT Member Carolyn Pidduck, August 2018 Status: Published
4.
Dr. Robert Muller SBBG: Director of Research 2001-2012 Interviewed by OHT Member Lydia Deems, October 2018 Status: Published
5.
Nancy Vivrette SBBG: Research Associate 1979-present Registered Seed Technologist, Ransom Seed Laboratory, Carpinteria 1979-2006 Interviewed by OHT Member Lydia Deems, Spring 2019 Status: To Be Published Summer 2021
6.
Betsy Thies SBBG Volunteer 1971-2018? Leader of the Garden Guild Interviewed by OHT Member Carol Weingartner, May 2019 Status: Published
7.
Dr. Steven Timbrook SBBG: Co-ordinator of Education 1976-1987 Executive Director of Lotusland 1987-2006 Interviewed by Director of Education Scott Pipkin, August 2019 Status: Published
8. Carol and Geege Ostroff Carol: SBBG: Gardener and Educational Instructor 1979-2001 Geege: SBBG: Gardener 1980-present Interviewed by OHT Member Carol Weingartner, Winter 2019-20 Status: Published
9. Mary Carroll SBBG: Research Assistant then Director of Education 1978-1998 Interviewed by Carol Weingartner, February 2020 Status: To be Published Summer/Fall 2021 10. Carol Bornstein SBBG: Plant Propagator, Director of Living Collections and of Horticulture 1981-2009 Interviewed by Carol Weingartner, January/February 2021 Status: To be Published Fall 2021
Planned Oral Histories for which dialogue with the interviewee have begun: P P P P
Steve Junak Dr. Ed Schneider Joan Evans Nancy Hawver
Accessibility Where you can go to read the transcripts? P Hardbound copies can be examined in the Library P PDF versions will be available in the future on the Garden’s website We hope to make interview audio available online in the near future.
SBBG staff group photo, 1986: Geege Ostroff, Carol Bornstein, Mary Carroll (Hochberg), Dara Emery, Steve Junak, Steven Timbrook, Ralph Philbrick, Mary Allcott, Gail Meadows, Karen Rich, Kathe Klock, Lynn Woodbury, John Dolan, Wayne Larimore, Dave Kershaw, Betsy Thies, Mike Shobe, Nancy Hawver, and others.
SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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2020 IMPACT REPORT
Thank you for your steadfast support. Together, we advanced native plant conservation through a year of extraordinary challenges. Here’s a peek at what we achieved with your support.
You advanced the scientific understanding of native plants in California! In order to care, we must first understand what’s there. There is still a tremendous amount of biological diversity in nature to be discovered and fully understood. Your support allowed our scientists to investigate, survey, document, study, and then share our leading-edge knowledge with the world.
You protected biodiversity across the state of California!
191,000+ specimens
now reside in our Herbarium for use in research, including…
155,000
35,000+
6,200+
253
vascular plants
tissue samples in our Tissue Bank
lichens
fungi included in our brand NEW Fungarium
60,000+
digitized specimens are available virtually providing remote access to researchers around the world!
Community Science
Many eyes and many feet made light work in 2020!
55
Community Scientist volunteers surveyed over
300
miles of trails in the Thomas Fire scar identifying priority areas for restoration.
120
Community Scientists trained to identify invasive weeds, habitat.
1,325
Exotic weed populations mapped, providing needed survey data for eradication efforts.
4,648
Plant observations made on iNaturalist.
29,706
Expert identifications on iNaturalist. Our scientists lend their skills to others in the field.
You saved rare plants from the brink of extinction!
354
rare plant populations surveyed.
16
New rare plants protected! With funding from the California Biodiversity Initiative, seeds from 16 kinds of rare plants that had never been seed banked anywhere before were added to the Garden’s Conservation Seed Bank.
8,000+
Miles traveled in the name of conservation.
354
Acres restored at Burton Mesa.
77
Weed populations treated.
3
Castilleja mollis seed as viewed through a microscope.
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Rare subspecies of Dudleya protected! Our biodiversity team completed status assessments and collected tissue samples to inform recovery efforts.
