From Our President:

Spring, will it ever come? It is supposed to roll in tomorrow morning. I sincerely hope it does. I am tired of watching snowflakes tease me, cold chill me, and rain filled with sleet trick me. As I wander the Kubota Garden I ponder: what are the creatures, plants, rocks and all the spirits of the garden thinking? As the days tumble by and birds return, the growth of plants resume and the turtles stir again in the Spring Pond, can the warm up of spring be far behind? Then I have to think some more because things really are happening in the garden and the Kubota Garden Foundation is gearing up for another year of activity.

In fact the foundation has already started its activities with the Flower and Garden Show booth, the big March 14th turn out of volunteers to cut ferns in the garden, and the refresher meeting of the Tour Guides. Yes, the foundations activities have gotten off to a good start. If you haven't already, I hope you can join in on the fun and work that fills so many volunteers with pride and joy, and if that is not possible, that you will continue finding joy and pride with your monetary support of the garden.

Much has and will be said and written about the foundation’s support of the garden and it is important to keep you up to date about the foundation’s activities and vision but I would like to spend a little time encouraging you to come visit the garden. I know some of you come often and I also know that some of you have not walked in the garden for some time. You know it's time for you who have not visited in a long time to make that journey to the garden and I don't mean just talk about it but do it.

I wish for you to walk through the open gate and be drawn to look through the hole in the wall of greenery to the vista stretching before you. Then stroll down the path, make the turn to your right and take in the plush and amazing hillside of dwarf conifers. Passing the entrance of the waterfall in the Spring Pond, see if you can spot the pond’s turtles sunning on the rocks. Be sure to look up at the tallest tree in the garden, the Grand Fir, and rub its needles to catch its smell of tangerines. Don't miss the view back over the ponds outlet waterfall; it sparkles.

Glance, no, look deeply, into the Contorted Filbert grove, on your left, as you move down the path and become a kid as you make believe, magic again. At the turn of the path greet the huge rock and its smaller friend that dance with their pine tree partners.

This is just the beginning of your journey. If you haven't been in the garden in awhile, it is time to come. And to one and all, as always, the spirit of the garden is eager to see you again. In good times and troubling times the garden gives back. Come and receive its gift. In peace and patience the Kubota Garden awaits.  See you in the garden

 Rusty Llewellyn, President

From the Gardener:  March 2009:
What a winter it's been--lots of snow, lots of cold but surprisingly little damage to the garden. The first round of weather was the perfect kind, light and dry snow in moderate amounts each day that allowed us to shake and knock it off most of the important plants. One of our major jobs during this time was simply walking the paths to define them so visitors didn't walk on low plants. Behavior was the best I've ever seen during a snow event so I was very happy. I even got in a bit of skiing--just to inspect the garden! The second round of snow was 4" of very heavy, wet stuff on a Sunday night. We came in to find a number of branches on the ground but nothing too major was lost. Winter in Seattle!

During some of the very dark and cold mornings we began an oft discussed project, trying to develop a plant list for the garden. We detailed the 130 Japanese Maples with locations, variety and so on. Someday I envision putting all of this material on the Website with pictures. We also got a good start on many of the other large plant groups such as conifers, deciduous plants and broadleaf evergreens. If there is a web designer out there that would like to assist with this project please let me know.

This winter the Seattle Conservation Core came into the garden and built a two hundred foot woodland trail to the site of the spring that provides year around water to Mapes Creek. Two benches were placed and will be painted in a red and black color scheme visible in several historic photos from years ago. This trail can be found by taking the concrete steps near the Grand Fir across the maintenance road and towards the greenbelt.

Don Brooks, Senior Gardener

Spring Plant Sale, May 2, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.  at Kubota Garden
In a few weeks the Plant Sale volunteers will begin working at the nursery getting ready for the Spring Plant Sale. Chair Rusty Llewellyn welcomes helpers before, during, and after the sale. Work involves arranging plants, pruning, weeding, labeling, setting up tables. Leave a message on the foundation’s voice mail 206 725.5060 and she will call you. We will have conifers, trees, shrubs, perennials and herbs. As usual the prices will be low and the selection various.

The past winter was tough on plants. Plants man, Dan Hinkley, commented on his blog: “The songs sung from plant-minded friends from Portland to Vancouver B.C. have been virtually identical. The losses are staggeringly large and the survivors are well, weird.” Our sale will be a good opportunity to restore your garden.

