Page 116 - South Mississippi Living - March, 2019

HOME & GARDEN green thumb CLIPPINGER’S
Clippings
story by Lynn Lofton
photos by Katherine Sowers
Some people are natural born gardeners. Such is the case with Martha Clippinger of Gulfport.
“I’ve never had a manicure because I’ve always had dirt under my fingernails,” she says. “I’ve been digging for many years.”
Soon to be 88 years young, she has no intention of swapping her gardening for a rocking chair. “It’s satisfying to stand with a hose in
my hand and know the plants will thank me for watering them,” she said. “And I like to see what happens with propagation. I
work on a table under a shade tree and right now I’m working on some hydrangeas; I like to give these cuttings away.”
Some of these propagated cuttings find their way to the annual plant swap of the Beach Garden Society — Clippinger is a life
member — where they are highly prized. A camellia cutting she took from her mother’s garden years ago is still thriving at
Clippinger’s home.
One example of her green thumb is the begonia that stands
about three feet tall in her sun room. It began life as a leaf from some flowers given to Clippinger by a friend.
Does she have a favorite flower? “I especially love the old fashioned flowers — azaleas, camellias, hydrangeas,” she responds, “but really
it’s this or that as the seasons change.”
This avid gardener admits to sometimes talking to plants. Her daughter
Courtney says, “Sometimes she’ll go out there and just sit and be quiet. I know she’s connecting mentally.”
For many years Clippinger has been vitally interested in community garden projects. She served on Gulfport’s first committee for developing
Jones Park, led the effort to beautify Frances X. Collins Park with the planting of 75 azaleas the first year, and worked tirelessly on landscaping at
Beauvoir. She researched and worked on the gardens at Beauvoir where she was a tour guide for 22 years.
A gracious lady, Clippinger grew up in Kosciusko, Mississippi, where she met her late husband, David, when his family moved there from
Lima, Ohio. After marriage, they lived in Hazlehurst for 10 years where David, M.D., was a country doctor. Their family
includes three daughters, six grandchildren and 12 great
grandchildren.
Clippinger has a message for Coast residents. “Any
one person can encourage everyone in their neighborhood to plant one kind of flower as a cooperative thing,” she says.
“People are afraid to try, but it’s fun to learn and will improve neighborhoods.”
A former tea room owner and caterer, Clippinger is looking forward to undertaking her next project, a cookbook.
116 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • March 2019
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Camellia
Martha Clippinger
Begonia