Yucca around monument to Mary Ann Gwyn Evans.
Tombstones of Rebecca and Ella Macon Robinson.
We recently stood up and reassembled the Evans monument. The full
inscription reads: MOLLIE Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall
see God Mary Ann wife of LW Evans & Daughter of James & Jane Gwyn Born
Dec 10 1826 Died Oct 20 1852 in the 8 year of her marriage and 26 year
of her age: in the --Triumph of Christian faith through the affect-ion
of her husb-and this monume-nt is erected to her memory. With him it
were idle to tell the world of her virtu-es but their remem-brance is
enshrined in his heart.
Building a
Botanic Garden
This page has plans for a botanic collection at
Springhill Cemetery. Our emphasis is on returning the site to a native
habitat, with an emphasis on plants that provide food and cover for
wildlife while respecting the historic landscape. Cedars and hollies are
very traditional in old Southern cemeteries, so we will make extensive use
of these native evergreens.
A first step in restoring a native landscape is
removing non-native plants. Kudzu, privet and honeysuckle were all
introduced from China and Japan as ornamentals, but they easily escape
from cultivation and threaten native woodlands. Spraying to kill kudzu
began in 2010 with funding from the Natural Resources Conservation
Service and Forest Service. Control will take 2 or 3 years. Then we hope
to plant native species appropriate to loess bluff ravines, like beech,
magnolia, tulip poplar and maples. Other grass and shrubbery has to be
encouraged until the trees can become well-established.
We also want the botanic collection to be
educational, so we have set aside areas for African and Asian plants
that were introduced to the Southern US by the 19th century. A row of
introduced flowering shrubs would make a colorful and fragrant sidewalk
border along Church Street, and show off the plants that had been
introduced from India, China and Japan by the mid 19th century, and
become essential parts of the Mississippi landscape. Besides many of our
garden crops and field crops, there are a number of African ornaments,
including evergreens and flowering bulbs. An African garden or courtyard
could be the setting for a monument to the unknowns lying in unmarked
graves.
Trails should be erosion resistant but soft-surface
so as not not to adversely impact the archaeological information below
the grass at Springhill. As the landscape is established, small signs
will need to be created identifying the different specimens.
Please see the
attached pdf files:
If you would like to contribute plants or time,
please visit the JOIN/DONATE page.
A Volunteer,
Community Effort
The increasingly urban nature of Desoto County
means that green-space for public use is becoming limited, necessitating
the cities and county making the best use possible of the available
resources. If the city is to assume responsibility for care of
Springhill Cemetery, the cemetery should be considered as part of the
land available for public recreation. This would be in complete keeping
with the historical nature of the cemetery, as in the early nineteenth
century the suburban cemetery was explicitly intended as a place for
strolling and contemplation, and family graves were treated as small
gardens. The cooperation and assistance of any garden clubs and
nurserymen in Hernando be sought in improving the landscape materials at
Springhill Cemetery, with an emphasis on heritage materials.
In addition, as the cemetery is within a block of
the city elementary school, it might be possible to persuade science
instructors to use the cemetery as an out-door laboratory to introduce
young students to biology thru practical gardening. See the
EVENTS
page for suggested science learning activities. In time, plantings that
need pruning and dividing could be given to students or other volunteers
for planting out at home, encouraging them to continue gardening.
Obtaining the joint cooperation of garden clubs and schools might prove
a community-building measure, and would give the neighborhood a stake in
the preservation of the cemetery.
Southern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana)
Soil
Soils in the Springhill Cemetery are Memphis silt
loam, eroded, very gently sloping phase (Ma) and Gullied land, Loring
soil material (Gk). The thick loess soil we usually notice today as
yellow dust or soupy mud, originally had deep, dark well-drained, brown
topsoil and an oak climax hardwood forest. High erodibility is a major hazard on loess
soils, so areas of bare ground, particularly on the slopes, should be
avoided. Recommended timber planting for Memphis silt loam
are loblolly pine on eroded places, or perhaps short-leaf pine;
cherrybark, Shumard and white oak on ridge tops; and white or green ash,
basswood, black cherry, cucumber tree and southern magnolia, oaks (cherrybark,
chinkapin, black, Shumard, southern red, water, and white), persimmon,
eastern red cedar, sassafras, sweetgum, black tupelo and yellow poplar
on middle and lower slopes. Seedling mortality should be
slight, but one of the most important things to remember is that there is a significant hazard of erosion when large
equipment is used or the bare soil is exposed to rain, so we should
vegetate the steepest slopes with soil-holding plants as soon as
possible.
February 2011 Planting
Cedar
Redbud
Shummard, cherrybark and overcup oak
Ash--wet drainage area
Blueberry and plum
Mock orange (Poncirus)--west hedge
Moss and fern
Prickly pear and thread-leaf yucca
Daffodils, lily of the valley, garlic, monarda,
liatris, helebore, iris and other flowers
March Flowers
Bridal wreath (Spirea)
Grape hyacinth and daffodils (Old World bulbs)
Henbit and dandelion (Old World spring herbs)
Kudzu Control
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has
sprayed the kudzu, but it usually takes two times to kill it. The kudzu
was planted for erosion control. As soon as the kudzu is gone, we need
to be prepared to keep it from washing again. The trees for a north
facing ravine are:
Tulip poplar
Beech
Maple
Magnolia
Sycamore
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