There are several other reasons to make the effort to get to the garden on May 2:

1. All sale profits go to support Kubota Garden.
2. Since the workers are all volunteers and donors are generous, prices are low.
3. There will be a wide variety of plants, some rare.
4. The Information Center and Master Gardeners will offer good advice.
5. We stock plants that will fit in your car and we will help you load.
6. There are a lot of nice people in Southeast Seattle and many of them will be at our plant sale. Come and have a good time. You may also take home some good plants!

Mary Anne Parmeter

What it Takes to Build a Wall:
In years to come visitors to Kubota Garden will see a wall that looks as if it has always been there: a traditional stucco wall topped with an elaborate wooden under structure and a rusted metal roof. It will secure the garden and set off the plants displayed against the pale beige of the stucco. More than 800 feet long and with many changes in elevation and angle, it will look as if it flew in one night from Old Japan. It didn’t.

There are several steps to building such a wall. It is done in sections because each section is unique. First dig a two and a half foot wide and one foot deep hole the length of a section, line hole with wooden forms, place rebar horizontally for strength and vertically to attach to the future wall. Fill hole with cement. Build wall with concrete blocks and mortar in place. Apply the stucco covering. Paint. Build the wooden roof structure and attach same to the wall. Apply metal roof.

This spring students from the carpentry program at Seattle Central Community College are working on the roof sections just left of the entrance. Chris Burdge of the foundation is leading the project. This is an internship program; they receive class credit for their work. So far this spring, South Central Community College students Mat Wengler, Spencer Dobrich, Byung Soon, and Will Browning have worked on the roof. They go to class two days a week and work at Kubota the other days. Brian Brooks, is also working on the roof and Chris says that he is very impressed with the enthusiasm and quality of work from his crew.
Photo courtesy of Joy Okazaki

Last fall Turner Construction carpenters led by Jim Luster also worked on the roof and hopefully they will return. Last fall footings, 108 feet, were constructed by the Seattle Central Community College carpentry students. The section, to the right of the entrance gate, is now ready for the concrete block to be laid by the apprentices led by Terry Hays from the local masons union and the International Masonry Institute. Work will proceed in that direction in May and June. Once again the concrete block and mortar will be donated by Basalite and Pacific Coast Building Products.

Original cost estimates for the wall were in the $600 a foot range. Thanks to generous and talented volunteers, apprentices and student workers, the foundation estimates our costs will be less than half of the original estimate. Foundation members Bob Weisenbach, Wayne Fricke and Chris Burdge have donated skills, gathered donations, selected materials, coordinated the donated labor, and managed the project.

The work is proceeding in sections and will take several years. This is a classic example of how the foundation can multiply benefits for the garden and use the wall construction project to teach the young workers their new skills. We are thrifty and we take longer, but we get results.  Photos courtesy of Carol Volpe.

Mary Anne Parmeter

Garden Tours in 2009:
The Garden Guides celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with green cookies and training for a new year of garden tours. Shirley Roe and her son Adam are welcome new guides. The foundation now has thirteen guides trained to lead historical and horticultural tours of Kubota Garden. Don Brooks led us around pointing out the wall extension and new plants and plans. The new Ravine Trail was stunning in the sunlight. It offers a completely unique garden experience: a view of the source of Mapes Creek, Skunk Cabbages, fern encrusted trees and two new benches. A quiet sit there should offer good birding.

Public Tours will be held on the fourth Saturday at 10 a.m., April through October. The tours take about an hour and forty-five minutes and are designed to give a good overview of the garden. Tours for eight or more visitors may be scheduled at other times by calling the foundation’s voice mail number three weeks in advance.

 A Moment in Time:
It was my second tour of the new season and the twenty members of the group had expressed surprise that a garden so large could be so well cared for by a city crew of three professional gardeners. I did indicate that thousands of hours of volunteer work added to their effort and suggested that we would always welcome more help. Still, the fact that a crew this tiny could be the center of an outcome this impressive seemed to cling to the group’s perception and enjoyment of the garden.

As the tour came to its last steps and we neared the exit from the garden we chanced upon Giles . I said “Hi, how good to see you again.” Then I turned to the group and introduced Giles as one of the dedicated “few” I had told them about. The entire group, twenty strong, broke into a sustained round of applause. Giles was a little overwhelmed and maybe even a bit embarrassed. Me? I was surprised. Why? It was, after all, just a case of love at first sight.

