Volunteers at public gardens find satisfaction in hard work and gratification in growth

AS A RETIRED nurse, Kate Lindsey is used to being useful, and retirement isn’t slowing her down. Among her favorite activities these days: pitching in at Kruckeberg Botanic Garden in Shoreline. 

“This is the most wonderful place to be — my hands in the dirt; trees and plants; smart people,” she says, as she pulls nails out of old wood. Those “smart people” include the garden’s horticulturalists. “They know what the plants are and what they need. And they’re just plain nice, dedicated people.” 

Dean Weller, working with a crowbar nearby, agrees. “It’s a fun group to work for, and with,” he says. 

On this day, the volunteers are cleaning up a former work and storage area. The task includes dismantling an old wooden bin that is full of sand. The volunteers cheerfully pull apart rotting wood and haul away empty plant pots. 

They’re working near a massive sequoia the likes of which I rarely see in Seattle. Like most of the trees and shrubs here, it was planted by the garden’s creators, Art and Mareen Kruckeberg, who started making their backyard into a model miniature forest when they moved to this 4-acre property in 1958. The city of Shoreline bought it in 2008, and the garden has been open to the public since. 

Volunteer shifts are each Thursday; a core group of regulars comes almost every week. The garden also brings in occasional corporate groups and Scout troops, and it hosts a summer-camp program for high school students. 

I thought most of the regular volunteers would be retirees, but they span a wide age range. Weller is here with his sons Michael and William, recent high school graduates. Helping in the garden was Michael’s idea; he needed to do volunteer work to graduate from high school, and, “It’s satisfying to work in a garden that other people visit,” he says. Along with the cleanups, they’ve helped decorate for events such as Halloween. 

As any home gardener knows, keeping a garden healthy and beautiful is a lot of work. Every public garden relies on volunteers; the easiest way to get involved is to check in with the one nearest you. Seattle Parks and Recreation, for example, has ongoing volunteer opportunities that allow you to get dirty helping beautify public spaces. 

“Volunteerism as a whole is a key component of our success,” Kruckeberg Botanic Garden’s executive director, Joe Abken, tells me. He’s hoping to expand volunteer roles to include docents who greet visitors and answer questions. “This is the community’s garden,” he says, and he wants it to feel that way. 

The hands-on, getting-dirty aspect is part of gardening’s appeal. One of my first volunteer activities upon moving to Seattle was ripping out ivy in the West Duwamish Greenbelt; few things are more satisfying after a day of computer gazing than yanking ivy out of a tree and watching it pile up. 

That’s the other great thing about gardening: The fruits of your labors are easy to see. By the end of today’s two-hour shift at Kruckeberg, the area is transformed. 

“So much of what you do, you don’t get to see a completion of it. Here, you do,” Dean Weller says. “You can look back and see a clear trail, or the green composting bins are full and ready to be picked up.”