[Nfb-krafters-korner] notes from nature for blind adults chat

Tue Apr 4 17:34:02 UTC 2017

Thank you Kathy for taking the time to prepare and present such an 
interesting topic. I thoroughly enjoyed the chat last night.
Tanya

-----Original Message-----
From: Nfb-krafters-korner [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
Behalf Of Cathy Flesher via Nfb-krafters-korner
Sent: Monday, April 03, 2017 8:47 PM
To: 'krafters korner ' <Nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Cathy Flesher <flowersandherbs at gmail.com>
Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] notes from nature for blind adults chat

Nature for blind adults

Sensory gardens

Provide accessible gardens

Nourish the five senses

Smell Scented herbs

Taste fruits, vegetables and herbs

Touch Velvety leaves and shapes of flowers

Hear birds and bees, wind in the trees, water fountain

Braille signs to identify the plants

More reading ON HOW TO DESIGN A SENSORY GARDEN AT:

https://dengarden.com/gardening/How-to-Design-a-Sensory-Garden-for-the-Blind-or-Visually-Impaired

Quote from Helen Keller

It is really they, who were blind, "for they have no idea how fair the flower 
is not to the touch, nor do they appreciate its fragrance, which is the soul 
of the flower.

Locations of sensory gardens

The Gardens of Enchantment is a self-guiding Garden with markers both in 
print & Braille. The Gardens comprise five distinct areas, each containing 
special elements to highlight its own varied beauty, offering the visitor 
many unique experiences. Adjacent to the Garden entrance is a three 
dimensional Garden Guide showing the overall layout.
Hearing Section
The Morning Glory Fountain creates a pleasing sound of falling water. Benches 
around the pool provide a restful spot where visitors may enjoy the songs of 
birds, the sounds of water, and the music of wind chimes.

Taste Section

A 64-foot long elevated bed features herbs of various smells and flavors, 
both annual and perennial. The herbs include thyme, spearmint, chocolate 
mint, chives, fennel, rosemary, sage, dill, sweet marjoram, basil, among 
others.Touch Section
In this section we strive to display plants with different textures - ferns, 
prickly bird nest spruce, mugho pine, and soft and fuzzy lambs ear, the 
satiny leaves of bergenisa, and spiky yucca and red-hot poker. Across the 
path are shrubs offering other interesting textures.

Fragrance Section
This section invites guests to enjoy sweet scented shrubs such as lilacs, 
peanut butter tree, Carolina allspice, and honeysuckle. In the raised beds, 
planted for summer and fall bloom, visitors will experience the scents of 
alyssum, nicotiana, scented geraniums, heliotrope, lilies, curry plant, and 
chocolate cosmos.

Sight Section
This area is the framework for the Garden as a whole. The hedges and trees 
provide a background for the various beds, which are planted mostly with 
bright annuals in the summer. Many sight-impaired people can distinguish 
shape and color, so they can enjoy the masses of color along with their 
sighted friends.

Oral Hull Park Sandy Oregon

Ohio Library for the Blind & Physically Disabled

Sensory garden

The Sensory Garden at the Ohio Library for the Blind and Physically Disabled 
offers visitors a delightful outdoor experience during the growing season. 
The sounds and smells of nature can be enjoyed among plants specially 
selected for their unique textures and fragrances. The current design which 
incorporates a raised elliptical bed is filled with plants that invite 
visitors to breathe in their scents and feel their textures.

17121 Lake Shore Blvd.
Cleveland, Ohio 44110-4006
Phone: 216.623.2911

Rockefeller Park Greenhouse
750 E. 88 St.
Cleveland, OH 44108
(216) 664-3103
 <http://www.rockefellergreenhouse.org/> www.RockefellerGreenhouse.org

Recorded messages at the entrance and at intervals along walkways guide 
visitors through the garden. At the bronze sculpture of Helen Keller kneeling 
at a water pump, visitors can operate the pump and feel water run over her 
hand.

Elizabethan Herb Garden at Mellon Park
Fifth Ave. at Shady Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
(412) 341-8014
 <mailto:lizarddep at verizon.net> lizarddep at verizon.net

Designed and maintained by the Western Pennsylvania Unit of The Herb Society 
of America (HSA), the garden was not designed for the blind, but garden chair 
Liz DePiero has installed large print and Braille signs throughout. The 
garden features culinary, fragrant, Shakespearean and Lewis & Clark beds. Liz 
hosts tours for the blind (and their guide dogs).

