The mini-show theme for April was ‘Spring Ahead’.
In the Design Category – ‘a timely design’ – first place went to Pat Stuckey (arrangement upper left); second place went to Mary Jenkins with Colleen Green taking third place (bottom row left and right images respectively). In the Horticultural Category – ‘3 forced branches any variety’ – first place went to Angela Palmer (arrangement upper right).
Click the images to see larger versions.
photo credits: Bert Jenkins
The first meeting of the year was well attended, with a handful of new faces in the crowd. Welcome!
Colleen Green introduced the speaker – Kathleen Lang – and her topic was Drought Tolerant Gardening.
Kathleen hails from the Lanark County Master Gardener group, and has been a member for 11 years. She gardens on a tiny lot on the banks of the Rideau River. Many of her tricks were learned while gardening in South Africa. She managed to
established a landscape at her new home during a 4 year drought. Today, with many having to pay for water, these same techniques come into play.
So-called drought-resistant plants are, by definition, tolerant of low-water conditions. But while the definition is straightforward enough, we find that it’s not so easy to implement a plan that will get our landscapes through periods without rainfall (in the absence of artificial irrigation). That’s because, in practice, there are numerous factors that have a say regarding whether or not a plant will receive adequate water.
For example, what type of soil do you have? Something that qualifies as a “drought-resistant plant” in a wonderfully loamy soil may struggle during a dry spell if it’s growing in a sandy soil (through which water pours quickly, as through a sieve).
Then there’s the issue of competition for resources. The most extreme example is encountered when we plant under trees. Only stubbornly tough plants can compete successfully with massive trees for water. But on a less extreme level, even various types of weeds can pose a challenge to landscaping specimens during dry periods, siphoning off much needed water.
Thankfully, using garden mulch correctly can mitigate some of the above challenges. Mulch shields the ground from the pounding sun, helping to keep it from drying out. It also suppresses weeds, thereby reducing competition for water. But even after mulch breaks down, it continues to work hard for you. As it decomposes, organic mulch adds humus to the soil, promoting water-retention.
Always pay attention to sunshine requirements and/or tolerance when planting. You may think of full-sun plants when you hear mention of drought resistant plants, but there are also suitable plants for dry shade. Moreover, not all sun-lovers tolerate excessive dryness (and there are varying degrees of such tolerance).
Vegetation that tolerates dry soil includes stalwarts such as cacti and succulents, as well as native plants. The latter have adapted to your local climate over the ages, so they should work well as drought resistant plants if you can mimic their natural habitat soil type, amount of sunshine or shade, etc.). Not everyone will like the look of a landscape planted purely with cacti and succulents, although new cultivars such as ‘Chocolate Drop’ sedum may generate significant excitement. And sometimes natives simply don’t offer enough color choices for a particular season of the year.
Seedsavers blog: Drought strategies for vegetable gardening
Howard Hunter brought the revised Constitution and By-Laws forward for a vote of acceptance. On motions duly moved and seconded, the society’s Constitution and Bylaws as amended were adopted. You can read them or download a copy here[88kb pdf].
The meeting closed outwith a series of announcements from Colleen (aided by the audience).
There are a couple of notable fund-raisers from the OHA (details to be on the web site).
John Garside will be in charge of the Society’s efforts with the Picton Hospital Garden for this year.
Members were reminded about the plant sale to be held in Wellington on May 16 (Saturday).
Member benefits this year are 10% discounts at Walker’s Greenhouse in Milford, and Connons in Trenton will donate 10% of member purchases back to the Society. Watch for details soon our web site.
Seedy Saturday was ‘very well done’ and raised some money for the Society. Congratulations to Bert and Mary Jenkins, Howard Hunter, and Anne Reeves.
The mini-show main category – ‘arrangement is a tea cup’ … First place went to Mary Jenkins (arrangement at left below) and second place went to Pat Stuckey.
Pat Stuckey was the only entrant in the ‘Garden Picture’ mini-show category.
Click the images to see larger versions.
photo credits: Howard Hunter
If you would like to open your garden for a tour to raise money for APPEC (a group fighting to keep out Industrial Wind Turbines from the South Shore). The planned date is June 27 and APPEC needs to know by the middle of February if you would like to volunteer your garden for this event.
Please call Johanna McCarthy at 476-0240 or send an email to jcmleewis@kos.net
More food, more variety, more goodness! The annual meeting got off to the traditional start with a great meal produced by member volunteers.
