In the Garden
Ralph Purkhiser, Purdue University Master Gardener
I am writing this column on Sunday, October 13, 2024. My mother, Helen Marie Hooten Purkhiser, was born a hundred years ago today, just a few feet from where I am sitting. Nothing remains of the old house but some foundation stones, which were likely stones found right here on the property. They define one of the flower beds that now exist within the area where the house stood. However, the garden holds many memories of my mother.
Visitors to Sandhill Gardens know that there are many places to sit in the gardens. While I have developed a great love of garden benches and continue to add unusual seating options, the real reason that I began putting seats everywhere was to accommodate my mother’s wish to be in the garden. We gardened together for many years, and when her health began to fail, she needed to rest frequently. Later, she just wanted to be in the garden as I worked and would sit in the nearest shady spot while I completed the task at hand. One of the early garden seats is a swing that is on a metal stand. I purchased that stand at the estate sale of Gladys Kennedy, my grandmother’s cousin, so it was a special seat for Mom. There are also two metal chairs that were purchased at the estate sale of a family friend. They were pink, and that was Mom’s favorite color. They have been painted several times over the years, but always pink. They will need to be painted again this winter, but they will remain pink. Another special bench is a butterfly bench which Mom loved when visiting the Butterfly Palace on a trip to Branson, Missouri. The bench in the “Old House Garden” was fashioned by my nephew, Dwight, using a set of metal wheels that came from her great uncle Tucker Pierce’s farm. Even the swing on the porch has special meaning. It was made by my grandfather, and was one of Mom’s favorite places to entertain guests.
There are many other reminders of Mom in the gardens. As I mentioned, her favorite color was pink, and pink flowers are abundant in the gardens. Many of the pink perennials and pink-flowering shrubs were purchased as gifts for her. She loved to tell the story of the time her friend, Minnie, drove by and admired a double-flowering pink weigela in the yard. Minnie was so distracted by the beautiful bush that she ran off the road and knocked over our mailbox. Mom told Minnie that she should just pull in the driveway next time and take a closer look.
Many of the accessories in the garden also hold precious memories. A large concrete basket planter was actually Mom’s Easter basket one year. Mom loved to jump rope, and would skip rope with her grandchildren when she visited them at school for grandparents’ day. I found a piece of statuary of a girl jumping rope and bought if for her. She loved it, and I think of her every time I pass that piece. Her favorite fountain was a cherub pouring water. Every year, many of my houseplants spend the summer around that fountain. The splash from the fountain waters the plants.
Mom spent most of her 86 years on this earth right here on Sandhill. She and her siblings walked through the woods to the Miller school. She played on the cliff and, since she was very small, she would tell us how she could hide in a crevice between two large rocks. She was quick to tell everyone that dynamite comes in small packages, and that is the way she lived. She worked hard, but loved to have fun.
We shared a lot of good times, but the gardens hold the most precious memories. I went out to do some work in the gardens today, but I spent a lot of time sitting on various seats and remembering the times we spent in the gardens. Sometimes, I think I hear her whisper in the wind chimes that she loved.