Greenleaf Nursery, Tahlequah, OK

Greenleaf Nursery produces over 200,000 Knockout roses each year.

Three busloads of Linnaeus Gardeners, including the current volunteer class, visited Greenleaf Nurseries at Ft. Gibson and Park Hill, OK.

While rain was predicted,we weathered a brisk overcast fall day to see almost 1,000 acres of the propagation and growing of bare root and container plants. These two facilities together prepare almost 20,000,000 plants annually for the landscape industry. A very knowledgeable member of the Greenleaf staff accompanied us on each bus as we toured the facilities.

At the Ft. Gibson facility we saw demonstrations of both seeding and grafting of plants. Plants are grown here and then “harvested” for bare root distribution to the Park Hill facility for containerizing. This facility has recently been upgraded into a new division of Greenleaf Nurseries, and will begin distributing directly to retailers. At the Park Hill facility we visited the cold room where plants are propagated and the grounds where the plants are grown.

We visited the newly established Greenleaf Founder's Garden.

One of the many highlights of the tour was the delicious barbeque lunch provided and served by the Greenleaf staff and upper management. While there, we visited their newly developed display garden that has been dedicated to the family members who founded the business and is a showplace for the plants they grow.

Greenleaf prepares their own potting soilless mix (45,000 cubic yards annually) from pine bark, hardwood bark and sand, along with a few other ingredients. They also have an extensive irrigation system for which they have received many ‘green’ awards. It includes retention basins that catch runoff from their garden beds, filter it as they have a high pH in that area of Oklahoma, and recycle the water. This keeps the fertilizers that they use from entering the local water system. They have received national awards for their conservation system.

Plant grafting demonstrations at Greenleaf Nursery

We heartily thank Greenleaf Nursery for hosting our visit, the delicious barbeque lunch, the training displays, and the graciousness and patience of their employees in answering our many and varied questions. We left the company with renewed and increased knowledge of horticulture, and a renewed respect for the very difficult and scientific work that it takes for the company to bring us the plants that we love to grow in our garden.

Linnaeus Gardeners' Gardens

Kay Crocker, Gwen Webb-Remack, and Connie Tinsley
admire the flowers in Lydia Brand's backyard.

Sandra Whitt explains how she developed her backyard gardens
over a period of 20 years.

June is a busy month, so instead of holding our usual monthly meeting at the Garden Center, we decided to enjoy the hospitality and beautiful gardens of two Linnaeus Volunteers: Sandra Whitt and Lydia Brand.

We enjoyed fresh fruit, bagels, muffins and fellowship in relaxed and unique garden settings. And we got new ideas for our own gardens.

Garvan Gardens, Hot Springs, AR

Linnnaeus Gardeners enjoy the vistas from Queen Wilhelmina lodge.

About 50 Linnaeus Gardeners enjoyed a field trip the weekend of May 8 – 10, 2009 to visit Garvan Woodland Gardens in Hot Springs, Arkansas. On the way to Hot Springs, we traveled the Talimena National Scenic Byway on Oklahoma 1 along the crest of the Ouachita Mountains. A buffet lunch was enjoyed at the Queen Wilhelmina State Park lodge, which afforded great lookout views to the south

We spent the two nights at the Arlington Resort Hotel in Hot Springs, a grand old hotel from the early 20th century. Hot baths and spa treatment were available there and in other nearby historic locations.

Full Moon Bridge at Garvan Gardens

Anthony Chapel

Saturday morning found us on the bus to Garvan Woodland Gardens, a University of Arkansas facility that was developed and later donated by Mrs. Verna Garvan, daughter of Arthur Cook, a Hot Springs businessman. Garvan is a 210 acre botanical garden on a peninsula adjoining Lake Hamilton. Verna spent thirty years creating a personal garden highlighting Arkansas’ natural beauty. In order to provide for a future use that the public can enjoy, Verna dedicated the property to the University of Arkansas School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. The garden has continued to develop under a master plan, and now boasts many significant garden areas and structures, including an open air pavilion, The Anthony Chapel Complex highlighted by a six-story wood and glass chapel, a Garden of the Pine Wind, a model train garden, and many other notable areas.

