The Lady Slippers at Cochran Mill Nature Center

The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Tuesday, May 7^th, 2013 and traveled to Cochran Mill Nature Center near Palmetto. The day and its program and tour were arranged by host Gail Coffee.

The nature center, located on 50 acres in Chattahoochee Hills, is an education center built by volunteers. Coffee introduced her friend Jane Mitchell who helped to start the center that opened in 1994. Adjacent to Cochran Mill State Park, the nature area offers outreach programs, homeschool days, camps, and hosts special events. School students do volunteer projects like adopt an animal, and help with the rehab of wildlife which is a large part of its program. Very popular in the summer are the programs for kindergarteners through 9^th graders. During the school year the center gives many tours to school classes.

The garden club thoroughly enjoyed touring and viewing birds of prey, bats and the large reptile collection. The morning meeting saw the animals at their liveliest with a very active American alligator, Green Tree Python, mouse eating bull frog, bats, and venomous snakes.

The main facility, a log structure, blended perfectly into the woodsy surroundings. To keep the 501C3 nonprofit going strong volunteers are always thinking of creative fundraisers like Adopt a Log which built the facility, Adopt a Stream to maintain the creeks, Adopt an Animal for their many expenses, or Wild Trail Trot 5K run and the Fishing Derby. The bulk of the money supporting the center comes from donations and sponsors though.

The garden club enjoyed viewing the log office, gift shop, and animals contained indoors before following the scenic wooden pier and bridge circling the lake. The horticulture there features forest plants, lake and water plants, plus a bog garden. Coffee timed the meeting to see the very interesting wildflower that is in the orchid family-the lady slipper-that grows wild at Cochran Mill. The pink delicate flower was growing in the wetter areas along the walking trail and was stunning to view.

The highlight of the day was gathering in the pavilion where Bill and Gail Coffee had arranged quilts on the picnic tables, had piped in bird calls on the sound system, and provided drinks for the ladies who had brought picnic lunches.  The pavilion by the lake made a lovely picnic site and friends chatted and had a good time and were unconscious of the time passing.

Hostess Gail Coffee told several amusing stories and recited a poem, The Watcher, in tribute for the upcoming Mother’s Day.  In club news, the group was told it was awarded a Standard of Excellence for its yearlong achievements, plus a certificate from the District Director for increasing our membership. The garden club will be participating in the May 18^th Together in Meriwether Festival and the ladies will have plants for sale from Tidwell Nurseries, Thunderwood Farms, and Hamner Tree Farm as we are showcasing those fine businesses in our county.

The next garden club meeting will be in June and hosted by Dee Garrett and the program will be on Pond and Lake Water Management. The ladies hated ending the congenial day of activities at Cochran Mill, but enjoyed feeding the leftover crumbs from lunch to the large carp and catfish in the lake as they made their way back around the lake to their cars.

 

On Thursday, April 18^th, 2013, the Merry Weather Garden Club traveled to Pike County to join the Concord Garden Club for its 15^th annual Lunch and Learn Garden Lecture Series. Held in the unique old Strickland Store, members enjoyed shopping at garden, book, and bakery vendors before lunch with members from Redbud District Garden Clubs and interested gardeners from our area.

Helen Phillips from Garden Solutions in LaGrange was the featured speaker and the program was on the topic of “Year ‘Round Color in the Landscape.” Year around color was not the only approach to landscaping however and she emphasized height variations, colors, texture, and scent to make an interesting garden.

Quoting from Walter Reeves and his “thriller, spiller, filler” line, Phillips pointed out ways to get height differences in the landscape. Color choices should be unique to the landowner and not a patchwork of all colors.  Red and orange are hot colors, and pastels like lavenders and pinks are the cool colors.  Gardeners know what makes them feel good and should plant according to that. She recommended touring Dr. Allen Armitage’s Trial Gardens at UGA and seeing how the different colors make you feel and what fits the gardener best.

Phillips said that texture in the garden makes the biggest difference of all because texture creates interest. To test for texture she said take black and white pictures of your garden and judge from them whether or not you have variations in texture.

Scent also makes a fabulous experience and the sense of smell is one of the most memorable of the senses. When the senses are engaged, the experience stays in the memory bank. Plants like anise, while pretty, smell like yesterday’s fish left in the sun. Pleasant fragrances come from tea olives, banana shrub, viburnum, scented geraniums, and ground covers like mint.

