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New Garden Club Leader Set To Dig In

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By ANGELA DELGADO

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 24, 2008

TOWN 'N COUNTRY - Billye Hemphill was recently elected president of the Tampa Garden Club, which means she is going to have even less time to maintain the garden at her home in Twelve Oaks.

"It's a mess," Hemphill jokes. "It's the worst in the neighborhood. I used to have a good lawn, but it is shot."

Regardless of her garden's shape, Hemphill is respected and known for her gardening knowledge and her flower arranging skills. She has led various garden clubs and has served as a master flower show judge, she said.

By becoming president of the Tampa Garden Club, she will oversee 14 community garden circles, made up of more than 450 people.

"It's a big responsibility overseeing everything," she said. "There's always something going on down there," at the garden club.

One of her first goals as president is to meet with all the garden circles and get to know the club members. The Tampa Garden Club meets once a month from September to May, Hemphill said.

Hemphill, 80, was born in Chattanooga, Tenn., and has been gardening for the past 53 years.

"I always liked to fiddle with flowers," she said.

When she was younger she worked for a florist who was friends with her parents.
Hemphill moved to Japan for a few years with her then husband, who worked for Westinghouse Electric Company LLC. While there she learned the art of ikebana - Japanese flower arranging - which she teaches today.

For wannabe gardeners, Hemphill recommends taking horticulture courses, as well as reading gardening magazines that feature articles about gardening in Florida.

"You make so many mistakes when you come down here," she said. "You don't garden in Florida like you do in other parts of the country."

Reporter Angela Delgado can be reached at (813) 865-1501 or adelgado@tampatrib.com.

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