We will cross many milestones as we work towards the opening day of Tibbleburrow. From meeting the folks interested in making this dream a reality to building the networks needed to design and construct our vision, it might feel as if we are held hostage at times because of one significant need. One that is essential to bring our vision to life is a piece of property! It will allow us to Live in this dream and not be reminded of the world we set behind us for a time. To feel like we are walking into a town that has been here for generations.
With that goal in mind, we can still do a bit of preparing for when we do finally have the land.
One of the first things we will do is design the resort's layout, working with you and with students to create the roads and gardens and decide on the building placements.
Then, we need to lay out foundations, roads, and utilities. As that is happening, our gardening crew begins the layout of the gardens and flora of the park. That will be a long time in the future but in the meantime, we can start planning and prepping for that day. So... there is an opportunity for you to contribute. Fall is Here; we can collect seeds and begin germinating and cultivating the flora we will fill our park with. The prairies will have paths to walk, but the majority of the open land will have the natural wild, overlapping seasonal flowers and grasses, herbs, and a home for the birds. We need to begin the collection of old-growth species.
If we begin to seed when we plant, we will have the number of plants to fill the designed areas. Whole sections of pampas grasses and cat tails. Fields of Blue cilia and trilliums in March to white daisies and Blue wildflowers in early summer to sunflowers and Queen Ann’s Lace in early autumn, so flowers will bloom every month and season. A Greenhouse can help us get a jump on our plants, protecting them as they grow and giving them time to mature and be ready for the time our Landscape team gets to plant. Vast hedges of Annabelle Hydrangea, kiwi, grape, and wisteria vines. Specialty trees will give an otherworldly feel, and fruiting orchards, of course, are a homey touch.
Visit the blog post “ Looking for the Entenvives” to see our plans for our Community Memory Gardens in more detail.
But in the meantime, we are looking for small ways you can bring your excitement to the table. The growing season is coming to a close, and the seeds will be much easier to find in the coming months. You may even be able to find seeds from some of the summer and spring flowering plants. We already have gardeners, landscape designers, and horticulturists joining the team. We are looking to propagate many plants from seeds, so we will have control over their growth in this climate, and to be honest, it will take thousands upon thousands of dollars of out landscaping bills if we do it from the ground up instead of buying what could be grown anywhere. If we grow as much as we can ourselves, we can use that money to buy something special for Tibbleburrow. We have our P.O. Box for your donations, so go find a milkweed pod, stick a few in the ground for the Monarch butterflies, and send the rest to us. Find a package of the giant pure white pampas grass. Send it in! Can you see that being used for the wedding arches and table display? Magical!!
It can be a perfect time to take a walk and teach the kids or friends about your favorite wildflower. Mine? I just mentioned it. Milkweed is not only the monarch's dependent on it, but the flower itself is a weird rubbery Pom Pom of a flower with an interesting smell. I fell in love with it before I knew the seed pod belonged to it. After I learned that, I loved every aspect of this dear plant. In recent years, I have been learning about the origin of some of our herbs and medicinal plants, like willow bark and aspirin. Peppermint is good for upset stomachs and headaches, and an assortment of aroma therapies. Those and many others are also a welcome addition.
So, in your wanderings, keep a couple of paper bags in your pocket if you run across something you think would be a nice addition to Tibbleburrow. Take a picture, write a description of the plant and where you found it, and send a story about why you thought of it. Our crew will catalog and properly store the donated seeds until we can get started on the fun part.
Links to learn about the harvesting, storage, and transportation of seeds,
Our guidelines and warnings- any invasive species will not be introduced, the DNR will be consulted, and we will follow their recommendations.
If you do send something, shoot us a pic on FB or Instagram and tag us.
Can't wait to see what your favorites are!!
We invite you to register for our email list at the bottom of each page on our Website.
Consider becoming a Patron and get in on the special giveaways and official invitations. Memberships at $3, $10, $25, $100.
Ask questions, start conversations, and please don't be shy about sharing this with those you know will want to know that we are building Hobbiton.
Your excitement will be the key to this becoming real!
This will be a family-friendly destination, safe from the crowded floors of hotels, and much more affordable than taking a trip to the movie set tour.
Our goal is to make it more real than the movie set because, well, it will be!
Real time to spend in the gardens,
Real memories you give and receive,
Real homes to spend the precious night's sleep in.
If every Tolkien Fan Gave $10 towards this project,
we could fund, build, and staff it in record time.
What will you do to bring it to life?
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