November 2012
The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Thursday, November 15th,
2012 at the home of Joan Allen in Manchester.
Co hosting with Joan were Linda Latzak and Jackie Reynolds. Members and
guests arrived and marveled at the beautiful autumn view at the Allen home on
Scenic Heights. Looking down into the
valley, members saw the range of fall colors and along with the dotted
pastureland made a stunning fall patchwork quilt.
Member Marilyn
Austen shared her white lily seeds with the club and guest speaker Jo Phillips
explained they were Philippine lilies or Formosa lilies, tall, sun loving, hearty,
and able to grow anywhere.
Club members made
thorough use of Phillips’ expertise and asked many questions about working with
garden and forest greenery in their Christmas decorations as Phillips said they
were about to decorate Hills and Dales for the season. Live greenery put in
place after Thanksgiving and in cool areas will hold up through the season. If
they decorate with live greenery in warm rooms they will amend it through the
season or replace it if needed.
Sally Neal
mentioned making boxwood swags and if there was an easier way. One technique, Phillips said, that prolongs
boxwood is to let it imbibe or soak up glycerin for weeks before using it. The glycerin makes the boxwood pliable and
keeps it glossy. Another decorating
trick is to make a ratio of floor wax and water and spray it on leaves like
magnolia and mixed greens (not Fraziers) and it helps preserve the luster and slow
moisture loss.
Hills and Dales
uses Frazier firs from a North Carolina source for much of its holiday
greenery. The eight members on staff plus extra hands at the center help with
the holiday decorating. They will be
having a wreath decorating workshops on December 8th but Phillips
warned, called quickly as the classes are almost filled.
Treasurer Jean
Biggers who has been suffering with health problems had asked earlier to be
replaced as treasurer and Carla Snider volunteered for the job with the club’s
approval. Carla had tickets for the upcoming Tour of Homes in Woodbury that
benefits the city’s many projects beautifying and decorating the community. The
tour is December 2nd from 1:30 to 5:30. Snider also had brochures
but unfortunately no addresses for the homes on tour were included so she made
those available to the garden club.
Members noted how
lovely the Manchester street lamps were decorated with their wreaths.
Jo Steele Phillips,
the program speaker, was asked about her background in gardening and work. Phillips
is a UGA horticulture graduate and her first job was with Farmer’s Supply in LaGrange.
When the owner bought West Georgia Nurseries she moved there where she
frequently helped Mrs. Alice Callaway with plant purchases. She was asked by
Mrs. Callaway to join her staff in 1994.
The gardens at Hills
and Dales precede the Civil War and date back to 1841 as the terraced boxwood
garden of Sarah Ferrell. The Callaways wanted the property to be open to the
public after their deaths, but it is rare that a garden stays in its original
state for such a long period of time. Usually descendents or later owners
change the layout or there is neglect, but Hills and Dales is unique in that it
is so well preserved from the 1840s.
Phillips was asked
to talk about holiday plants: poinsettias, paperwhites, and amaryllis. The
poinsettia is the most popular Christmas plant. Native to Mexico, they are
tropical and cannot endure cold temperatures. Careful watering is critical to
keeping them fresh and pretty through the holiday season. When the soil is dry,
water thoroughly until water runs through the bottom but never leave the
drained water in the saucer. The flowers need light but not too bright and they
do not like drafts. They are not poisonous as many once thought from their
heavy milky sap that flows from a broken stem. The lovely reds and colors of poinsettias
are their leaves and the real flower is the tiny button like cluster in the
center. The colored leaves are called
bracts.
Paperwhite
narcissus are the easy and fun bulb to force because you simply pot them,
water, and watch them grow. The energy is in the bulb, and they don’t need soil.
The tall foliage may need support, but they can be grown in a vase with pebbles
supporting them. One trick to keep the foliage short is to water them with a
solution of alcohol and water. The Grumpy Gardener in Southern Living says, “Buy
cheap liquor” but Phillips says you can use isopropyl alcohol (ratio 1:11) or
drinking alcohol (one part water to seven parts alcohol).
Paperwhites bloom
four weeks from when they are potted and watered. Now is the time to pot to enjoy at Christmas
or give as gifts. The overwhelming fragrance of the narcissus was noted as
giving some members allergies or headaches, and Phillips said the new Israeli
cultivars (Inbal and Ziva) have a lighter, fresher scent. Tulips take longer to
force-seventeen weeks.
Amaryllis naturally
bloom in Georgia in the late spring, but Phillips encourages gardeners to buy
the varieties from South America rather than from Holland because the bulbs are
going into their growing season. Buy a healthy plump bulb that has some roots.
Amaryllis like to be crowded in a vase or pot but leave the top third of the
bulb exposed even if you are planting it outside after the holiday season. Cooler
temperatures make the amaryllis taller, but good lighting is important for it
to grow. The plant will pull toward
light so rotating it often (daily) is a must. Remove the bloom stalk before
planting outside and plant where it will get morning and afternoon shade. Mulch
well so the plant does not freeze.
Phillips had
brought three beautiful plants with her to show the club the points she made in
her talk. Members always enjoy Jo Phillips’ programs as she is so very
knowledgeable yet down to earth and she entertains questions throughout her
talk.
The next meeting of
the Merry Weather Garden Club is a Christmas treat as the club will have a
Christmas Tea at the home of Carla Snider on December 6th.
