Nursery manager Taylor Lewis, who died Aug. 8, made a lasting impact on landscapes and people
Nursery manager Taylor Lewis found joy in the discovery of new plant varieties that grew beautifully in our climate. Courtesy UC Davis Arboretum
The Sacramento region lost one of its true garden heroes last week when Taylor Lewis died of cancer. He was 48.
His impact won’t be forgotten; it’s growing all around us.
With a beaming smile and contagious energy, Lewis enthusiastically pitched plants to anyone who visited the UC Davis Arboretum Teaching Nursery. As nursery manager, he was responsible for growing thousands of plants for the arboretum’s popular sales as well as producing plants for the university’s public gardens. He found joy in the discovery of new varieties that grew beautifully in our climate, and even more happiness when patrons took those plants home.
In recent years as people searched for water-wise plants that can withstand our droughts, Lewis probably was responsible for more new introductions to local gardens than anyone. He got those Arboretum All-Stars (and a lot more) into people’s yards.
But it wasn’t just about plants; Lewis made very real and human connections with his customers as well as the legions of staff, students and volunteers who worked with him and other members of the garden community.
Before joining the Arboretum, he made many friends and followers as a staff member at Carmichael’s Windmill Nursery.
“Taylor Lewis was a kind man who touched the lives in a very great way of all who were fortunate to meet him,” wrote Greg Gayton, garden guru at Green Acres Nursery & Supply. “Taylor and I would always laugh when we saw each other. We’d always giggle about plants and crazy customers.”
Lewis had been a constant upbeat presence at the UC Davis Arboretum for almost a decade. He maintained his sunny disposition through myriad challenges. In 2017, he lost his lower right leg to cancer. Last summer after six years of remission, he saw a return of angiosarcoma – an extremely rare form of cancer of the blood vessels – on his lower back.
“It’s pretty rare for someone to get it once,” he said in November. “It’s radically rare to have it twice. … It was a shock.”
A GoFundMe campaign for the Arboretum’s “beloved green warrior” raised nearly $59,000 to help pay for treatment costs not covered by insurance.
“Taylor's unwavering commitment to friends and family, coupled with his boundless positive energy and dedication to the Arboretum and the environment, has deeply impacted our community,” wrote longtime UC Davis Arboretum volunteer Kili Bong on Lewis’ GoFundMe page during the fund drive. “His ever-present good nature, invaluable guidance to both budding and seasoned gardeners, and his innate ability to help them design and cultivate the gardens of their dreams, have touched countless lives over the years.”
Said Lewis at the time, “There are a lot of people out there who love me. I’m really grateful for this support. … I feel very fortunate. I’m lucky to have this support and these people in my life.”
His mother, Sherrie Lewis, posted his obituary on Facebook:
“My son, Taylor Clark Lewis, was born on March 30, 1976 & passed away on August 8, 2024. Taylor battled angiosarcoma, a rare cancer of the blood vessels. He was the manager of the arboretum nursery at UC Davis. He is survived by his mother, 3 brothers, Spencer, Judd & Jordan, his sister, Megan Lundin, his devoted wife, Ilana Halperin, his sons, Jacob & Jarrett, & daughter Emilee & 2 precious grandchildren, Spencer & Bennett. Family & friends attended a Going Away Garden Party on June 22, 2024, to celebrate his life. He influenced many for good!
UC Davis plans to fly the University of California flag at half-staff on campus next week, Aug. 20-22, to honor the memory of Taylor Lewis.
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Garden Checklist for week of Jan. 12
Once the winds die down, it’s good winter gardening weather with plenty to do:
* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.
* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. (The exceptions are apricot and cherry trees, which are susceptible to a fungus that causes dieback. Save them until summer.) Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease.
* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.
* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.
* After the wind stops, apply horticultural oil to fruit trees to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.
* This is also the time to spray a copper-based fungicide to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl. (The safest effective fungicides available for backyard trees are copper soap -- aka copper octanoate -- or copper ammonium, a fixed copper fungicide. Apply either of these copper products with 1% horticultural oil to increase effectiveness.)
* When forced bulbs sprout, move them to a cool, bright window. Give them a quarter turn each day so the stems will grow straight.
* Browse through seed catalogs and start making plans for spring and summer.
* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.
* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.
* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.
* Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.
* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.
* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.
* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranunculus and gladioli for bloom from late spring into summer.
* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.
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