Elsie McCarthy Sensory Garden
7637 N. 55th Ave.
Glendale, AZ 85301

Especially designed for the blind and nearly blind, the Elsie McCarthy 
Sensory Garden features a bronzed map at the entrance that helps visitors 
visualize what the park looks and feels like. There are four miniature themed 
parks, a water feature and low stone benches.

Ethel L. Dupar Fragrance Garden
C/O Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind
2501 S. Plum St.
Seattle, WA 98114
(206) 436-2116
 <http://www.seattlelighthouse.org/> http://www.SeattleLighthouse.org

After decades of neglect, the Ethel L. Dupar Fragrance Garden is being 
restored to its former beauty. It features hardy fragrant blossoms, herbs and 
spices, raised beds and a sunken garden. The garden needs plants and 
volunteers. Contact Melissa Mueller.

Garden of Exploration at the Arkansas School for the Blind P.O. Box 668 
Little Rock, AR 72202
(501) 664-1713

Maintained since 1969 by the Arkansas Unit of the HSA, the Garden of 
Exploration features scented, textured and culinary plants, as well as 
brightly colored flowers (marigolds, zinnias, and coreopsis) for those with 
some sight. Contact Betty French.

Martha Franck Fragrance Garden   Morehead School for the Blind
303 Ashe Ave.
Raleigh, NC 27606
(919) 733-6382
 <http://www.nccu-vitp.net/FranckGarden> www.nccu-vitp.net/FranckGarden

Maintained by the Garden Club of North Carolina, the Martha Franck Fragrance 
Garden features a statue of Louis Braille, inventor of the Braille system of 
reading and writing for the blind. The details of the raised sculpture are 
easy to interpret by touch and the inscription is written in Braille. Contact 
Dennis Thurman.

Pappas Horticulture Center

Made possible by a generous grant from the Thomas and Bessie Pappas 
Charitable Foundation and 800 additional donors, the 5,000-square-foot 
facility is a bounty of sensory experiences waiting to be explored. Students 
care for plants, learn to identify their shapes and textures, and splash in 
interactive water fountains in the sunny greenhouse. The Center also houses a 
resource library and three classrooms for planting, crafts and science 
studies. Students sell herbs, flowers and crafts for experience with retail 
work and practice transition skills.

175 North Beacon Street
Watertown, MA 02472

Summer camps for blind adults

Highbrook Lodge

Camp Location: Chardon, OH

Highbrook Lodge is a traditional residential summer camp experience for 
adults, children and families who are blind or visually impaired.

(216) 791-8118

Website:  <http://www.clevelandsightcenter.org/highbrooklodge.aspx> 
http://www.clevelandsightcenter.org/highbrooklodge.aspx

Email:  <mailto:camp at clevelandsightcenter.org> camp at clevelandsightcenter.org

The Oral Hull Foundation For The Blind 
<http://www.oralhull.org/camper-information/>  - Sandy, OR

Six-day sessions ranging from low to high physical activity levels. From 
social to high adventure. Includes white water rafting, kayaking, 
rock-climbing, sailing, skydiving, horseback riding, as well as crafts, going 
to a tactile museum and riding in a speedboat. .

Petting zoos

Learn what a mule, lama, alpaca, sheep, goat and other animals actually look 
like. Learn how to milk a cow. Not just kids can benefit from petting zoos.

They can be found all around the country.

Lake Farm Park

Bird watching

The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes

2600 South Park Boulevard . Cleveland, Ohio 44120 .

Offers information on birds and hosts tours through the park to find and 
identify birds.

This is not specifically an activity for blind adults but I attended a few of 
these walks with a friend. In addition, the Cleveland Sight Center arranged 
for a group of us to walk the trails and listen to the birds. After having 
recently taken the Birdsong course at the Hadley Institute, I was able to 
identify many of the bird class and songs for the participants.

Courses about Nature

Hadley Institute for the Blind

 <http://hadley.edu/ShowCourseDetail.asp?courseid=BRD-101> Enjoying Birdsongs

 <http://hadley.edu/ShowCourseDetail.asp?courseid=GAR-102> Container 
Gardening

 <http://hadley.edu/ShowCourseDetail.asp?courseid=GAR-111> Stress Relief and 
Meditative Gardening

http://hadley.edu/showCourseListing.asp?program=ACE

Winter skiing

Ski for Light,

Skiing. Sharing. Learning. The mission of Ski for Light is to enhance the 
quality of life and independence of visually or mobility-impaired adults 
through a program of cross-country skiing.

 <http://www.sfl.org/> http://www.sfl.org/

Have a great day!!

Cathy F

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