Marty and Dick Fisher’s Garden Summer 2020
Marty and Dick Fisher's Garden
Marty Fisher hosted three members of the SGC website committee for a socially distanced terrace discussion and tour of the Fisher yard and garden “operation”on August 19. Marty and her longtime husband and partner Dick shared their passion for native plants, hers are floral and his trees and shrubs. Jeanne McAllister had some questions prepared, Dominique Coulombe was ready with pen and paper to capture the details, and new member Ginger Ryan observed and offered insights.
You are gardeners of 12 years in RI, but you began in Colorado 30 years ago. Anywhere before that?Dick and I grew up in Pennsylvania where our first gardening project consisted of growing tomatoes in a pot. In 1968 we moved to Colorado and slowly learned how to grow plants in the West. This became a business after we purchased a part of an old ranch. Our weekend hobby turned into a business in 1992. What was your gardening operation like then/in Colorado? Did you/how did you transition that gardening effort over to new owners/caretakers? In western Colorado where the altitude reaches 5,000 to 8,000 feet and the climate is very dry, we would get up to 35 feet of snow. The soil is frost free for only six weeks during the summer and is very clay-based. We collected seeds during the fall and in the spring scarified some of the seeds before planting. The temperature could drop to 40 below in the winter.
How have you developed and evolved as a gardener?When we lived first in Colorado I was observing and taken by the abundance and diversity of wildflowers in the area. In the early 1980s the concept of native plants was already popular in that part of the country and my interest and “can do” attitude prompted me to start growing organic plants. What began as a hobby evolved a few years later into a business which was so successful that I ended up retiring from my teaching job and devoting my time entirely to the gardening business. After Dick retired, we moved to RI to be closer to our family and looked for a large open space to grow vegetables, fruits, shrubs and trees.
What is the scope of your efforts now? What are the major differences between growing and cultivating in CO and in RI?When we started our current garden on Austin Lane, here in Little Compton, we needed to adapt our habits to a different climate, soil, and altitude. We use the greenhouse which is unheated all year round as our workshop and are now planning to expand it. Dick takes care of the trees, shrubs and vegetables and I take care of the flowers. The watering, especially this summer, has been very time-consuming. When we were in Colorado, we were managing a business and thus had a mission statement. You needed a Colorado organic certificate in order to be able to sell native plants at the farmers market. Since we moved to RI, we give away many of our plants, trees and shrubs in support of the Rhode Island Plant Society and the Sogkonate Garden Club. The Department of Environmental Management checks the trees before we can give them away. The Rhode Island Plant Society accepts Rhode Island natives only. The concept of “cultivar” versus “native” is generating a lot of discussion. [Note: SGC members who are interested in learning more about this may want to watch the presentation How Native Plant Cultivars Affect Pollinators by the Grow Native Massachusetts organization.] To our delight we have identified some native plants which are growing right on our property such as syriaca milkweed and Joe Pye weed. We have also gathered seeds from other native plants (bayberries, beach plums, and dune grasses for example) in places such as Horseneck Beach and along the roads of Little Compton.[Note: The area all around Austin Lane used to be farmland. There is actually a Historical Cemetery at the end of this dead-end street where you can decipher some of the original family names].
You are a major contributor to the annual plant sale for SGC Blossoms and Sweets. We grow a large number of plants for the sale of the RI Wild Plant Society. We have some extras which we donate to the Sogkonate Garden Club for the annual sale. Under normal circumstances when the plant sale is being held in the center of town, we load the plants onto our truck and bring them to the sale area. We also help with the pricing and tagging of plants contributed by other members.
As a newer SGC member (JMcA) I have heard that you are a seed propagation expert? We start everything from local seeds. We keep them in jars. The planting soil we use is a mix of 2/3 compost, potting soil and Alaska fertilizer. We include the fertilizer only after the plant has a minimum of four leaves. Some seeds you can plant directly once they are dry and ready, others we save.
We also have heard that you take “Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle” to new levels. We save and reuse flower pots of various sizes but also use yogurt containers and spice/herb bottles. Our friends leave available used pots at the end of our driveway, we are happy to take and reuse these. We compost everything and Dick has fashioned a screen to run the fine compost through. We collect the rainwater as much as possible and use all of it for watering.
What are you most proud of; what is most unique about what you do?I am most proud of the way I introduce other Garden Club members and friends to natives. Through my connection with the RI Wild Plant Society I am also able to connect with great speakers and invite them to participate in our programs. These are two important ways I feel that all Sogkonate Garden Club members benefit from my involvement and commitment to fine gardening and my love of plants.A walking tour took us around and through shrubs, walkways with flowers, a greenhouse and planting area, a berry and grape area, meadows, an orchard and any number of native trees grown from seed. As part of her “show and tell” Marty showed us how to pry open pods and collect seeds from lupine flowers. We also went home with end cuts of cedar for our closets and a native plant or two. Thank you, Marty and Dick, for your dedication, lessons, time and gifts!