Clark Puckett, KGF Tour Guide

 Adopt-A-Park Work Parties in 2009:
On the third Saturday, April through October, volunteers work at the garden under the guidance of the professional staff. Tools and treats are provided. The work party starts at 8 A.M. and ends at noon but you are welcome to come at any time. This is a convivial and useful way to help the garden. It changes your perspective.

 2009 February, The Northwest Flower and Garden Show:
Another Flower and Garden Show has come and gone. Every January I browse through my seed catalogs and look out the window at the rain as I long for spring. I look forward to February and the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. For me, it is the first sign of brighter days to come.

When you arrive at the show, you’re greeted with the heavenly scent of hyacinth, the beautiful display gardens that inspire you, the shopper’s paradise and the information booths, like our Kubota Garden Foundation booth. This year we were in a great location–next to the Hardy Fern Foundation and across from the Northwest Bamboo Society.

If attendance was down, you wouldn’t have known it. We handed out over 1500 spring newsletters which included our yearly calendar of events, volunteer opportunities, a membership enrollment form and much more. Hopefully we will gain some new members and volunteers from our efforts. I heard nothing but good reports from the volunteers who manned our booth.

Here Rob Crosby and foundation Secretary Sharon Brown welcome visitors. I want to thank each one of you for coming and doing such a great job of representing our Foundation and I hope fun was had by all. Thanks again to Steve Erickson and President Rusty for helping with set up and take down, and also to Jem Wear and Sterling Smith for packing everything up on the last evening of the show. Let’s hope this won’t be the last Flower and Garden event. It would surely be missed.

Phyllis Grant, KGF Treasurer

At the Flower and Garden Show, With Three Generations of Kubotas:
On Sunday Amy (Mrs. Tom) and her granddaughter Angie Kubota-Wolbert worked at the Kubota Garden booth at the Flower and Garden Show. They brought along Angie’s seven year old son, Alex. Alex is a first grader at Renton Christian School and he likes to talk to people. After looking over the pictures in the exhibit Alex took a handful of our purple handouts and stood right in the middle of the aisle asking everyone who went by “Have you visited Kubota Garden?” A lady asked him what she could do there and he told her she could walk and run and bring her dog if it was on a leash. The lady asked if she could bring her rabbit and Alex told her she could as long as it was on a leash.

Amy and Angie just sat and watched as Alex pointed out pictures of Great-Great Grandfather Fujitaro Kubota and Great Grandfather Tom Kubota. He also told them they could pick up a map in the parking lot “Because it is a big garden and you could get lost.” It is good to know that the youngest generation of the Kubota family is already willing and able to help the garden.

Another Successful Fern-Cutting Party, March 21, 2009:
The weather cooperated, the volunteers worked hard, and now Kubota Garden’s ferns are ready to unfurl and grace the garden with fresh bright green fronds. It always amazes participants how much can be accomplished when a group focuses on one task. Marcia High, gardener, was kept busy picking up and hauling away huge piles of last year’s fronds. Piles would magically appear at another spot with no one in sight. Elves doing the job and disappearing. Pretty cool….

Thank you, kudos, and well done to these Aki Kurose Middle School students. They undertook the tedious task of weeding the gravel path in the Tom Kubota Stroll Garden. Their laughter and good cheer brightened the garden: Robert Berry, Oscar Cervantes,Edward Chao, Robert J. Garcia, Chou Lor, Christa Meg Pereyra, Somenta Pov, and Juan Torres. They were supervised by volunteer Giles Moorish.

Hacking away at the ferns were: Steve Erickson, Phyllis Grant, John Hagen, Ursula Haigh, Sandy Hutchinson, Joan Jevnikar, Gwenda Llewellyn, Rusty Llewellyn, Mary Anne Parmeter, Susan Roberts, Bridget Rowe, Shirley Rowe, Jim Steputis, Pauline Steputis, David Thomas, Sharlene Welsh, and myself.  Thanks to all.

