November News from the Garden

Letter from the Executive Director

Greetings!  This year, autumn at the garden has been sublime, with an inordinate number of brisk, cloudless nights with temperatures in the 40s, followed by sunny days of low humidity with highs in the 70s. To be anywhere when the weather is so agreeable is a gift; to experience it in the midst of the garden is an especially extravagant one. Another remarkable feature of the garden this time of year, regardless of temperature or humidity, is the light. Much has been written and discussed about John Fairey's approach to creating the garden as an artist, and it is often remarked that he "painted with plants." This seems true to me but it's clear he also painted with light – not the representation of light as painters or photographers are bound to settle for – but by working with plants and space to create conditions whereby light might be subject matter equal to the plants. John's layering of different trees and shrubs created an environment for the light to filter down through these different layers, through different densities and colors to create wonder all through the garden, punctuating areas of deep, dark blue-green with brilliant warm light that causes leaves and tree trunks and branches to glow as though internally lit. The effect is breathtaking, and I'm grateful to John for creating the opportunity to experience something so fundamental and profound. We hope you'll take advantage of the remaining Open Days this year to have your own experience of the garden. Warm Regards, Randy

Open Day Schedule for 2020

We will have Open Days on Saturday November 7th, 14th, and 21st. As always, tours will go out roughly on the hour starting at 9 am, with the last tour commencing at 11. The nursery will be open from 9-5. We are also going to be open the first two Saturdays in December, the 5th and the 12th. A note that we still have two lovely hand-made "Cactus Pots" made by friend of the garden, Jill Whitten, and we a new series of postcards, suitable for framing, with three images from the garden for sale. Take a look when you come to the garden. You won't be able to find these items anywhere else.

Casimiroa pringlei, Pringle's Sapote

If you love fruit trees, you'll find this unique medium-sized fruit tree from Mexico irresistible. In the citrus family, the small yellow fall fruit is about the size of a large oval grape and tastes somewhere between a mango and a peach. It contains a large seed that will easily germinate. This cold hardy tree matures to about fifteen feet and prefers some shade and well-drained soil.  - Craig Jackson, Nursery Manager

Notes from the Nursery Manager Moths, Butterflies, Wasps, and Bees Lots of butterflies, like the cloudless sulphur and gray hairstreak, are fluttering in the pollinator garden, attracted to the many flowering plants, especially Bauhinia galpinii and Salvia greggii 'Cherry Chief.' Native bumble bees are desperately gathering nectar before the queens hibernate for winter and prefer the numerous pink flowers of Hibiscus x 'Beluga.' Honey bees, on the other hand, are active all winter and are attracted to calliandra, abutilon and tagetes.  Nursery volunteers have also been busy. Paul Merritt is working tirelessly on the succulent greenhouse and is almost ready for the next phase: the plastic cover, which hopefully arrives before the first freeze! Brenda Wilson, Harvey Newman and Phoebe and Rob Lake have begun the long arduous process of repotting root bound plants into larger pots. Many of these plants are being groomed for a place in the garden. Over the years gardeners have asked what our potting soil recipe is because we grow a wide diversity of plants from yucca to pond plants, all in a fairly uniform environment, that is to say, similar fertilizer, similar light and similar water. The one variable that is different is the makeup of the potting medium. I've seen a lot of soil types used by gardeners, mostly heavy peat but also mud, sand and gravel and I must say none of these appear to benefit the plant. We recommend 50% regrind pine bark fines (available from Living Earth - Crawford location in bags and Cutten location in bulk) and 50% standard growers mix (Living Earth also). Add some perlite to increase porosity for plants that need better drainage. For succulents, use about 20-30% regrind pine bark fines with the rest perlite and expanded shale which is available from The Ground Up, on Windfern Road. If you'd like to volunteer to work nursery sales on Saturdays, please call me at 281-814-3848 or email me at craig.r.jackson@gmail.com. Happy Gardening! Craig Jackson Nursery Manager 

Round Two of Docent Training We're still looking to fill our next class of docents. If you're interested in finding out more or in signing up, email info@jfgarden.org or call 979.826.3232

Meet Margaret!

We're pleased to introduce you to our new Office Manager, Margaret Boynton. Margaret comes to the garden with years of experience in corporate and private event planning, office management, fundraising, and volunteer coordinating. Her studies include a BS in Business Administration & Marketing from Northern Michigan University as well as International Business through a Study Abroad Program in Central Europe. She enjoys sharing her passion of nature, music, art, and creative expression to all ages. Margaret is very excited to be our newest staff member and we're equally excited to have her! Next time you're at the garden, stop in and introduce yourself.

Closeups from the Garden