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The Indigenous Garden by Atom J. Valdez

The Gardens on Spring Creek is honored to have been awarded funding from the U.S. Botanic Garden / American Public Gardens Association Urban Agriculture Resilience Program to partner with the local Indigenous Community to learn, plan, plant, grow, and harvest vegetables, herbs, ceremonial and medicinal plants for the Native populations’ use. This garden marks the beginning of a committed relationship between The Gardens on Spring Creek and the Native community that will continue to grow and evolve into the future.  To learn more about this incredible project, please read this blog post from our Summer 2024 Indigenous Garden intern, Atom J. Valdez of the Navajo Nation.   The Indigenous Garden   by Atom J. Valdez, Navajo Nation     The Indigenous Garden at The Gardens on Spring Creek was born out of an expressed need by the local Indigenous community for access to space to grow spiritual, medicinal, and food plants for the community.  Assimilation into Western societ...
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Recent posts

Growing Poinsettias at The Gardens by Kelly Kellow

Did you know The Gardens on Spring Creek grows and sells poinsettias every year? We asked Greenhouse Horticulturist Kelly Kellow about her process of bringing these vibrant and memorable blooms to fruition .     Timeline is key!     Kelly: From the time of planting to the time they are sold, the poinsettias grown in our greenhouse are on a strict schedule to produce that perfect and beautifully colored plant that everyone is looking for during the holidays. There are three types of poinsettias to choose from: long season (10–12 weeks to develop), medium season (8–9 weeks), and short season (6–7 weeks) .  Medium season poinsettias work best for me here at The Gardens.   The first thing I do before I buy poinsettia plugs is to pull out the previous year's calendar to remind myself of the prior season's schedule .  Then, I begin to make my plan and buy my plants. Working backwards from when I want them ready for selling, I count out the weeks and cr...
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Blooming Blurbs: Part 5 by Grace Willis

 There's always something new blooming in The Gardens! Sacred Datura ( Datura wrightii) These stunning white flowers can be found in our Fragrance and Entrance Gardens. You may notice that these blooms resemble those from the angel’s trumpet tree from Blooming Blurbs Part Two . This is because both the Datura and Brugmansia genera come from the Solanaceae family. In fact, all members of the Brugmansia genus were placed under the Datura genus until 1973, when three key differences were identified. Brugmansia flowers tend to be pendulous (hang down), be white, peach, or yellow and have smooth fruits.  Datura  flowers, on the other hand, are upright, white, or soft purple, and their fruits are spiky and rough to the touch.  Both are poisonous, so look but don’t touch. This plant can bloom all the way from April to October when given the proper care and conditions.  Care information : Datura wrightii is considered to be a perennial in zones 5-11 and an annual in o...
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Blooming Blubs: Part 4 by Grace Willis

 Check out what's currently blooming at The Gardens! Hardy W ater Li ly ( Nymphaea x)   These water lilies can be found protruding from our pond in the Children’s Garden. We don’t have a record of which cultivar they are since they were planted so long ago, but they are gorgeous, nonetheless. Their petals a re a vibrant white with 4 light pink sepals . The center of the flower consists of 40- 6 0 bright yellow stamens, all circled around one small pistil in the very middle attached to the ovary . To grow waterlilies, a tuber is planted at a 45-degree angle , roots generally facing down and buds that will become shoots generally facing up. The crown and buds should remain above the soil line, while the roots must be buried. This pot is then submerged in the water at a depth 10 to 15 inches deeper than the tallest pad or crown . New shoot growth then forms from the tuber in the soil below and stretches its way up until it reaches the surface . Though you can ’ t see...
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