Jean Hobart., KGF Board Member

Memories of Mr. Kubota:
Coming from a family reunion in Portland my head was filled with childhood memories as we turned off Interstate 5 onto Martin Luther King and made our way toward the south end of Lake Washington. Marilyn called my attention to the sign. Could that be the Kubota family I knew seventy years ago as a little kid before the War? I wanted to know more. We were headed for the home of my childhood friend Tom Winter and his new wife Corinne McComber. Later at dinner I asked Tom and Corinne if they knew anything about the Kubota Garden sign. “Oh yes, we are quite familiar with the Kubota Garden,” Corinne said. It is now a public park owned and operated by the City of Seattle. Then she asked, “Jim, why are you interested in a garden in South Seattle when you grew up miles away in the northeast part of the city?”

 in Laurelhurst, west of the University of Washington on the northern part of the Lake. My parents moved to Seattle in 1926 when it was a frontier logging town. They built a large house in the new neighborhood of Laurelhurst, and hired an enterprising Japanese gardener to plant a spacious lawn, blue spruce and fir trees, a brilliant camellia bush, and a rich variety of flowers and shrubs. His name was Kubota. Dad was away on business much of the time, and Mom had four small children to care for, so Mr. Kubota came once a week from his South Seattle home to take care of our yard.

He was a pleasant and reserved man who took time to talk with me – I was fascinated by his accent and he was the only Asian person I knew. Mr. Kubota seemed more like a family friend than an employee. Since we used the bushes and trees as hiding places for our incessant games of hide-and-seek, red light-green light, or capture the flag, he kept telling us to be careful of stepping on the flowers or breaking the branches of the shrubs. He was always polite when he spoke: “Please, Jimmy, take care of pretty flowers.”

One of my favorite memories as a seven year old child was a visit to Mr. Kubota’s landscape garden near Seward Park in South Seattle. I can still recall the hidden ponds of water, paths winding past flowering bushes over small hills, and most of all the miniature bonsai trees that I had never seen before. We were welcomed by the whole Kubota family even though speaking English was difficult for some of them, and we felt at home in that garden of beauty and mystery.

Suddenly Mr. Kubota stopped coming to care for our yard and I missed him. I asked my Dad, “What happened to our friend, Mr. Kubota?” I was told about President Roosevelt’s declaration that all Japanese people on the west coast would be interned in camps for the duration of the War. I could not understand why a nice man like Mr. Kubota and his family would be put in prison camps, and my Dad told me he thought it was wrong for our government to treat Japanese-American people this way. He said he would try to help Mr. Kubota and work with others to save the landscape garden in South Seattle if he could.

I do not know exactly what Dad did, but there are two incidents that lead me to believe he followed through on helping his Japanese friend. In 1942 the doorbell rang in our Laurelhurst home and my older brother Art opened the front door. An FBI agent flashed his identity card and asked to see Dad about Mr. Fujitaro Kubota. Dad was a reference for the Kubota family and was clearly working to protect them in any way he could. They were taken off to the camps, along with thousands of others, but Dad was part of a group of people who did their best to preserve the garden through the war years.

The second incident came shortly after the war ended and the Japanese families returned to their west coast homes. Mr. Kubota came to our house and invited our entire family to the wedding of his son, which would take place in the Kubota Garden. All six of us drove down to the garden in South Seattle, which was in the process of being restored. The wedding was beautiful with a large crowd of people in attendance. After the ceremony, Mr. Kubota took our family on one of the paths through the garden to a place where the earth rose up before us. We were amazed to see that the sign before

us said, “Symons Hill”. Not only that, but because my brother Tom had a birthday soon, Mr. Kubota brought out a carefully wrapped gift. Tom opened it to find a brand new fishing pole. When I think of what the Kubota family went through from 1941 to 1945 when they lost so much, their generosity in giving an expensive birthday gift to my brother is truly remarkable. It also said something about the esteem in which they held our Dad.

My Dad’s frozen food business went through a difficult time after the war and we were never able to hire gardeners again. We kept the lawn mowed but the rest of the yard suffered. My parents sold their Laurelhurst home in the 1950s, and I lost track of the Kubota family until I saw that sign on August 10, 2008. When Corinne heard my story, she brought me the latest issue of The Kubota Garden Foundation Newsletter. What a

delight to see that my childhood friend, Mr. Kubota, was remembered in such a beautiful way by so many people. I read about the plant sales, flower and garden shows, visits by Seattle dignitaries, public tours, and many volunteers working throughout the year. The family garden I visited in 1941 and at the wedding after the war has turned into the “most impressive and enjoyable Japanese garden in the Seattle area,” to quote the Foundation Newsletter. The vision of the man who was a friend to a seven year old Laurelhurst child has become an inspiration to a whole City.

