Oro Valley 'wreath expert' shares knowledge

But Hamilton made all the pieces herself.

There are Southwest-style wreaths, large vase arrangements of dried foliage, colorful bowls of dried fruit and flowers, even a Santa sleigh made from a saguaro boot with reindeer made of devil's claw.

Wreaths of yucca, artichoke, seed pods, devil's claw and okra — which she grows herself — grace her walls and personal photographs. Many of the items are made from dried desert cast-offs that Hamilton picked up while walking around in the area.

Not that you could tell.

Hamilton has been teaching wreath classes for about 20 years, first at the Tucson Botanical Gardens and for the last several years at Tohono Chul Park, on the northwest side.

Her next workshop is Wednesday and Thursday at the park, and there are still a few spaces left.

She grew up in the Midwest in what she calls a "horticulturally attuned" family.

She moved to the Tucson area with her husband more than 50 years ago and in 1963 joined the Los Cerros Garden Club — in which she remains one of the two longest-time members.

She learned the basic principles of design there: balance, contrast, dominance, proportion, scale and rhythm.

She's been using those elements ever since, making sure to impart them to her wreath students.

"She's a tremendous artist. She has an amazing sense of design. And she's also very knowledgeable about desert plants," said Jo Falls, director of public programs and visitor services for Tohono Chul Park.

Falls likes the way Hamilton always starts the workshop by talking about where the wreath materials come from, she said.

"It's a little botanical lesson," she said.

Hamilton said she makes sure the students understand where the materials came from, too.

"Before they can take their wreath out the door, I make them name every element they used — its proper name," she said with a laugh. "I'm not easy on them."

She's also clear that the wreaths are intended for indoor display, and she meticulously cleans all the desert pieces before beginning the workshop so people can feel comfortable hanging the items near food areas if they want.

She tells her students not to hang the wreaths outside, because birds will nest in them and poke holes in the pomegranates, she said.

"They (the students) work very hard on those, and I don't want them putting them outside," she said.

Falls said the class has always been popular, although the economy seems to have caused a lag in enrollment for the first time this year.

People like it, she said, because "it combines people's desire to make something with their hands and do the idea of a holiday wreath but use desert materials. So they're not using the typical pine cones and pine boughs."

Hamilton attributes the variety to the various elevations and "life zones" that can be found in Arizona.

"In Arizona," she said, "we have more pods, fruits and cones to choose from than anywhere else in the nation."