The TIRR Greenhouse - A Secret Garden

Nita Weil, TIRR's Director of Volunteers, sits outside near the habitat. Volunteers are always needed at the greenhouse, but are also welcomed to perform a variety of other tasks. Shifts are available before, during and after regular business hours. Volunteering not only boosts patient morale, but also garners a feeling of camaraderie among all those who participate.

In 1959, right after TIRR opened its doors in the Texas Medical Center, the volunteers decided to build a therapeutic greenhouse for their patients.

The peaceful setting was a place where patients could go and dig in the dirt, and pot plants for themselves or family members and friends. The greenhouse provided a refuge from the clinical setting and a place to learn the benefits of growing things.

Plant sales were held to generate a small profit. The money raised was used to buy necessities that weren't always donated, such as soil, pots, mulch, fertilizer and tools.

With progress comes change. In 1991, TIRR built its six-story tower, on the spot where the greenhouse stood. The volunteers rallied together to build a new greenhouse on the last available green space on TIRR's property.

Last year, TIRR received a grant to enhance the area. New concrete walks and a concrete platform in the middle of a grassy area were added, so patients could move around in wheelchairs or on crutches. Two new volunteers were inspired to motivate the entire group of greenhouse volunteers to build a habitat, an area filled with blooming plants that attract butterflies, wild birds, ladybugs and hummingbirds. It is now flourishing, and has helped to create a tranquil ecosystem.

Now that the area is more accessible, therapists bring their patients outdoors for therapy, encouraging them to stand, use their hands and arms to propagate plants or paint and decorate pots, and practice their speech.

Today, ten volunteers staff the new horticultural program. Each volunteer has a specialty in the greenhouse and garden, so there is little duplication of effort.

The TIRR greenhouse needs donations of healthy plants, clay pots and dishes, baskets, soil, sand, perlite, and mulch.

TIRR invites all interested parties to come and see this well-hidden secret garden.

Volunteers are always needed at the greenhouse, but are also welcomed to perform a variety of other tasks. Shifts are available both before and after regular business hours. Volunteering not only boosts patient morale, but also garners a feeling of camaraderie among all those who participate.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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