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N E W S A N D N OT E S F R O M R E Y N O L DA G A R D E N S O F WA K E F O R E S T U N I V E R S I T Y
S TAY C O N N E C T E D
TELEPHONE
336.758.5593 EMAIL
gardens@wfu.edu SOCIAL
/ reynolda.gardens @reynoldagardenswfu WEB
reynoldagardens.org
DIG
in
BLOOMS
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Creating Year-Round Interest by Amy Dixon
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Mussaenda Musings by Jon Roethling
EDUCATION
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Win at Wreath-making by Michelle Hawks
Private or Public?
HOURS
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Gardens open dawn to dusk Greenhouse temporarily closed due to COVID-19
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Colin’s Culinary Corner
by Bari Helms
by Colin Eads
NEWS
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Full Steam Ahead: Grow with Reynolda Gardens is Off and Running by Jon Roethling
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In Memory of Sandy Poehling by Amy Dixon
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Volunteer Spotlight
FROM
the D I R E C T O R
Dear Friends, I hope this issue of Cultivate finds you well and soothed by the calming effects of nature. While the events of the past few months have caused us all to slow down, the Gardens certainly didn’t get the memo. The increased visitation at the Gardens has reminded us of the importance of gardens and greenspaces to the health and wellness of a community. With that in mind, be sure to mark your calendars for 2 p.m. on December 3 when Bookmarks and Reynolda will present a virtual book talk featuring Sue Stuart-Smith, distinguished psychiatrist, avid gardener, and bestselling author of The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature. Typically I come in early every day to walk around the trails at Reynolda. Aside from the obvious exercise I’ve found, this allows me space not only to center myself but to imagine the possibilities that lie ahead for Reynolda. Seeing the increased Gardens visitation, I have found a sense of excitement at what lies ahead. Changes and challenges that have been unavoidable have allowed for, and in some cases, forced us, into looking at almost every aspect of what we do in the Gardens. These challenges, however, lead to new opportunities. During the past months the food need in our community has become even more apparent. We recognized this need and partnered with H.O.P.E. (Help Our People Eat) of Winston-Salem to donate over 1,500 pounds of fresh produce to families in need this year. Michelle and Colin have already started to look at ways we can have not only an aesthetically pleasing vegetable garden, but one that allows for greater production to enable us to further contribute to our community. I continue to look for ways Reynolda Gardens can be an actively-engaged asset to our community. If you haven’t visited recently, I encourage you to do so; come often and enjoy some socially distanced respite and rejuvenation. Thank you for your continued support of the Gardens. We look forward to “growing” with you into the future.
Sincerely,
Jon Roethling
Creating year-round interest
by Amy Dixon
Heading into winter, a garden naturally begins to slow down. Many plants head into dormancy, some dying back to the ground. Similarly, many gardeners go dormant as well, slowing down until the following spring coaxes them out again. But when gardening is your livelihood, you learn to cultivate botanical interest year-round. Over the last few weeks, I’ve transformed a plot in the upper formal garden into a bed of winter interest. The goal with this design is to illustrate how to make your own garden an inviting place, even in the dead of winter. There are many ways to create winter interest in the garden, as well as a long list of interesting plants which shine during the coldest months. For my winter interest bed, I utilized a few recurring themes I’ve observed in other gardens to guide the design, narrowing it down to six elements. All of these elements work together to create a visually appealing space. Keep in mind, though, that creating winter interest isn’t just about sight. Adding sound, texture and fragrance evokes different senses, which is sometimes more necessary during the short, drab days of winter. A windchime can add a subtle song, evergreen herbs can provide a textural cutting garden and witch hazels can add warm fragrance. I hope that our winter interest garden will be an inspirational place for you over the next few months. Perhaps a visit will spark ideas for your own garden at home, evoke your senses, or simply allow you a moment to pause. We put a bench in there for a reason.
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AMY’S SIX ELEMENTS
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in the W I N T E R I N T E R E S T G A R D E N
WINTER FLOWERS
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Pansies, Violas, Hellebore, Camellia, Witch hazel, Edgeworthia
4.
INTERESTING BARK/
BERRIES, FRUIT
3.
