The quiet, winter bones of the garden are preparing to flex their spring muscles. Rain and cold have made for a boggy (and groggy) late winter, but the color variation and textures, especially when wet, bring pops of energy to dreary afternoons. We’re very much looking forward to longer, sunnier days but equally appreciative of the rains we so desparately need.

Despite the weather, we’ve had a few new volunteers join our Tuesday morning crew and two Sonoma State interns have begun working on Fridays. The additional help and energy is refreshing.

One of the new volunteers recently shared an article about the health and wellness benefits of gardens. The researchers focused on how community gardening led to improved dietary choices, more connectedness, and reduced risk for chronic diseases. While we don’t produce much food here at Western Hills, we feel the truth of these words every day when we’re tending to the paths, plants, and trees of this special place.

The article prompted us to do a little more digging into the research on how exposure to natural environments contribute to physiological and psychological restoration. Not surprisingly, significant evidence confirms that gardens and natural environments make us feel good and protect us against stressful life events. So come for a day visit, become a volunteer, or sign up for a class. We’ve got lots of opportunities for you to take care of yourself in nature.

“Regular contact with nature is also found to lead to long-lasting, positive impacts on mental health, including a reduction in depressive and anxiety symptoms.”

We’re excited to announce several more spring classes and workshops with even more to come this summer. Learn more about all our offerings on our website programming page.

Sanborn Tree Service fit us into their packed schedule. They rappelled to the top of the White Eucalyptus to remove some broken branches and used the white rowboat (Ollie Ho) to cut back the Serbian Spruce that fell into the big pond. Lots of paths have new gravel (and many still need it). Another big branch fell from the Blue Juniper with the most recent storm so sadly the rest of that tree now needs to come down too. It’s been six weeks of major realignment here at Western Hills. Mary Zovich, our collections manager, is working hard with our new Sonoma State interns to inspect and care for all the other trees on the property and to treat problems so we can preserve their health moving forward.

Membership benefits.

Members help us sustain our garden preservation and stewardship work and make it easy for you to visit again and again. We have a number of levels to match your needs. Check them out and become a regular — watching the seasonal evolution take place. You won’t be disappointed.

If you’re receiving this newsletter, you either opted into emails or were on a list shared with us by the previous owners. We hope you appreciate occasional News from the Garden.