The basic landscape is evergreen but the homeowner can do better than just meatball shaped hollies surrounding the house’s foundation. Save pockets in the landscape for seasonal surprises: spring bulbs, summer dahlias, lilies, and liatrus, and in the fall spider lilies.

Considerations to use when you mix into the greens are the color of a plant’s bark, the shape of the twigs, the seed heads and whether they stay attached. Another consideration is to find out where plants come from and will do best: Martha Washington geraniums need shade not sun like most geraniums, a grey plant is typically a plant for sunny spots.

An important consideration is to adjust for the view: the garden from a favorite window, where guests drive in, focal points like fountains or sculpture, or from sitting on a porch. Coral bark Japanese maple is stunning in the winter when the leaves are gone.  Phillips asked Lynda Woodall to describe the maple to the crowd and Lynda said its red bark was amazing against the snow in winter and like a sculpture throughout the cold season.

Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick is a unique plant with its twisted, curly cue limbs and dangling catkins that make a statement in the garden. Florida Jasmine is great for a slope to provide help with soil erosion and a plus is the early winter bloom. Pieris or lily of the valley shrub blooms late in winter, has great burgundy new foliage with interesting seed heads. Variegated foliage like acuba adds texture and interest and today we have varieties with stripes or dots plus it is still a flower arrangers’ best friend.

Fatshedera is a great climber that needs to be used more. For texture Phillips said you can’t beat a creeping yew. Cast iron plant is a plant that adds texture and the speckled variety makes the plant more useful than for just circling a tree like once common. Holly ferns and autumn ferns are both great for texture as is the pipe plant. Re-blooming azaleas, mountain laurel, and lilac varieties are now made for Georgia and our heat and humidity. The Miss Kim lilac (purple) and Betsy Ross (white) are new lilacs made specifically for our area.

For many, gardening in containers is the way to go. Phillips displayed containers for shade with liriope, needlepoint ivy, caladiums, begonias, and tiarella that were stunning. A container for a sunny spot held white geraniums, lambs ear, euphorbia, white vinca, and Texas sage. Both were beautiful with texture and color and height variations.

The next meeting of the Merry Weather Garden Club is May 7^th when the club will view the lady slippers while touring Cochran Mill Nature Center. For more information, contact Gail Coffee.

 

 

 

Thanks Merry Weather Garden Club

Carla Snider could not be a prouder grandmother! Her granddaughter Katie Kerce who goes to

Futural Road Elementary School in Spalding County won first place at the state science fair competition with her Fairy Garden, something her grandmother introduced her to after attending a Merry Weather Garden Club meeting. The program, given by Martha Evans of LaGrange, featured her imaginative and whimsical miniature gardening pieces.  Adults and children enjoy designing and arranging the gardens which can be done in the backyard, in a flower pot, or shoebox. The fun of using what nature provides, creating a storyboard, and using your imagination is the best hands-on education possible and Carla thanks the Merry Weather Garden Club!

Southeastern Flower Show

 

The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Friday, March 15, 2013 to attend the 2013 Southeastern Flower Show held at Cobb Galleria. The three day event displayed horticulture, landscapes, artistic designs, photography and added to the Marketplace of vendors this year were antique dealers. The garden show tickets also allowed access to the craft show at Cobb Galleria and members found the array of handmade, one of a kind pieces very interesting.

The speakers for the show ranged from TV gardening celebrities to the ever popular Coach Vince Dooley, an avid gardener. The Katherine Astor lecture was attended by several from the club and the British gardener had a lovely slide program featuring England’s finest gardens, houses and estates. Astor spoke from first-hand knowledge of the titled as she is a descendent of the Waldorf-Astors and has spent much of her adult life restoring the gardens at Kirby House.

The flower show featured landscapers transforming small designated areas into backyard paradises and giving viewers loads of ideas and inspiration. The show included a juried competition recognizing excellence in garden design, floral design, photography, horticulture and more. The horticultural exhibits are interesting as the entries are usually the very varieties blooming in our yards in Meriwether. Sadly the dressed front doors and window box displays were not part of the show this year.

The youth areas were very well done with a Discovery area encouraging composting, bee keeping, backyard gardens, and eating home grown vegetables.