Winterberry Holly, Callicarpa, Mahonia
5.
GRASSES
EVERGREEN FOLIAGE
Conifers, Heuchera, Ferns, Loropetulum
6.
HARDSCAPE ELEMENTS
BRANCH STRUCTURE
Red twig dogwood, Contorted filbert, Coral Bark Maple
Blue Fescue, Carex, Big Bluestem, Panicum, Pennisetum, Miscanthus
Colorful pots, Boulders/stone, Bench, Arbor, Birdbath
NEWS
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Mussaenda musings by Jon Roethling
As I believe many people have figured out, I am a plant nut to the fullest extent. I get no greater pleasure than introducing people to new plants, especially ones that I happen to find interesting. Hearing “what is that?� is simply music to my ears. One group of plants that I have delighted in bringing to Reynolda is that of the genus Mussaenda and its kin. Belonging to the RUBIACEAE, Mussaenda shares familial ties with the likes of our native buttonbush (Cephalanthus), Cape jasmine (Gardenia) and coffee (Coffea) to name a few. Hailing from the tropical regions of Africa and Asia, they are strictly tender plants for our region but well worth inclusion in our summer gardens. Much like our native dogwood, the show really comes from the petaloid sepals (modified leaves) rather than the actual flowers. Ranging in color from white to pink to coral to red, the bracts persist for a long period of time, much longer than the actual flowers. Care during the summer primarily involves providing plenty of sun and fertilizer as they are heavy feeders. The tricky part comes toward the end of the season. Our early dips into the mid-40s in September revealed several of our taxa did not appreciate the cooler temps and they promptly dropped their leaves in disgust. We dug the plants and brought them into the greenhouse where they tend to prefer being a bit on the dry side and not venturing below 50 degrees. Despite there being close to 100 species, we typically only have a few present in cultivation as well as some wonderful hybrids. Currently we have 7-8 taxa in the collections here at Reynolda. We do plan to have a handful available at the Spring Plant Sale but they may be in short supply.
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Pseudomussaenda flava White sepals paired with yellow flowers. Quart sized plants developed into 3’x 3’ plants.
Mussaenda frondosa Brilliant white sepals paired with orange tubular flowers. We were limited to one stock plant this past year but on the Mall in D.C. at the Smithsonian these were stunning potted specimens, drawing lots of comments. Breeding at the University of the Philippines Los Baños has yielded the following cultivars. Many are names for former Philippine First Ladies and are denoted by “Doña” in the cultivar name.
Mussaenda ‘Doña Luz’ Large peachy bracts with yellow flowers. Our 3 gallon size plants tended to be more upright growing reaching about 4’ tall by 2’ wide. The leaves were almost hidden due to the plants being covered in blooms for a good portion of the summer.
T H E R E ’ S A LW AY S NEXT SEASON
Mussaenda ‘Calcutta Sunset’ We hope to see more out of this plant next year as it was in poor health when it was planted. Showy yellow and salmon deepening to yellow and orange sepals make this one worth watching for next year.
Mussaenda erythrophylla Sometimes called Ashanti Blood, red flag bush or tropical dogwood. Brilliant red velvety sepals with bright white tubular flowers were a constant showstopper in the gardens this year. Our 3 gallon size plants reached 4’ x 4’.
Mussaenda ‘Doña Aurora’ Dark green leaves made the brilliant white floral display stand out even more with the orange tubular flowers punctuating the show. A 3 gallon plant reached 4’ tall by 4’ wide this year. We hope to increase stock on this beauty for next year.
Mussaenda ‘Queen Sirikit’ Named after the Queen of Thailand to commemorate a visit to the Philippines. We thought we had this cultivar but it turns out we were shipped the wrong one. We are definitely planning on adding this to the collection next year. Light pink bracts with a darker edge and yellow flowers.