Jim Symons, September 8, 2008

Editor’s Note:

The wedding mentioned in this story was the wedding of Tom and Amy Kubota. Tom was the youngest son of Fujitaro Kubota and he designed and built The Tom Kubota Stroll Garden. Your editor talked with Amy and asked if she had any memory of “Symons Hill.” She did not recall that but mentioned that from the time Tom was ten years old he took the bus every weekend from Alder Street in the International District to neighborhoods north of Lake Washington. His weekend job was to water the gardens there since there were no irrigation systems at that time. Amy chuckled as she remembered being amazed that a little boy would be put on the bus to go so far away from home to work. “I was a little country girl,” she said. “I grew up in Bellevue.”

The 2008 Tour Report:
Another successful year completed. We had tour guides available for groups from preschoolers to seniors for a total of thirty-five groups. It is rewarding to see preschoolers making discoveries (“Fish in the pond!”) and seniors discovering the beauty if the garden (“Why haven’t I been here before?”).

2008 showed an increase of participants at our public tours held on the last Saturday of the month. The smallest group was sixteen and the largest twenty-six, twice. The increased attendance probably reflects more awareness and publicity about the garden.

Hugs and kisses to our tour guides. They are always willing and usually available to lead a tour. Their flexibility must also be lauded. We never really know what to expect as far as number goes or the abilities of individuals in a group. Guides must be able to adapt to time constraints, physical limitations, language differences and sometimes rambunctious kids. They handle all with grace and patience and still convey information about Kubota Garden.

Thanks to Linda Dupuis-Fricke, Lois Griswold, Rusty Llewellyn, Mary Ellen Mulder, Mary Anne Parmeter, Clark Puckett, Katie Tamada, Joe Toynbee and Ann Wiltse. They have helped thousands of people learn about and admire the garden.

Private tours are available any time for groups of eight or more.. Please spread the word to your community and service groups. We love to show off all the things happening at the garden.

Jean Hobart, KGF Board member Garden Guide, and Tour Scheduler,

Adopt-A-Park in 2008 –Continuing to Build Our Volunteer Base:
The Kubota Garden certainly attracts wonderful people! Our Adopt-A-Park work parties through the 2008 year proves that a small group of dedicated people can accomplish great things.

2008 brought new faces and surprises to our Saturday mornings. We started the year with a huge group at our annual fern-cutting party – a whopping 28 volunteers participated! April brought a work party to remember… extreme cold and snow! Needless to say, only a few of the hardiest braved the weather longer than an hour. The next months were filled with fun along with productive activity: we did entrance gate maintenance (sealing and waxing), some weeding, some mulching, more weeding, some pruning, even more weeding, some dead-heading, a bit more weeding, and some maple-seedling potting. Oh, did I mention weeding? I might also mention that weeding in a gorgeous garden with lively conversation is hardly a chore, but is actually enjoyable.

Mid-way through the mornings we took snack breaks, and, on the coldest mornings, luxuriated with tea and coffee breaks inside the warm and staff building. We always had wonderful conversations with each other and with the particular Kubota staff member present each month. Marcia High, Giles Morrish, and Don Brooks are chock-full of gardening information and interesting tit-bits of Kubota Garden improvements and history – we thank them hugely for all they do.

The garden offers its beauty and natural wonders while volunteers offer their appreciation by lending their hand and time for a few hours each month. We thank them very much and wish to recognize them here:

Kay Bowen, Anne Avery, M. Lyceth Czerniski, Steve Ericksen, Suzanne James, James Justus, Mer Mel, Richard Knight, Rusty Llewellyn, Dylan O’Kimato, Mary Anne Parmeter, John Ross, Shirley Rowe and her kids Adam and Bridget, Gem and Jody Saspa, Lynn Hoisington, Carrie Tracy, Richard Wright, and Hongyan Zhang. If I missed any of you who had helped, I’m sorry and thank you!

We hope 2009 will be at least as successful with our AAP volunteer program and look forward to having you and other new visitors come out to (work) party with us!

Alison Snow

Giving to the Garden:
Kubota Garden Foundation volunteers are of diverse backgrounds and cultures, yet in the spirit of enhancing this treasured place we work to preserve and promote Kubota Garden. This year more of the ornamental entry is being built and a platform is planned to overlook the Spring Pond. Several projects are planned to enhance parking, accessibility, and infrastructure. With your continued support, Kubota Garden Foundation will achieve even more in 2009.