Garden staff planting rare Sanicula maritima.
Grounds Manager Stephanie Ranes
Botany Technician Isabel Rivera waters seedlings in the Living Collections Nursery. Photo: Kristen Lehman
Photo: Taylor Keefer
You tended
78
acres of flourishing collections Your support tended all 78-acres of our beloved Garden, a true living museum. You helped our gardeners work year-round to ensure the Garden is well-tended and full of exciting seasonal highlights to inspire Garden guests.
Together we... P Nurtured the future by growing 12,000 native plants for Garden displays,
nursery sales, and conservation projects throughout the Central Coast, and sowing >25 lbs of wildflower seeds throughout the Garden. 14 lbs of poppies were sown into the Meadow alone!
P Found good homes for 6,750 native plants adopted through our Nursery. P Inspired curiosit y with 155 new plant labels and 60+ educational signs.
You made it possible to celebrate 5 years of the Pritzlaff Conservation Center! Thanks to communit y support, we opened the innovative Pritzlaff Conservation Center in 2016. Our conservation and research impact has skyrocketed over the past five years as a result of the PCC’s state-of-the-art labs, Herbarium, and Conservation Seed Bank.
Pritzlaff Conservation Center Ribbon Cutting Celebration, 2016.
Photo: Kristen Hehnke
Prior to the PCC Today % Growth Conservation Staff 5 13 160% Seeds Banked 174,331 1,250,500 617% Herbarium Specimens 135,000 191,153 42% Total DNA Extractions 0 4459 N/A Conservation Funding $197,820 $897,174 354% SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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You nurtured tomorrow’s conservation leaders! Despite the social distance, you helped the Garden inspire young minds and tend the next generation of botanists, horticulturalists, scientists, environmental educators, and even conservation voters!
P 9,500+ Youth and student Garden visits P 540 Student tour participants P 227 Universit y class admissions P 8 Students professionally mentored Masked Guests enjoy a Garden walk during the pandemic. Photo: Greg Trainor
P 211 attendees at our 2020 Conservation Symposium “Children in Nature: Prescription
for a Healthy Planet”
You brought the Garden Home! Through our Garden at Home program, Virtual Visitors could enjoy the Garden from the comfort of their couches, backyards, and offices nationwide. Virtual offerings included online classes, lectures, videos, and even our iconic Meadow available 24 hours a day via our MeadowCam Livestream. You can explore the Garden from home too at sbbg.org/athome.
128,273 32,745 63 Virtual Visitors
Nature Journalers meet via Zoom to discuss their latest works.
Social Followers
854
Classes Class Held Participants
You are part of a growing community...
4,661
Member Households*
1,400 New Members
55,225 Garden Visitors
1,105 Donors & Partners
275
Dedicated Volunteers *as of June 2021
You supported a thriving Garden in a time of need! Providing a connection to nature is ESSENTIAL BUSINESS. Though we temporarily closed our Garden gates last March due to California’s Shelter at Home Order, by May we were once again serving our communit y’s essential need for time in nature. MARCH 2020
APRIL 2020
MAY 2020
JUNE 2020
JULY 2020
AUGUST 2020
l March 20th Closed doors
l April 24th Declared an Essential Business by the City of Santa Barbara
l May 25th Volunteers returned to work as Garden Hosts assisting Guests
l June 5th Garden commits to be an anti-racist institution and founds Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion working group
l July 10th Reopened to the Public
l August 10th Garden named a “Hospitality Hero” by Visit Santa Barbara
l March 21st Beer Garden would have been this day
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l May 25th Reopened to Members
l June 8th Partnership with Cottage Health helped us prepare for a safe reopening
2020 REVENUE AND EXPENSES 204,077
$
734,220
$
Revenue and Support $
2,246,552
814,758
$
523,155
$
• Contributions and Memberships • Program and Other Revenue • Investments and Fees • Government Contracts • Visitor Program • PPP Funding
566,400
$
172,422
$
1,268,872
$
1,678,275
$
Core Mission Support 369,745
$
Program Expenses
• Science and Conservation • Garden Operations • Horticulture, Collections and Facilities • Education Program • Core Mission Support $1,439,016 Includes administration, finance,
development and membership, communications, human resources, IT/technology, maintenance, and utilities.
SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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Garden Supporters Thank you! The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden is grateful to all who generously support our programs. The following list reflects the
2020 cumulative giving by donors and includes all gifts totaling $250 or more received between January 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020, including annual fund gifts, memberships, campaign gifts, grant awards, gifts for special projects, and tribute and memorial gifts. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information and spelling, please notify our Development and Communications Department at (805) 682-4726, ext. 103 or by email at gifts@sbbg.org of any errors. $100,000 + John & Gwen Smart Foundation Bobbie and Gerry Rubin Steinmetz Foundation Dr. Shirley C. Tucker $50,000- $99,999 David and Lyn Anderson Manitou Fund Judy and Jack Stapelmann Anonymous
$25,000-$49.999 Chapman Hanson Foundation Gregory and Elisabeth Fowler Georgia Funsten Charles Rennie and Teresa Nakashima Kathy Scroggs and Lawrence Wallin The Walter J. and Holly O. Thomson Foundation Anonymous $10,000-$24,999 Alice Tweed Tuohy Foundation Mark Funk and Jim Owens George H. and Olive J. Griffiths Charitable Foundation Valerie Hoffman Montecito Bank & Trust S & S Seeds The Nature Conservancy The Raintree Foundation $5,000-$9,999 Ann Jackson Family Foundation Blue Horizon Management Company Walt Fidler Frank Schipper Construction John and Cristina Gabbert Gary and Hermine Gallup Dorie and Sean Hutchinson Hutton Parker Foundation Eric Hvolboll John C. Mithun Foundation Ladera Foundation
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Photo: Randy Wright
May and Bill Allison Foundation Suzanne and Duncan Mellichamp Hank and Mari Mitchel Mithun Family Foundation Carolyn Pidduck and Marc Soltan Santa Barbara Foundation Ann Steinmetz and Steve Senesac Rachel Stern and Tessa Kaganoff The Steven Adrian Private Foundation The Susanne and Gary Tobey Family Foundation Welch-Ryce-Haider Funeral Chapels Dana White Wood-Claeyssens Foundation Anonymous (4)
$2,500-$4,999 Jeremy Bassan Buynak, Fauver, Archbald, and Spray, LLP. Center for Plant Conservation Michele and Chip Chandler Elaine and Jerry Gibson Wendy Munger and Lenny Gumport Brad Hall and Julia Louis-Dreyfus Kelly Knight Real Estate Jim Kennett George and Laurie Leis LOJO Foundation Lillian Lovelace Joan and Bill Murdoch Santa Ynez Band of/Chumash Indians Foundation Victoria Shaw and Ed Cohen Nancy Vivrette Anonymous (2)
$1,000-$2,499 Peter and Rebecca Adams Allen & Kimbell, LLP Argonaut Charitable Foundation Rose Arnold and Lisa French Beverly Backer Cynthia Butler and John Barton Sarah Berkus Gower and Hayden Gower Rebecca and Jeff Berkus Leslie and Philip Bernstein Joan and Tom Bolton Jeffrey Thompson and Katherine Bower John and Ann Brinker Belle and Daniel Cohen Marcia and John Mike Cohen Betsy Collins and Patrick McNult y Mary and Richard Compton Mary Jane and Andrew Cooper Carolyn Cooper Laurie Eusey and Paul Deal Holly and Joel Dobberpuhl Tracie and John Doordan Kate Edwardson Tisha Ford Martha Gabbert Dorothy and John Gardner Bett y and Tom Gerig Gerd and Peter Jordano Carolyn Kincaid Tamara and Douglas Klug Joan Kreiss and Roger Perlmutter David Lindsay Judy Little Betsy and Steven Loranger Ann Lorimer Siri and Bob Marshall Kathleen and Jim McClure Sharon Metsch Peter Morris Anna and Gary Nett Drs. Adele and Loi Nguyen Norberg Family Foundation Kevin and Alex O'Brien Jon and Erin Ohlgren Gail Osherenko and Oran Young John and Marilyn Parke Gregory Parker and Julie Klapp Jane and Fred Perner Judith Petraitis Nick Pierce and Donna Peterson Preston & Sterling Morton Fund Duncan Proctor Emily and Patrick Radtke Christine and Stefan Riesenfeld Melissa Riparetti-Stepien and Christian Stepien Gary and Leslie Robinson
