July 2021
Two WORC members that are neighbors:
Barbara Zvirzdinis’ home Comstock Park, MI
Barbara Zvirzdinis lives on the Grand River and her garden beds are mostly wetland plants and shrubs. She is fairly new to native gardening and her beds range from 3 years–3 month’s old. Barbara’s gardens are a work in process as she continues to remove non-natives and replace them with native alternatives.
Rebecca Ling’s home – Comstock Park, MI
Rebecca Ling, one of the original founders of River City Wild Ones, has learned her flood plain gardening techniques the hard way—through repeated flooding, on-site research, and experimentation over the past 28 years. Her gardens are beautiful native/non-native, but flood zone hardy.
JULY WALKABOUTS RECAP
Thank you to WORC members and neighbors, Barbara Zvirzdinis and Rebecca Ling for hosting the July 28 Walkabout at their homes on the Grand River in Comstock Park.
In Barbara’s garden, visitors were delighted to see Royal Catchfly, Monkey Flower, Swamp Milkweed, Phlox and Tall Coreopsis among other natives, along with her self-made, imaginative mosaic sculptures. One of Barbara’s sculptures was in progress—a large cement arch that she will adorn with stones and other materials. A huge stand of Cup Plant stood proudly near the road.
Rebecca’s interesting garden contains plants well suited for a floodplain—Iron Weed, White Turtlehead, Swamp Rose Mallow, Michigan Lily and Cardinal Flower, among others. Several native Catalpa trees were bearing their long green bean-like pods and a robin’s nest was seen in its branches. Rebecca and her husband Bruce raise honey bees that were actively working.
It is challenging to have a garden on river property, but these two hardy Wild Ones take the floods in stride and their gardens persevere! We are grateful to Barbara and Rebecca for their willingness to share what they’ve learned with fellow Wild Ones members!
