The Blue Springs Connection
Almost all gardeners love to add a new plant to their garden, and those given by friends are particularly cherished. The gifting of a plant or seeds is a time-honored tradition among those who cultivate the earth. Alice Hand Callaway loved to receive plants from fellow gardeners but also enjoyed sharing her horticultural treasures with others.
Over the years, Alice and her husband, Fuller Jr., were gifted numerous garden plants. While Alice loved receiving plants from friends, she particularly treasured her exchanges with her sister Virginia. After all, Virginia had married Fuller’s older brother Cason, so it was a close family affair.
Once, when visiting Virginia and Cason at their Blue Springs home in Hamilton, Georgia, Alice admired a salmon-colored geranium, so her sister gave her one. To this day, “Sister’s Geranium” is cultivated in the greenhouse at Hills and Dales. In 1946, Virginia and her mother sent Alice a lovely white camellia they found at a nursery in Tallahassee. They selected the white one since it was a variety Alice did not have. Three years later, Alice received numerous large boxwood and wrote to Virginia:
“The Boxwood you gave me were delivered yesterday…They are such large, pretty specimens and really are prettier than the old ones there, they are so much more luxuriant. I appreciate more than I can tell you this wonderful gift and they not only filled a real need but will be treasured because you gave them to me.”
In addition to receiving garden plants, Alice enjoyed sharing her own. In 1956, Alice and Fuller gave Cason and Virginia an assortment of tropical plants to embellish their glasshouse-covered pool at Blue Springs. Cason was so pleased, writing: “I may just relax and enjoy the orchids as they bloom…the Hawaiian Islands at their best…many thanks for the fine plants and many more thanks for the love and friendship which prompted this lovely gift to us.” They also noted the “Pots of Gold that you rooted yourself will have my special affection.”
Even more treasured were three European Larch seedlings grown from a parent plant at Hills and Dales and sent to Cason and Virginia in 1960. These were planted out at Blue Springs and in Callaway Gardens and brought about much happiness.
So, the next time you want to make a gardener smile, give them a plant. You just might get one in return. ~CBW
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