By Betty Little, Killington Arts Guild
updated
Wed, Apr 18, 2012 02:15 PM
Gardening was one of the original 'arts' included in the
Killington Arts Guild. I remember visiting Louise Hansson's house
to see how to grow gardens in a limited space and to George Lyons
place where he had a nursery of plants for the Sherburne Memorial
Library gardens. We didn't form a garden club; we joined KAG
instead.
This winter the Green Mountains had no permanent snow cover to
reflect the sun and to keep temperatures cold. Alan Betts of
Pittsford, a climate scientist, and a gardener for thirty years,
writes that the ground was frozen 67 days instead of the historic
150 days. This is the second shortest winter on record in Vermont;
the first one was 2001-02. The weather in March was by far the
warmest for that month. This year gardeners are facing a mild
winter, an early spring, and damage from Irene. Less snow means
less moisture in the ground. Climate change also means increased
extremes of precipitation that are less predictable.
In the mid 1990s, my husband and I came from New Jersey where
forsythia bloomed prolifically. We were disappointed that it was
difficult to grow it in Vermont. This year forsythia is thriving
and has bloomed for weeks. Daffodils came up early, have opened and
closed and opened again. The yellow is bright and cheerful in the
gray days of early spring but it is a definite sign that the
climate is changing.
KAG will meet twice to talk about gardening, including adapting to
climate change. On Monday, June 18th at 7 p.m. in the Sherburne
Memorial Library, there will be a Plant Swap and idea exchange. On
Monday, July 23 at 6 p.m., "Landscaping: Art in the Garden" will be
held with Susan Maples, at 446 W. Hill Road in Killington. A couple
years ago, Susan and her husband gave a slide presentation for KAG
at the library about their landscape garden business. It started
with working on drainage problems around homes; at the same time,
Susan saw it was a way to solve the problems and build rock
gardens. She has invited us to see what they have done in their own
garden. At both occasions, "Irene" and climate change will become
part of the discussion. You can't talk about flowers without
talking about weather.
Tagged:
Killington Arts Guild, KAG