Muriel Ross Roy E.Crummer Foundation Roberta Rudnick and Rose Santellano-Milem Diane and Douglas Scalapino Kate Schepanovich Nancy Schlosser Peter Schuyler and Lisa Stratton Julie and David Siegel Domi and Raymond Smith Susan and Barry Spector Tichenor and Thorp Architects Gebb Turpin Janet and Jack Underwood Victoria Ward Patricia and Nicholas Weber Kathy and Robert Wenger John and Mary Wiemann MaryJo and Vernon Williams Andrea and Reading Wilson Ann and Alastair Winn John Woodward John Wright Jules Zimmer and Carolyn Cogan Anonymous (2) $500-$999 Matthew and Jenny Adams Sue Adams David and Brenda Anderson Tanya Atwater Barbara Barr and George Egbert Sydney Baumgartner and Sophia Vasquez Holly and Edward Bennett Mary Bergen Tracy and Dave Bettles Shirin and William Black Sheila Brady Randy Brimm Joyce and Roland Bryan Hope Bryant Margaret and Dave Carlberg Sarah Chaney and Daniel Richards Sallie and Curt Coughlin Leslie and Scott Deardorff Anne and Jeffrey Donahue Dorothy & Chester Smith Charitable Foundation Carol Doughert y Cynthia and Bill Duncan Sheri Eckmann and William Klansek William Ehelebe Joyce and David Evans Joyce Faber Setsuko and Dennis Furuike Geoffrey Gaggs Joan Gresh
Vicki and Bob Hazard Andrea and Ron Hein Michael Honer Donald Jack and Terri Eddy Diane and Donald Jackson Eleanor Jacobs Cass Ensberg and Tom Jacobs Franchon and Paul Jacobson Vijaya and S. Rao Jammalamadaka Mary Grace Kaljian and Suzanne Cohen Elizabeth Keate and Mark Kandola David and Joan Kershaw Deedy and Charles King Paula Kislak Julie and Marc Kummel Lynn and Gary Larson Ellen Lawson Norma Lehman Marcy Lindbery Sheila Lodge Erik Nickel and Michael Loftis Kim and Mike Mason Hilary Maybank Margaret Meinhardt and Joseph Cusano Ladeen and Stephen Miller Susan L. Mohun Sia and Aim Morhardt N.E.W. Fund c/o Marin Communit y Foundation Gabriel Macon and Gelaré Naderi Macon Maia Kikerpill and Daniel Nash Cynthia and Chapin Nolen Susan Plumer Leslie and Dennis Power Lisa and Andrew Primack Marny Randall Jean Reiche Carolyn Horsman and Rudy Rodriguez Cathy Rose Martha Saatjian Santa Barbara Count y Auditor-Controller Daron Builta and Stephen Schaible Warren and Rachel Schultheis Maureen and Leslie Shapiro David and Karen Telleen-Lawton George Turpin Susan Van Atta & Ken Radtkey Rudie van Brussel and Dennis McGowan Jill Vander Hoof Kathy Weber Carol and Jerome Weingartner Heidi and Andrew Whitman Janet Williams David Willkie Georgia Young Karen Young Anonymous
SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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Garden Supporters continued $250-$499 Duncan and Meredith Abbott Cat Allday Eric Allday Linda and Jim Armstrong Tiare Barels and Devon Crail Helene Beaver Matthew Berger and Madelyn Swed Merri and Andrew Berwick Mark Bessey and Yvette Keller Patricia Bigoni and Daniel Bellinger Stacy Bloodworth Lisa Bogart and Michael Hess Rochelle and Mark Bookspan Elizabeth and Bill Boss Christopher and Carolyn Brandt Dave and Karen Brooks Deborah Brown