TAMU Horticultural Gardens unveils spring line-up

By MANDY SPIKES | Central Texas Edition

May 1, 2003 -- The Texas A&M University's (TAMU) Horticultural Gardens, located in College Station, is a student-managed and maintained facility. According to the website, http://hortgardens.tamu.edu, the garden is a part of the TAMU Department of Horticultural Sciences. Each year over 250 students are taught through courses on public gardening, plant identification, as well as landscape construction and maintenance.

"Our research efforts focus on a broad range of environmental issues, new plant introduction and innovations in nursery/floral crop production. The gardens are also an important living educational resource for the community," the website reads.

Included in the various resources for the community are the spring lineup of educational programs. One of these programs took place April 23 at the gardens. Garry McDonald discussed new plants that are being introduced in the Bryan and College Station area.

McDonald, a senior horticulture research associate with the Texas Agriculture Experiment Station, is responsible for conducting a broad range of projects focusing on new plants and new plant introductions.

"There are a lot of new plants being produced by small nurseries," he explained. "These new plants are not just falling out of the sky."

McDonald pointed out while touring the gardens that the center is trying to come up with a series of roses that are disease tolerant. "This is so you don't have to spray them all the time. It's hard to try and spray roses every five to seven days."

He stated that one of the best species of roses found on the gardens is the Katie Road pink rose. The rose was named after the road it was found on.

"We are trying to get more oleanders that are more cold hardy. They are native to North Africa where it's very dry. These plants are more drought tolerant, but we are also trying to get them to be more cold tolerant.

"We are planting all new plants this spring. Some will be really nice for the summer and some will not. That is why this is called an experiment station. We don't know how these plants will turn out. I do invite all of you to come out this summer and take a look at the various new plants we have at the gardens."

For more information on future spring lecture series taking place at the gardens, call 979-845-3685.