Japanese lantern
UC Garden Clippings
University of California Botanical Garden
September 2010 - Vol 3, Issue 3
In This Issue
Japan in the Garden
Fall Plant Sale
Harvest Dinner
Membership Matters
New Sarracenia Display
September Programs
Make New Friends as a UCBG Docent
Manage Your Subscription
Thank you to our 1572 Facebook fans!

twitter

Facebook
Join Our Mailing List!
Quick Links

Plant Lists
Purchase your plants from the Garden. Visit these lists for availability. There are NO Thursday Plant Sales in September while we prepare for the Fall Plant Sale on Sunday, September 26.

California Native Plants Nursery

Landscape Cacti and Succulents Nursery

Bulbs Nursery (New!)

Tropical and Indoor Plants Nursery

Vines Nursery New!
September Garden Day
Lean on an ancient boulder by the Japanese Pool.

Listen to birds singing, chirping and warbling  all around the Garden.

Hunt for lizards basking on  rocks.

Ponder the bees hard at work among the dahlias in the Garden of Old Roses.

Admire towering rudebeckias in the Eastern North America collection.

Walk with an expert: free docent walks (with Garden admission) are available Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 1:30 PM.

Take the Garden's self-guided summer stroll.

Japan in the Garden


Japanese Pool viewed
through the Obata Gate
Obata Gate
For nearly 70 years Garden visitors have been enchanted by the serene pool, waterfalls, lanterns and stepping stones of our Japanese Pool. It provides an elegant home for many of our Japanese plant specimens and a thriving population of native newts and frogs.

Horticulturist Elaine Sedlack has cared for the Garden's Asian collection for many years and she shares the history of this unique Garden feature, "When the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island closed in 1939, the Japanese exhibit (see photo) was donated to the Garden on behalf of the Japanese Government and with the aid of a donation from the UC Japanese Alumni Association. The exhibit was comprised of stone from Japan with lanterns and a bridge displayed as a Japanese garden and pool. Kaneji Domoto, a prominent landscape architect in the Bay Area, assisted in designing the Japanese gardens at the Exposition. He also designed the reinterpretation of the display, supervising Japanese workmen as they placed about 150 boulders to create the waterfalls and pool in the Garden in 1941."

The pool was destroyed in October 1962 when it rained 15 inches in just three days. Boulders and lanterns were swept away by a raging Strawberry Creek. Many of the original boulders were recovered along with one original Yukimi-gata (snow-viewing) lantern. The lantern stands by the pool today; a missing collar is a gentle reminder of the October destruction.

Well-known Japanese-American artist Chiura Obata was later honored at the entrance to the pool with the Obata Gate, a Japanese  mountain-style gate designed by Paul Discoe and donated by landscape architect Geraldine Knight Scott in 1998. In February 2000 Mary and Richard Schroter donated an antique Tachi-gata stone (Kasuga-style lantern) dedicated to Haruko Obata (wife of Chiura Obata), a respected teacher of Ikebana, the art of traditional Japanese flower arranging.

To learn more about our Japanese treasures visit our new website page. We've assembled links to articles about the history of our Japanese Pool, photos of the Golden Gate International Exposition, a panorama and a photo slideshow of the Japanese Pool.


Japanese Horticultural Treasures
Among the Garden's horticultural treasures are nearly 1000 specimens of Japanese plants, over half of which are of documented wild origin. They provide great seasonal interest to the landscape beginning with the showy azalea bloom in spring, the maple color in fall and the sculptural beauty of     the enormous Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans') in winter. This cultivar of Japanese cedar (pictured in Membership Matters below) reposes in a graceful sprawl at the edge of the Garden lawns and is related to our redwoods. The deep burgundy winter foliage of Cryptomeria adds a spark of color to the Garden's winter palette. We also have a growing collection of herbaceous plants and woodland plants from Japan.



