• Gaiety Hollow: Elizabeth Lord and Edith Schryver

Lord & Schryver Conservancy blog

~ A personal look at the ideas, inspiration, and hard work that go into the Lord & Schryver gardens.

Lord & Schryver Conservancy blog

Monthly Archives: November 2020

Giving Back to Our Community

17 Tuesday Nov 2020

Posted by Lord & Schryver Conservancy in Uncategorized

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When we learned that students in our neighborhood wouldn’t be going back to in-person classes this fall, we decided to do something to help make this year seem a bit more normal for these K-2nd grade students.

For six Wednesdays, we invited students to experience horticulture, science, and art in the garden. They conducted plant experiments, learned about native and invasive plants, studied wildife, and even dissected trout! It was all smiles as we made painted salmon cutouts and built birdhouses at Gaiety Hollow, perhaps the best outdoor classroom a kid could ever ask for.

  • Hard at work on art in the garden
    Hard at work on art in the garden.
  • Carnivorous plant biology kicked off the class, every kid loves to see a Venus Fly trap at work
    Carnivorous plant biology kicked off the program, including Venus Fly traps at work.
  • We got a tour of the Fairvew Wetlands with a Migratory Bird biologist who taught the kids about beaver dams and habitat that waterfowl need to survive in urban environments.
    We toured the Fairvew Wetlands with a migratory bird biologist who taught the students about beaver dams and habitats waterfowl need to survive in urban environments.
  • The woodshop at Gaiety Hollow produced some wonderful Wren Houses, thanks to Chet Zenone and the Audobon society
    Our woodshop produced some great birdhouses, thanks to Chet Zenone and the Audubon Society.
  • Gaiety hollow as an outdoor classroom in the fall
    Gaiety Hollow as an outdoor classroom in the fall.
  • We got lucky on the weather with many splendid fall days for learning
    We got lucky on the weather with many splendid fall days for learning.
  • The students proudly displaying the birdhouses and salmon art they made
    The students proudly displaying the birdhouses and salmon art they made

We lined up a wonderful assortment of guest eductors, conducted horticultural experiments, learned how to do plant propagation, went on a field trip to a wetland, met a biologist, saw a real beaver dam, and had a great time doing it all.

  • The results of our experiment
    The results of our experiment

In the first class, students began an experiment. Each student planted two pots of sugar snap peas, one pot with seeds pre-soaked in water for 24 hours, and the other with dry peas straight from the packet. Each week the students measured and recorded the growth of the peas in both pots. As younger students, they learned some basic skills with this little experiment, including writing the date, using a ruler to make measurements, and most importantly gathering data to make scientific observations.

This pandemic hasn’t been easy on anyone, but students who are just setting out on the journey of learning and socialization are arguably the ones who will suffer the greatest if they don’t receive a solid foundation in science and environmental awareness.

Working with these kids gives me a hope for the future. No matter how bleak it may seem with the downplaying of science in today’s politics, a day will come when the next generation has more influence. They are learning how it all works and I feel confident they will apply this knowledge towards remedying some of the problems we face today.

A big thank you goes out to the parents who helped with the weekly classes, Chet Zenone for providing the wooden salmon and birdhouse kits, the Marion Soil and Water Conservation District for providing educators, Laurie Aguirre and the City of Salem water team for helping with the field trip and trout dissection, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife for the biology tour of the Fairview Wetlands, and Pam Wasson for her leadership in creating a safe and socially-distanced experience for the students.

Have a safe week.

Mark

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Readying the Garden for Winter

09 Monday Nov 2020

Posted by Lord & Schryver Conservancy in Uncategorized

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“No winter lasts forever; No spring skips it’s turn.” – Hal Borland

  • Frost on the Boxwood on a chilly frozen morning at Gaiety Hollow
    Frost on the Boxwood on a chilly morning at Gaiety Hollow.

It has been a busy October at the Lord & Schryver Conservancy! We partnered with local educators, scientists and conservationists to provide a weekly workshop for a group of K -2nd graders from the neighborhood. Then, Robert and his crew from Riverdale Landscape Construction tackled the soil drainage issue in the West Allee. Last week, our dedicated volunteer gardeners planted 600 tulip bulbs for Spring 2021’s show. And finally, mountains of mulch were moved to ready the beds for a long winter’s nap.

  • laying out the 1956 Planting plan
    Laying out the 1956 Bulb Planting Plan.
  • Bobbie Dolp spreads mulch to tuck the garden beds in for the winter
    Bobbie Dolp spreading mulch to tuck in the garden beds for the winter.
  • The fall colors and neatly mulched beds make for a show in itself
    The fall colors and neatly mulched beds.

As we head into winter, tool will be cleaned, handles oiled for another season, equipment stowed away, and the tool shed organized. Planning for next year’s flower show and studying the recently completed Treatment Plan to restore elements in the garden that have changed over time are on the winter to do list. Although the fence repair is ongoing, the summer’s hard work has paid off with most of the Reserve Garden’s restored panels ready to hang. This elaborate fence work adds so much character to Lord & Schryver’s garden designs.

The West Allee drainage improvement was a big fall project. Riverdale Landscape Construction removed the sod, replaced the poorly draining compacted clay soil, regraded the walk to add a center crown, and leveled out the low spots in the lawns around the garden. This will improve the walking conditions in the wet spring/fall season. Long term, the hope is to acquire a reel mower to properly manage the bentgrass lawns as they would have been when Edith and Elizabeth created the garden.
The old espaliered Camellia sasanqua by Gaiety Hollow’s backdoor in early November.

The pandemic, together with the recent political situation, has made this one of the strangest gardening seasons I have experienced in my 25-year professional horticulture career. But I’m thankful for a hardy group of dedicated volunteers who worked tirelessly this season, often in less than ideal conditions, to help maintain and beautify the Lord & Schryver gardens.

Thank you all for a great season of gardening at the Lord & Schryver Conservancy!


Mark

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