After more than a year of being unplanted, the Amos Owen Garden of American Indian Horticulture is being revived at Minnesota State University.
The garden’s previous location — between the Taylor Center and Trafton Science Center — was recently torn up because of the new Trafton addition. The garden’s new home is just east of the MSU bell tower.
The garden was named after Dakota spiritual and community leader Amos Owen, who worked to improve communication between Indians and non-Indians until his death in 1990. A rededication for the garden will take place 4 p.m. Friday.
Ron Schirmer, anthropology professor and one of the caretakers of the garden, said the dedication is a way of honoring Owen and his family in a traditional way. The assistant director of American Indian Affairs at MSU will perform a traditional pipe ceremony to bless the garden space.
“The garden is about a positive energy and trying to reach out to Native Americans,” Schirmer said.
A wide variety of near-extinct maize (corn) and medicinal plants such as sage and wheatgrass have been planted in the garden, Schirmer said. These plants were chosen because of their significant use by American Indians both then and now.
“We’re trying in the long run to start working toward revitalization of many of these extinct species,” he said.
The garden was started by retired MSU professor Michael Scullin in 1976.
An MSU Web page said that after Scullin’s retirement, the garden was no longer maintained, leaving it open for other uses. In 2004 members of the Hmong Student Association worked in the empty garden, planting different types of food to be used by the Campus Kitchens program.
At the time hundreds of students stepped up to volunteer with the program that had served nearly 2,000 meals to the needy.
There are only a few students working on the garden right now. Second-year anthropology graduate student Jared Langseth said his involvement has been minor, but he thinks the rededication is a good idea.
“It helps strengthen the relationship between the native community and the school,” he said.
With the rededication, Schirmer hopes to get people to understand the importance of the garden. He wants it to help restore the cultural heritage of the native peoples.
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