In This Issue Fall 2016

Education Volunteers Membership IN THIS ISSUE FALL 2016 The Garden Bids Farewell to Made Wijaya Origami in the Garden Flourish in the Garden FROM THE DIRECTOR UPward & ONward! hat difference can 12 inches make to a garden? It W can be transformative! During construction of the redesign of the Karen and Robert Scott Florida Garden, we brought in almost 300 loads of soil to raise the high point of the garden to 13 feet above sea level. Once we looked at the views, we were astonished to discover the amazing vistas of the wetlands to the south that we never expected. But to really develop them required raising the garden another foot! Once we confirmed that we could still create accessible paths for strollers and wheelchairs, the order went out to go up. Though it added a week to our schedule, the result was worth it! I hope that you enjoy these spectacular views across Lake Tupke and the Collier Enterprises South Wetlands as I do. Raymond Jungles, the noted landscape architect who redesigned the Scott Florida Garden, has been on-site several times over the summer during critical installations such as the placing of the great oolite blocks at the entrance. The Garden hosted several exciting tours and meetings this summer. Native orchids took center stage when we hosted the North American Orchid Conservation Center in late April. Participants included representatives from the Smithsonian Institute, Atlanta Botanical Garden, Chicago Botanic Garden, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Florida International University, Illinois College, Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, and local partners including the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, and the Naples Orchid Society. This meeting was to set priorities for native orchid conservation in the Southeastern US and begin the process of assigning responsibility for developing conservation plans for all endangered orchid species. The Garden is excited to be playing a key role in this ambitious but critical initiative. In May, about 100 plumeria enthusiasts from around the world participated in the International Plumeria Conference at the Garden. The overwhelmingly positive feedback from the attendees regarding both our plumeria collection as well as the rest of the gardens was gratifying, as were the many new plumeria plants that we received. Many thanks to Hetty Ford, the Garden’s Curator of Plumeria Collections, for all her hard work on the conference. In June, we were proud to show the Garden to about 50 staff members from botanical gardens across the country and around the world. The annual meeting of the American Public Gardens Association was being held in Miami, and Naples Botanical Garden was well represented. With support from the Naples Garden Club, the 2016 Swing into Spring Golf Tournament, and Mr. and Mrs. Alonzo McDonald, we were able to send about 25 staff members for at least part of the conference to meet and learn from their peers. This funding is also allowing us to send six staff members to the regional conference for Central American and Caribbean Gardens in Panama City, Panama. We look forward to expanding the potential partnerships and conservation initiatives that may come out of this meeting. Our major initiative this summer has been working on the strategic plan and a facilities master plan that will help us to achieve our Vision 2026. The plan is on schedule to go to the Board for consideration in December. As of this writing, the Garden’s search committee is working on the selection process for my successor. They have had to sift through an enormous candidate pool and it is expected that they will be announcing the Garden’s next Executive Director this fall. 1 | Fall 2016 naplesgarden.org Important Notices: Fogg Café is open daily from 9am to 5pm with last food order of the day taken at 4:30pm. The Jane and Chuck Berger Shop in the Garden is open daily from 10am to 5pm. Entrance to Fogg Café and the Berger Shop in the Garden is included with regular Garden admission. Private Rentals and Weddings happenings Escape the ordinary by hosting your next social or corporate event at Naples Botanical Garden. Follow the latest news, updates The serene backdrop of the Garden also delivers and pictures from the Garden a unique venue for weddings and other on our Blog on our newly memorable celebrations. designed website. For more information, call 239.643.7275. community Save the Date! Be a part of the Garden online Giving Tuesday is November 29, 2016. by joining our social network Make an online donation on this day and communities. you’ll be entered to win a family four-pack of tickets to Night Lights in the Garden. accessibility www.naplesgarden.org/support/donate For guests who need mobility assistance, the Garden offers #GivingTuesday