BLOOMS
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Win at wreath-making by Michelle Hawks
Holiday wreath-making at the Gardens has become a new Christmas tradition for many. When we started the wreath workshop four years ago, we allowed twenty people per class. We thought we would give it a try to see if the community would even like it. Well, this class has grown like sand on the beach. Last year we had nearly one hundred people. The one word we hear the most to describe the workshop experience is tradition. Mothers and daughters, sisters, and co-workers make a point to continue the wreath-making tradition together. I have noticed the wreath class is more than a workshop, it’s a place for destressing, laughter, and togetherness. When you first come to a class, I typically hear these two things: “Where do I start?” and “I am not creative.” The great thing about this class is that we cut all the greenery; you can just pick what you want from the large variety we offer. I tell people we all are creative, but some just need a push to get them in a creative state of mind.
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TIPS
for W R E A T H - M A K I N G S U C C E S S
I suggest the first thing is to lay all your greenery on the wreath and get a feel of what it will look like. Move the greenery around or add more to it. Think about adding a bow, lights, feathers, pinecones, or ornaments. One of my favorite touches is to add spray-painted limelight hydrangeas; you can never have too much gold or silver at Christmastime! Once you have decided how you want your greenery to be placed, you begin to wire it. You must wire your greenery to the wreath to keep it in place. You can wire in bundles or single pieces around the wreath—it’s really a personal preference. Once all your greenery is wired, then you can decide if you want to add any bows or other material. Finally, you can decide whether to hang it or use it for a centerpiece. I tell people to add their personality to the wreath and make it fun. We all need to destress from time to time and this is one class that will make you laugh. This holiday season, I hope you will start or continue this tradition with us!
E D U C AT I O N
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by Bari Helms The history of Reynolda is full of mysteries and curiosities. One point of curiosity—the location of the formal gardens. At the time of Reynolda’s construction, most formal gardens were intended for private use and were most often situated behind or at least adjacent to the main residence. But at Reynolda, Katharine Reynolds chose to locate her formal gardens as an extension of the greenhouses and along a public road, which leads to the question: were the gardens at Reynolda meant to be public? Private? Or a hybrid of both? Further, what did it really mean for a space to be public in the context of 1917? When Katharine unveiled her model farm in 1917, the Twin-City Sentinel described Reynolda as an “experiment station... destined to become one of the great factors in the development of rural life” in North Carolina. Katharine created a space for local farmers and their families to come and learn the newest techniques in scientific agriculture, dairying, livestock
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management, and horticulture. But did this public accessibility extend to the formal gardens? Katharine opened her greenhouse and gardens for many public and private events. Reynolda Road provided easy social and commercial access while still protecting the family’s privacy. Chrysanthemum shows were held annually in the greenhouse beginning in 1913, before the formal gardens were even planted in their final form. An admission fee of twenty-five cents was charged and plants were sold for the benefit of the local YWCA, of which Katharine was a founding member. The annual show continued during World War I for the benefit of the Red Cross. Students at Reynolda School used the gardens as their stage for plays and operettas, like their 1921 performance of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. While it was
rare, not
Above: Harvey and Rosalie Miller visiting Five Row, late 1940s or early 1950s. Opposite: Bynum Fulcher Sr. (left), touring Reynolda Gardens, around 1918.
unprecedented for a private estate to open portions of land to the public. Greystone Hall, built in 1907 for Philip M. Sharples, inventor and manufacturer of the cream separator, opened 300 acres of woods and landscaped gardens to the public as a park, even turning a playhouse, similar to the one found at Reynolda, into a community gathering space for local children. Reynolda and the Sharples estate had a vital element in common— architect Charles Barton Keen. Katharine most definitely looked to Greystone Hall as a model for her modernized dairy, so it is possible that she was inspired by the public gardens as well.
carpentry work, taking home lumber scraps and nails to build toys and wagons. They could play golf on the ninehole course but only at the end of the day after caddying. They played in the underground heating tunnels but only while also cleaning them. Black families would not have been allowed the freedom to roam the gardens on a Sunday afternoon like the Fulcher family. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 would come years after the gardens were donated to Wake Forest University.
