Deb Allmayer
Deb came to Bloomington in 1970 as an Indiana University student and never left. She then worked at IU for forty-seven years and retired one week before the Master Gardener Intern course began in 2021. She exclaims “I’m still an intern!”
What she enjoys most about being a member of the Master Gardner community is learning and sharing with others. She believes MGs have a generous spirit and interest in things that grow—and each other.
Deb considers herself to primarily be a vegetable gardener but is keen to improve her landscape and flower gardening skills. She recalls that her “…first garden was in 1976 in our home across from Templeton School. We dug it up ourselves. It was hard and rewarding.”
As a Master Gardner intern, she volunteers at Hilltop Garden and Nature Center at IU and remarks that she’s loved being back at Hilltop after almost 50 years. She goes on to explain “In the mid-70’s I was allowed time away from work in the summer and took a botany course from Barbara Shalucha, the IU biology professor who established Hilltop in 1948. In addition to coursework at Jordan Hall, I served as a mentor to junior gardeners at Hilltop. One of my students was Mia Pozzati—now Mia Williams, IU’s chief landscape architect. I take credit for getting her there! Just kidding!”
Ann commends Hilltop’s current director, Kaylie Scherer. “She is engaging; teaching and working us hard, which I greatly appreciate and enjoy.”