and Tara Rizzi Carol and Ronald Bruns Tricia Munro and Rick Burgess Theresa and William Carson Shirlie Carter Louise and Timothy Casey Jean Clarke Marne Coggan and Debra Friedenberg Judy and Steve Colwell Margaret and Joseph Connell Ann Coppin Correa-Garcia Family Trust Sally Crandall Thomas Craveiro and Hall Willkie Bob and Margaret Crocco Sandra and Patrick Crotteau Alea and Bob Cunningham Rebecca Curtis and Chris Stubbs Shawn Dailey and Jocelyn Belloni Richard and Lloyd Dallett Sarah and Robert Davey Samantha Davis Lydia Deems and William Prothero Barbara Delaune Warren and Brian Warren Donna Dietz Allena and Clinton Donati Ashley Eberz Selden and Judy Edner Patricia Erbe and Brendan Barnwell Michelle and Shawn Erickson Marlou and Lendon Everson Meagan and Juan Fonseca Jane and Robert Forsyth Lara Freeman and Amara Murphy Lou Greer Frost Diane Galvan and Larry Disharoon Gil and Marti Garcia Stacey Geldin and Eric Zahm Kelley and Bruce Giffin
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Anabel Ford and Michael Glassow Patti Jacquemain and David Gledhill Frederic and Nancy Golden Alma Gray Janet Greeley and Eric Peterson Kiona Gross Nancy Baum and Jim Hanson Lorna Hedges Corinne and Gary Horowitz Julieanne and David Hybert David and Lisa Irwin Shihwei Jen and Shih-Min Holland Alexander Jillson Alice Gillaroo and Susan Jorgensen Diane Galt and Betsy Kaminski Cynthia and Alan Kempner Bobbie and John Kinnear Christian Kraus and Jamie Bishton Mary and James Leslie Barbara and Albert Lindemann Ramsey Ludlow and John Sharatt Sharyn Main Hodgson and James Hodgson Ella and James Markham Robin and John Martin Elizabeth Matthews Ginger Sledge and Michael Mattioli Suzanne and Bruce McAdams Tita and Dan McCart y Marie McCauley and Steven Weed Deborah McCleister and Lydia Emard Mary Jo and Douglas McLeod Judy and Dave Messick Amy Michelson and Joe Istrin Patricia Mickelson Cherie Mignone Molly and Jeffrey Millman Lawrence Minasian and Wenjen Zhang Stephanie Moret and Derek Booth Robin and John Mosby Kamie and Thomas Mulroy Darlene and Peter Munk Jeanne and Larry Murdock Brandy and Ian Mussman Laura and Don Newmark Arlene and Alfred Noreen Julie and Nick Ouellette Laura Lee and Glen Parks Lanette Perry Malia and Erik Petersen Mila Malden and Jeffrey Philips Jeff and Mandy Phillips Jane Pidduck Joy and Kent Porter Colleen and Lars Poulsen Wendy Pressley-Jacobs
Ali and Jordan Quivey Judith Raimondi and Greg Lorenz Joanne and F. Brian Rapp Dwight Reynolds Sharon and Bill Rich Thomas Riederer Elizabeth Ross Dr. Jay Rounds Patricia and Adel Saleh Mia and Amanda Sanders Michelle Seagraves and Angela Seagraves Kathie and Fred Shapiro Bob Simon Rorie Skei William Smith and Julie Hanson-Smith Roxy and Randy Solakian Kelly and Blair Spaulding Carol and Middleton Squier Randy Stephens Kyle Svenningsen and Jennifer Smith Niels and Guillermina Thorlaksson Kathy and Christopher Thrash Jan and Steven Timbrook Wendy and Lou Visser Earl and Marcia Wakelee Hall Willkie Andrew and Laurie Wilson Douglas Wilson and Julie Uyehara Judy and George Writer Anna and Dick Zylstra Anonymous (6)
Photo: Greg Trainor
Photo: Greg Trainor
In Memory of... Juanita Abel from Kevin Roberson May & Bill Allison – May and Bill Allison Foundation Mark Lee Bartholomew – Marianne Bartholomew Rena Blanton & Ruth Kooistra – Kristyl Downey
Victoria Kennedy – John H. Kennedy Diana Margaret Kennett – Ken McDonald & Rachel Haymony Ruth Meadows – Gail & Gary Milliken German Ortega – Elizabeth Ortega Dorothy Riley – Robin Martin
