Monday, July 6, 2015

Plants from The Mark Twain House and The Harriet Beecher Stowe Center!


On June 29, 2015, Professor Melissa Talhelm of Southern Connecticut State University and I ventured to The Mark Twain House in Hartford, Connecticut to secure plant cuttings for the Literary Garden.  I was beyond excited!




Jacques Lamarre, the Director of Communication and Special Projects, quickly greeted us and grabbed a pair of hedge clippers so that we could get our cuttings. He led us out in front of the house to cut some wisteria that was planted there in the early 1900s.
Jacques was also kind enough to take us next door to The Harriet Beecher Stowe Center so that we could add another American literary legend to our garden!
 
The gardens feature Connecticut's largest Merrill Magnolia - isn't it gorgeous?

We definitely had a good time, as Mark Twain graciously welcomed us to his home.

Twain also heartily approved of our plant selections.

It was nerve-racking to have these plants entrusted in our care! 
We stopped at Lowe's to pick up some powdered rooting hormone using gift cards that were donated by a former student. Mark Twain and Emily Dickinson say thank you for all of your support for the garden!

Jacques was also kind enough to post about our project on The Mark Twain House FaceBook and Twitter pages!


After extensive research, Melissa and I set up a greenhouse for the wisteria cuttings. Now, we wait!

Next week, I will be soliciting donations of pea gravel and soil for the garden. If you would like to donate to the WBHS Literary Garden, please click here.

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