The Gardens on Spring Creek

  Malachite butterflies on Tropical Hydrangea blooms What’s Blooming:   Tropical Hydrangea by Kelly Kellow, Horticulturist, Gardens on Spring Creek When the snow comes to The Gardens, outside plants are in their winter slumber.   But, in the Butterfly House you can find plants that are in full bloom, making it a sweet, summer-like oasis.   There is one special specimen in the flight house that is blooming just in time to chase the winter chills away.   Its giant, light pink spheres hang from the tree like shooting stars that smell like buttery cake batter – a true delight during the cold winter months!   Dombeya x walichii (DOM-bay-ya) or Tropical Hydrangea is in the Malvacea family and has large pendulous umbels of light pink flowers and large bright green leaves that have short hairs, giving them a velvety soft texture.   It is native to East Africa and Madagascar and does not handle temperatures cooler than 30 degrees Fahrenheit, making it only suitable for tropical region

What a year 2020 has proven to be. From bringing the Spring Plant Sale and education classes online, to reimagining community events like Urban Homestead Tour, Pumpkins on Parade and Garden of Lights, everyone involved in the organization has made extraordinary adjustments to provide our Members and guests with the world-class visitor experience you have come to know and love—whether in-person or online.  As The Gardens’ non-profit partner, 2020 has also been one of tremendous change for Friends of The Gardens. With your help, we made an initial investment of $25,000 to Gardens for All, developed our own website ( friendsgosc.org ), hosted more Member Mornings than ever before and created the very popular dinner and music experience called Date Night at The Gardens.  It has required a enormous amount of work and pivoting to meet COVID-19 guidelines. And despite our best efforts, the pandemic has left its mark on our organization, just like everyone else. Between revenue shortfalls and