Rena Blanton – Alicia Blanton
Karen Robinson – Linda Bauman, Rose Arnold & Lisa French
Patsy Bolt – Fred Perner
Rosalinda Santana – Irma Santana
Kathiann Brown – Wes Brown, Meredith Lawrence
Donald Stork – Teresa Kelly
Phyllis Doolin-Mrazek – Charles Dunn Allan Doughert y – Carol Dougherty My Companion, Edgar – William Black Corinne Gallagher – Rose Arnold & Lisa French, Diane Galvan, Dan Gosselin
Mark Stubler – David R. Waterman Patricia Torson Boyd – William Smith Carol Ann Usui – Sandra Usui Isabel Wellisz – Suzanne Siskel, Peter Gajewski
Dorris Goodrich's 100th Birthday – David Goodrich, Thomas Heck Owen Guitteau – Virginia Standring, Sheila Brady Sally Hearon – Fanning Hearon Ed Henderson – Carolyn Pidduck Yquem Hybert – David Hybert Christine Kopitzke – Edna Weber Dr. Kristin Lehman – Norma Lehman My Brilliant Team at SBBG – Heidi Whitman My Father, John Clinton Rogers – Jaqueline Engel Irene Ortiz Ortega – Virginia J. Ortega Tara Penke – The Little One Foundation Scot Pipkin – Jack Pipkin, Janice Levasheff
Sally Wilkinson – Laura Leivo
Bruce Reed – Diane Fox
Sonny Wirsing – Bill Cushman
Cathy Rose – Carolyn Dukes
In Honor of... All those that are/were on the front line in the fight for life – Gary Larson
Bobby & Gerry Rubin – Marcia Smith
Wendy Adams from Susan G. Adams
Ann Terrell – Blair Spaulding
Sam Babcock – Candace Larkin
Betsy Thies' Birthday – Micha Pazner
Ruth Briggs – Nadya Penoff
Bruce Van Dyke – Peter Van Dyke
Daniel Brimm – Randy Brimm
Emily Westlake – Hugh Kelly
Ann Brinker – Sarah Brinker. Abraham Zolan
Dieter Wilken & Beth Painter – Kate Gordon
Ed Henderson – Eleanor Jacobs, Tom Calkins
Tom Craveiro – David Willkie
Donna Will – Charlotte Will
Ann & John Brinker – Sarah Brinker
Dicky Hobson – Mindy Fogg
Andrew McIvor, the Gardener – Maura Conlon McIvor
Steve Windhager – Jane Gottlieb, Sarah Harris, Megan M. Keefe
Owen Guitteau – Genevieve Antonow, Sue Keane, Judith Rice, Raymond C. Smith, Katherine McColm, Carla Wilson, Susan G. Adams, Larry Adams Bob Haller – Bruce Tiffney Dolores Hanrahan – Robert W. Hanrahan Joe Harkins – Marilyn Cordray, Louis D. Lazarine, David Hong, Shalauna Miller Alma Hecht – April Baer
Mary Hopson – Island Press, Sharon Sidle
Steve "The Car Guy" – Rick Weber Gillian Taylor – Marty Neumeier
SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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Garden Supporters continued Blaksley Bliss Society The Blaksley Bliss Society honors those who include the Garden in their estate plans. Peter and Rebecca Adams David and Brenda Anderson Angus and Jeri Andrews Mary Lou Ardohain Michael Benedict Charis and Peter Bratt John and Ann Brinker Marne Coggan and Debra Friedenberg Patrick Connelly Thomas Craveiro and Hall Willkie Anne Cushing Cotton Sue Mantle DiCicco Gary and Rebecca Eldridge John and Cristina Gabbert Bett y and Tom Gerig Elaine and Jerry Gibson Jane Gottlieb and David Obst Christine and David Gress Valerie Hoffman Nancy Johnke Carolyn Kincaid Louise and Stephen Komp Gillian Launie Patricia and Jim Lawson Arthur Lindo and Julien Stuart Dorothy MacCulloch Susan L. Mohun Gloria and Rand Molnar Cynthia and Chapin Nolen Arlene and Alfred Noreen Anuja Parikh and Nathan Gale John and Debra Piot Joy Ellen Podger Richard and Beth Rogers Kathy Scroggs and Lawrence Wallin Courtney Smith
