Dirty Little Secrets: a VMIGC Tell-All Event

The Vashon-Maury Island Garden Club’s airy and whimsical exhibit at the Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association Museum, charmingly entitled "Passion in the Dirt", is, luckily, still available for viewing. But if you don’t want to miss it, you shouldn’t put it off because only a scant 6 weeks remain; the exhibit closes February 28. The Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Admission is by donation.
 
The events and lecture series that are part of the exhibit have been astonishingly popular. Many of the recent holiday-season-themed events were standing room only. Thanksgiving’s event, "Bobbing for Nettles" left nearly everyone speechless and Halloween’s spooky lecture, "Add a Stylish Splash of Seasonal Color to Interior Spaces with Toxicodendron radicans" was sold out with its focus on inventive new uses for native species.
 
The latest upcoming event is "Dirty Little Secrets", which will be held at the Land Trust Building on Thursday, January 24 at 7 PM. Four famous Vashon gardeners, Greg Rabourn, Terry Hershey, and Sara and Sam Van Fleet will share their gardening secrets and the entire event is completely free to the community. Everyone is welcome.
 
Greg Rabourn has been practicing and promoting native plant and low maintenance landscaping techniques for many years, and combines his personal passion for gardening with his career; he’s a County employee with King County Water and Land Resources. He’s a life long Washingtonian that first learned about native plants while playing in the woods as a child. "I would start getting hungry and wanted to find out what I could safely eat", said Greg.
 
Greg is co-host of King County TV’s sustainable landscaping show "Yard Talk" and is a weekly guest for the Greendays Gardening Panel, a popular call-in radio show on KUOW, 94.9 FM and also available as podcasts. Greg is the primary photographer and author of the website "Northwest Native Plant Landscaping Guide" available at http://green.kingcounty.gov/gonative/. For over a decade, he was co-manager of the Native Plant Salvage program that rescues native plants before they are bulldozed for development.
 
Sara & Sam Van Fleet focus on gardening for wildlife and wildlife habitation with a special emphasis on birds. With their gardening techniques they seek to develop a garden that meets the needs of both people and wildlife on all levels inclusive of water, food and habitat. For humans, their gardening focuses on aesthetic beauty, creating a sense of restfulness, and providing a place where people can connect with nature and simply enjoy the exceptionally beautiful environment that is Vashon Island.
 
Terry Hershey’s presentation will be on "Every Garden Has a Story to Tell". From an e-mail from Mr. Hershey: "How can you tell you’re in a great garden? You sneak up on the gardener, and you’ll find a goofy grin on their face. They are just tickled to be there. It can happen to every one of us when we give up the need for public opinion. In our hearts we are all gardeners. Whether or not we’ve ever picked up a trowel. Because gardening is not about digging, or planting for that matter. Gardening is about cherishing. And there is only one requirement to cherish: you must be present.
 
Garden design is not a paint by number endeavor. That’s why there is a difference between a landscape and a garden. A garden is a reflection of the gardener. It is personal. And each garden--no matter how small--tells a story. What are the ingredients that create a garden story?"
 
Terry Hershey’s extensive writings, books, presentations and personal appearances focus on the spiritual, personal passion, and emotional connections between the human experience and gardening. Loop readers are encouraged to visit his website for more information: www.terryhershey.com
 
Island gardeners are invited to bring their challenging gardening questions with them to the "Dirty Little Secrets" event. Those attendees that mosey over to the Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association Museum to check out the "Passion in the Dirt" VMIGC exhibit after the event will be entered in a prize drawing.
 
This is a rare opportunity to meet, listen and speak with some legendary, nationally and internationally known gardening heavy hitters who are also our Island neighbors. Don’t miss it!