Katharine’s younger daughter Nancy Susan Reynolds believed that her mother “wanted the public to enjoy [the gardens] without losing the privacy of the family.” Newspaper accounts, oral histories, and photographs indicate that Reynolda’s gardens were When Mary Reynolds Babcock “[Katharine] provided at times accessible to the took over Reynolda in the local community. However, 1930s, she continued her frequent access to her Reynolda as a working estate mother’s tradition of public gardens... but she adhered existed during Jim Crow to the strict racial etiquette events in the gardens. Letters segregation, one of the most written in the 1940s describe of the time...” repressive climates for Black the gardens open annually in citizens in North Carolina April with visitors “coming history. Katharine was progressive and yet still very out in droves” to see the cherry trees. With a love of much a woman of her time. She provided frequent gardening and floral design, Mary was an enthusiastic access to her gardens at a time when green spaces set supporter of garden clubs. She joined the Twin City aside for public use was uncommon, but she adhered Garden Club after her move back to Winston-Salem to the strict racial etiquette of the time and viewing the and was instrumental in getting the club affiliated with gardens would have been for white citizens only. the Garden Club of America. In her 1951 appeal to the national organization, Mary described her garden as Photographs depict white Reynolda construction “open to the public without charge all year. When the worker Bynum Fulcher touring the gardens with family cherry trees are in bloom thousands of visitors come and friends, but even for Reynolda’s workers access from all over the country to see it.” to the estate could be segregated. Children of white workers who lived in Reynolda Village had their run Between 1946 and 1951, Mary and her husband Charlie of the property. They rode bicycles or horses through Babcock donated 350 acres of the Reynolda estate the estate, swam in Lake Katharine, played tennis, to Wake Forest College for its relocation to Winstonran through the underground heating tunnels, and Salem. Ultimately the Babcocks would donate over drank chocolate milk from the dairy. In contrast, Black 600 acres to Wake Forest. After Mary’s death in 1953, children who grew up in the community of Five Row did Charlie Babcock donated additional acreage, including not enjoy the same access, primarily interacting with the formal gardens and greenhouses, with specific Reynolda through the odd jobs they held. They cleaned instructions to preserve the space as a community and helped repair cars in the garage and assisted with resource.
E D U C AT I O N
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Colin’s culinary corner by Colin Eads I’m excited to join the Gardens as its new landscape technician. I come from a gardening family with lots of farming friends, so gardening is natural for me. Canning and preserving go hand-in-hand with gardening. Working in the gardens this year has given me the chance to grow a new variety of cucumbers called ‘Salt & Pepper,’ as well as the garlic and onions I also use in my pickles. The recipe I use is one passed through my family for years. It is very simple and unique, because we seal our jars using the “cold pack” method.
S A LT
and P E P P E R C U C U M B E R S
1 – 2 P O U N D S small to medium pickling
cucumbers 1 – 2 C L O V E S garlic, peeled and smashed,
per jar 1 – 2 S P R I G S of dill (per jar) 1 S M A L L to M E D I U M sweet onion,
cut into pieces 1 T S P dill seed per jar 1 C U P apple cider vinegar 1 C U P water Pint jars, lids, and rings Bring a large pot of water to a boil, deep enough to submerge your jars, lids, and rings. This will heat and sterilize them. Next, wash and de-stem your cucumbers. Place garlic, dill, and dill seed into each clean jar, then pack tightly with your cucumbers and onions. In a separate pot, bring water and vinegar to a boil. Pour boiling liquid over cucumbers in a packed jar. Tighten a lid and ring on each jar. Place upside down on a kitchen towel to cool and seal. Ta-da! These simple dill pickles will keep up to two years, if stored correctly.
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Thanks for helping us grow Reynolda extends a warm welcome to our newest Friends of Reynolda Gardens! (since July 1, 2020) INDIVIDUAL
PAT R O N
Nanny Foster Julia Hood Cheryl McLean Susan Moore Susan Piribek Roddy Roberts Mary Gail Scanlon Michelle Steene Suzanne Thompson Aldona Towner Kim Watkins
Mary Baldwin Judith Hanes Vicki and Niek Lagerwey Mary and Michael McCandless Lindsey and Paul Miller B E N E FA C T O R
Alison and Jeff Gardner Michelle and Alex Schenker
D U A L / F A M I LY
Suzanne and John Carlson Ashley and J.K. Givens Frances and Bert Gordon Susan and Charles Hauser Laura and Jonathan Hoffman Kristin and Dixon Kinser Tiffany Mazzeo Kathy and Dennis McNeil Eileen and Charles New Cindy and Chris Sheaffer Beth Warren Mary Lynn and John Wigodsky Pamela and Neil Wolfman
To become a Friend of Reynolda Gardens and learn more about the benefits of membership, please visit reynoldagardens.org/support. Questions about your membership? Please contact Sarah Blackwell at 336.758.5889 or by email at sarah@reynolda.org.
