On Friday, May 29 a major leadership transition occurred at the Wilmot Botanical Gardens with the appointment of Jim Stribling to the role of director. In point of fact he has essentially functioned in the role for the past several months while I dealt with some unexpected health issues that occupied a great deal of my time. During this period of transition we have benefitted greatly from his horticultural background coupled with an extensive experience in the management of public gardens, both in Florida and Wales, UK. Our interactions during the past several months have been extremely positive and provide proof that the gardens will have a bright future under his leadership. I hope all of you will support his efforts as you have mine during the past 20 years.
Another significant transition occurred recently with the relocation of the Therapeutic Horticulture Program housed in the Greenhouse at the Wilmot Botanical Gardens since April of 2014 to facilities at the Horticultural Sciences Farm located on IFAS Research Drive. An expanded refocused therapeutic horticulture program with new leadership and support staff will occupy our greenhouse and the adjacent Wilder Therapeutic Garden.
When the gardens were first created by the Gainesville Men’s Garden Club with support from the UF Department of Horticulture to honor Royal James “Roy” Wilmot, it was planted exclusively with camellias and azaleas. Initially, in excess of 300 camellias found a new home in the space. Our most recent camellia inventory completed in late May of this year revealed the presence of 275 cultivars of which approximately 35 represented original camellias planted in the early 1950’s along with President Clay azaleas of which just 4 of the latter remain. While most of the original camellias were without markers, some of which have never been positively identified, a few do have their original tags. Examples include Apple Blossom, Mine-No-Yuki, Latifolia variegated, Prince Eugene Napoleon, Shibori-Egao, Eago Corkscrew, Symphonette, A. B. Maclay, Bi-color de la Reina, Chiri-Tsubaki, Hagoroma-Higo, Madame Hahn, Pope Pius IX, and Sawada’s Mahogany.
During the spring of this year we have made an effort to acquaint the faculty and staff in the six colleges that compromise the Health Science Center with our facilities and programs at the Wilmot Botanical Gardens. On May 27th approximately 45 individuals including faculty and staff from the College of Pharmacy availed themselves of the opportunity to enjoy lunch in our conference center. Many participants also found time to tour the gardens. In addition, discussions with senior leadership from the College of Pharmacy are now ongoing to explore the possibility of establishing a medicinal garden within the Wilmot Botanical Gardens.
One on one meetings have also been held with leadership in the Colleges of Dentistry and Public Health and Health Professions, again to make them aware of the opportunities that exist in the gardens that their faculty and staff might find useful in the conduct of some of their educational and research programs.
Preliminary discussions have also been initiated to examine the feasibility of establishing a therapeutic horticulture program for the benefit of patients receiving radiation therapy for various forms of cancer at the UF Health Proton Therapy Institute in Jacksonville.
Finally, we have continued our initiative to share cultivars of our Hippocratic tree with medical institutions located principally in the southeastern United States. Those receiving a cultivar this past spring include Vanderbilt School of Medicine, the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, the medical College of Georgia, the University of Mississippi School of Medicine in Jackson and BayCare Health Systems in Clearwater, Florida. This brings the total number of entities receiving a cultivar from our Hippocratic tree to 17. Plans call for additional trees to be shared this fall.
Dr. Craig Tisher
Director Emeritus, Wilmot Botanical Gardens