2nd Place - 2006 Texas Master Gardener Awards

The Neil Collins Memorial Rose Garden is a 1000 square foot rose garden built in memory of the first president of the Parker County Master Gardener Association (PCMGA). Neil was also a Tarrant County Master Gardener and great rose enthusiast. This is a very fitting memorial to him. Fresh soil and manure were tilled in along with expanded shale, which opens up the clay soil we encounter here. Super Grass Dirt a subdivision of Smelley Dairy donated the beautiful chocolate brown hardwood mulch which gives the beds a finished look.  The PCMGA built the wooden arbors themselves and erected them with help from spouses.  The steel arbor was made by Juan Carrillo of J.C.’s Welding and Fabrication.

The garden includes two eight-foot trellises designed and built by PCMGA members. The walkway is made of decomposed granite with a wrought iron bench. The roses were chosen with strict criteria and will do well here. Each rose’s name is labeled with decorative bricks that the group made themselves.  A few roses were donated in honor of Neil.  As the plants grow, the garden will be an enjoyable addition for the residents of Aledo and a perfect place to take pictures when the roses bloom.

Resources included The Texas A&M website. Information from other State Land Grant Colleges and Universities were used as well as gardening books authored for our area such as the real dirt, a Gardening Handbook for Parker County written by PCMGA members. Researched horticulture information was gathered from Extension Agents and the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens in choosing roses for the garden as well as information researched through the Earthkind web page and visits to CEMAP in Dallas.

All planning, designing, implementation and maintenance for these gardens is done by PCMGA members. The City of Aledo, the Board of Directors for Aledo Community Center and the Park and Recreation Committee for Aledo have all donated funds. Private donations were also given for the memorial rose garden. The PCMGA has given full support as well as donated funds each year to this ongoing project.

The Parker County Master Gardeners meet every Wednesday morning as volunteers plant and maintain the gardens at Aledo City Hall and Aledo Community Center across the street.

Leila Collins (Neil's Wife) plants a rose at his memorial garden