Susan and Barry Spector Elaine and Robert Sweet David and Karen Telleen-Lawton Betsy Thies and Marjorie Garland Peggy Thompson Kim True Dr. Shirley C. Tucker Linda and Robert Van Buren Anonymous (2) Corporate Partners Agromin Allen & Kimbell, LLP Rebecca and Jeff Berkus Blue Horizon Management Company Buynak, Fauver, Archbald, and Spray, LLP. Correa-Garcia Family Trust Dennis Allen Associates Frank Schipper Construction Mark Funk and Jim Owens Hutton Parker Foundation Island Press Kelly Knight Real Estate Manzanita Nursery Mike Richardson, Realtors Montecito Bank & Trust Jon and Erin Ohlgren Panorama Global Impact Fund S & S Seeds Santa Barbara Count y Auditor-Controller Santa Barbara Natives Santa Ynez Band of/Chumash Indians Foundation Schwab Charitable Fund Tichenor and Thorp Architects
Gifts In Kind Cissy and Richard Ross Carolyn Pidduck and Marc Soltan Agromin Channel Islands Restoration Santa Barbara Natives Heather and Garret John We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this report, and we apologize for any oversight or errors. 2020 Volunteer Milestones 25 years Corinne Gallagher 20 years Deedy King 15 years Ky Easton Linda Matthews Patrick Murphy 5 years Stella Kovac Dorothy Manzarek Craig Nelson Alan Scholl 2020 Volunteer of the Year James Gardner Citizen Science, Facilities, & Living Collections
Ways to Help! P Everyone can make a difference to help California native
P Upgrade your membership to enjoy benefits such as additional
plant conservation, research, horticulture and education at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. A gift to the Garden’s Annual Fund provides essential support for all of the Garden’s programs in horticulture, education, and native plant research and conservation. To make a contribution or for more information, please visit our website at sbbg.org donate or contact us at (805) 682-4726, ext. 133
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Ironwood SPRING | SUMMER 2021
guest passes, coupons, and invitations to events. Please contact the Membership Office at (805) 682-4726, ext. 110 or membership@sbbg.org with any questions.
Adopt a plant through our new
Plant Sponsorship Program Sponsor a plant and celebrate, honor, or memorialize your loved ones Pay tribute to your loved one by sponsoring a plant in the Garden in their honor and we will include their name on a plant label. The sponsorship lasts the lifetime of the plant. Plant sponsorships are available starting at $2,500. Find our Tribute Plant Sponsorship Agreement at sbbg.org/adopt-plant
Thank you to our Health and Wellness Partner
Senior Free Days Courtesy of Welch-Ryce Haider Funeral Chapels Guests 60 years and better can enjoy free admission to the Garden during six Senior Free Days in 2021! February 24 April 21
June 16 August 18
October 20 December 15
For providing a healthy Garden experience!
P Include the Garden in your estate plans and become a
P Does your employer match charitable contributions? Double
member of the Blaksley Bliss Societ y. Bequests and other planned gifts support the Garden’s endowment and provide critical funding for the Garden’s future. Members of the Blaksley Bliss Societ y are recognized and celebrated at an annual event. More information can be found at sbbglegacy.org. Please contact Heidi Whitman, Director of Development & Communications at (805) 682-4726, ext. 133 or hwhitman@sbbg.org
your support with a Corporate Matching Gift. Please contact your company’s human resources department to determine if matching funds are available.