Flowers of the Four SeasonsFlowers of the Four Seasons at BAM/PFA

Complement your visit to the historic Japanese pool and gardens by making a trip down the hill to view one of the most significant collections of Japanese art in North America. Flowers of the Four Seasons: Ten Centuries of Art from the Clark Center for Japanese Art and Culture, on view at BAM/PFA through December 12, features over 110 works of art, ranging from the late Heian period (794-1185) to the twenty-first century.
 
UC Botanical Garden members receive free admission to BAM/PFA on Thursday, September 9 and Thursday, October 14, with guided tours of the exhibition each day at 12:15 p.m. Plus-  current UC Botanical Garden members can take 20% off a BAM/PFA membership at the $50 level and above through the duration of the exhibition.


Flowers in Japanese Art and Culture
September 8 | 1-2:30 pm |  Botanical Garden
In collaboration with the Berkeley Art Museum's exhibit Flowers of the Four Seasons, the Garden is offering a special tour of Japanese plants as depicted in art with Horticulturist Elaine Sedlack.
Registration required: $10, Free UCBG/BAM members.
 
Japanese Koto Music in the Grove
September 16 | 5:30-7 pm |  Botanical Garden
Listen to the beautiful sounds of the Japanese Koto, a long, stringed instrument made from the Empress Tree (Paulownia tomentosa), with mother and son duo Shirley Muramoto and Brian Wong. Read more about Muramoto in How Japanese Americans Preserved Traditions Behind Barbed Wire, a UC Berkeley NewsCenter article by Cathy Cockrell.
$15, $12 members, UC staff, students and faculty & BAM members

Red Leaves and Frog Feet--the Literary Japanese Maple
October 14 | 1-2:30 pm |  Botanical Garden
Liza Dalby, celebrated author and anthropologist specializing in Japanese culture and Berkeley resident, will speak on Japanese literature and art and the use of the natural world to evoke meaning and metaphor.
Free with Garden Admission, Free UCBG/BAM members.

 

 
Fall Plant Sale
plant sale card
Fall Plant Sale

Sunday, September 26, 2010
Members' Sale & Silent Auction: 9 am - 10:30 am
Public Sale (Free!): 11 am - 2 pm

Exquisite plants, rarities, exotics and more. Our knowledgeable staff and volunteers will be on hand to answer your horticultural questions. It promises to be a spectacular event!

Check out our Silent Auction items!

The Fall Plant Sale website is filled with helpful information to make your shopping trip fruitful.

Become a member online today!
Harvest Dinner
grape leafYou're Invited to a
Harvest Dinner
at the Garden


Saturday, October 16,  5:30 - 9 pm

To celebrate our Foods of the Americas exhibit, and raise much-needed funds for its development, the Garden is hosting a native foods feast and harvest dance.

The evening will include drinks, dinner and dancing, a special opportunity to view the exhibit, and a live auction of five choice items.



 Enjoy live music by the foot stompin' Quinn DeVeaux trio and food prepared by LoBue Events.  Come support the Garden and have a great time doing it!

Tickets are $75 � Only 30 Tickets Remain � RSVP to Vanessa Crews



Membership Matters
Join the Garden in September and Enjoy these Members Only Benefits:
  1. Admission to our Member's Only Plant Sale & Silent Auction:
    Sunday September 26, 9 -10:30 am
  2. Flowers of the Four Seasons at the Berkeley Art Museum:
    UC Botanical Garden members receive free admission to BAM/PFA on Thursday, September 9 and Thursday, October 14, with guided tours of the exhibition each day at 12:15 p.m. Plus-  current UC Botanical Garden members can take 20% off a BAM/PFA membership at the $50 level and above through the duration of the exhibition.
  3. Last month for a free subscription to Better Homes & Garden Magazine.
  4. Free admission and shop discounts at over 200 participating Gardens around the nation.CedarTree
The Garden's enormous Japanese plume cedar (Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans') reposes in a graceful sprawl at the edge of the lawn. Photo by Susan Lindh.
JAPANESE PLUME CEDAR or SUGI (Cryptomeria japonica cv. Elegans)
Visit our website to learn about the different levels of Garden Membership including special discounts for Cal affiliates. You may join online by visiting the Garden's membership page. Select the appropriate membership level and follow the screen prompts.

