Working for a Greener District of Columbia
VOLUNTEERING AT THE BRITISH EMBASSY
Volunteer gardeners at the British Embassy? They're
new in 2006, a program initiated by Jim Adams, the
horticulturist who took over the top job there in November
of '05. And they're critical to the grand redesign he has
planned for the 6-acare gardens. His plan includes giving
this traditional English estate garden a new look and feel
and adopting practices that are more sustainable and
earth-friendly. After all, visitors from all over the world pass
through the grounds on their way to and from the residence
or the office buildings, so it's a great place to show off the
very best of gardening in America today. Here's a partial
list of what Jim has in mind for the transformation:
* Making the gardens an educational resource for the public, including offering staff-guided tours to interested groups.
* Updating the hybrid tea and climbing roses with more disease-resistant varieties, and amending the soil in the rose garden with organic matter.
* Labeling everything. (Yaaay, we love labels.)
* Starting this month, offering garden tours for embassy staff.
* Establishing horticultural recordkeeping.
* Transforming the formal entry and exit drives, now lined with plain old liriope, into eyecatching sophisticated designs that enhance the architecture of the building and give people a hint that there's good horticulture going on here!
* Removing all invasive species, starting with the ivy and bamboo, Jim's attitude being that in a teaching garden, better plant choices should be encouraged. Good for him.
* Reviving the orchid collection.
* Creating several theme gardens, including a woodland garden using only plants native to Eastern North America.
WOW, WHO IS THIS GUY? Before joining the Embassy last November Jim curated the Herb Garden at the National Arboretum and was assistant curator of the native plant garden there. Before that Jim worked for such exhalted public gardens as the Scott Arboretum in Pennsylvania and the Chicago Botanic Garden. The Class of 2006 can certainly vouch for his knowledge of herbs and talents as a teacher.
WHAT THE VOLUNTEERS DO: Garden! Like weeding, pruning, mulching, and staking of perennials, roses, and shrubs. Helping to prune the beautiful but overgrown yew border. Offering design suggestions. Maybe specializing in a plant group, like orchids. Volunteer Matthew Roberts, (photo
on right) says the best thing about volunteering here are
the gardens themselves, especially the perennial borders.
He loves watching the changing of the seasons and
wants to watch it happen there over several years.
And Volunteer Sara Adams praises the teamwork that
Adams fosters. "We never work alone and we are
always working mostly with Jim or one of his staff, which
gives us lots of time to ask plant and planting questions.
He is a wealth of information and practical knowledge
and experience. We learn a lot and we feel a part of the
team that is transforming the gardens at the BE."
BENEFITS OF VOLUNTEERING AT THE BRITISH EMBASSY
* Unlimited opportunities for learning, even for beginners.
* This year's volunteers attended the QBP (Queen's Birthday Party!), along with 800 other invited guests, and later a special thank-you lunch with the ambassador and his wife just for the horticultural staff and volunteers.
* Field trips.
* Free participation in horticultural training offered by the Smithsonian.
* Easy socializing over lunch.
* Coming soon, T-shirts.
* As a brand new program, more will be revealed.
HOW TO VOLUNTEER: Contact Jim Adams, Horticulturist and volunteer coordinator, at 202/588-7960 or by email. A commitment to one season, a minimum of 4 hours every 2 weeks is required, though most volunteers are there weekly. Here's more about the residence and the garden.
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