ABC is proud to acknowledge the cooperation of Gabriel Howearth Landeros in designing the master plan for its educational gardens. Internationally known botanist and co-founder of Seeds of Change, Gabriel is the founder and currently executive director of Siempre Semillas A.C., a Mexican nonprofit organization in Baja California Sur. The organization operates the Fundaci¢n Ecol¢gica Huerta Planetaría and its attendant Kinship Botanical Gardens and serves as a research and educational center in finding new and appropriate food, medicinal, seed, and ornamental crops for the arid, tropical regions of the world. After years of studying, gathering plant specimens, and designing medicinal gardens worldwide, Howearth is uniquely qualified to assist ABC in accomplishing one of its longtime goals -- the development of a world-class botanical garden dedicated to medicinal plants.

This spring, Howearth worked with Lisa LaRousse, Garden Coordinator, and Rachel Hagan, Garden Assistant, staking out and planting nine of the 20 gardens planned as the initial phase of the overall garden design. These include the winning designs from a contest held last winter, an antioxidant garden, a nervine garden, a medieval medicinal garden, a medicinal lily garden, a fragrance garden, shade herb garden, purifying garden, rose garden, and children's garden. Also in development are anatomy and international cuisine gardens, including Mexican, Italian/Mediterranean, French, Middle Eastern, Chinese, and East Indian/Southeast Asian.

Visible dedication opportunities for the gardens are available. One- to three-year pledges can be made to the Capital Campaign that will enable the donor to place a company or individual name on one of these beautiful gardens. Contact the development office for information. Call Wayne Silverman, Ph.D., at 512/926-4900 or email <wsilverman@herbalgram.org>.

Article copyright American Botanical Council.

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By Gayle Engels