The gardens contain many varieties of azaleas, camellias, daffodils, Japanese maples, hydrangeas, dogwoods, cedars and many other plants along a 1-mile trail. Also to be found are a fern glade, a canopy bridge, a bonsai garden, and of course, a gift shop.

The Garden of the Pine Wind features an Asian rock and stream garden featuring a 12-foot waterfall and reflecting pond filled with koi. The Joy Manning Scott Full Moon Bridge made of rock with a circular opening is especially striking.

We enjoyed respite with a tasty and healthful lunch in the meeting room of the Pratt Welcome Center, after which we were able to continue with more walks through the gardens, weather permitting. As our visit to the Garvan Gardens was coming to an end, the torrential downpour finally arrived just after we all boarded the bus for our return to the Arlington. The driver safely navigated us through the heavy rain back to our hotel.

Lunch at Wiederkehr Cellars

On Sunday, we left earlier than planned so as to arrive at the Wiederkehr Cellars and Restaurant in time for a Mother’s Day German meal before it filled up. A wine tasting put us in the right mood for the ride back to Tulsa. And finally we arrived back at the Tulsa Garden Center with many memories of a wonderful trip with a very congenial group of gardeners. Can’t wait for the next trip!

By Richard Wollmershauser

Tour of Dr. Carl Whitcomb's Test Farm, Stillwater, OK

Dr. Whitcomb talks to Linnaeus Gardeners in the midst of his test crapemyrtles.

On a lovely July day, with the temperature soaring and our spirits soaring even higher, a bus full of Linnaeus Gardeners hit the road for Dr. Carl Whitcomb's farm near Stillwater. Dr. Whitcomb is an enlightening and entertaining host as well as an inventor. He holds 26 patents and is the author of 4 books. He led his sweaty but attentive audience through a great show and tell about the wonderful genetic diversity in Crapemyrtles. He shared his system for tagging seedlings that catch his eye for one reason or another as well as his system for documenting information. He showed us row after row of beautiful seedlings and we hung on every word. He would break off a stem to show us the attributes and faults of a particular plant and then, to our horror, toss the stem over his shoulder and announce the whole plant would be tilled under!

Acres of crapemyrtles are under study at the Whitcomb Test Farm.

We are grateful to Dr. Whitcomb for taking time to give us a tour of his farm. He has a delightful and down to earth sense of humor and he welcomed us wholeheartedly. He gifted each of us with a DVD, brochures, literature and a cold bottle of water for the road.

By Julie Almohandis

OSU Oklahoma Gardening Studio Garden

Kim, host of Oklahoma Gardening, greets us at the
entrance of the OSU Oklahoma Gardening Studio Garden.

For the second part of our July trip, we arrived at the OSU Extension studio garden where Oklahoma Gardening is filmed each week, and enjoyed a fabulous BBQ lunch with all the fixin's. The volunteers there gave us small group tours of the beautiful garden areas and turf plots. The Studio Garden has many sections such as the "Cut Flower Garden", "Romantic Garden", and "Oklahoma Proven Garden". We had a great time and got some really good ideas for our own Linnaeus Garden.

By Julie Almohandis

Overnight Field Trip to Dallas/Fort Worth

At the entrance to the Dallas Botanical Garden.

Eating breakfast at the Gaylord Texan Resort hotel.

Linnaeus Teaching Garden volunteers went on their first Linnaeus overnight field trip in June 2008. We toured both the Fort Worth and Dallas botanical gardens and spent the night at the Gaylord Texan Resort. All three excursions were fun and inspiring. Plus we ate well.

