A Story of a Garden

Dad and Mom right where they loved to be.

My mother lived all but the very last years of her life on a farm. She was always happiest when she was growing something. In addition to working side by side with Dad doing farm work and raising six kids, she managed to keep beautiful flower gardens around the old farmhouse, and grew and preserved enough fruits and vegetables to feed a small army.  But, time and hard work took its toll on Mom, and after 90 years, she was faced with leaving behind the life she'd lived and loved so well.

Leaving the farm where she and Dad had spent 61 years of married life was not a decision she embraced, even though she knew the Care Center was the safest place for her. Mom and all us kids appreciated the care the staff provided for her, and we tried to make the changes in her life easier by bringing her things that she'd enjoyed on the farm - fresh picked strawberries and raspberries; juneberry pie; homemade beet pickles. One of the things that Mom missed most, though, was being outside, surrounded by beautiful flowers, watching the birds and the bees and the butterflies flitting from blossom to blossom. The best replacement the care center had to offer was a small area of concrete patio and grass. We made do, but it wasn't the best for us.

When Mom passed away in September 2011, we gathered as a family and talked about how to best honor Mom's memory. It didn't take much talking for us to realize that there was really only one best way - with a garden that other residents of the care center and their families would be able to enjoy.  Many of the residents had similar life experiences as Mom and Dad - they'd lived their lives working the soil, raising grains, food, and beautiful flowers. Having a little piece of nature in which to spend some time would enrich their lives at the care center.

We dedicated some of Mom's memorial money to the project and made a commitment as a family to put the wheels in motion. We decided this project would honor both Mom and Dad. As we thought about our parents, it was always "Mom and Dad". Their's was truly a partnership in every sense of the word, so it was only fitting that they should be honored together. Dad was a teacher by education and a farmer by choice. He spent all but a few years of his life on the farm where he and Mom made their life together. Even though Dad never lived at the care center, he had served on its Board of Directors for several years, so he had a strong connection there as well.

On November 15, 2011, my sister and I met with the Knife River Care Center Foundation's Board of Directors to propose the project.  We discussed a concept that included wheelchair accessible pathways; seating areas; and a picnic area with a gazebo and a grill. Our family committed the seed money to get things started and offered to provide a great deal of "sweat equity" to make this dream a reality. The Foundation Board agreed to work with us on the project. One step closer to our goal!

Next came obtaining the required approval from the Knife River Care Center's Administration and Board of Directors. With help from the Foundation and my brother-in-law, we crossed that step off our "to-do" list.  They dedicated a courtyard off one wing of the building for the construction of the garden.

Then came the job of raising the rest of the money to complete the project. Our family donated enough to complete one alcove area with a water feature to provide a peaceful, relaxing spot for sitting and visiting. The rest of the garden needed funding. The Foundation held the first fundraiser on October 21, 2012.  The Lions Club gave a major contribution and the Eagles Club also provided some funding. The Foundation itself provided significant funding, as did an employee group from the care center. The small country church my sister attends offered to provide assistance with smaller projects, and funded one theme garden. We were ready to start designing!

My sister and brother-in-law, Virginia and Curt, spent many, many hours working on blueprints, coordinating contractors and volunteers, meeting with Foundation and Care Center Board members, finding and purchasing supplies, and encouraging community members to get involved. My nephew Andy, who is a professional landscaper, and I went to work on designing the space and recommending the plant materials.  My sister Marguerite, and brothers Ben and Bill, along with Bill's wife Jill, and my niece Yvonne, joined us for many hours of planning; digging sod; spreading peat moss and composted manure; laying edgers; digging plants donated from Wiese Acres and purchasing those that couldn't be donated; planting; and countless other tasks that went into making this dream come true.

In the spring of 2014, actual work began on the project. Excavating was done; concrete was poured; and by August, we were able to begin construction of the alcove garden financed by our family. On a cold, blustery, and very wet day, we gathered at the care center and went to work. Yes, it was cold in August. One never knows in North Dakota.

