Amazing things happen when can-do people with a passion for gardening get together. And
somewhere in Washington, D.C., six of them have been getting together every Monday at 10. The meeting place is a big, cozy kitchen in a big,
ramshackle house in the big city. Refreshments are fresh-baked scones and plenty of good
coffee.
Since August these D.C. Master Gardeners have
been brainstorming about creating some cool projects - DOING
something with all their energy and their love of gardening. Brainstorming
about forming some sort of organization, about attracting and putting to good use more and more people like them, with results that can't
possibly be known but will probably include school gardens and healing
gardens and public events to teach composting and pruning and
eco-friendly gardening and who-the-hell-knows what else. And in the process creating comraderie and the fun of team accomplishment for people
who've previously gardened by themselves in their own private
places.
Their first e
vent
in October was a successful plant swap, housed in a
historic garage on the grounds of the Georgetown estate called Tudor Place.
Next, their Speakers Bureau launched with a PowerPoint talk/demo on
composting held at a rec center, also well attended because they were
smart in publicizing it. Two passionate composters, including one
whose email address is compostman@something.com, carried the word.
And a new school garden has almost emerged from the grueling
paperwork-and-fundraising stage to groundbreaking.
As its primary project the team has adopted the Washington Home and Hospice,
much in need of help with its six garden areas in varying states of
development. There's talk of using plants to elicit memories in the
Alzheimers Garden, of growing vegetables in raised beds with the
involvement of resident
s
and families, always with the goal of demonstrating
environmentally responsible gardening in this very prominent site (the
recent home of Art Buchwald).
In February they'll meet the trainees in the Class of 2007, the pool of 35 or so potential activists. They'll cheerlead for the cause and do whatever it takes to turn these volunteers into leaders for years to come.
So who IS the scheming sextet? Three retired government
professionals (all medal-deserving jumpers of bureaucratic hurdles).
And still
aspiring to retirement are a teacher/professional gardener, a
writer/caterer,
and me. You know how sometimes when you put out a call for people
interested in
making something happen, nothing happens? Well, the call I put out
last summer yielded these five. So after convening the first meeting,
my job was to stand back and then discard any delusion I might have had
that I was in charge. They're one of the coolest groups of people I've
ever known. Stay tuned.
Photos from top: D.C. Master Gardener Class of 2006; MGs at Peabody School; MG and student at Studio Charter School; plant swap; Volunteers at the National Arboretum; student gardeners at Studio School.
Sounds like a fantastic start. And please add Washington Gardener Magazine to your press release list, we'd love to hear more!
Posted by: Kathy Jentz | December 06, 2006 at 12:05 PM