The Fort Worth Botanical Gardens featured a Japanese Garden that is exceptional for this part of the country with its long, hot summers. It was peaceful to walk around and provided many surprising views. They actually sold food to feed to their koi so the koi were quite fat.

We spent the evening at our hotel in Grapevine, Texas. It was huge, with acres of indoor gardens and entertainment. They actually had a recreation of the Alamo and the San Antonio River Walk. The rooms were very nice and the food was great.

Proven Winners shade test garden.

White Rock Lake befind the Dallas Arboretum

On Sunday morning, we toured the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. This group of gardens is a true joy to visit. They had Proven Winners test gardens so we were able to look at many varieties of plants.

We walked from one garden vista into another and each one was more beautiful or surprising then the last. There were fountains, arbors, pergolas, reflection pools, and large, beautiful pots filled with flowers around every corner. There was even a small English cottage with a thatched roof surrounded by an English garden. When you walk behind the house you find another garden room with rose arbors. You walk through the arbors and find a formal garden with a gazebo. The back of the gardens is next to White Rock Lake which provides a wonderful backdrop. It is a garden where you will see something new each time you visit, and you do want to visit it again.

But the best part of the field trip was that we shared it with our great group of Linnaeus volunteers.

By Kathy McKenna

Southwood Production Greenhouse Visit, Tulsa

Joe Ward talks to Linnaeus Gardeners at Southwood Nursery.

Linnaeus Garden Volunteers toured the Southwood production greenhouses after the March 26th monthly training meeting. They were shown through the various greenhouses used to propagate new plant cuttings that are received by Southwood Nursery from countries around the world as well as from the United States. Once rooted, cuttings are then transplanted into larger pots.

Southwood greenhouses are bursting with colorful annuals.

The properties of new varieties of impatiens, petunias, fuscias, and other plants were discussed. Each person on the tour received three new varieties of plants and a shamrock to take home.

Wichita Garden Show, KS

A bus load of Tulsa Garden Center members and guests toured the Wichita Garden Show in Kansas on March 6th.

Linnaeus Gardeners Goldie Phillips and Mary Carter enjoy the exhibits.

The Wichita Garden Show is rated as one of the top 10 garden shows in the country. In addition to the many businesses displaying gardening tools and plants, there were flower arrangements and flowered quilts on which the garden show guests could vote.

A mountain stream complete with snow and waterfall
is part of the Alpine Mountain Retreat

There were four complete gardens set up in the Wichita arena that we toured including a Japanese garden, and a beautiful Alpine Mountain Retreat with many snowed covered trees over 30 feet tall, a water fall that fed a mountain stream and a mountain cabin.

The Wichita Garden Show is a great place to find the perfect garden tool or plant, or just to have a good time viewing the beautiful surroundings and meeting other gardeners.

Lendonwood Gardens, Grove, OK

Lendonwood Gardens' Japanese Tea House

In May, more than 70 Linnaeus Gardeners traveled to Grove Oklahoma to visit the Lendonwood Gardens, a three-acre botanical garden near Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees founded in 1995 by Leonard Miller, a retired dentist in Grove. Dr. Miller personally escorted Linnaeus Gardeners through the Garden that he had planted at his own home during a period of almost twenty years and generously donated for the pleasure of gardeners. Dr. Miller then treated Linnaeus Gardeners to a tour of his own property, including a break for lemonade on the veranda overlooking Grand Lake. Many thanks for the hospitality extended by Dr. Miller.

Lendonwood Gardens is part of the Oklahoma Botanical Garden system, which means that it contains labeled plants, is open to the public, and contains at least 225 species of plants. Lendonwood is home to more than 1,400 different types of plants, including one of the largest collections of Chamaecyparis (false cypress) in the United States, one of the largest collections of rhododendrons in the region, and also 125 varieties of hostas, 500 varieties of daylilies, 200 varieties of conifers and 25 varieties of viburnums.

For more information about the garden, see www.Lendonwood.org.