Waco gardening expert, columnist Judy Tye dies
By Regina Dennis
Tribune-Herald staff writer
Gardening writer and local gardening expert Judy Tye of Waco died Monday after struggles with various health complications.
Tye, 70, was a member and past president of McLennan County Master Gardeners Association. Tye also has contributed to many gardening articles for the Tribune-Herald and wrote a monthly column for the newspaper’s Waco Today magazine.
Judy Tye wrote gardening articles for both the Tribune-Herald and Waco Today.
Tye’s sister, Christi Preissinger of Fort Worth, said Tye had a heart attack last August. Since then, she had heart, lung and kidney problems but was making progress.
“She had been in poor health and kind of fragile, but we weren’t expecting it exactly,” said Preissinger, 58.
“She went to the doctor a couple days ago and he said she had been doing pretty good.”
Tye, Preissinger and two sisters all worked at the family’s stockyard in Fort Worth processing cattle sales. Tye moved to Waco after getting a job with the Texas Department of Agriculture in the fire ant control program.
“She got into master gardening in Waco and she was really heavy into it,” said Preissinger, adding that Tye did gardens and landscaping for groups such as Talitha Koum Institute.
Fellow master gardener and friend Julia Khoury said she was shocked to learn Tuesday of Tye’s death.
Khoury and Tye corresponded by email frequently and last exchanged messages a few days ago discussing the most recent McLennan County Master Gardeners meeting.
“She was just a wonderful person and very intelligent,” Khoury said. “And she really did know everything about gardening; you could ask her just about anything.”
Sherry Castello, one of Tye’s neighbors, said Tye was the go-to source for the neighborhood on any gardening and landscaping woes. Tye also started a garden several years ago for Gospel Cafe, which Castello runs.
“She had a saying that she liked, that went ‘It’s never too late to become the person you want to be,’ and I think she lived her life that way,” Castello said. “She kept on developing and growing as a person, and her last years were some of her very best.”
In addition to her gardening, Tye also was an artist who painted portraits of people, animals and other subjects, her sister said.
“We were each other’s best friends,” Preissinger said. “I’m really going to miss her.”
Funeral plans are pending.
Preissinger said Tye’s daughter lives in Israel and that final arrangements will be made once she arrives in Waco.
rdennis@wacotrib.com
757-5755
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