The courtyard garden under construction

We slogged through mud while the wet soaked through our rain gear. The residents looked out the windows and shook their heads at us. I'm sure they wondered what on earth was wrong with us that we didn't know to come in out of the rain.

We dumped peat moss and pushed wheelbarrows full of sand and composted manure.

We roto-tilled it all together.

And we smoothed and shaped planting spaces.

Persistence pays off! Everything was ready and we were able to set the basin for the water feature. We wanted to make sure there was the gentle, relaxing sound of moving water in the garden. Our farm was located right along the Knife River and we spent many, many hours enjoying the sounds of the river and the wildlife who made their homes there. We wanted to re-create that experience at the care center garden as much as we could.

The first planting was done! We could finally see that there would really be a garden here.   These plants had just enough time to settle in with some good root growth before winter arrived. Planting in the fall gave them a head start for the next spring and their bright spot of green brought some motivation to finish the rest of the garden work.

The work crew was still able to smile. Or maybe those expressions were just frozen on our faces. We climbed into our warm, dry vehicles and headed downtown to get some hot coffee and a little food. I think we may have looked pretty miserable - the restaurant decided we deserved free coffee.

In the fall of 2014, I presented proposed planting plans to the Foundation's garden committee. They accepted the plans and I began the process of procuring the plants. I did an inventory of anything that could be dug and divided from Wiese Acres. Then I sent plants lists to all the local nurseries for bids on the remaining material. We were very fortunate that a garden center in Bismarck was willing to work with me to order all the plants I needed and Kevin, the manager, offered discounted prices to make the project more affordable. It costs a lot of money to buy several hundred trees, shrubs, and perennials!

The winter of 2014-2015 brought more planning for the completion of the garden in the spring of 2015. As the weather started to warm, Curt and Virginia, along with family friends Wally and Gerald, and volunteers from the Beulah and Hazen communities, worked on getting all the planting beds edged and ready for planting. This was not a project without headaches - there were drainage problems, cracks in concrete, changes in plans, unexpected expenses, and more miserable weather.

Somehow, though, it all started to come together. In late April, my sisters and my daughter's mother-in-law helped me with digging, dividing, potting, and labeling plants at Wiese Acres. Thankfully, my gardens didn't suffer much damage in spite of a cold, dry winter, so I was able to supply all the plants I'd planned to and a few more. It was, however, another day spent in cold, wind, and wet. We seem to be developing a pattern with our work days, but hey, when your volunteers have time...

On May 2, we organized a work group to plant the trees and shrubs. Ten hardy folks gathered that morning, wearing their warm jackets and ear lappers, and set out planting. Within three hours, nearly 100 trees, shrubs, and perennials had been planted. Perhaps even more amazing than that was the fact that it had turned into a very nice day. We arranged for another work day in two weeks, and then celebrated by heading to the Dairy Queen.

It's really hard to complain about rain in North Dakota. Sometimes, though, you just have to. It has been very dry here since late last summer. Three days before our next scheduled planting day of May 16, it started to rain. And it didn't quit. We debated about cancelling the planting day, but in the end, we decided to tough it out and see what we could get accomplished. After all, the plants we'd put in on that miserable day in August 2014 had all survived a really nasty winter. That must be a good omen...

So, that morning, Gene and I loaded the big trailer full of perennials and made the trip from Bismarck to Beulah in pouring rain. The weatherman told us it was going to stop by 10:00 AM. We figured we could unload and place plants in the rain and then the rest of the volunteer crew could show up at 10:00 and start planting. It was a good plan. And, the rain did stop at 10:00 AM.  For about 35 seconds. The nice thing is that the gazebo is finished, so we could take short breaks and get out of a little bit of the rain.

Jesse, Gene, Sharon, Levi, Kevin, Bill, Yvonne, Virginia, Curt. Volunteers not pictured are Jill, Steve, and several other community members who have volunteered over time. I'm not in the picture either - someone has to stay on the back side of the camera.

