Llano County garden show offers plant info, link to the past
DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR
LLANO — Sometimes, when Keenan Fletcher tries to save an heirloom bulb, she finds herself in close quarters with some forked-tongue characters. But it doesn’t deter her from conserving these links to the past and the future.
During a “rescue” at an abandoned home outside Rockdale, Fletcher spotted a field of old crinum lilies. Not one to let heirloom bulbs become victims of a bulldozer or neglect, she and her daughter, Grace, hopped into the yard and went to work.
“These bulbs are pretty big,” Fletcher said holding her hands a good six to 10 inches apart. “And it takes some work to dig them up.”
As Fletcher began digging up a bulb, a noise caught her attention. She wondered what it was but didn’t stop extracting the bulb. As the bulb cleared the earth, Fletcher caught sight of the noisemaker.
“It was a rattlesnake about a foot-and-a-half away from my hand,” she recalled.
The snake might not have cared about the bulbs, but Fletcher did and simply moved away from the creature to collect a few more of the plants.
Bulbs are basically the rootstock for a number of flowering plants such as lilies, hyacinths and tulips. While people can purchase bulbs at various garden centers and plant nurseries, the ones Fletcher and folks like her are on the lookout for are heirloom varieties.
“Heirloom bulbs are usually rare or almost extinct,” Fletcher said. “We try to save as many as we can before they’re lost.”
Fletcher is one of four speakers at the Llano County Master Gardeners’ Lawn and Garden Show on March 22 at Lutie Watkins Memorial United Methodist Church’s Family Life Center, 308 W. Main St. The event is 9 a.m.-1 p.m.
The show features plenty of plants, herbs, vendors booths and food as well as a children’s booth. People interested in gardening and lawn care will discover lots of items and information.
The speaker lineup includes Fletcher on “Heirloom Bulbs of the South” from 9:15-9:45 a.m.; Kelly Bender on “Wildscapes” from 10-11 a.m.; Bill Luedecke on “How to Control Bugs that Bother You and Your Plants” from 11:15-11:45 a.m.; and Jessica Robertson on “How Not to Kill Your Orchids” from noon to 12:30 p.m.
Fletcher grew up with a strong interest in gardening, but she has a special passion for heirloom bulbs.
“A lot of these bulbs you can’t find in stores, and we’re possibly losing them,” she said. Many of the heirloom bulbs she keeps an eye out for can trace their “roots” back to Europe, even the ones she collects.
She dug some purple iris bulbs from a friend’s ranch. The family brought the original bulbs from England in the 1800s. Another time, Fletcher located some oxblood lilies that came from Germany when the family first settled in the United States.
“These bulbs are links to the past and to the future,” Fletcher said. “Most of the bulbs will outlive me.”
Bulbs aren’t necessarily the most popular types of flowering plants because they typically bloom once a year. Fletcher pointed out we typically want that splash of color in our yards and gardens now and plant whatever is blooming. Then, when it dies, we replace it with the next blooming plant. Bulbs, she said, aren’t like that. They require time and patience.
But the rewards are worth it.
“These are like little treasures buried in the ground,” Fletcher said.
Call the Llano Chamber of Commerce at (325) 247-5354 for more information on the lawn and garden show.
daniel@thepicayune.com