May 2022 | Montgomery Botanical Gardens

Blooming Colors Greet You in the Gardens

May 26, 2022May 26, 2022 by Amye King

As you enter the Montgomery Botanical Gardens during these days of May, you will be greeted by bright, cheerful, colorful blooming flowers. In the entrance beds you will see the SunPatiens (Impatiens x hybrida SunPatiens®) thriving and showing off their brilliant scarlet and purple blossoms surrounding pale lavender Pansies. Either direction you turn on the pathway takes you to breathtaking views. To the left you will encounter Hydrangea in full bloom in multiple shades of pink, lavender, blue and white. If you look straight across the pathway, you will see more blooming hydrangea in deeper shades of blue and pink. And if you turn to your right, your eyes will focus on a delightful sight, the Daylily and Companion Plants Garden in bloom. Some of the very special daylilies that you will see include the Alabama Jubilee Daylily in red-orange; the MADS Queen Bee Daylily in two-toned, regal splendor as well as a marvelous collection of companion plants. The Blue Spires Salvia, the numerous Inpatients, Pansies, Cone Flowers and others blend beautifully with the daylily blossoms and sway in the breeze as pollinators visit their blooms. The perfect blooming time for any flower is fleeting, so to catch them at their peak, don’t delay your visit to the gardens to enjoy the scenery and to rest your mind and body.
– by Cathy Maddox

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Volunteer Recognition Reception in the Garden

May 20, 2022May 20, 2022 by Amye King

June Cyrus, President of Montgomery Federation of Garden Clubs; Montgomery Area Daylily Society members, Oliver Billingslea, Therese Goodson, and Jane Martin

A glorious spring morning greeted the volunteers as they arrived at the MBG Lion Terrace on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, for the event planned in their honor. Soft music played, chairs were arrayed, and displays and refreshment tables were prepared. The Events Committee members, Cathy Maddox, Maggie Stringer, Sallie Finney, Beth Wicker, and Ethel Boykin planned and coordinated the reception to acknowledge the many hours of volunteer work provided and to express gratitude on behalf of the Montgomery Botanical Gardens Board of Directors.

Dr. Tyna Davis, MBG board president, opened the event with a warm welcome and expressed her thanks to the volunteers acknowledging that there would be no botanical garden without the volunteers. MBG Founder Ethel Boykin reviewed the history of MBG and expressed her gratitude for the volunteers also. Cathy Maddox explained the volunteer program and its progress over the years and then began the presentations to recognize their work.

Certificates of Appreciation were given to all 157 volunteers. Garden aprons featuring the MBG logo were presented to the volunteers who are members of the committees who consistently serve as volunteers for MBG. They are the members of the Capital City Master Gardener Association MBG Project Committee, the members of the Montgomery Area Daylily Society, and the members of the Montgomery Federation of Garden Clubs. Additionally, 15 elite volunteers who have faithfully come, from the beginning of the gardens and continue year after year to heed the request for help were given a very special token of appreciation. A car coaster bearing the green MBG logo was gifted to those special volunteers so they can be reminded of the board’s gratitude whenever they are in their cars.

Refreshments for the attendees included beautiful acorn-shaped cookies iced in brown that were presented on lovely tables arranged by Sallie Finney and Sadler McLemore. Parks and Recreation staff were very helpful in preparing for the event, assisting with the equipment, and removing the furniture afterward.

Capitol City Master Gardeners Marie Tomblin, Lynne Kuhlman, Justin Skipper, Karin Carmichael, Tom McLemore and Jane Martin

Volunteers Mike Forster, Sallie Finney, Fran Carpenter, Shap Ashley, Billie Crawford and Warren Davis

Kappa Lambda Chi military fraternity members Gregory Moore, Sr, Vershone Graham, Orlanda Andrews and Leon McCord, Jr.

Watch the reception videos here:

Part 1
Part 2

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Visitors From Across the State Tour the Gardens

May 9, 2022May 12, 2022 by Amye King

Monday, May 2, was a lovely day in the gardens for guided tours of over 100 visiting Master Gardeners from across the state of Alabama. Touring MBG was the most popular of the pre-conference options offered to the attendees at the Alabama Master Gardener Conference held in downtown Montgomery at the Embassy Suites Hotel. The conference was hosted by the Capital City Master Gardener Association.

The volunteer partners of the botanical gardens were present to guide the visitors, including the Federation of Garden Clubs, the Montgomery Area Daylily Society, and the MBG Project Committee members of CCMGA. They were on hand to provide information about the various sections of the gardens. Each tour group was introduced to the gardens and the history of MBG by board member Cathy Maddox. Then they were guided to the Daylily and Companion Plants Bed, then to the Lion Terrace, then to the three Green Bridges Pollinator Gardens, then the Wisdom Woods Outdoor Classroom, then to the Biblical Garden, and finally a tour of the Greenhouse.

Visitors were very complimentary and vowed to return with their families and friends for another visit and perhaps picnics.