Five Ways to Join
On-Site: Stop by the Garden Kiosk
Phone: 510-643-2755 x0
FAX: 510-642-3012
Mail: 200 Centennial Dr � Berkeley � CA 94720-5045


New Sarracenia Display
pitcher plantsNew to the Garden's entrance is a display of Sarracenia species, beautiful carnivores commonly known as pitcher plants. Insects are lured to the Sarracenia tube by the plant's color, scent and nectar. The interior of the tube has a slick waxy surface and downward pointing hairs, making escape difficult. The hood over the tube serves as a convenient insect perch and protective cover, keeping excess rain water from diluting the digestive enzymes in the tube.  The plant also forms alluring flowers and relies on insects for pollination.

Native populations of Sarracenia are at risk as wetlands are drained and their habitat is destroyed. Our Garden has several varieties of Sarracenia, including flowering examples, in this new display. Come see these beguiling examples of adaptive evolution!
Programs and Events


Sick Plant Clinic
The lantern and prominent stones around the Garden's Japanese pool are readily identifiable in this photo taken at the Japanese Pavilion at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island in 1939. Photo provided by Harvey Smith and Diana Yoshida.
Japanese Pavilion

Saturday, September 4, 9 am - noon
Free; no reservations required
 
Flowers in Japanese Art and CultureTreasureIsland
Wednesday, September 8,  1 - 2:30 pm
In collaboration with the Berkeley Art Museum's exhibit "Flowers of the Four Seasons," the Garden is offering a special tour of Japanese plants with Horticulturist Elaine Sedlack. $10, Free UCBG/BAM members
 
Fall Leaves & Seed Pods
Thursday and Friday, September 9 & 10
Fall is a beautiful time to illustrate the changes in plants. Catherine Watters will teach you to observe, compose, draw and paint fall leaves and seed pods in great detail using specimens from the Garden. All levels are welcome and students may use graphite, colored pencils or watercolor.
View the complete Fall Botanical Illustration schedule.
Instructor: Catherine Watters
$160, $150 members

Flowers of the Four Seasons at BAM/PFA
Thursday, September 9
UC Botanical Garden members receive free admission to BAM/PFA on Thursday, September 9 and Thursday, October 14, with guided tours of the exhibition each day at 12:15 p.m. Plus-  current UC Botanical Garden members can take 20% off a BAM/PFA membership at the $50 level and above through the duration of the exhibition.

What the Nose Knows: Scents that Heal
Sunday, September 12, 1  - 2 pm
Kil-Young Yu, LAc, acupuncturist and herbalist at Oakland Community Acupuncture, explains the medicinal properties of odoriferous herbs in the Chinese Herb Garden.
Free with Garden Admission
 
Japanese Koto Music
Thursday, September 16, 5:30 - 7 pm
Listen to the beautiful sounds of the Japanese Koto, a long, stringed instrument made from the Empress Tree (Paulownia tomentosa), with mother and son duo Shirley Muramoto and Brian Wong. Read more about Muramoto in How Japanese Americans Preserved Traditions Behind Barbed Wire, a UC Berkeley NewsCenter article by Cathy Cockrell.
$15, $12 members, UC staff, students and faculty
 
Garlic in the Garden
Saturday, September 18, 1 - 3 pm
Over the last twenty-five years, Chester Aaron has become known worldwide for the ninety varieties of exotic garlic he grows on his farm in Sonoma County. Taste some of Chester's world famous garlic recipes and browse from a collection of his books. Watch a video by Bryan Shadden for the PBS series California Heartland about Chester and how garlic plays a reoccurring, and pivotal, role in one mans life.
$15, $10 members

Fall Plant Sale
Sunday, September 26
Members' Sale & Silent Auction: 9 am - 10:30 am
Public Sale (Free!): 11 am - 2 pm � Plant Sale website

Monthly Butterfly Walk
Tuesday, September 28, 3  - 4 pm
Join Sally Levinson, Garden volunteer propagator, docent and caterpillar lady as she guides you through the collection in search of butterflies. Space is limited.Children welcome.
Free with Garden admission

