Joan O’Herron Crawford, horticulturist

Joan O’Herron Crawford, a retired Baltimore County kindergarten teacher who judged flower shows, died Sept. 20 at the Atrium in Owings Mills. She was 91.

A daughter, Barbara Smith, said no medical cause of death was determined.

Born Joan O’Herron in Ithaca, N.Y., she was the daughter of James O’Herron, a civil engineer, and Eleanor Ryan.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University.

She met her future husband, Paul H. Crawford, while they were students at Cornell. They moved to Baltimore in 1945.

“My mother had far-ranging interests,” said her daughter, who resides in Gambrills. “These included nature and gardening, flower arranging and Japanese Ikebana, photography, social engagement and volunteering.”

Mrs. Crawford was horticulture chair of the Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland. She also chaired its judges council.

She was also a past president of the Towson Valley Garden Club and the Cornell Women’s Club of Baltimore. She had served as the first vice president of the Dulaney Valley Women’s Club and the secretary of Ikebana International Baltimore. She was an avid bird-watcher.

She taught kindergarten in the Baltimore County public schools in the 1950s.

Mrs. Crawford was a volunteer at James L. Kernan Hospital for Children. She was also secretary of the women’s board at the institution, now known as University of Maryland Rehabilitation and Orthopaedic Institute near Dickeyville.

Cornell named her an Outstanding Alumna. She supported the school, raised funds and conducted interviews with high school seniors.

“My mother was a keen and accomplished amateur photographer,” said her daughter.

“She had her photos published in a national calendar and local publications. She was also an independent and fearless traveler, and had a wonderful sense of humor and appreciation of the absurd.”

Her husband of 57 years, a Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone vice president, died in 2002.

A memorial Mass will be offered at 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, 101 Church Lane in Cockeysville.

In addition to her daughter, survivors include a son, Paul V. Crawford of the Washington area; another daughter, Sheila Fotheringill of Owings Mills; three grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.