Most impressive and a delightful surprise for the group was the entry by Hills and Dales of LaGrange. Horticulturist Jo Phillips, from Meriwether County and who annually does a program for the club, was part of the team that recreated part of the 1928 garden of Ida Callaway. The exhibit was breath taking and deserved the many awards it earned.  Designed by Brooks Garcia, many of the props were made by the Theatre Arts Department at LaGrange College and some of the plants used came from the popular supplier Petals from the Past and Woodbury’s Thunderwood Farms.

Besides the overall beauty of the display, most striking of all was the attention to detail of the entry. Months in the making, the recreated garden featured Mrs. Callaway’s potting shed, chicken coop, birdhouses, and fenced in vegetable garden. The plants were trellised on the picket fence and wound their way up with some even blooming. The lettuces, strawberries, and other common vegetables were beautifully fresh and spring like. The accompanying brochure told the names of the 1928 varieties used by Mrs. Callaway plus her use of bat guano, wood ash, chicken manure, bonemeal, blood meal, lime, cottonseed meal plus compost to enrich the soil. Members were so proud Meriwether was a part of the top display at the show.

Upcoming events for the garden club: Coweta Master Gardeners Spring Plant Sale-April 13; the April Meeting will be the Lunch and Learn with the Concord Garden Club on Thursday, April 18th; Troup County Master Gardener Plant Sale and Swap on April 27th and Coweta Nurseries 2 for 1 sale at the end of April.

Winter Horticulture

The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Thursday, January 17, 2013 at the Print Shop Art Gallery on Courtsquare, Greenville.  Hosting the meeting were Vera White and Babs Gordon. Members and guests enjoyed delicious refreshment while wandering through the art gallery, meeting new members and chatting with old friends.

Presiding officer Sally Neal, club secretary, thanked Linda Wilburn for making the art gallery available to the group for the meeting. Wilburn gave a brief summary of the second streetscapes project.  Construction should begin this winter and sidewalk pavers will once again be available for purchase.  Many have asked about this unique fundraiser and have wanted to have a chance of leaving a permanent memorial or mark on the sidewalks of Greenville.

Wilburn also explained the future plans for Hill Brothers Store. The designer’s blueprints were shown to the club and the ladies found the planned addition for its east side to be most exciting. “Watch the Progress, Catch the Vision” is the slogan on the poster for the store, and it is indeed a unique facelift for downtown Greenville.

Former Merry Weather Garden Club president Mary Anne Rasmussen joined the meeting to lead the Botanical Talk which was Winter Horticulture. Some of the winter plants that were blooming and brought in from local yard were on display: jonquils or narcissus, spirea, mahonia, winter jasmine, flowering quince, vinca, iris, blooming rosemary, Carolina Jasmine, camellia, and Daphne. Members had questions about the care, pruning, and fertilizing of the various plants and of course each of the plants displayed were available because the deer did not find them particularly appetizing! Toots Hobson noted that the Columbus Ledger recently had an article about the new mahonia that is relatively thorn free.

Members were encouraged to enter their horticultural exhibits in the upcoming Southeastern Garden Show.

The January meeting was a “Show and Tell” program featuring the flower in art. Neal introduced the topic by pointing out that in our early civilizations there is not much remaining featuring flowers.  Cave drawings depict primitive man and beasts, the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans focused more on people, architecture, and graphics.  Back grounds in paintings exploded in the 18^th century and Neal displayed Fragonard’s “The Swing” before moving forward to the Impressionists: Van Gogh’s Irises, Monet’s Giverny, and Renoir’s bouquets were stunning.  Members remembered in the 1980s when Irises sold for 84 million dollars.

Members brought favorite pieces that traveled easily on the wet and windy winter day. Dee Garrett displayed stationery she bought in Maine as well as a copper cross with dogwood blossoms and groupings of twelve leaves symbolizing the twelve tribes of Israel. Menlia Trammel had a fabric sample and she along with several members confessed to loving fabric stores especially drapery and upholstery fabrics and looking through floral items with their varying textures and colors.

Marilyn Austin Carter brought two of her stunning whimsical birdbaths that feature water lilies.  She explained how she made them and gave the rocks texture by either making little holes with a toothpick or by pressing lace into the clay to give it texture.  She also had glass flowers made from scraps of colored glass.  The kiln melts the colors to create wonderful patterns. Mary Anne Harman brought a 1930s crewel sampler of an English cottage and garden.

