Gardens Founded in 2001 - Home in 2002

Echinacea - Photo by Laura Davis

The garden began in 2001 with the help of Norm Erickson, a Northland Hospice volunteer, at the corner of Switzer Canyon Drive and Turquoise. At that time the home had not been completed but a beautiful sign was placed on the corner. Norm continued to work on the beds on the east side of the sidewalk along Switzer Canyon Drive and in front of the home, until 2008. The rest of the gardens were developed by a core of Coconino County Master Gardeners initially led by Laura Davis and since 2007 by Loni Shapiro.

The garden crew is active from April-October and sometimes in November weather permitting. Work happens weekly throughout the garden season on Monday and Thursday mornings from 8:00 am-12:00 pm. It also is scheduled for one Saturday a month from April through October. Cancellations due to weather will be posted by 6:00 am of the workday on this blog. You must attend a spring orientation to the garden and Northland Hospice & Palliative Care in order to work. A summary of the work that has been done is included on the blog. Look for weekly postings on this blog during the garden season.
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Volunteering in the Garden

2015 Calendar

April 13, 11:30-1:30 Lunch and orientation for new volunteers at hospice and TB testing for all

April 16, 9:15-10 TB tests read and 10:00 garden orientation. First Thursday workday 9-12

April 20, First Monday workday 9-12

May 2, Saturday workday 9-12

If you are interested in volunteering, please email CrysWells@gmail.com.

Please note: TB testing is required annually for all garden volunteers.

If you have current TB results that were done by a physician or at a hospital, these may be submitted to Northland Hospice.

If you are unable to attend the meeting, please contact the volunteer coordinator Kathy Simmons (ksimmons@northlandhospice.org) to schedule a time for testing and orientation.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Workdays 6/13,16,18/2011

Monday was another beautiful warm day in the the garden. We had a small crew. Nancy Palmer came and watered the MMG and the south Inferno Strip. Kay Balzer continued to work on the front 1/2 circle. She brought some plants from home, planted a couple of shrubs and some grasses from Crys Wells, and moved some plants from other parts of the garden. Char Wallace came and watered the dry beds in back of the house and some of our sale pots. I worked on planting some more annuals, watering, and putting out some signs.

Wow! Each week I think we have such a long list of tasks, and we will never get them done, but we always manage to do them and more. It was a beautiful day this Thursday, despite all the pine pollen blowing about. We had a large crew that worked primarily on two tasks - getting ready for the plant sale and putting in our new shed. Judith Chaddock, Becky Lewis, Julie Holmes, Susan, and Marilynn VanWagner all worked on getting plants ready for the sale (clean-up and tagging). Cynthia and Al Katte, Jim Woods, Dave Hockman, and Vicki Goodwin moved the old shed including leveling the ground, and put in the foundation for the new shed. David also managed to plant a Coloradao Blue spruce recently donated. Laura Davis and Rebecca Moore weeded and began planting in the Michael Moore Garden. Kay Balzer and Linda Guarino worked in the front half-circle, watering and getting in the drip system. Carol Lease helped repair the drip and helped me hang the baskets in the gazebo - a sure sign of summer. Betty Marcus and Char Wallace came late and stayed late to make sure all gardens were watered. Laura, Char and I cleaned up the pot area in prep for moving things into the sheds next week. Joe Harte came and worked on the trees. He also did a pruning demonstration with ponderosa and crab-apple.

On Saturday we had a small crew but managed to get many things done. Cynthia Katte, Debbie Crisp, and I planted the last of the annuals, perennials and worked on the plant sale pots. Al Katte and Jim Woods finished putting up the new shed and re-building the old shed on a new site. Al still has some tweaks but we should be able to get items in the sheds next week.

Rachel Edelstein and her husband Bob dropped by a bunch of items for our Plant and Garden Sale. Thanks to Rachel for collecting them thoughout the year for us.

New blooms in the garden:
Locust tree, sulfer buckwheat, native gaura (some pulled due to too many this year), lambs ear and cinquefoil(in the sun. A new plant in the Faerie Garden that seeds were planted for last year - Love in the Mist - a donation from Roabie Johnson's garden.

Special thanks to:
Al Katte and his crew for getting our new shed up and running.
Joe Harte for educating us about tree pruning
Judith Chaddock and her crew for plant sale preparation

Garden visitors:
Dave Hill and Murphy with many of the residents.
Dana Prom Smith

Upcoming:
Saturday, June 18, 9am-12pm workday
Mon. & Thurs., June 20-23 8am-12pm workdays
Saturday, June 25, 11am-2pm Plant & Garden Sale
Saturday, July 16, 9am-5pm Warner's 10% Day

Come join us for any of our workdays. Work over the next week will be primarily on finishing planting and getting ready for our plant sale on June 25 (clean-up/tagging plants).

"Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God, if he ever had chosen people." Thomas Jefferson Notes on the State of Virginia (1787)

Thanks,
Loni

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