Deer Creek Daisies visit Chadwick Arboretum

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On Friday, June 24, the Deer Creek Daisies toured OSU’s Chadwick Arboretum and Learning Gardens.

The Learning Gardens consisted of a Shade Garden, Perennial Garden, Centennial Garden, Memorial Rose Garden, Wildflower Garden, Horticulture Therapy Garden, Rose Demonstration Garden, Cultivar Field Trail Gardens, Bamboo Garden, Cultivar Container Trials, Ornamental Germplasm Center, and Green Roof on Howlett Hall & Bee Hives.

The tour originated in front of Howlett Hall which was built in 1967, but it was not until September of 2013 that the Green Roof was installed. The plants were predominately drought tolerant. About half of the roof is covered with a pre-grown sedum mat, with 11 to 14 varieties of sedum. The other half was planted with 7,225 perennials plants including sedum, Achillea (Yarrow), Rudbeckia (Black-eyed Susan), Festuca (Blue Fescue), Thyme, Lavender, Allium, Prairie Drop Seed, Catmint, Geum ad Sempervivum (Hen and Chicks).

The roof overlooked the greenhouses, not to mention rows of colorful potted petunias. With the variety of bloom available on this 12,000 square feet, it provides a perfect location for bees. The bees maintain a live observation hive inside the building and enter through a portal tube. They can travel in and out unobstructed. The hive activity and the honeycomb can be viewed in the Entomology Lab in Howlett Hall, Room 115.

To understand more what a green roof is, its purpose, the plants used, etc. go to chadwickarboretum.osu.edu/plant collections-gardens,green roof and see what the garden club saw and learned.

There was so much to see and learn about the grounds of the Learning Gardens. There is one full time gardener with lots of volunteers who help maintain the gardens. Some volunteers teach and have plant activities at the Therapy Garden. You could spend a day or more to see everything but the Daisies went on to see more points of interest to their group.

The group enjoyed seeing the Lois B. Small and Gladys B. Hamilton Labyrinth which is modeled after the medieval 11-circuit Chartres Cathedral Labyrinth in France that was built nearly 800 years ago. This labyrinth was located in the center of numerous beautiful shade trees and plants. All the collections were labeled.

What is a labyrinth? A labyrinth is a one-way path that is laid out for contemplative walking, leading from an entrance to a center. The function of labyrinths has been largely ceremonial. The labyrinth symbolizes the cyclic journey that each of us must take daily, seasonally, in life, death and rebirth.

The group was most interested in the Bloch Cancer Survivors’ Plaza. This plaza exemplifies one man’s campaign to celebrate life while fighting cancer. It is the eighth survivor’s park in the country, built thanks to a $1 million gift from Richard an Annette Bloch (Richard is the R in H & R Tax Preparation). In 1978, Bloch was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. However, after a second opinion, multidisciplinary treatments of surgery and chemotherapy, and a lot of positive thinking, he attained full remission.

The plaza was placed at the busy intersection of Lane Avenue and Olentangy River Road, where 70,000 cars pass daily, so that many people would become aware of its intent. Mr. Bloch personally selected the site over five other locations in Columbus.

The park contains an “open arms” plaza, inspirational plaques, metaphysical sculptures to create a place of meditation and encouragement. One sculpture features life size figures passing through a symbolic maze of doorways to recovery.

The positive mental attitude walk has 14 plaques-four with inspirational messages and 10 with instructive messages.

A bronze sculpture, created by the late Victor Salmones, depicts the success of cancer patients who have overcome the disease.

We would be remiss if we did not mention another powerful sculpture component is the floating sphere fountain. The smooth granite two-ton sphere, which is ground and polished, sits a top of an eight-ton rough granite boulder receptacle brought in from Germany. Water shoots up from underneath the sphere, fills the cup with water and, by hydrostatic pressure, the sphere floats. If you look closely from one side, one angle, you will see the big brown sphere is a buckeye.

The day concluded with a late lunch at Eddie George’s Grille 27. Two garden games were played while waiting on lunch to be served. All members received a Buckeye post card in their invitation with a designated number. They were asked to bring their cards to claim a prize. Barbara Vance, a co-host, called out the winning number and it was Billie Lanman. However, Connie Lindsey, co-host made winning a garden prize a little more difficult.

“Name that Plant” Garden club members had to identify the following flowers by a picture of their bloom. Amaryllis, Zinnia, Glorioso Daisy, Black-eyed Susan, Teasel, Hydrangea, Lily of the Nile, Water Lily, Hibiscus, Osteospermum, Daylily, Gerbera, Bell Flower, Crocus, Dahlia, Rose. The winner of this game was Julie Schwartz. She received a sedum garden container with fairy accessories.

Connie also passed out a paper on 10 plants for Pollinators so everyone could add to their gardens. Phlox, Cardinal Flower, Aster, Coneflower, Joe Pye Weed, Liatris, Sunflower, Goldenrod, Black-eyed Susan, and Bee-Balm. These were suggested plants suggested by Birds and Blooms.

Barbara and Connie, hosts for the June meeting thanked all those in attendance. They reminded everyone there would be no meeting in July. Please attend or participate at the 2016 Fayette County Fair July 18-23. Have fun and good luck.

This article was submitted by the Deer Creek Daisies.

Pictured are the Deer Creek Daisies Garden Club who showed their school spirit by spelling out a double block O-H-I-O (L to R): O Julie Schwartz and Barbara Vance; H Marty Cook and Emily King; middle garden guest Tawana Zimmerman; I Rita Lanman and Billie Lanman; O Connie Lindsey and Judy Gentry.
http://www.recordherald.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2016/07/web1_Go-Bucks.jpgPictured are the Deer Creek Daisies Garden Club who showed their school spirit by spelling out a double block O-H-I-O (L to R): O Julie Schwartz and Barbara Vance; H Marty Cook and Emily King; middle garden guest Tawana Zimmerman; I Rita Lanman and Billie Lanman; O Connie Lindsey and Judy Gentry.

The Record-Herald

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