After the meal, president Colleen Green addressed the 40+ members present. The first order of the AGM’s business was to solicit approval for the minutes (provided to members beforehand) for the 2013 AGM. On a motion duly moved and seconded, the minutes were adopted.
Colleen then gave the President’s Report in the form of a recap of the year’s significant events: the January and February meetings cancelled due to weather; the Garden Show which attracted over 600 people; the volunteer appreciation picnic hosted by Dave and Norma Crichton; the fund-raising efforts of Hedy Campbell’s workshops; and the social media team’s efforts (website by Andy Bowers and Twitter/Facebook by Connie Graham).
Howard Hunter presented the Financial Report, noting that there had been a slight drop in revenues caused by a decline in paid memberships and that expenditures had marginally exceeded income. The Society maintains a strong financial position. On a motion duly moved and seconded, and following several clarification requests from the floor, the Financial Statement was accepted.
On a motion duly moved and seconded, the Auditors were confirmed (same auditors as last year).
Howard continued with a brief presentation on the revised Constitution and Bylaws and explained the rationale for the changes (principally housekeeping and bringing the organization into line with OHA requirements). He advised the members that if they had any suggestions or concerns they should contact him with details.
Penny Stewart announced the members standing for the executive and invited further nominations. There being none, the 2015 executive was elected.
Your 2015 Executive [L to R]: Howard Hunter, Sheila Simmons, John Garside, Anne Reeves, Liz Bowers, Darlene Johnston, Gayla Campney, Mary Jenkins. Connie Graham, and Colleen Green
Penny Stewart brought greetings to the group and discussed some of the OHA future programs: an upcoming “Gardening Week” in June which would go much ‘deeper’ than just the Horticultural Societies bu would extend too encompass society member friends, neighbours, seniors, etc. and also a program designed for youth engagement in gardening and horticulture.
Colleen thanked the members of the 2013 Board for their work.
Marianne Malachowski brought greetings to the members with thanks for all their work with the Hospital Gardens.
Mary Jenkins concluded the meeting by announcing the recipients of various society trophies, and presenting the winners present with their trophies. This year’s winners were:
Click the images to see larger versions.
photo credits: Bert Jenkins
President Colleen Green opened a very well attended meeting by introducing the evening’s presenter – Laurie McMurray (the Corn Husk Doll lady).
Corn dolls created by Laurie McMurray
Almost 40 members were present, glue and scissors at the ready, for the presentation and hands-on learning opportunity. Laurie McMurray gave a brief introduction to the art of making dolls from corn husks. She illustrated her talk with a full table of materials (flowers, leaves, fur, corn silk, feathers, and other ‘found’ items) and lots of corn husks. There was also an explanation of why corn husk dolls have no faces!
Laurie explained how to begin the doll and produce one in a few simple steps. Then left the PECHS members to let rheir imaginations run riot with all of the decorative odds and ends on the table. All of the dolls made at the meeting will be used to decorate the PECHS tree at the Festival of Trees fund-raiser in late November.
Dolly Mixture – having a good time for charity
After the official collection of the dolls, the business of the meeting continued.
Colleen introduced the proposed changes to the constitution and by-laws which are to be voted on at the November AGM, and discussed the rationale for the changes.
Members were reminded that the AGM is preceded by a Pot Luck dinner beginning at 6:00 pm, and invited to sign up for providing food (to ensure that we don’t have 40 potato salads and nothing else :)).
Members were reminded about the Festival of Trees and asked if they could provide some small prizes to go under that tree for the charity auction in support of the Hospital Auxiliary.
This month, the mini-show had entries in two classes:
As customary, the entries were judged by the members present at the meeting.
In the ‘arrangement in a pumpkin shell’ class, Pat Stuckey [left image below] came first, with Sheila Simmons second [centre], and Walter McGee took third place [right].
In the ‘named herbs’ class, Mary Jenkins [image opposite] came first, with Hedy Campbell second [below left], and Colleen Green took third place [below right].
Click the images to see larger versions.
photo credits: Bert Jenkins
A number of resolutions will be put to the vote at the AGM. These relate mostly to aligning the PEC Horticultural Society constitution and by-laws with the OHA equivalents. Voting on these resolutions is restricted to PECHS members in good standing. Full details of the changes can be downloaded here [48 kb pdf file].
Memberships, new or renewal, will be available at the November meeting.
The beautiful images posted for mini shows, garden shows, and our meetings are from photographs created by member Bert Jenkins.
