Go
Pages

Members

Categories

Quicklinks

Events
- Purchase Hartsville Dollars

Kalmia Gardens of Coker University - ''The Laurel Branch'' Newsletter

January 06, 2023

Welcome to our e-newsletter, "The Laurel Branch."

Happy New Year
The Board and staff wish you all a very happy 2023! Please visit Kalmia often this year we would love to have you enjoy the Gardens and all its beauty.

Oyster Roast Fundraiser
On March 18th we will host our Annual Oyster Roast Fundraiser from 3-7 p.m. I’m sure you have heard how amazing this event is, with the mountains of steamers, cold craft beer, flowing wine, live music, a huge porch full of incredible foods (for you land lovers), as well as a mix of some mighty fine folks. Well, we will be pulling it all together again this year, and you don’t want to miss out. Get your tickets early as this event will sell out. Tickets are available from Kalmia Board Members and online tickets available soon.

Challenge Yourself to Make a Difference
It’s the New Year and there are all kinds of new things coming our way and lots of New Year challenges that are all around, especially difficult ones like remembering to write 2023 instead of 2022 just to name one. This New Year the Kalmia team would like to extend a challenge to us all to start the year off helping the environment. Like most good things, this challenge is the slow and steady kind that creates a long-lasting positive effect on our environment. A small shift in each of our lives makes a huge difference to all that are a part of and depend on the ecosystem, and that includes us! Just click here to see the way we can start our year helping our ecosystems, one step at a time! https://zerowastechef.com/2022/05/12/halt-biodiversity-crisis-with-native-plants-an-8-week-challenge/

Adopt a Stream!
Recently, Dan hosted an Adopt-a-Stream (AAS) workshop for members of the Kalmia team. New assistant Director, Elizabeth Floyd, regular volunteer, Nancy Ellis, and her husband Troy Ellis were the students in attendance. Each of the students came from different backgrounds but all excelled during the workshop, passing with flying colors. Dan has been sampling for Adopt-a-Stream for several years, checking different parameters to ensure Black Creek is healthy, and the good news is that it is healthy and well! Dan is an AAS trainer and has made Kalmia Gardens a "hub," which is a place where certified AAS volunteers can get technical assistance, help with the database, or check out a sampling kit. You do not have to be a part of the Kalmia team to adopt your own local stream. If anyone is interested in becoming a citizen scientist and joining the AAS program, shoot Dan an email so he can add you to the list for the next training.

From left to right: Troy, Elizabeth (foreground), Dan (background), and Nancy

Chris’s Tip
This Issue's gardening tip is for a different type of gardening, the gardening of the mind. What better time of the year to spend a little time reflecting on the past year and preparing to put your best foot forward in the New Year to come? The sensory garden here at Kalmia is perfect for just that. Sometimes we all get a little overwhelmed with the holidays and the work of winter gardening on our minds. Sometimes to improve our quality of gardening we need to spend some time recharging and just enjoying our surroundings. The sensory garden here at the Gardens is an amazing place to relax, recharge, and experience things with each of our senses. We have soft-leaved plants for the sense of touch and the trickle of water and the call of the birds for sound. We have the lovely scents of the flowers that grow in the beds and the flowers open are a joy to see. We only recommend that you bring a snack if you want to experience all five senses at once. It is located behind the Hart House and features three brick beds with bird feeders and a small pond bringing the music of trailing water. Come stop by and experience all it has to offer and do some gardening of your mind before you dive back into getting your hands dirty in the soil.

Dan’s Interesting Plant
In this issue of the Laurel Branch, I have chosen the coral bark maple (Acer sp.) to spotlight. This plant can be found in the sensory garden at the back of the Hart house. It is generally considered a small tree or shrub and fits well in large planters and landscaping beds due to its manageable size. This maple doesn’t often need much pruning due to its slow-growing nature but if it is needed it is best done during its dormant stage in the winter. This plant does well in partial shade or full sun, even in the South Carolina heat it can be seen decorating the front lawn with its small but distinct shape. This plant is a real stunner in the winter months when the leaves turn shades of vibrant red. Its name, Acer, translates to sharp or pointed in Latin, which refers to its leaf shape. This plant is beautiful even after it loses its leaves due to its beautiful bark. This is where one of its common names, Coral Bark, comes from which refers to the red-tinted color of its bark. Overall, it is a hardy plant that is very rewarding visually, and not hard to keep it happy and thriving. We hope you’ll come and spend some time with this beautiful plant and all the other plants in the sensory garden.

Acer sp.

Beautiful Plants of Kalmia Gardens
Alder, Tag (Alnus serrulata)
Apricot, Flowering (Prunus mume)
Camellia (Camellia japonica)
Daffodill (Narcissus species)
Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis)
Holly, American (Ilex opaca)
Mahonia, Leatherleaf (Mahonia bealei)
Maple, Coral Bark (Acer sp.)
Nandina (Nandina domestica)
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
Sasanqua (Camellia sasanqua)
Tea (Camellia sinensis)
Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria)