6 minute read
Rooted in Heritage: Restoring Spaces With Native Flora
Written by Ann Dang and Spencer Bennett
Home of the Tarflower Chapter, Mead Botanical Garden is a 48-acre urban oasis situated in Winter Park, Florida. The Garden was established in 1940 in honor of Theodore Luqueer Mead, a renowned American naturalist, entomologist and horticulturalist. Mead dedicated much of his work to the research of orchids and other plants and upon his passing, one of Mead’s inheritors worked with Rollins College to acquire property to safely house Mead’s prized collection, and dedicate a place in his memory.
Mead Garden hosts various botanical collections such as the Legacy, Butterfly, and Native Plant Demonstration Gardens. The Tarflower Chapter was granted stewardship of land to establish the demonstration gardens, which serve a greater purpose aimed at restoring the native plant communities to their original state, while also functioning as a venue for education and a model for residential gardens. The demonstration gardens take inspiration from other natural landscapes located in Central Florida such as Wekiwa Springs State Park, which is the reference community for plant selection. Although best known for its emerald-clear springs, Wekiwa has a diverse group of native plant communities which serve as a paradigm for much of the work conducted in the Mead Garden upland restoration areas.
Of such communities, the sandhill habitat sits at the crown of Mead Garden and is situated at the highest elevation within the property. The sandhill is teeming with life every day and is a true experience full of color, blooms, smells, and sounds. One hundred-year old longleaf pines (Pinus palustris) serve as the towering foundation dotting this landscape among billowing, lofty grasses such as multiple species of bluestem grasses (Andropogon spp.), lopsided indiangrass (Sorghastrum secundum) and pineywoods dropseed (Sporobolus junceus), interspersed between the wildflowers and shrubs. Small wispy grasses are also found here; wiregrass (Aristida stricta), which is often the most prevalent grass in natural sandhill communities, nestles between a buffet of Florida greeneyes (Berlandiera subacaulis), and gopher apple (Geobalanus oblongifolius), which is served on a sand-lined silver platter for the resident gopher tortoises who call these restoration areas their home. The tortoise population in this “Sandhill City” is on a consistent rise, and these well-mannered residents are frequently found constructing new abodes, and observed making top-speed sprints to their beckoning neighbors. Around the periphery, a paved bike path sits at the boundary of the sandhill, granting an opportunity for passersby to gaze at the many sights or perhaps find out why the spiny, striking Hercules-club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis) was given its name.
A few hundred feet to the east of the sandhill, the xeric hammock and scrubby flatwoods are located nearby. The xeric hammock is a great place to be when tormented by the hot Florida sun. This habitat is bisected by a path shaded by large sand live oaks (Quercus geminata) and split into various planting regions. Longleaf pines and sand live oaks fill the canopy and subcanopy of this area, harboring those who thrive under their shade. Sparkleberry (Vaccinium arboreum) will form a frothy white understory when mature, the rouge plants (Rivina humilis) showcase their bright red fruits contrasting against the white curly blooms of the scorpionstail (Heliotropium angiospermum). Deerberry (Vaccinium stamineum) and American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) form a backdrop. Meanwhile some other uncommon colleagues, survivors from before the Garden was opened in 1940 – such as dwarf pawpaw (Asimina pygmea), Virginia snakeroot (Aristolochia serpentaria), innocence (Houstonia procumbens), and witchgrass (Dichanthelium spp.) – occur in this protected habitat. The xeric hammock transitions to the scrubby flatwoods, serving as the current easternmost portion of the restoration area. A natural path winds through this community, and occasional saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) are found among the diverse tree palette which includes a few sand pine (these will be watched carefully and may be removed in the future), turkey oak, bluejack oak, myrtle oak, and sand live oak. Two species that are remnant before 1940, scrub hickory (Carya floridana) and Chapman’s oak (Quercus chapmanii), round out the tree assemblage in this area. Myriad shrubs include the fragrant false rosemary (Conradina canescens) and Garberia (Garberia heterophylla). Fetterbush (Lyonia lucida) and rusty staggerbush (Lyonia ferruginea) bring unique color to this acidic loving landscape.
How does Tarflower do this? These restoration areas were not planted out of convenience or haste. Tarflower’s Mead Botanical Garden Chair, Catherine Bowman, serves as the general of this operation and sits on Mead Botanical Garden’s Board of Trustees. Restoration efforts started in 2013 and resulted in diligent planning, coordination, and landscape design. The restoration area is divided into various regions, with the sandhill broken into 4 separate sections. The scrubby flatwoods is the newest of these regions, being planted in 2022 and funded in part by a grant from the Elizabeth Morse Genius Foundation. This initiative relies on the generosity of the community to remain operational. All planting and maintenance is conducted solely by dedicated volunteers who are coordinated by Hal Stringer, the Mead Garden Restoration Co-Chair and 2022 FNPS Green Palmetto Award Recipient (awarded for his volunteer dedication). The project includes purchasing plants and fence materials funded byBackyardBiodiversity Day (BBD), an event hosted by Tarflower at Mead Botanical Garden. BBD occurs annually in October and is centered around a native plant sale. Throughout the day, featuring food and live music, various like-minded exhibitors showcase their booths, guest speakers conduct presentations, and guided hikes of the restoration areas are led by Tarflower. This year, the event will be hosted on Saturday, October 19, 2024.
As we look forward to the future, these restoration areas will continue to grow and mature. Whether it is during Backyard Biodiversity Day, stepping out to volunteer in the garden, or any other time, these gardens are for everyone and we hope you can enjoy it with us.
References
Butler, Paul. Orchids and Butterflies: The Life and Times of Theodore Mead. Winter Park, Florida: Little Red Hen Press, 2017.
“About.” Mead Botanical Garden. https://www.meadgarden.org/about/.
Further Reading
Mead Botanical Garden Restoration Areas. Online at https://tarflower.fnpschapters.org/mead-garden/
Backyard Biodiversity Day. Online at https://tarflower.fnpschapters.org/backyard-biodiversity-day/
About the Authors
Ann Dang is an editor of the Tarflower Chapter’s newsletter, The Tarpaper and Spencer Bennett is the vice president of programs for the Tarflower Chapter. Both Ann and Spencer started their FNPS journey by volunteering at Mead Botanical Garden. They are avid hikers, cyclists, and explorers of our many national and Florida state parks, finding joy in viewing natural landscapes.