Full Steam Ahead
by Jon Roethling
Grow with Reynolda Gardens is Off and Running
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In my first two years at Reynolda, I have been smiling from ear to ear, thrilled to work at a place of such beauty. I have also spent time pouring over Thomas Sears’ original plans, drawing inspiration from his vision for Reynolda. Looking across the Gardens as they stand today, I have identified much-needed projects that will create an immediate impact on our visitors’ experience. With help from our team, supporters, and volunteers, I have bundled together a group of these projects, and work is underway to transform these visionary efforts into reality. The Grow with Reynolda Gardens campaign will solidify the Gardens as one of the South’s most exemplary community assets for horticulture, learning, and discovery. Several projects in the Formal and Greater Gardens will enhance the beauty and original vision of these spaces. Transformational opportunities, including internships for underrepresented horticulture students, are envisioned, as well as critical enhancements to the trails that run along the perimeter of the Greater Gardens. We envision the area along Coliseum Drive becoming an outdoor classroom with the addition of a low boardwalk through a bald cypress grove. This area will be transformed with a focus on wetland and mesic plantings. At Reynolda we don’t want to forget our four-legged visitors, so we will add a year-round water fountain for both two-and-four-legged visitors. No
GROW
matter how our visitors connect with the Gardens, they will see and enjoy the positive impact of this campaign. Thanks to the support from several early donors, some work is already in progress. Improvements have been made to the drainage, irrigation, and pathways in the Upper Garden, as well as renovations to both herb gardens earlier this year. Work is beginning on renovations of all the tea houses and shelters and renewal of the plantings around the water feature. One of the most impactful projects is about to begin with the replacement of forty-four weeping cherries, which surround the Lower Formal Gardens in keeping with Thomas Sears' original plans. Soon you won’t need to visit Washington, D.C. to immerse yourself in cherry blossoms! Be patient over the coming months as we may periodically portion off areas of the Gardens to allow for this important work. We are heartened by the support received thus far, and would love to chat with others who would like to share this journey with us. More information on Grow with Reynolda Gardens can be found at www. reynoldagardens.org/grow. Additional information on how you can support the Gardens can be found at reynoldagardens.org/support. Or, simply contact Stephan Dragisic at stephan@reynolda.org or 336.758.5595 to be a part of our path to Grow with Reynolda Gardens.
with R E Y N O L D A G A R D E N S
Reynolda thanks the following donors for their support of Grow with Reynolda Gardens. GENERAL SUPPORT
TRAIL MAINTENANCE
Laura Hearn Barbara and Nik Millhouse Forrest Staton Mr. Olof Röstlund and Dr. Emily Röstlund
Nancy and Rich Keshian R E N O V A T I O N of the W E E P I N G C H E R R Y TREES ALLÉE
Barbara and Nik Millhouse TEAHOUSE RESTORATION
Wendy and Mike Brenner
B O A R D W A L K and B A L D C Y P R E S S G R O V E
The Ecology Wildlife Foundation Fund HERB GARDEN RESTORATION
Pat Michal
MOBILE SOIL CART/POTTING STATION
Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust NEWS
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In memory of Sandy Poehling by Amy Dixon
This past spring, the Gardens lost a beloved friend and patron, Sandy Poehling. Known throughout the Winston-Salem community as a gracious hostess, expert gardener, and inspiring human, Sandy Poehling’s positivity reflected into all those she met. I never had the pleasure of meeting or knowing Sandy, but desperately wish I had. Her strength, determination, and welcoming spirit are still palpable within the community—traits that are rife within those that knew her best. I connected with several of Sandy’s close friends so they could relay their memories of her and help me to better understand just how much she meant to them. Close friends Annamarie D’Souza and Sandy High both regarded Sandy as a sister, each connecting with her in both diverse and similar ways. D’Souza and High met Sandy at different points in their lives but found profound commonalities with her.
