Showing posts with label LAGC Group Photo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LAGC Group Photo. Show all posts

6/29/2024

Picnic & Tour of Bill Goff's gardens, June 4, 2024

We had a terrific turnout and the perfect weather for this year’s annual club picnic which was hosted by Bill Goff.  A great big thank you to Bill and his wife Diane for welcoming us to their home and garden.  The variety of salads, appetizers, mini-sandwiches and desserts was enjoyed by everyone.  Water and Paducah Iced tea quenched our thirst.  The iced tea has a citrus ingredient, pineapple juice and was delicious.  We’ll have to get the recipe from Bill!

Although we were hoping to see the peonies in

Bill Goff
bloom, Bill explained that most of the peonies had bloomed early this year so there were only a few pink blossoms for the picnic. We enjoyed strolling through Bill’s mature garden which sits on a double lot. He has been creating and working on his gardens for more than 30 years. Deer and rabbits can be a problem for Bill so he uses Liquid Fence and Milorganite with some success.

Beautiful peony blossom


Dawn redwood



The property in the backyard is divided into 2 distinct areas separated by a fence. The first area is a shady spot which surrounds a lovely patio with eating area and fountain. This garden bed is full of hostas of varied colors, sizes, and different shaped leaves.  Sprinkled among the hosta are a few reddish lilies which piqued members’ curiosity.  It’s called a Martagon Lily, also known as Turk’s Cap Lily. This lily thrives and blooms well in part shade where other types of lilies prefer full sun.  This lily is unique because of its downward facing blooms and many blooms on a single stem.

Martagon Lily

The shade in this area is created by Bill’s Dawn Redwood Tree.  Bill planted this amazing tree many years ago.  It’s a cousin of the Sequoia and loses its needles in the Fall.  It’s architecturally unique because of its vase-like trunk.

On the other side of the fence is the second area where there is a large perennial border filled with mature plants such as: Mountain Mint, Crocosmia Lucifer, Culvers Root, Feverfew, Lambs Ear, Verbena Bonariensis, Catmint, Bachelor’s Buttons, Solidago Golden Rod and a variety of Peonies.  I’m sure there are many more plants which I didn’t recognize!  This area also has a large swath of greenery which promises to display a large variety of daylily blooms in a few more weeks.  Tucked in amongst the plants are perfectly placed decorations such as a concrete statue of St. Francis, a bird bath, sundial and a special metal sign which says “Pap Pap’s Flower Garden”.

We thank Bill for allowing us to tour his garden. From what I can see it’s the perfect place to enjoy your other hobby, photography.  The variety of mature plants and landscaping really makes a relaxing space and I hope you get to enjoy it with your friends and family.

Meeting Notes

We took a group photo in front of the perennial bed.

President Nancy shared a thank you note with members from the Penn State Master Garden Symposium. This year we made a donation to become a Friend of the Symposium and have our club’s name listed in the garden symposium directory.

Nancy will reach out to board members and committee chairs to confirm who would like to continue in their current position in 2025.

Mary Ann Kurtz, Plant Sale Coordinator talked about the success of the 2024 plant sale.  Great job to our members!  Many thanks to Mary Ann for coordinating our efforts!!!  Our profit is $3344. We had 690 plants brought to sell with 92% participation of our club members. 

Three of the plant sale signs were stolen so we might have to budget for more next year.

No changes need to be made in terms of publicity or pricing.

It was determined that we could use 2 more tables for the plant sale setup. Members are asked to bring as many tables as you can.

We discussed whether we should sell plants which are listed on the PA Invasive species list. We’ll get a copy of the list and discuss in the future.

Ideas and uses for an LAGC logo were discussed. Sample ideas for the logo were circulated. Club members were asked what we should purchase to print the logo on such as a t-shirt, apron, ball cap or button. No decision was made and this topic will be discussed at another meeting.

Notes by Colleen Finegal, pictures by Bill Goff and Rose Mary Highman