Dark rain clouds lined with silver descended over Tizer Gardens and Arboretum on Saturday, June 3. With the heavy rainfall came high waters rushing down Prickly Pear Creek, which runs through the gardens.
“I … put the word out on Facebook on Saturday morning that I needed help and 36 people magically appeared to help fill sandbags,” Tizer Gardens owner Belva Lotzer told The Monitor. “This community has supported us for the past 25 years and once again did not disappoint. I was so very grateful!”
In response to the rising waters – which drowned the children’s garden, collapsed a bridge and washed out pathways – Lotzer closed the gardens to visitors. The damage appeared to be worse initially, she explained, but it was mostly mitigated by overflow channels constructed several years ago. Lotzer is still unsure how much it will cost to repair the damages.
“I was hoping to have them reopened by the weekend [of June 10], but with the water rising again, I am not very confident about that,” said Lotzer.
Even with heavy precipitation, fate aligned with Lotzer’s hopes and Tizer Gardens reopened to visitors on Saturday, June 10.
Although the gardens were closed, Lotzer clarified that the nursery remained open for business.
“The nursery is nowhere near the flooding and we have an amazing selection of trees, shrubs, edibles, annuals and perennials. So, please … drop by,” she said.
Tizer isn’t the only area experiencing the effects of rapid snowmelt in Montana. Although the Jefferson river basin is one of several that received higher than normal snowpack last winter, many other areas are experiencing accelerated snowmelt compared to previous years, according to a June 7 Natural Resources Conservation Service press release.
“On May first, the NRCS May-July water supply forecasts estimated streamflows to be within about 10% of normal or greater for most of Montana,” Eric Larson, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Water Supply Specialist, said in the press release.
Despite the damage caused by the flooding, Lotzer has chosen to focus on the cloud’s silver lining: support from the community.
Lotzer thanked everyone who helped move sand over a Facebook live: “If there was any doubt about the goodness, the kindness of people – it was eliminated.”