P Become a Volunteer by contacting Kathy Castaneda at
volunteers@sbbg.org. We will match your interests, abilities, and availabilit y with the Garden’s current volunteer needs. By becoming a volunteer, you will be making a substantial contribution to the preservation and knowledge of California native plants and habitats. SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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SUPPORT THE GARDEN'S Spring
CAM PAIG N
Your Spring Gift will allow the Garden to: P Tend and maintain all 78 beautiful acres of our Garden’s living museum collection! P Grow over 12,000 native plants for our Garden, home gardens, and conservation projects throughout the Central Coast. P Provide expert horticultural advice and support for thousands of home gardeners throughout the State.
Help Us Meet Our Match. We’re Almost There! Your passion for the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and California’s native plants is helping us plant the seeds that hold the promise of a brighter future. Many ambitious projects have been made possible - all thanks to your investment in the Garden! We need your help to keep the momentum going forward.
P Advance new knowledge and techniques for propagating and caring for California native plants, helping to protect them as our climate changes.
DOUBLE THE IMPACT OF YOUR GIFT! Your gift will be matched dollar for dollar up to $50,000 thanks to a generous donor. Use the return envelope in the centerfold of this issue to send a gift by mail, or visit sbbg.org/donate to give online and help us meet our match by July 9, 2021.
Donate through your Donor Advised Fund Many of our donors provide support for the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden through Donor Advised Funds (DAF). To support us through your DAF, please contact your adviser at your DAF sponsoring organization. Santa Barbara Botanic Garden’s Tax ID is 95-1644628. DAF sponsors should make checks payable to the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and mail to: Santa Barbara Botanic Garden 1212 Mission Canyon Road Santa Barbara, CA 93105 Investments of any size directly support our efforts in conservation, education, and research. If you would like to fund a wish list item, direct a gift to the Garden through your Donor Advised Fund, or make sure your contribution will help us meet our match, please contact Heidi Whitman, Director of Development & Communications at hwhitman@sbbg.org or (805) 682-4726, ext. 133.
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Budding Botanists
5 Ways to Discover Bugs in Your Backyard By Michelle Cyr, Youth & Family Programs Manager
N 1
ative plants support a wide diversit y of insects. With a little bit of searching, you will be amazed at the number of insects that emerge from your own backyard. Engage in these tricks to discover more about the insects found in our local area:
See which insects are on your plants by using a Beating Sheet. A beating sheet is any surface that is used to collect insects by holding or laying it underneath a plant and then shaking (or “beating”) the branches to knock off any hiding insects. Your surface could be as large as an old bed sheet or as small as a piece of paper. Pro-tip: try not to disturb the plant before the sheet is in place – in a pinch you can use your hat.
2
Use a magnifying lens to get a closer look.
4
Change your perspective.
Magnifying lenses are an essential piece to any naturalist toolkit. With it, you can gain more knowledge on the structures, behavior, and interactions of insects. If you do not have a lens, you can also use a pair of binoculars by flipping them over and looking through the opposite side of them.
Get down low or lay on your belly to look for insects crawling on the ground. Look inside flower buds to find resting or hiding insects, or remove the top layer of dirt on the ground to see what is below. Pro-tip: when it’s dark, check to see what is attracted to your porch lamp – watch the species change throughout the year.
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Flip over a log. Whether it is for shelter, moisture, or food, there are plent y of reasons for insects to find shelter under a log, rock, or any object. Just be sure to place it back for the insects in the position you found it when you’re done.
Stay in tune with the weather. Weather can make a dramatic difference on the t ypes and number of insects you may see. Some conditions, like high winds, may make it difficult for insects to fly around, while after rain, you may notice large amounts of them emerging from their hiding spot.
Pro-tips by Casey Richart, a postdoctoral scholar at the Garden whose research includes documenting invertebrates associated with rare and endemic plants. He has described dozens of new species, including millipedes, arachnids, and terrestrial slugs and snails.
SPRING | SUMMER 2021 Ironwood
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