Gardeners of All Stripes

April 19, 2015

Gardeners come in many forms, but some traits are universal: love for the outdoors, a delight in seeing young plants grow to maturity and the fact that, the longer they do it, the more it becomes a part of who they are.

Here we profile some gardeners from across the region who have embraced planting, watering and weeding as a way of life.

For those interested in starting to garden, we offer these hints and highlights from a few veterans.

HOBBY GONE WILD

Chris Hoos and Jill Yaple, Maple City Years gardening: 20 plus years each Favorite flowers/vegetables to grow: Chris – frying peppers and fava beans Jill – peas and peppers, sunflowers and zinnias Sources for plants/seeds: We buy a few seeds in stores as we see them, but mostly we order seeds from catalogs, e.g. Seeds from Italy, Johnny’s, Twilley, Totally Tomatoes, Gardens Alive!, Burpee. We order shallot sets from Kitchen Garden Seeds. We buy onion sets, potato sets, brassica seedlings and a couple of big tomato plants to try for that earliest tomato. Most of the garden is started from seed. We save some seeds – zinnias, sunflowers, marigolds, dill, epazote, pumpkin, tomatillo, pepper, etc.

How much you spend each year: Probably $200-$300 in seeds and minor equipment. "We try not to think about it too much," says Hoos.

How much time you spend gardening during the season: We garden somewhat over an acre, so during the good weather days, we may spend an average of six hours in the garden.

Hoos explains that their gardening was "a hobby that got a little out of control." Now the two are gardening year round. They not only peruse catalogs in the winter, but they harvest root vegetables by digging through the snow and start their seeds indoors. Not content with the light pouring in their windows, they use grow lights and heated mats to keep their babies growing and healthy. "Jill’s the organizer," says Hoos.

Their garden changes from year to year.

"It’s always different," says Yaple. They rotate plants, pots and fields, running through a long list of vegetables and flowers. "We like creating and designing how things are going to look – tall and short, the structure of it."

Both express the shear enjoyment of sharing their bounty with family and friends. "We grow and put up a lot of food," says Hoos, although she feels the joy of gardening extends beyond the harvest. "When your hands are busy, you have time for your mind to meditate and reflect."

MASTER GARDENER

Carol Renis, Kewadin Years gardening: 30 plus Favorite flowers/vegetables: I really like foliage plants with lots of leaf color. I’m also into succulents.

I have 50 houseplants. This time of year, I’m doing all the annuals. That’s my specialty. I don’t grow vegetables anymore; I did for 20 years. Tomatoes were my favorites; I had 300 tomato plants.

Sources: Renis works at Pine Hill Nursery in Kewadin, which is where she gets most of her plants.

How much you spend each year: I’m going to say I spend about $1,000 a year. I take advantage of the sales in the fall, spend a couple hundred dollars in the spring, and several hundred dollars in mulch.

How much time you spend gardening during the season: Four to five hours at a time, three times a week in the spring – cleaning. In the heat of summer, I water everyday, and three to four hours a week besides watering.

Renis, a certified Master Gardener, says the constantly morphing state of the garden inspires her. "It’s changing all the time. There are [so many] variables – our light, the rain water, cool summers, warm summers."

Becoming a Master Gardener requires taking a 12-week horticulture class through Michigan State University Extension. After completion, you must volunteer 40 hours of gardening for the community. Then, every year, you must re-certify, including five hours of continuing education and 10 hours of service.

Renis enjoys all kinds of plants. "I have a lot of shade, so there are a lot of shade plants," she says, mentioning hydrangeas, ferns and hostas.

"I always have a little area for perennials," she says. Among her favorites are black-eyed Susans, coneflowers and Shasta daisies.

She also likes to punctuate her gardens with vivid colors. "I always need something bright and cheery. Petunias are bulletproof and carnations come in so many colors and grow so profusely," she says.

GARDEN CLUB MEMBER

Dee Burau, Gaylord Years gardening: 50 plus Favorite flowers/vegetables: Asters, irises, roses, geraniums – anything that blooms. I’ve kind of given up on vegetables be cause of all the shade. I grow a few tomato plants, cucumber and squash, and a small patch of raspberries. I’m giving up on green beans, lettuce and cabbage because of competition from rabbits.

Sources: Various places, from big box stores to dedicated garden supply stores. If I see a plant someplace I really like, I’ll purchase it.

How much you spend each year: I buy for my home, cottage and my husband’s former dental office, now an Edward Jones office. So, I probably spend about $75 on each.

How much time you spend gardening during the season: Probably two plus hours a day, every day, so about 15 hours a week.

Burau has been gardening most of her life. "From when I was a kid growing up, to when I got married and did the landscaping of our yard," she says.

She is a charter member of the Edelweiss Garden Club in Gaylord. The group formed in 1984 with eight members and has grown in the 30 years since to over 50 people involved.

Burau says she finds gardening very relaxing and she enjoys working outdoors.

"I’m doing something I love, plus getting exercise. And I’m surrounded by the beauty of nature," she says.

With a mix of perennials and annuals, Burau says there’s something blooming all summer long, and she’s not afraid to try new things. Much of her garden area is shaded and, over the years, she has incorporated grasses and shrubs.

"I’ve learned a lot, to have shrubs in flower beds, and grasses to have some structure in the winter," she says.

A lot of this knowledge comes from both her fellow garden club members and classes she’s taken, such as Garden Study School and Landscape Design School through Michigan Garden Clubs. She’s also an Advanced Master Gardener and a member of Alpine Master Gardener club.