Vanishing Bees DocumentaryBerkeley Premiere! Vanishing of the Bees Documentary
Wednesday, September 29, 2010   6  - 8 pm
Commercial honeybee operations pollinate crops that make up one out of every three bites of food on our tables.  This documentary examines the alarming disappearance of honeybees and the greater meaning it holds about the relationship between mankind and mother earth. See the trailer.  $10



Always check the Garden Calendar for event details and updates.
Reservations are accepted daily, including weekends, 9 am - 4:30 pm.
Call 510-643-2755 x03 for event registration or to purchase/renew a membership.

Make New Friends as a UCBG Docent
by Perry Hall, Volunteer Coordinator

Many people who would make excellent docents and who have the passion to share the Garden with others hesitate to sign up for fear of not knowing enough about plants. Fears of not being able to memorize the scientific plant names and/or to feel confident enough about the plant information included in the tour rank highest on the list of reasons not to sign up for docent training. As a continuing student of plants myself, I can only reassure these folks by saying that you will make friends with the plants and remembering their story will be easier because of that friendship you create.

docent with childrenWhile all of us have probably experienced - in certain circumstances - a momentary inability to come up with the names of our friends (gulp!), as docents we have the added benefit of being able to review the plants we would like to include in our tour beforehand - plants highlighted in detailed tour outlines and in the training - and to bring along note cards to prompt our memory. Further, this year's training will have more time devoted to how to lead and prepare for tours to provide docents with the skills necessary to be successful docents.

Many people mistakenly think that the Garden's staff know all the plants in the collection, but I have been reassured time and again by my colleagues that our collection is so extensive and unique that this would be nearly impossible for even the most erudite of plant scholars. We are all students of the Garden, and I would venture to say that this (rather than being able to point to all the plants in the collection and rattle off their names from memory) is the most important idea we can convey to our visitors.

So, if you enjoy working with people of all ages and you have a love of plants and nature you'd like to share with others, you can help the UC Botanical Garden by becoming a UCBG Docent. We educate thousands of school children and adults each year about plants and the natural environment. Our docents create memorable and exciting learning experiences for small groups of school children, university students and the general public.

Training is provided by the Garden's expert horticultural staff, experienced docents, and by plant specialists from UC Berkeley and the community. There will be opportunities for trainees to shadow tours led by current docents and to practice giving their own tours. Upon successful completion of the training program and requirements, the commitment for leading tours is a minimum of two tours per month for adults and school-aged children for at least one year post graduation. Our tours are seasonal, so in the fall and spring, docents may have more than two while in the summer and winter, docents may have fewer.

The program includes 24 sessions and will run January 10 through April 18, 2011 on Mondays & Thursdays, 1-4 pm. Fee: $250 (includes one-year Individual UCBG membership), $225 members.

For more information about volunteering, and to apply for Docent Training, contact the Volunteer Coordinator at 510-643-1924. Your name will be added to the list and application packets will be mailed out in November.


Manage Your Subscription
The UC Garden Clippings is a publication of the University of California Botanical Garden at Berkeley. You can manage your subscriptions to Garden electronic publications by choosing Update Profile/Email Address at the bottom of this Clippings. The Update Profile/Email Address feature provides subscription options, allowing you to select those garden publications you wish to receive. Select Safe Unsubscribe to remove your email address from all UCBG electronic publications. The Garden offers five email publications:
  • UC Garden Clippings: This is a monthly publication featuring garden events and stories.
  • Updates: Occasional brief emails are sent to highlight special garden events.
  • Plant Deck: This is a monthly email describing plants available for purchase in the Garden.
  • Garden Clubs: This is an occasional publication describing special events and opportunities for garden clubs and plant societies.
  • Tours: Be the first to know when the Garden has a new tour available for schools and other groups. Get details on arranging tours for your group.
  • Garden Events & Programs: This is a quarterly preview of upcoming workshops, classes, tours and festivities.
Editor: Vanessa Crews, [email protected], 510-643-2937