Sallie Mabon displayed some prized pieces of painted china: A teapot with pink roses and camellias and a brooch made from broken china. Vera White brought s stitched crewel piece that she found at an estate sale that displayed a basket of arranged flowers. Mary Beth Tsoukalas brought a painting on rice paper of a mason jar filled with daffodils that she found in an antique store.

Ellen McEwen brought a painting that wowed the group: a still life done by her Aunt Dorothy Gay Poole.  Aunt Dot has done the official portraits of Newt Gingrich, the presidents of Georgia Tech, and the portraits we see of the Gay family at the Cotton Pickin’ Fair.

The club members had a last reminder of it being the time to prune roses and move any shrubs. Members signed up to host club meetings. Neal shared her copy of “Portico” a regular publication from Hills and Dales that lists their upcoming workshops. Several members have participated in the workshops there and found them exemplary and superb. Neal noted that Brooks Garcia is designing the display for Hills and Dales that will be at this year’s Southeastern Flower Show in March.

 

Ho, Ho , Ho . . . Merry Christmas

The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Thursday, December 6^th, 2012 at the home of Carla Snider for a Christmas Party.  The Snider’s home had been used earlier in the Woodbury Tour of Homes and with the house beautifully decorated by Carla and her friends, she invited the garden club plus friends from the Woodbury, Imlac, and Gay communities to enjoy it.

   Guests brought plates and trays of delicious goodies to enjoy. Salads, tea sandwiches, and cheeses made the party a luncheon plus there was a bevy of desserts. One special Christmas tradition is for the guests to sign Snider’s Christmas tablecloth.  Signatures from guests at Carla’s first party in Woodbury were evident in one corner of the cloth.

   Every available corner of the house was decorated by either Carla or her many helpful and talented friends. The exterior was swagged in greenery, berries, and bows. There was a decorated tree outside in the pool house, one in the turret of the back porch, and smaller trees located in almost every room. The entrance hall however was perfectly designed to showcase a large striking tree, and it was spectacular.  The dining room was set with Christmas china and chair covers, table cloths, and decorations carrying out Carla’s Christmas colors.

   Each room in the house had a fireplace, mantel, or table top decorated.  The sheer immense amount of labor came from ladies who had been dropping by for months before the tour to plan and organize. Snider’s neighbor Phyllis Daniel made one upstairs room the “Angel Room.” She also used holiday Barbies, dressed in satin evening gowns, on the mantel along with greenery to give a unique party flair.

   Snider decorated the library mantel with a variety of colorful Nutcrackers. Her living room mantel displayed “stockings hung by the chimney with care.”

   A bevy of friends chipped in and wrapped the foyer stairway and decorated the large tree. Mary Beth Tsoukalas gathered many truck loads of greenery from her front and back yards here in Woodbury and in Marietta.

   A consensus of votes chose the favorite Christmas room the third floor children’s area. All the twin beds boasted Dutch Doll quilts courtesy of Kitha Kierbow. Erma Jean Brown came up with the idea of making the third floor a storybook attic, and Snider and friends each took two dormers and decorated them. One of Carla’s dormers was devoted to Beatrix Potter and displayed bunnies, Potter’s books, and tea time play things. Snider also made one of the dormer nooks into a snowman vignette. Phyllis Daniel did a Mickey Mouse corner and also a nook filled with Dr. Seuss’ Grinch. Erma Jean Brown’s dormer was the perfect setting for a formal Victorian Tea Party. Winnie the Pooh and friends from the Hundred Acre Wood filled Brown’s second third floor play area. Mary Beth Tsoukalas showcased dozens of colorful Raggedy Anns and Andys in one area and the last children’s corner featured adorable farm animals and farming equipment.

    The tables, sunroom and kitchen were a combination of all of the friends coming up with ideas. Erma Jean Brown decorated Sam Snider’s forest animal tree in his room, Carla Snider did the Christmas moose and deer in the study. All chipped in to decorate the craft room together. Snider and Tsoukalas even had a Santa Claus closet!

   The size and number of rooms in the house made it a gigantic challenge, but Snider and friends rose to that challenge. Carla said she was so very grateful to her friends, but that they made a good team and had lots of fun too!

   Garden club members signed up for months in 2013 in which they would host or present a program.

Holiday plants: Poinsettias, Paperwhite Narcissus, Amaryllis

November 2012

The Merry Weather Garden Club met on Thursday, November 15^th, 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 8^th 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 2^nd 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 6^th.