Flowers brighten residents’ commutes

When Barbara Young moved here five months ago, she found herself missing the flowers back in Ohio, so she planted them everywhere in her Maricopa front yard.

“All the front yards are so stark that I thought some color might be nice,” said Young. “I wanted to brighten up everyone’s morning and drive home.”

“The roots are shallow so not much water is used, and, when the flowering season is over, I just pull the plants and rake the rocks. It’s as if they were never there,” said Young, who added, “Most of the other plants are already in pots.”

Young, who resides at 438089 Wade Drive in Ranch El Dorado, is a semi-retired transpersonal psychologist. She works with the relationships between the physical body and the spirit. “I help clients access negative memories that interfere with athletic performance, ADD, bipolar and post traumatic stress symptoms and their associated anguish,” explained Young.

Young’s family moved to Tucson in 1934, and she attended the University of Arizona there. Both her sons were born in Tucson and now live and work in Phoenix. Peter is a custom homebuilder, and Mike is a restaurant manger.

Young is hoping to find an ‘in’ to helping Iraqi vets when they return home and may open an office here for private practice. Right now she’s still adjusting to her recent move-and planting flowers.

“I thought we all needed some perking up and some color,” she said.

Photos courtesy of Barbara Young