A Parish Tribute: The Thompson Memorial Crocus Lawn
In loving memory of Diane and Jim Thompson, the founders of the St. Mary Anne’s Annual Garden Market, the Vestry approved the creation ofThe Thompson Memorial Crocus Lawn in the churchyard.
We will naturalize a portion of our historic churchyard with crocuses, especially the areas closest to the church and the oldest gravestones. We intend to plant thousands of crocuses this fall, and over the next few years. The more we plant, the more spectacular the showing as a beautiful and lasting tribute to Diane and Jim’s legacy.
Why Crocuses?
- They are a harbinger of spring—and symbolize youthfulness and cheerfulness.
- They bloom for three to six weeks in late February and early March—and would bloom each year on the anniversary of Diane’s passing (Feb. 24, 2020).
- The purple blossoms, the color of our Lenten season, are a late winter reminder that spring is on the way, as well as the Garden Market!
We are ordering specific bulbs, Crocus tommasinianus often called, “Tommies” (a nice coincidence!). Features of this specific crocus are:
- Thrives in well-drained soil, and can tolerate both sun and shade
- Squirrel and deer resistant
- Flourishes in our hardiness zone, and on untreated lawns
- One of the first pollen sources available to bees and native pollinators in early to mid-spring. (A real plus for our environment and bee survival. Diane fully supported bee survival efforts.)
- Easy to plant in the fall (3 to 4” deep hole in the soil)
- After blooming in late February and early March, leaves—resembling short tufts of grass—are easy to mow just weeks later.
- Leaves will not damage historic gravestones or lawn equipment
- No invasive root systems, since it is a bulb plant
- Plants can blossom for up to 30 years–and in some cases up to 50 years.
- They reseed and get thicker each year.
A Parish Activity
This autumn, we will schedule a parish wide planting day of parishioners, and invite friends and family of Diane and Jim to help. The date, in either October or November, depends on weather and soil conditions. As an outside parish activity, we will social distance so planters can feel comfortable and safe from Covid.
If you plan to purchase bulbs for this church activity, in honor of Diane and Jim, we hope that you or a family member can plant them. We will work to find additional planting volunteers on that day, but cannot guarantee it. If physically unable, please let us know so we can determine the number of extra volunteers required.
Our goal this year is to concentrate crocus planting in our oldest churchyard areas in honor of Diane and Jim. However, parishioners are welcome to order additional crocus bulbs to plant on their family plots, with the exception of future burial sites, and are responsible for planting those bulbs at another time.
A bag of 100 bulbs costs $12.00 . To order a bag of bulbs in Diane and Jim’s memory, please send a check to St. Mary Anne’s and indicate “Crocus” in the memo line, or visit our website’s Donate page. Deadline for orders is September 1, 2020.
Questions? Karen Schaeffer; karenschaeffer8@gmail.com; 412-613-3789
Please note: This project involved collaboration and research from the following: The 2020 Garden Market Committee—Karen Schaeffer and Dawn Rodenbaugh (Co-Chairs); The Garden Committee—Sande Taylor (Chair) and members Linda Gibeck, Vickie Schultheiss and Barb Balog; The Environmental Committee—Linda Hunt (Chair); and Bruce England (Senior Warden).