Tim Boland
Its beauty is so mysterious, so rare, it stops you in your tracks. The big leaf magnolia, with its expansive white flowers and foot-wide leaves the size of canoe paddles, has captivated visitors to Polly Hill Arboretum for years. Polly Hill grew it from seed and was so awestruck that she named the tree after her husband, Julian Hill.
I enjoyed the story by Cooper Davis that appeared in the Gazette on Dec. 5 titled “Naturalist Rose Treat on the Art of Living at 100.” I have come to know Rose over the last few years and have made time to visit with her for an occasional lunch. My visits are always rewarded with a new story as well as familiar tales illustrating her remarkable life.