2004: Vince Lazaneo
Since 1977, through his work with the Univ. of California Cooperative Extension Program, Vince has been a dedicated horticultural educator, advisor and tremendously knowledgeable resource. The energetic founder and organizer of the Master Gardener program in San Diego (in 1983), he makes successful gardening an obtainable reality for thousands of local gardeners.
2003: Pat Welsh
One of our favorite speakers, one of our first members, and still very much a hands-on gardener, Pat has spent a lifetime sharing her love of plants and deep insights into their needs with the public through TV appearances, articles, 5 books, and lectures to hundreds of garden groups.
2002: Walter Andersen
Walter grew up in his family’s exceptional nursery, which opened in 1928. He has been a generous supporter of and participant in flower & garden shows and also countless community groups and events, and served on our board for 6 years.
2001: Evelyn Weidner
The widely-traveled and enormously creative heart of Weidners Gardens, Evelyn was born into the nursery business, and has been a tireless promoter of horticulture, introducing many new plants and helping to start the hugely successful EuroAmerican Propagators and Proven Winners.
2000: Edgar Engert
Edgar worked for the Paul Ecke Poinsettia Ranch for 40 years, and continues to volunteer for many community organizations. He is well-known for his 18 years of passionate effort as Coordinator of the Flower & Garden Show at the San Diego County Fair.
1999: Charles Ledgerwood
For over 50 years, from a shop at his seaside house in Carlsbad, Charles sold seeds, weighing them out for each customer and freely sharing his invaluable advice on growing from seed.
1998: Sinjen
This legendary one name garden designer, spent over 60 years creating extraordinary gardens in San Diego, some of which survive today. He was a mentor to many designers, teaching them his method of lacing trees to show off their structure.
1997: Charles Coburn
Charles worked his way up from being a gardener at the Wild Animal Park to director of horticulture at the San Diego Zoo, and was deeply involved in creating many zoo exhibits such as the Tiger River Rainforest and Gorilla Tropics
1996: Chuck Kline
Starting in 1974 Chuck Kline created the beautiful gardens at SeaWorld from a daunting swamp of salt-drenched soil. He was a friend and mentor to many in the horticultural community, and many rare plants remain as his legacy at SeaWorld.