We have several easy ways you can make a tax-deductible gift to enhance Kubota Garden’s most important projects:

Gift of cash by mail: You can make an outright gift by check, payable to Kubota Garden Foundation. Since we are a thrifty, all volunteer, organization, ninety percent of every donation goes directly to enhance the garden. Send it to: The Kubota Garden Foundation,  PO Box 78338,  Seattle, WA 98178-0338

Securities: By donating appreciated stocks, bonds, and mutual fund shares that have been owned for more than one year, you can minimize capital-gains tax on assets donated to Kubota Garden Foundation. Generally, the full market value of gifts of appreciated securities is tax-deductible. Instruct your broker or bank to transfer your stock gift (contact us and we’ll provide the details). Please also contact us at 206 725.5060, and let us know your name, the name of the company, and the number of shares you are donating so that we may initiate the transfer and acknowledge your gift.

Monthly giving program: By setting up a monthly gift via check or electronic funds transfer, you join the Garden Team and provide crucial ongoing support for Kubota Garden’s work to enhance this treasured place.

Memorial and tribute gifts: You can pay tribute to someone special by making a gift to Kubota Garden in their memory or honor. We’ll notify your honoree or their family of your generous gift with a special greeting card and a one year complimentary membership including our newsletter.

Matching gifts: Many companies will match employees’ contributions, doubling your support to Kubota Garden, even if you are now retired. Send your contributions to Kubota Garden Foundation along with a matching gift form which you can obtain from your company’s personnel or employee relations office.

Planned gifts and bequests: Life income gifts, such as a charitable gift annuity of a charitable trust, can provide you (or a loved one) with income for life, in addition to capital gains and income tax benefits. You can also give to Kubota Garden Foundation after your lifetime, through a provision in your will or living trust. You may wish to consider including us as a beneficiary of your retirement plan or life insurance policy. Sample language for wills and trusts: I give and bequeath to Kubota Garden Foundation, Tax Id Number 911 451 825, the sum of $________(or____% of the rest and remainder of my estate, or____% of my estate).

If you would like more information about supporting our work, please contact the Kubota Garden Foundation at 206 725.5060. All inquiries are treated confidentially and the foundation does not share membership information.

Thank you all for your continued support …please continue to bring your friends and loved ones to visit Kubota Garden and join in being part of this grand experience.

Linda Dupuis-Fricke, KGF Board Member

Fond Memories

Jeanette Williams, November 5, 2008
I am just back from attending the Memorial Service for Jeanette Williams, the City Councilwoman who wrote the 1987 ordinance acquiring Kubota Garden for the city. She worked tirelessly on this project at a time when many in government and in the city did not see the value of adding additional green space. After her retirement and until her passing at ninety-four years, she worked to establish Magnuson Park as a space beneficial to the entire city. It was a pleasure to see her at the inauguration of the Tom Kubota Stroll Garden in May of 2000. She and Tom were companions-in-arms after years of effort to establish Kubota Garden as a public space.

Her memorial gathering at the Seattle Town Hall was attended by two past governors of the state of Washington, three past mayors of Seattle and one present one, the present city council and many past members, as well as many friends associated with her efforts to advance the civil rights of all people and the improvement of the public domain.

She had once remarked to a friend that they did funerals best in New Orleans. When the formal memorial statements were finished, her son asked for the formation of a “Second Line” procession. With boas, umbrellas, and twirling handkerchiefs her friends danced around Town Hall, giving good notice that hers was a life to be celebrated, savored, and remembered with appreciation and thanks.

Mary Anne Parmeter

Remembering Jim Sandmeyer:
Kubota Garden has lost a wonderful friend. Many of you will remember Jim from the Fall and Spring plant sales. He was the one with the huge smile helping David Shea sell the Japanese maple trees. He was energetic, knowledgeable, good humored and in love with all Japanese maples! He never met one he didn’t try to identify, evaluate, talk about and prune at the garden and/or in your yard.

Jim would arrive at an Adopt-A-Park workshop in the morning, pruners in hand and agenda in mind. He would say, “I think I’ll work on that (name of the maple) today.” And off he’d go. Don Brooks, our head gardener had given him permission in the early years to prune freely. Don had seen his expertise and loved Jim’s dedication.

One time as we were working in the Tom Kubota Stroll Garden, Jim came trekking across the lawn to ask if he was taking too much off a tree. As he pruned, shaping the tree a beautiful open shape emerged, perfectly framed against the wall.

