Horticulture took to the road last week to visit gardeners who travel on two wheels - in a wheel chair, that is. Five UMC horticulture students jumped in their cars to present a garden program at the Villa St. Vincent nursing home in Crookston, MN on a February morning.

    The students started off by transplanting and doctoring house plants from the Villa's halls and rooms. The residents and nurses watched them flip pots upside down, shuffle plants to new pots, mix soil and fertilizer, and water them. As they worked, they explained the best ways to water the plants, what kind of light they liked, and how much food the plants needed to grow up healthy .

    The students experienced a new realization; no boundaries exist in horticulture. A garden does not have to be outside or be a certain size. There are no age limits to be considered a gardener either.

    Ruth, a resident at the Villa, brought her house plants in for a little checkup and was very pleased to have them repotted and watered. Ruth happens to be 97 years old. She asked questions and enjoyed some hot cocoa while the Hort. students worked.

    "It made us feel like experts," the students said to their advisors, when they got back to campus. "They (the nurses and residents) asked us all sorts of questions. It was fun to know that other people were interested in the like how to know when to water the plants and stuff like that."