On October 4, District V ( Carroll Garden Club’s district) sponsored the official Alice Rush McKeon Tree Planting. This is an event that passes sequentially to each of the five districts of the Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland. Each time, it involves a site search for a planting site within the host district, gaining the requisite permissions, choosing appropriate tree species and having a commemoration and luncheon. Director Jennifer Evans led the effort and Diana Bonner and the executives of FGCMD attended. A luncheon at Turf Valley followed. Members of CGC present were Marjorie Schiebel and Sue Christensen.
Our site was very close to Route 29 and 108 at Presbyterian Circle in Howard County. The trees chosen were Natchez Crepe Myrtles (Lagerstroemia indica) and Autumnalis cherries (Prunus serrulata) which would replaced old, diseased Kwanzan cherries. Since the cherries bloom in the spring, the crepe myrtles flower in the summer, the cherry leaves provide autumn interest and the crepe myrtles provide (with age) an interesting winter “muscular trunk” , there will be four seasons of interest for the commuters in the area.
You may be interested in reading who Alice Rush McKeon was. Tina Swanson put together this report for FGCMD Gardenews.
THE ALICE RUSH MCKEON LEGACY
Alice Rush McKeon was born March, 1884 in Philadelphia, Pa. and died in February 1979, approximately a month before her 95th birthday. She was a direct descendent of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Rush. Alice served twice as President of FGCMD and was the first Roadside and Tree Chairman for the Federation. She was a conservationist, environmentalist and poet. In 1935 she wrote “ Sonnets For the Scenic-ease”. The proceeds from the sale of her poetry were invested by her stockbroker son. The established fund became known as the “Alice Rush McKeon Tree Planting Fund”. The Fund is administered by FGCMD for the purpose of planting trees. The first planting took place at a site north of BWI airport along the Baltimore-Washington Expressway in 1959. Alice was a very unique individual. *She was the first licensed woman driver, *She had legislation passed making laws that prohibited billboards on Maryland highways restricting , as Alice called it, “billboard blight”. This campaign against billboards was “national in scope”. *During World War II, she hosted, “Garden Clubs of the Air” on WBAL radio and wrote a book “Dear Mrs. Radio” which included questions from her listeners and answers from her show. *Alice taught fundamentals of back yard vegetable gardening. The gardens became known as “victory gardens”. *She found that food was being discarded and wasted with bread being the principal waste so she sponsored a “Save the Bread” contest on her radio program as another contribution to the war effort. *Alice is credited with the creation of the word, “Litterbug” and wrote a book “The Litterbug Family. Even today, the slogan “Don’t be a litterbug” has helped prevent Maryland highway trash. Her legacy continues at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon where she is researched as one of the forerunners of the conservation and environmental movement. The FGCMD continues to use the Alice Rush McKeon Tree Fund to plant trees and rotates the host District so that trees are planted throughout Maryland. In 2018, DISTRICT V will host the planting of the Alice Rush McKeon Trees. When arrangements are finalized, the event will be placed on the Federation Events Calendar. We hope you will be able to join us on this inspiring occasion.
On October 4th, only one tree, a crepe myrtle was set into the ground to inaugurate the project. The rest would be put in a week or so later.
