Author: Admin

Howard Hunter opened a meeting attended by the biggest crowd of the year (so far) including some of the 4H members who were attending and hoping to pick up tips on exhibiting at the upcoming Flower Show.

Howard quickly went through announcements about discounts available from local nurseries, introduced a prospective logo for the society (and solicited comments on it), as well as exhorting people to vote in the mini-show.

Hedy Campbell gave a short report on the first society workshop and that it was rapidly filled and she received good feedback that would assist with future workshops. At present, a workshop titled ‘Nature’s Banquet’ with Honey Pie Herbals is scheduled for June 5th. Details to follow.

Marianne Malachowski gave a brief update on Master Gardeners activities and noted that they would be having a plant sale on May 24 in the Metro parking lot on Main Street in Picton.

Anne Reeves gave a rapid-fire report on the Garden Show noting that ALL of the indoor vendor spaces were already booked and that the available outdoor spaces were going fast (so well done to the Garden Show team).

Featured Speaker

Our featured speaker was Penny Stewart who gave a talk about Garden Shows and how to exhibit, entitled ‘Grow to Show and Show to Grow’. Penny gave us an animated presentation, replete with practical tips and ‘best practices’ to help you stay cool by being prepared for just about anything that could happen when getting set for a Garden Show. She spiced her presentation with anecdotes of ‘classic’ errors made by experienced show exhibitors, all while illustrating techniques and tips and the ‘perfect’ grouping of three daffodils!

A copy of Penny’s remarks can be downloaded here Exhibiting at Shows [86kb pdf].

Mini-Show

This month, the mini-show had entries in only one category: ‘Early bloom from your garden’.

As customary, the entries were judged by the members present at the meeting: Pat Stuckey [left image below] came first, with Connie Graham second [centre], and Hedy Campbell took third place [right].

Click the images to see larger versions.

photo credits: Bert Jenkins

The weather finally took a break and people coming to the meeting were able to travel in comfort and sunshine!

President Colleen Green opened the proceedings with a brief acknowledgement of new members and guests which brought 35+ people to the March meeting.

Hedy Campbell gave a brief presentation talking about upcoming workshops which the Society would put on to promote membership in our Society, as well as sharing some of her ideas about showcasing baked and homemade goods at the Garden Show and looking for volunteers to assist – details [here].

Colleen continued with announcements that the Flower Show brochure would be ready for the April meeting and would provide details of the show categories [nice tie-in to next month’s presentation from Penny Stewart], and possibly a silent auction at the show. After an advance thanks to Sheila and Dee for the ‘goodies’ for next month’s meeting, Colleen introduced the evening’s featured speaker – Nicolette McGraw on “Photographing Gardens”.

What followed was a dazzling array of garden and outdoor photographs in a slide presentation which Nicolette used to illustrate what she considers the key points for success is photographing gardens.

Key thoughts are to focus on texture, depth, pinch, and emotion. Lighting is a prime consideration and sunset and sunrise usually produce warm colours.

Composition – simplify, fill the scene, use ‘leading’ lines, look for complementary colours.

Perspective – look up, look down, look straight across. Some of the best images were everyday subjects seen from a different perspective for a powerful image.

Close-up – look for patterns, abstract images, and pictures with a ‘punch’. Patience really helps with these.

Weather – don’t be afraid to photograph on those not so nice days. Any weather will work with the right subject and composition. Sometimes the weather is the picture.

Action! – sometimes. Which plants attract critters and birds? Which seasonal plants ae favourites with bugs and insect visitors?

Indoors – use natural light, use fresh flowers as your subjects, and stand at a comfortable height.

Editing – start simple, look for free software, talk to friends, and – most importantly – save the original. Sound advice! As they say “he who laughs last, probably made a back-up”.

Mini-Show

The mini-show was two separate categories. As customary, the entries were judged by the members present at the meeting: Sheila Simmons [image upper row left] came first in the “All Green Arrangement” category, with Pat Stuckey second [image upper row right]. Mary Jenkins took third place [image lower row left] and also took first place in the “St. Patrick’s Day Arrangement” [image lower row right] with a beer mug container!

Click the images to see larger versions.

photo credits: Bert Jenkins

Announcements

Bob Simmons announced a couple of items of interest from the Stewardship Council:

• Wednesday April 16 at the Firehall, a talk about coyotes.Details here.
• Sunday May 4 beginning at 9:00 am, the Tree Sale at the Cattle Barn on the Picton Fairgrounds< - $2 trees for sale: conifers, maple, butternut, hickory, and nannyberry/li>