With just a few cold snaps left before the warmer weather is here to stay, several faculty are sharing their gardening experiences.

Professor and Dr. Champ Lyons Endowed Chair James Bibb, Ph.D., leads research efforts in the department as vice chair of basic research. At his home, he also grows a large garden and donates food from it to the community kitchen.

“I've given vegetables to lots of people here at UAB,” said Bibb. “I pickle peppers and make siracha. All my neighbors stop by when I am in it and seem to always have a bag handy.”

Meanwhile, Professor and Director, Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy Adam Beck, M.D., keeps bees and chickens. His chickens take care of garden pests and provide organic fertilizer to Bibb’s garden, while his bees pollinate nearby gardens.

Many may not know, but Professor and Director of UAB CINEMA Aurelio Galli, Ph.D., D.Sc., is a expert mushroom hunter and meat curer. Galli has been so successful with his mushroom and meat operations that he often supplies restaurant chefs.

Director, Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery and Kirby I. Bland, M.D., Endowed Professor in Surgery Helen Krontiras, M.D., is a gardener of vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Also, Administrative Associate in the division, Leigh Hadley, keeps chickens.

Plus, Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery Associate Professor Karin Hardiman, M.D., Ph.D., is a gardener and keeps chickens.

"My husband–Chandler McLeod, a biostatistician in the Department of Surgery–and I are avid gardeners and have started planting both indoors and outside,” said Hardiman. “We also have chickens. We have such a love for our garden and our chickens!”

"My husband–Chandler McLeod, a biostatistician in the Department of Surgery–and I are avid gardeners and have started planting both indoors and outside,” said Hardiman. “We also have chickens. We have such a love for our garden and our chickens!”