USDA-ARS-SHRS tour

The U.S. Plant Introduction Garden at Chapman Field

Statring center right is a road just left of the line of buildings. This was the main runway in the days Chapman field was an air base. One of those buildings was an airplane hanger. They would push planes up that small hill standing just below the buildings. With the plane’s nose facing up, mechanics would stand in a ditch so they could get under the engine for repairs. The burm running along that road is still here. At the very end of this tour you will see what we have planted there today. At the beginning of the road was the front gate (see picture below). Since 1926 we have removed the native pine and added that pretty green color to plants.

Notice the difference in government cars from 1930 to today (white and cream colored vehicles in center of bottom photo). Today’s government cars are gas efficient hybrids! See, we even added some green to our cars.

At the first stop on our tour we will see Collecia. This is part of my private floral collection. It was hanging in my office for about two weeks until the mess on my desk got so high it blocked the view. It now hangs in my home, above the stairwell landing. The artist is Joan Liebowitz. You can see more of her work at her website (www.joanliebowitzart.com). Some of the flowers she paints are part of our collection here so you can compare her abstract impressions to the real plant. Cool!

I’ll start the tour next e-mail. But first, what does Samuel L. Jackson in Jurassic Park and Zamia Floridana have in common?

E-mail you next Friday.

Love Grandpa