Jim passed away October 12, 2008. The celebration of Jim’s life was held at the Everett Legion Hall. The hall is located adjacent to the Everett Arboretum where Jim cared for their extensive collection of Japanese maples. They had a handsome large maple in the front corner of the room that will be part of their collection. We are grateful to Jim for all his time and help at Kubota Garden and in many of our supporter’s yards. We will miss his smile, knowledge, craftsmanship and enthusiasm.

Jean Hobart and Linda Dupuis-Fricke, KGF Board Members

A Little Wish List .....

• The foundation office needs a Fix-It person to keep the building in better repair. Nothing major, just things like repairing the office sign (carpentry), painting the rusted door, washing the mold off the porch shingles and repainting, etc. We have tools and materials and the office would be so grateful and look so much better.
   

• The foundation’s membership is held in an Access data base. Someone comfortable with Access could be very helpful in generating reports that are beyond our current capability. This will not take much time or be requested very often but would be greatly appreciated.
   

• Some gardens greet visitors with a little display of whatever plants are in bloom. We don’t have a Visitor Center but we do have a kiosk. Someone with a digital camera willing to walk through the garden monthly to take pictures which could be posted at the kiosk would be performing a useful service. Interested?
   

For all of the above please respond by leaving your contact information at the foundation’s voice mail number 206 725.5060.

The Public Health Connection:
I have been volunteering at Kubota Garden for twenty years now. Sometimes after leading a tour I try to explain to myself why I feel so good about introducing people to Kubota Garden. Yes, it is great fun to show off a lovely place, to tell people about the history, to point out an especially interesting plant, but I sense a deeper value to visiting Kubota Garden. I feel refreshed and notice that new visitors often are giddy with enjoyment as they leave.

Friends tell me that they visit the garden to think about complicated and unsettling situations and life choices. Tranquility and beauty help them to find the inspiration and energy to move on. One friend told me “It’s a good place to think!” I do often tell people that Kubota Garden is a source of psychological and physical health for the lucky people of Seattle. I have felt a bit pretentious saying that but now I have scientific support.

The Lancet is a prestigious English medical journal. In the November 7, 2008 issue two scientific papers were published discussing the effects of green spaces upon public health. One study looked at the health records of 366,000 people who died between 2001 and 2005. The study revealed that even tiny green spaces in the areas where they lived made a big difference in their risk of fatal disease, especially in heart disease and stroke. Other studies indicated that the reduction in blood pressure and stress levels promoted faster healing after surgery.

The most striking finding to me was that the beneficial aspects of access to green space overcame the health deficits associated with poverty; that poor people able to enjoy green space are significantly healthier than poor people without.

This does seem like common sense. We all know that getting outside and walking and breathing fresh air is good for us, somehow. The study in The Lancet looked at a population of forty million English people. With many graphs and charts and statistical statements and with 46 footnotes, the authors maintained that green spaces are good for all of us. They called for “planning authorities to consider making more green spaces available to improve the
health and well being of their residents.” Indeed.

In November, 2008, Seattle voted a six year levy for Parks which will dedicate over 144 million dollars to the acquisition, development and enhancement of green space in the city. A Russian friend of mine once told me that “A good laugh is worth two pounds of carrots!” Seattle knows that a walk in a park is priceless.

Mary Anne Parmeter

For the article about the studies please look at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/7714950.stm

Japanese Garden Lecture, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Saturday, April 25, 2 to 5 p.m.
Landscape architect Marc Peter Keane and Kendall Brown discuss the historical and spiritual aspects of the Japanese garden, past and present. Keane explores the importance of poetry and gardens in the Heian period (794-1185) and Brown reflects on how Japanese gardens have influenced Western gardens. A reception follows the program.

Marc Keane’s Japanese Garden Design offers wonderful appreciation and analysis and Kendall Brown’s Japanese-style Gardens of the Pacific West Coast features Kubota Garden.Tickets: non-members $8, students and seniors $6 and SAM members $4. Call 206 654.3121 to order tickets or e-mail at boxoffice@seattleartmuseum.

2008 Kubota Garden Foundation Officers
 Rusty Llewellyn, President
Marguerite Russell, Vice-President
Phyllis Grant, Treasurer
Sharon Brown, Secretary
Jeff Izutsu , Historian
Mary Anne Parmeter, Newsletter Editor
Zee Straight-Weiss and Linda Dupuis-Fricke, Past Presidents
 

Georgia Kinkade, Web Master

 Foundation Voice Mail Telephone: 206 725-5060