David Daehnke
gardeningguru@juno.com
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Plant-of-the-Month
COLBY'S WISHING STAR Syringa x 'Colby's Wishing Star'
For those of you who know my love of lilacs, know that I search for new and
unusual varieties that I can add to my garden. A few years ago, I met a
"gardening friend" at the Philadelphia Flower Show. His name is Frank
Moro, owner of Select Plus Nursery, a lilac specialty nursery. After
talking with him for a while, he told me of a very special lilac that that he
was propagating. It was a dwarf, and only available at his nursery.
Although he did not have any with him, I could order on-line and he would send
me one of these "special" lilacs. I then found out why they were special.
His son Colby was born with Down Syndrome, and it was the determination of Frank
and his family to create a park for handicapped children with a portion of the
proceeds from the sale of these lilacs. But I am getting ahead of myself.
Let me give you a brief description of the lilac.
This is a seedling offspring of Syringa
x Josee. From Frank Moro:
"Our
plan at our new farm is to construct a special park for handicapped children all
sales from this lilac will go exclusively to help the construction of the park
which we will start this year in 2003. The park will be wheelchair accessible
and will have a variety of games, and sensory experiences to learn about
fragrances and textures. The park will be open to families with handicapped
children only. We have realized in the last months how little there is for
children with special needs. Select Plus will maintain this park at it's expense
in the future and we hope to have something special that families in the
immediate area and all around can come and see as well as our future world class
lilac collection in the spring. An Update on the Park Fall 2003 - 2 acres of land cleared for the park with many good shade trees conserved of a nice size diameter. We have applied for a non profit organization and the Park and organization will be called Colby's Wishing Star Park. May 26 2004 - The official incorporation of the non profit park is registered. July 23 2004 - The first lilac is planted at the park with honor to our son Syringa 'Colby's Wishing Star' Just click on the link below to place your order for this worthwhile lilac, not only for your garden, but also for a park that will benefit many.
Remember never to collect plants from the wild. Most reputable garden centers and catalog nurseries will be able to supply you with the plant you are looking for. If you have any questions about certain plants, feel free to e-mail me at plants@thegardeningguru.com and I will answer your question as soon as possible!
Hardy Rubber Tree - Eucommia ulmoides Japanese Tree Lilac - Syringa reticulata Umbrella Pine - Sciadopytis verticillata
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