wheelchairs at no charge on a first-come, first-served basis. Scooters are available to rent The Garden Magazine is sponsored on a first-come, first-served in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, basis. and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture. private rentals Host your next corporate, private, or social event in one of the Garden’s many unique spaces. On The Cover: Chambeyronia macrocarpa calendar (Common Name: Flame Thrower Palm) Keep an eye on our always Photo credit: Renée Waller, growing calendar of events on Communications our website to stay up-to-date Coordinator on opportunities. Fall 2016 | 2 The Garden Bids FAREWELL to Designer MADE WIJAYA Naples Botanical Garden mourns the loss of longtime friend, collaborator, and designer of the Marcia and L. Bates Lea Asian Garden, Made Wijaya. His vignettes of Asia through borders and history, is a favorite of guests and horticulturalists alike. His dedication to aesthetics and detail was unparalleled. The tropical garden designer was world-renown for his work on hotels and personal properties such as David Bowie’s on the island of Mustique. His style and flair, deeply infused with his love of Bali, Indonesia, became his signature and his mark on the world. Wijaya’s design of the Lea Asian Garden included structures built entirely in Bali by Balinese workers, shipped to Florida, before being reassembled and rebuilt by those same workers. “Made was one of the most complex and engaging people that I have met. He was acerbic and outrageous, a brilliant designer and commander-in-chief of his gardening guerrillas, a raconteur, stubborn and sometimes difficult, a wit that Noel Coward would have been jealous of and one of humanity’s kindest souls. The world has truly lost a light with his passing,” said Brian Holley, Executive Director of Naples Botanical Garden. Born Michael White, in Sydney, Australia, Wijaya arrived in Bali in 1973 in an oft-told story of jumping off a ship during a rainstorm. His accomplishments ranged from the design of wildly romantic landscapes to authoring several books and columns, as well as being a skilled photographer, Javanese and Balinese-style dancer, and tennis player. Made Wijaya’s last visit to Naples Botanical Garden was in November 2015 for a meeting of the Garden’s Dream Team to guide the next decade of growth. He also gave a standing-room-only lecture as part of the Lifelong Learning program titled Theatrical Nature – My Life Creating Exotic Gardens in the Tropics. His joie de vivre, larger than life persona, and endless generosity will have a lasting influence on the Garden. He will be missed. 3 | Fall 2016 “Made had already been selected to be a member of our Dream Team and Marcia and I had already decided to fund the building of the Asian Garden based on his early designs, even before he visited Naples for the first time. On our initial encounter we quickly realized that we were in the presence of a legitimate character – bursting with enthusiasm and energy and sporting the most faded, worn out silk sport coat I’ve ever seen. Friendly and gregarious, always accompanied by humor, he was as conversant with current events, the arts, politics, travel, etc., as with things botanic. That same enthusiasm and energy was with him when we spent time with him on his most recent trip to Naples last fall. On that last trip his pride and love for the whole garden, and especially his own Asian Garden, was obvious. The Dream Team had come from far and near to spend a few days assessing the state of our present gardens, suggesting modifications and helping us to envision what the future might hold for all of our large undeveloped areas. Made arrived from Bali several days before the rest of the Dream Team and stayed later. Most of that time was spent at the Asian Garden. Made said he enjoyed spending many hours alone or with staff, pruning trees and plants, suggesting a few relocations and giving precise directions to the staff on exactly how to keep his Asian creation continually in pristine shape. Made’s joy in his work and the natural world was infectious. He will be long remembered and missed by everyone at the Garden.” Bates Lea Fall 2016 | 4 HORTICULTURALLY SPEAKING Chambeyronia macrocarpa, Flame thrower palm PALMS of the Garden Arenga hookeriana alms, symbols of the tropics with their unique silhouettes, are actually found in every P continent of the world except Antarctica. They are perfect collection subjects for Naples Botanical Garden, which encompasses the flora from our latitude in the northern hemisphere to its reflection south of the equator. We hold everything from our ubiquitous state tree, the cabbage palm, Sabal palmetto, to the critically endangered and recently discovered Tahina spectabilis.

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