Mary Lee Minor
| Farmers’ Advance
After a short weekend loaded with tons of experiences, my head is still swirling. It began as the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs started its Convention in Dublin.
“A Seed is Planted” opened with a flower show and closed with a full day of touring gardens on Tuesday, Aug. 19. That morning Paula Brown and Glenda Leuthold joined June Gebhardt and me for the bus ride. With so much to share, let me take readers directly to the Ohio Governor’s Residence Heritage Garden.
A sense of anticipation filled me as we boarded buses to be transported to Bexley. Three buses carried nearly 150 people to the residence. This large group was welcomed then divided and conquered by the Heritage Garden volunteers who maintain flower beds with regularity throughout the year.
We walked through to the front yard area as guides took groups of about 15 of us through the series of maintained gardens. These spot gardens represented Ohio’s uniqueness in its southern mountainous area, the sandy Lake Erie dunes, bogs, dry land prairies and so much more of our state’s diversity.
Garden tour across Ohio’s landscapes
Our group went on back to Mr. McGregor’s Garden where we learned of the vegetable efforts. Tall broom corn and okra, tomatoes, dill and unusual crops were showing off. We were guided to the prairie garden, into the bog garden and onto the first lady’s terrace garden where pollinator plants blended with evergreens in long stretches beneath well-maintained arbor structures. We passed small water gardens with cattails and arum in bloom and coy happily swimming then whisked onto a patio where former First Lady Hope Taft summarized the garden areas.
She used charts to show the development of the small-scale garden areas which were based on Ohio’s physiographic regions: Huron-Erie Lake Plains, Central Lowland Till Plains, Glatiated Allegheny Plateau, Unglatiated Plateau and Interior Low Plateau Bluegrass.
Right after this delightful stop the Wet Woods and Headlands Sand Dunes were shared. These two areas meant more to me because of visits and hikes from the past. And, too the Buckeye Lake Cranberry Bog replication held experiences.
At the turn of the walkway, Fran DeWine spoke of the Story Trail efforts structured around the “Tale of Peter Rabbit.” By then we had seen wee chairs, tables, rabbits and even Peter Rabbit in a bed. A small tick “T” unit held a tiny shirt with a bluebird perched on the sleeve.
Efforts to make Alvar Rock, Bluegrass and Cedar Glade gardens
Then we heard of the efforts to establish an Alvar Rock Garden to mimic the north shore of Kelley’s Island and the Bluegrass Garden and Cedar Glade from Adams County in southern Ohio. My thoughts were about how the gathering of acidic soils and alkaline soils had been managed since each of the small-scale garden units had its own special soil makeup.
We wanted to grab a quick cup of rhubarb punch as we headed for the buses. We would be moving to Franklin Park Conservatory for lunch not far from this unique compilation of Ohio’s treasures being preserved through actual garden plots.
We came away with many ideas for our own gardening efforts. Since the Ohio Association of Garden Club members reside in areas from Lake Erie to the Ohio River this was a most fascinating tour a reality of the kinds of soils and natural gifts that come with our homes.
Life got even better as the first lady Fran DeWine was just ahead of me in the rhubarb punchline. That photo opportunity with Fran might make me famous.
Mary Lee Minor is a member of the Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club, an accredited master gardener, a flower show judge for the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and a former sixth grade teacher.
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