August Meeting Notes

Claudia and Marilyn

In Mary Anne’s absence VP Claudia Hickly welcomed members and guests. She pointed out the importance of keeping our phone chain moving when a quick notification is required, e.g. weather delay of July’s picnic.  See Phone Chain, page 6, in our handbook for who calls whom. Remove Victoria’s name from the phone chain and replace it with Alan’s.  Janine will email his phone number to membership. 

Still needed:  Publicity Chair.

Membership dues of $15 should be paid in September. Make check out to Longvue Acres Garden Club.

Our LAGC garden at Passavant Hospital was awarded “Garden of the Month” by the Greybrook Garden Club!  Kudos to Peggy Elizeus and Helen Dean, Community Chairs, for their dedicated oversight of this garden and for coordinating our volunteers. Thanks also to our volunteers who fill in as needed.

Bill Goff read a list of suggestions for next year’s programs and welcomes additional ideas for meetings and tours.  Tour ideas included were Botanic Gardens, North Park Demonstration Gardens, and the Phipps Conservatory outside gardens. 

Marilyn Gurtner spoke briefly of her travels to Uganda and had pictures of her “son” and his family, of a garden, and nearby towns. Marilyn has much to tell us but could only share a tiny portion of her travels. For instance one cultural difference—not bad, just different - our story of the tooth fairy and theirs of the tooth rat. Talk with her as probably none of us knows much about Uganda and she’s excited to share. 

Plants available at meeting:  German iris from Bill and Larry Grundler specialty lilies from Claudia.

Claudia thanked Esther Nagy and Rose Mary Highman, blog; 

Chris Kerin, arrangement; Rose Mary, dessert

  


Flo and Ellen suggested that dessert recipes be included in the blog each month or as a hard copy.
 

Rose Mary’s Apple Kuchen recipe

Upcoming Events:

Sept 24 LAGC program “Good Bug, Bad Bug” 

by Jessica Walliser  Renew membership, $15

Sept 28 Green Thumb Workshop, 

includes Doug Oster, vendors at Meadville

Sept 26 “Seed Saving,” Master Garden,

 400 N Lexingon St, Point Breeze

Sept 28 “Edible Teaching Garden,” Master Garden, 

400 N Lexingon St, Point Breeze

Oct 17 “Putting the Garden to Bed,” Master Garden, 
400 N Lexingon St, Point Breeze

Hot line gardening questions 412 473 2600 or alleghenymg@psu.edu  Oct - Mar
 

Speaker Chris Holt “Come Moss with Me”

Bill introduced our speaker, Chris Holt, who is a dynamic speaker, ornamental steel welder [see www.steelwelding.net and her work at The Porch Restaurant], and avid gardener. She is a speaker at the Philadelphia Flower Show. Her garden will be on the Botanical Garden tour next year.  Chris brought many varied arrangements and a plant hanger she forged and donated to LAGC for a drawing.  The lucky winner was Beverly Steiger. Chris adores moss, uses that from her patio stones, and finds it adds serenity while being easy and quick to use. Think bonsai, but expand arrangements using moss, black painted birch twigs and containers of various sizes. BE CREATIVE, HAVE FUN as she does.  

•   For more moss, take a few inches of moss, add milk or yogurt to blender for mixing    then paint it on a surface such as a clay pot. Moss is easy to grow, requires some light, moisture, and accepts poor soil.
•  Use Oasis and cover with moss; stick flowers or other greenery through moss.
•  Check for creepy crawlies on moss, especially if on a dining table.
•  Paint some containers black. Use low ones for minimal but powerful impact; long and low is good and easy; finds in thrift stores.
• “Moss covers all your sins.”
•   Try arrangement with height on one side and moss on the other side.
•   Quick change an arrangement by changing bow.
•   Children like to make scenes on top of moss; fun and easy project.
•   Use a high heel shoe--line it with a plastic bag, add oasis, top with moss and a few flowers. Be creative; surprises are good. 
•  Tie moss outside a container for another look.
•  To transport your dirty shovel, place in a cellophane flower bag before tossing in trunk.

  

    

Corpse Flower At Phipps

Rose Mary Highman is sharing her photo of a Corpse Flower at Phipps and her grand children's reaction to the smell!

Longvue Acres Garden Club Picnic July 30, 2013

Alan Peacock’s beautiful garden on Fox Road

Our garden host, Alan Peacock, had the perfect night with warm temperatures and clear skies this time rather than last week’s heavy rain.  We all enjoyed his garden and his tour with his comments about many of the plants and design elements.  His garden is multilevel so views change depending on where you are in the garden and even a new garden will pop into view. Alan moved each stone himself which is so impressive considering the low retaining walls, the outlined path, the water stream, and of course the lovely, large rock garden. Within the sloped rock garden are rocks of various sizes from 8 inch square slabs to the long, thick rocks (small boulders).  Since this is a new garden this year, he expects more of the plants to fill in but many of them are also dward varieties requiring a closer look.  (My pictures do not do his garden justice.)  

Some miscellaneous features are two rain barrels for supplemental watering, a “wild section” left as is, plants blooming in succession, a few annuals tucked in for more color, good use of  statuary and specimen plants. The 20 of us present enjoyed delicious and plentiful food, good company, lively discussions and Alan’s beautiful garden. The hawks, other birds, and fire flies were extras.

Business meeting portion

• Mary Ann asked for program ideas and field trips suggestions, please email Mary Ann Kurtz and Bill Goff

• Needed: a publicity person—contact Mary Ann to volunteer

• Needed: weeders and dead-headers for the Passavant Garden. Volunteer for a week or two in August and 1^st part of September.  Requires a couple of hours during the week—you pick your hours.  Contact Margaret Elizeus to volunteer.

Next month, August 27th

“Come Moss with Me” by Chris Holt

WEBSITE:  Master gardener speakers & topics http://extension.psu.edu/allegheny/programs/master-gardener/educational-programs/speakers-bureau

Hospital Garden

Here are some pictures of the hospital garden. 

 Notice we got Garden of the month 

from Graybrook Garden Club.  

Submitted by:  Helen Dean