This is a tough and committed group of volunteers, let me tell you. We were soon soaked in spite of rain gear, but we all kept working. We'd have to stop and scrape mud off our shoes so we could lift our feet after we'd walked across the unfinished areas to get to the planting beds. We almost planted a shoe when one volunteer stepped off the concrete and promptly sunk down to her knee in mud. We had a dickens of a time getting her foot and shoe free of the sucking mud, although, some of that could have been because we were laughing so hysterically.

In spite of it all, we planted about 150 perennials, again getting it all done in about three hours. Just in time to come in out of the snow. Yup, snow in mid-May. Now, even in North Dakota that is just not right.

This is the view of the garden from the outside entrance. It went from being more or less a mudpit (alright, I admit that it still looks like a mudpit, but at least there is concrete to walk on) to what will be a very usable area for the residents and their families, and the staff. All areas of the garden are wheelchair accessible and there are a variety of seating places to allow a moment of rest and relaxation or good conversation.

The shady corners are planted with an assortment of hostas, ferns, and heuchera.

 Under the dining room windows, there is an assortment of low growing spirea and daylilies. All the plantings are designed to be hardy and low maintenance. There will be a great view of the garden from the dining rooms and from many of the resident rooms.

The gazebo is the focal point of the courtyard. It has seating for six people inside and folding tables can also be placed inside for larger family gatherings. There is a grill in this area so if families wish to use it to prepare a meal for a family gathering, they will be able to do so easily. Like Mom and Dad, having their loved ones join them for family meals is an important part of many of the residents' lives.

Each end of the gazebo has plantings around it. Both sides have a "Little Limelight" hydrangea in the center. The shady side has a variety of astilbes on either side of the hydrangea. The sunny side will have hardy roses on either side of the hydrangea.

This is the Lady's Garden. The clothes line will have an assortment of aprons, dish towels, and "blessed" bloomers hanging on it. The "clothes" were made by ladies of St. Paul Lutheran Church, rural Hazen, and when they were done, they held a "blessing of the bloomers". Well, they actually blessed all the clothing items, but it just sounds so much more interesting to talk about "blessed bloomers". The tub will be a "wash basket", with annuals spilling over the sides to look like clothes.

The Men's Garden has items that most of the residents will recognize and likely remember using, such as a windmill, with a pump jack and water pipe leading to a "stock tank" that will be planted with annuals. The walk-behind cultivator was used in many gardens and small fields to keep the weeds at bay.

All garden decor items were donated by a resident's family and an employee of the care center. It is so nice to see that others have "caught" our vision for what this garden can be.

This is the alcove that is the Thomas Family Garden. Remember that planting we did on that miserable August 2014 work day? Yup, this is it. Those plants apparently loved their miserable start - 100% of them survived the nasty winter and are now making this a beautiful spot of maturing greenery in the garden.

The plants in this area were all selected for special meaning to our family. We have white bleeding heart, because Mom's white one was her pride and joy. August Moon hostas remind us of Dad's love of the night sky and the time he spent explaining the constellations to us when we were kids. The vase shaped Krossa Regal hosta is a reminder of all the wonderful vases of flowers from Mom's gardens that graced the old farmhouse all summer long. There are some ferns that remind us of the vegetation in the old river channel and various colored coral bells mimic the green to gold transitions of the crops each year. The sedum in front of the rock is from Mom's garden. The black basin will be covered with rocks to blend in with the large rock. We will collect a few of those rocks from the farm to bring a part of the home place into this garden area.

The red walkway leads from the gazebo to the water feature.

The furniture in the Thomas Family Garden and in the gazebo matches, to give a coordinated look to all the garden areas.

There are still a few perennials and some roses to be planted, and then the drip irrigation system and the mulch can be done.  There is one more garden area to be designed and built that will feature bird friendly fixtures and plantings. A garden shed and arbor are yet to be built and grass needs to be planted - still a lot of work, but we are getting close to seeing this dream come to fruition.

There have already been a few residents who have been able to come out and enjoy what is done in the garden. The pleasure they find in spending time there makes all the work well worth it.

This is the legacy of a mom and dad who loved nature and taught their kids and grandkids to love it as well.