Recently, I have felt a bit like a pawn on a chess board. After my chigger ordeal in the gardens where I work, I was transferred by the end of that week, out of horticulture to the welcome center. My new supervisor wanted to split my hours between the gift shop and property management. I was not thrilled about either one of the positions; but I knew I could not continue working as part of the horticulture crew. The arthritis in my hands was worsening by the day. The job title that I had applied for, and which launched my move from Wyoming, was wildflower horticulture assistant. This was misleading. I had learned over the months of working there that even my supervisor did not have a degree in horticulture. We were used more as glorified landscape labor. I had hoped to use my extensive, self-acquired knowledge and to have the opportunity to add to that knowledge. Instead, I was participating in totally unsustainable garden practices.
The gardens where I work are filled with numerous non-native species. The “soil is turned 5 times a year” to provide seasonal annuals. The amount of money spent for the annuals, that are discarded at the end of each season, and for the labor, is astronomical. This garden is located on a peninsula of a large lake. It spans 205 acres. The wildflower area lies at the end of the peninsula, about a mile from the entrance. I had been assigned after beginning my job, to a different area, caring for perennials. I was allowed to work in the wildflower meadow on only two occasions. I spent some time working in the greenhouse, repotting seedlings; but after the tulips were finished blooming, I joined the remaining crew to dig up 50,000 tulips that had been planted only a few months earlier. When that was completed, we planted summer annuals. These will be followed by fall annuals, which will be followed by holiday light displays, followed by winter flowering bulbs, and then tulips, again.
The two largest sources of revenue for the gardens are memberships and wedding venues. Profit is their main objective. Arkansas calls itself “The Natural State.” This garden is rated as the 5th best botanic garden. It could be so much more. It is the perfect place to help Arkansas live up to its name. They could become leaders in sustainability. They could provide permaculture education. They could grow food forests and practice water conservation. They could be the location for a large organic farmer’s market. I have made suggestions, but I doubt I have been heard.
I have now been moved from the property management position to the wedding department. I am working in a too cold air conditioned office answering phones and booking weddings. My writing skills have been recognized and they are being utilized in my job; but my move to Arkansas does not appear to be going in the direction I had hoped it would. My life is about caring for wildlife, birds, and chickens. It is about growing gardens and creating habitat. It is already July and I have no garden of my own – and no place to garden. I seem to have veered off course and I am unsure of where I have landed.