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Annamarie and Sandy were friends for forty-three years, first meeting when D’Souza moved to North Carolina in the late seventies. Over the years they shared much together, such as chairing community organizations, a love of gardening and several special trips. They toured European gardens including Gravetye, Cliveden, and Sissinghurst. “She would travel far and wide to see and learn gardening techniques,” D’Souza said. “We traveled the world, she and I, to see gardens.” D’Souza described Sandy as a perennial gardener, working year-round in her two-acre garden. Reynolda Gardens became a place of information for her, as she garnered a lot of her horticulture knowledge from the adult education classes. “I think in the early years, she learned about gardening from Reynolda Gardens,” D’Souza said. “She didn’t grow up a gardener, she adopted gardening as a young adult. When we would go to Reynolda, we would go to all the classes. I think it was a place of learning, it was a place of reflection. It was a place later on where she felt she could contribute with all her learning and experience over the years.” One of the many sentiments that echoed of Sandy, was her bountiful generosity. Her meticulously cultivated home garden and conservatory was a place she readily shared with others, making it a gathering place for all. “She shared her garden like no one else,” D’Souza said. “She was one of a kind. She brought life to everything she did. She was very selfless, always putting others first, always lifting others up. She brought people together.” A friend of over thirty years, garden designer Chip Callaway worked alongside Sandy in her garden, helping to craft her vision into reality. Callaway also
personally planned the itinerary of the Poehlings’ center guild, discovering that they had many things in and D’Souza’s ‘grand tour’ of England’s great treasure common. gardens. High elaborated on Sandy’s nurturing nature, how she Callaway first met Sandy when she was chairing made everyone feel welcome and inspired. the Brenner Children’s Hospital antiques show at the “She listened to people,” High said. “I think simple Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem. Sandy elegance is a great way to describe her. She appreciated asked him to design an ambitious green entry, which other people’s differences. Sandy just shared her was all but impossible considering the time of year. knowledge, her warmth.” “She wanted me to design an entrance garden through One beautiful sentiment that High conveyed was how which attendees would pass to get into the show,” Sandy lived her life and how she tended her garden-Callaway said. “Mind you, the show was in the dead of full of positivity, thoughtful cultivation and hope. High winter and the floor in the convention center was solid described Sandy’s garden as a display of her character. concrete. (I said) ‘Sandy, it is absolutely impossible “Her garden is who she was,” High said. “To have a to design a garden with blooming trees in the dead of garden as beautiful as hers takes a lot of hard work, it winter. They always look so forced and unconvincing.’ takes a lot of care, nurturing. And that’s what we saw She said ‘Oh, great, then you will do it? I know it will with her as a person, she nurtured everybody.” be lovely.’” “She didn’t have a negative bone “She was the only person on earth in her body, she always had hope. who could have talked me into “Her garden is who In all of her discussions with me, designing and installing blooming it was always the positive, trying she was... it takes a to give guidance, trying to give the dogwood trees and elaborate boxwood parterres on solid concrete. lot of care, nurturing. flare of hope that this will pass. And In February. She was a woman who that’s where you can look at And that’s what we Ithethink did not know the meaning of no. garden and reflect on Sandy’s life. saw with her as And for the next thirty years, I was The beauty that we can get is shortblessed with the love and joy of being lived, and her life was too short, for a person...” in Sandy’s gardens.” sure.” Over the next three decades, Chip Inspired by Reynolda’s 2015 and Sandy collaborated on her garden, often meeting exhibition The Artist’s Garden, Sandy’s husband Gary to discuss changes and plans in the ‘Nana Cabana’ commissioned a portrait of Sandy in her rose garden. pergola Chip designed for her. Appropriately named by Callaway suggested that Greensboro artist Jan Luytens Sandy’s grandchildren, the ‘Nana Cabana’ was inspired paint the portrait, which beautifully depicted Sandy’s by a garden pergola she had seen while vacationing in garden and her ‘simple elegance.’ Portugal. “While Sandy was flattered and thrilled that Gary “She found her inspiration and peace among the wanted to honor her with a painting, she made it clear roses and cherished perennials,” Callaway said. “It that she wanted the gardens to be the star of the show,” was there, in the Nana Cabana where we would have Callaway said. our meetings figuring out refinements to the existing Life’s fleeting beauty is captured in Sandy’s portrait, plantings, scheming to add another garden or renovate be it an ebbing rose, or a soul gone too soon. She will gardens which had aged out. It was a time of constant forever be remembered by her friends and her Reynolda renewal, and she adored responding to the seasons and family as a gracious and selfless person who sought to learning nature’s lessons, always creating a space to bring people together. Sandy Poehling will always be a delight her friends.” part of Reynolda, and her memory continues to inspire Sandy High came to know Sandy Poehling through us. Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, as they both had family in the medical field. Although they had known one another since the early nineties, it was only in the last five years that they became close friends. In 2014, they began to collaborate as co-chairs of the medical
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Volunteer spotlight
Claudia Zorn Schaefer is a very special Friend to the Gardens. To mark her one-year “cancerversary” she created a special ode to the Gardens with original music and lyrics, entitled "Reynolda Gardens: Our Special Place” as a way to help support the Gardens and bring attention to the place that has helped so many find peace and respite. The piece was created in collaboration with the Creative Center of North Carolina, Inc., (CCNC) and its founder, J.D. Wilson, who is also a longtime friend of Reynolda. Claudia’s project began in late May, two months into COVID-19 restrictions and nearly a year into her own quarantine. “I've been so grateful that, even throughout my chemotherapy treatments, I've been able to enjoy long walks at Reynolda Gardens, 130-acres of historic landscape, including formal gardens, trails, and green space that’s free and open to the public from dawn until dusk.” Claudia said she started mulling over how to help the Gardens make up for lost pandemic revenue during her daily walk with her boxer, Kruger, when she spoke with Jon Roethling (also a boxer parent!) about the closure of the Garden Boutique.
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As Kruger and I continued to walk that day, we saw lots of people of all ages enjoying the Gardens: people walking their dogs, friends picnicking, adults and children riding their bicycles, people enjoying the trails. With COVID-19 restrictions, we're all looking for a safe outlet. A special haven. A refuge,” she said. “Our walk that day inspired me to do something to bring more attention to Reynolda Gardens.” Claudia decided to create a slideshow of Gardens visuals set to a piece of music she had written, and, when encouraged by her friend J.D., decided to take it a step further and compose a new piece of music for the project. J.D. provided many of the images used in the video and recruited Broadway star Joshua Morgan (UNCSA Drama’09) to perform and record the new song from his home in NYC. Everyone at Reynolda is extremely grateful to Claudia, J.D., and all who helped to make this original labor of love so near and dear to Claudia’s heart come to life. View “Reynolda Gardens: Our Special Place” on YouTube at https://bit.ly/LoveReynoldaGardens. To access the sheet music, visit bit.ly/RGSheetMusic2
Save the date
With the support of Flow Lexus, The Garden Club Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County presents Uncovering Beauty – A Tour of Secret Gardens on Saturday, April 24, 2021.
The event is open to the public and net proceeds benefit the Garden Club Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, which grants funds for the protection, preservation, and beautification of our environment.
Tour patrons will have a rare opportunity to explore up to thirteen secret gardens within the city limits of Winston-Salem. From the traditional English garden surrounded by a large home to mid-century modern to a true gardener’s garden hidden behind a brick wall, gardeners of all levels will delight in the diverse creativity and beauty of each space.
For more information, visit www.gardenclubcouncil.org.
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Cross Pollination: Heade, Cole, Church and Our Contemporary Moment The exhibition is a collaboration between Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Thomas Cole National Historical Site, and The Olana Partnership at Olana State Historic Site. Cross-Pollination takes as its launching pad the influential series of paintings The Gems of Brazil (1863–64) by Martin Johnson Heade but expands outward to explore pollination in nature and ecology, cultural and artistic influence and exchange, and the interconnection between art and science. Detail. Martin Johnson Heade (1819–1904), Tropical Orchids, 1870–1874, Oil on canvas. Olana State Historic Site, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; OL.1981.39.A
