Barbara Bush 2   ... It is strange that a little mud should echo with sounds, syllables and letters should rise up and call a mountain popocatapetl, And a green-leafed wood Oleande.. .  W.H. Turner, Talking With Soldiers   Nomenclature Origin of the Latin Name   Joseph Pitton de Tournefort, a botanist of the late 17th century (1656-1708), established the genus Nerion in 1700; the name was later Latinized by Linnaeus who, in 1737, changed it to Nerium as it is known today. The best description we have for the origin of the genus is fr

Maureen Elizabeth 'Kewpie' Gaido November 11, 1916 -August 19, 1995 Clarence Grant Pleasants April 4, 1930 - December 27, 1995   12   He who is born with a silver spoon in his mouth  is generally considered a fortunate person, but his  good fortune is small compared to that of the happy mortal who enters this world  with a passion for flowers in his soul. Celia Thaxter   Distinguished People   Who Have Contributed to the Worldwide Appreciation of Oleanders   We begin this section by honoring two people who have been the forerunners in advancing the cause of oleanders; "Kewpie" Gaido, t

Under the branches Of the cherry-trees in bloom, None are strangers there. Issa   Acknowledgements   We who love plants and flowers are especially blessed for we belong to one of the world's largest and most beneficent families, those who garden. To work with the earth, to witness her infinite manifestations of beauty, birth and fruition, to share with friends in every geographical climate plants, seeds and horticultural experiences, to awaken each day to new exploration within and without, to plant a seed or a tree, to marvel at the song of a bird or the fragrance of a blossom, and to witness beauty beyond description imbues one with an eternal sense of

13   Happiness is not so much in having as sharing. We make a living by what we get, but we make a lift by what we give. Norman MacEwan   International Oleander Society   Through the vision and initiative of Clarence Pleasants and Kewpie Gaido, the National Oleander Society was founded in Galveston in May of 1967 (the name was later changed to the International Oleander Society) and the society has been instrumental in popularizing oleanders in America ever since. During my last visit with Kewpie in June 1995, just months before her untimely passing, she related the story of how the society came into being. After reading a revi

9   And since to took at things in bloom  Fifty swings are little room,  About the woodlands I wilt go To see the cherry hung with snow. A.E.Housman A Shropshire Lad   Oleanders in the Landscape   In a letter to Clarence Pleasants in Norfolk, Virginia, in July of 1964, Donald J. u nre Superintendent of the Botanical Gardens in Bermuda wrote: "Bermuda is indeed famous for its oleanders. The plant is so prolific and well established that visitors may be forgiven for considering it a native, when in actual fact, it is an introduced subject.... Nathaniel Lord Britton, Ph.D, Sc.D., LL.D., one time Director-In-Chief of the New York Botanical Gardens, had

  Mrs. Burton xvi If thou wouldst attain to thy highest, go look upon a flower; what that does will-lessly , do thou willingly. Friedrich von schiller    Introduction   What a great moment in time to be on earth witnessing such vast changes on all levels of human endeavor, experiencing almost daily technological breakthroughs that promise longer and healthier life, the exchange of information on unprecedented levels and the nascent possibilities of peace on the global horizon. One of the frontiers of our age wh

Ed Barr   Ed Barr   7 It is through flowers that Nature expresses herself most harmoniously. The Mother   Oleanders and Other Poisonous Plants   We would like to preface this section with observations by a number of members of the International Oleander Society concerning the poisonous qualities of oleanders. It is their contention that it has suffered bad press and they hope to rectify I this with factual data. Kewpie Gaido called it her "holy grail" to bring to the atten'' tion of the public the fact that although millions of oleanders are grown in southern Texas and on Galveston Island, there have been no reports of fatalitie