Horticulture Volunteer Spotlight
Joyce Landauer
Missouri Botanical Garden has been lucky to have Joyce Landauer as a volunteer since April 1993. At that time, she had recently moved back to the St. Louis area after 27 years away. Her new place didn't have a garden and she felt a definite need to get her hands in the dirt. It is Joyce's belief that gardeners are born, not made and she loved digging in the dirt even as a child.
Joyce was needed in the southern area of the Garden, which includes the Japanese Garden, director's residence and English Woodland Garden, among others. She was not looking for something precise and structured like the raked gravel gardens of the Japanese Garden. So the shady and quiet president's residence gardens turned out to be the perfect fit. The grounds of the president's residence are not open to the public, so Joyce deals with one horticulturist, and no visitors....a peaceful place indeed!
When winter came, Joyce decided that 40 degrees would be her limit for outside work, except mulching which keeps you warm all by itself. So she turned to the greenhouse to see if they could use her help indoors in the winter. She soon fell into transplanting seedlings to larger containers and is still enjoying that same duty. Joyce volunteers for the greenhouse on Tuesdays and in the president's residence gardens on Thursdays over 40 degrees!
When asked why she volunteers at Missouri Botanical Garden, Joyce says she has the time and she loves it. And, she jokes, how many computer games can you play?! Since she doesn't volunteer every day, it is always a pleasure to come in. She gets great satisfaction from this work and has learned a tremendous amount about plants, especially from Julie Hess, senior horticulturist in charge of the president's garden.
Horticulturists who work with Joyce relate that she is lots of fun, loves plants, and is a great cook. She also tells it like it is and doesn't pull any punches, which is one of the reasons that staff enjoy working with her. With any luck, Missouri Botanical Garden horticulturists will be enjoying Joyce's wit and hard work for many years to come!