Al Maas our Registrar’s obituary

[Keymaster Edna]

Al Maas, our beloved registrar passed away on February 19th, 2025 . His sister Roberta wrote a beautiful obituary I would like to share with you.

AL MAAS lived in the wrong place and time. A
charismatic combination of extremes and contradictions, he
was a Renaissance man, and a barefoot farmer; a student of
human constructs, while dubious about actual humans,
preferring the company of plants and animals, books and
invention, music and metaphysics. His skill set was
expansive, ranging from computer savvy to repairing fences.
Al’s passion for music began as a kid, singing with his
dad in the family station wagon, and soon thereafter, learning
to play several reed and brass instruments in the school
band. On his own, he picked up medieval instruments, and
bagpipes from different countries, ceasing only when arthritic
hands limited him to listening to ancient folkloric songs from
other cultures. Enjoying classical music was about as
contemporary as he could get, with Beethoven being his
favorite composer.

Built like a tackle, but eschewing sports, he rejected
violence, or even competition, opting for solitary pursuits, like
making homemade paper, bread, and beer. Mostly mum in
human society, he taught himself languages, including
German, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Norwegian, Mandarin,
and even Ojibway; and his acute empathy with pets ironically
needed little language at all—likewise with plants, whose
silent company became his favorite form of communication.
Al’s love of horticulture began as a child, when a native
woman taught him the properties of swamp plants to cure or
kill; and from there, he worked in greenhouses, grew garlic,
collected orchids, strung up hops, snipped bonsai, and fell
under the spell of an exotic tropical plant—the brugmansia–
whose blooms emit fragrance only at night. Ever drawn to
the unusual, Al began growing them, joined Brugmansia
Growers International, eventually becoming VP, and created
four new cultivars.
Preferring to barter rather than profit, and generous to
his core, Al gave away most of his garlic crop each year, and
he has also donated several brugmansia specimens plus
sacred tobacco to the horse stable and medicine wheel at
the Historic Barns Botanical Gardens.

Underscoring Al’s preference for solitude, he learned
samatha vipassana, or mindfulness meditation, which
appealed to his fascination with ancient eastern spiritual
traditions. He credited his daily meditation and his weekly
sangha practices with bringing peace and equanimity to his
mind and spirit, though he bore constant physical pain
without complaint. Al exuded the aura of a monk, and people
saw in his calm countenance, an acceptance of What Is. A
proponent of both science and mystery, Al believed in the
conservation of energy, and that upon the cessation of living

in a body, one’s consciousness (Source energy) disperses
once again into the pure potential that is the Universe.
So go outside. Observe growing things. Listen to
birdsong. Pet your dog. Plant some seeds. Read a
challenging book. Repair something broken. Hum a song.
Feel gratitude. Look skyward and breathe deeply. Al will be
there.

[Participant dj77]

Al will certainly be missed.  Such a kind and gentle soul.  He volunteered so much of his time, and worked so very hard for us brug growers.  We were all so very fortunate and blessed to have him in our lives.  I can’t help but smile through the tears when I think of him.

Donna

[Spectator Anastasia Nelson]

Lovely to reread this loving obituary for Al Maas written by his sister Roberta. Wish I could write to him today to say how much what he wrote in forums makes so much good sense to me. Perhaps I am and he can see. And now I understand how much he would like to know we will carry on his work and help it grow and grow Brugmansia goodness. I hope his spirit can see the seedlings of his hybridization growing beautifully in my garden and in the gardens of others growing his thoughtful genetics, looking for the treasured one to register in his honor and send out into the world to grow and grow his sweet Brugmansia energy in perpetuity. The attached picture is one one glossily happy young Al Brug we are already excited about and to think one day it will bloom too! Thank You Al! You changed our Garden Universe and are changing it today and on and on as we grow that which would not be without You…Air Hugs to You, Al, and All who care and grow Al energy in our Garden Universe…Brug on and on and on…

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[Author]

Posts