April Garden Club Meeting

President, Norma Chiaramonte, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center.

THOSE IN ATTENDANCE INCLUDED: Larry Allen, Jennifer Buchert, Bonnie Buhl, Norma Chiaramonte, Sandra Gilbert, Debbie Haluch, Elizabeth Hearn, Ellen & Mark Jones, John Marenco, Mike Owens, Ann Wiseman Schmidt, Doc & Peggy Stokley. Guest: Jo-Ann Paul and Dale Smothers

PROGRAM: “Tota” Kelly spoke on Iceland “The Land of Fire” and its flora and fauna

YARD OF THE MONTH: It was announced that to home of Tom and Mechelle Thomas was the recipient of the Yard of the Month.

HOSTESS:  Thank you to Sandra Gilbert for being hostess this month!

DOOR PRIZE: Thank you to Ann Wiseman Schmidt for the 2 containers of crinum lilies and to Ellen Jones and Sandra Gilbert for bringing plants for door prizes, won by John Marenco, JoAnn Paul, Liz Hearn, Sandra Gilbert, Larry Allen and Jennifer Buchert

MINUTES:  A motion was made to dispense with the reading of the minutes by Mark Jones and Liz Hearn seconded the motion. Thank you to Ann Wiseman Schmidt for taking the minutes for this meeting

Norma said that the books need to be audited and will have that report for the May meeting.                                                                                   

OLD BUSINESS:

BRICKS: Sandra reported that the brick had been installed and the next order will arrive on April 28. Larry, Mike and John will install the bricks.

SIGNS: Larry Allen talked about our new signs and the new Jr. Gardener Event sign.

BUTTERFLY GARDEN: Larry announced Butterfly Garden planting will be on Saturday, May 14 at 8 am. He asked for everyone to be there to help with the planting. Kyle will have the garden prepared for the plants.

WOCC FEDERATION MEETING: On April 8, Ann Wiseman Schmidt, Bev Allen, Norma Chiaramonte and Kathie Corbett attended the meeting on floral arrangement.

JR. GARDENER EVENT: Liz Hearn reported that the event will be held on April 30^th from 10-2. A sign-up sheet was passed around for members to help with the event to work from 9-12 and 12-2. Norma suggested that the members need to pass out flyers for the event and a great place to pass flyers out is at the children’s bus stops.

NEW BUSINESS:

VOLUNTEERS FOR NEXT YEAR: Norma said that the end of this year is approaching and we need to start planning for next year. Everyone should start thinking about finding speakers for next year. She passed sign-up sheets for the monthly Speaker, Hostess, Door Prize, Sign Placement, and Yard of the Month.

YARD OF THE MONTH: Norma said since Cypress Creek Lakes has grown so much in the past years that we should have 2 yards chosen as Yard of the Month. The division line would be Cypress North Houston.  She asked for volunteers to help with the selection of the homes. Ellen Jones and John Marenco volunteered to help Bev and Norma. The motion was made by Mike Owens and seconded by Ellen Jones to have 2 yards of the month (one home North and one home South of Cypress North Houston) starting in September. The motion passed.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

April 30: Jr. Gardener Event, 10-2 (volunteers need to be here at 9)

May 14: Butterfly Garden Planting, 8 am

GARDENING TIP OF THE MONTH: Plants for attracting Hummingbirds and Butterflies

NEXT MEETING:  May 9, 2016 at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center.

SPEAKER: “KEYHOLE GARDENING” by Edwin Eargle

HOSTESS: Jennifer Buchert

DOOR PRIZE: Marcia & Dave Mausolf

Meeting was adjourned at  9 p.m.

March General Meeting

President, Norma Chiaramonte, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center.

THOSE IN ATTENDANCE INCLUDED:  Bev & Larry Allen, Norma Chiaramonte, Kathie Corbett, Billie Fontana, Sandra Gilbert, Debbie Haluch, Kristina Haygood, Liz Hearn, Ellen & Mark Jones, John Marenco, Ian & Lyn McWilliam, Dave & Marcia Mausolf, Mike Owens, Doc & Peggy Stokley, Melissa Yahner. New Member: Bonnie Buhl. Guests: Valerie Sterrett, Beth Weers, Courtney Bliendenz and R Steele.

PROGRAM: Clara Willibey presented the program on Decorating Gourds. The members all purchased a gourd to decorate from her. Clara gave instructions on how to stain the gourd, transfer a design on to the gourd and draw or paint it.  Clara donated a wall hanging of a gourd that she had designed. Marcia Mausolf won the prize.

YARD OF THE MONTH:

Bev announced that The Russell Walker Family was the recipient of the Yard of the Month.

HOSTESS:  Thank you to Ellen & Mark Jones for being hostess this month!

DOOR PRIZE: Thank you to Ellen & Mark Jones for the door prize, won by Lyn McWilliam

MINUTES:  A motion was made to dispense with the reading of the minutes.

OLD BUSINESS

BRICKS: Sandra reported that the 5 bricks will be installed on Tuesday.

Norma made a list of all 74 bricks that have been installed at the Butterfly Garden.

BUTTERFLY GARDEN: Larry reported that he had not been able to speak to Kyle about the planting, but thought we could plant the garden the last week of April. He has the plan and needs to check the availability of the plants shown.

CAM FOOD DONATIONS: Norma reported that we will have one more food donation to CAM in May. She suggested that we have the donation four times during the September thru May year.

NEW BUSINESS

SPEAKERS: Norma asked the members to start thinking about speakers for next year’s meetings. Sign-up for volunteers to invite speakers will be next month.

JR GARDENER EVENT: Liz Hearn brought a mock-up of a terra cotta pot for the children to decorate and plant for their mothers. She also passed out flyers for the members to hand out to neighbors.

TAX EXEMPT FORMS: Norma is working on getting the tax exempt form ready. The garden club will not have to pay sales tax on items purchased for the club.

GARDENING TIP OF THE MONTH:  GARDENER’S RECIPES HORTICULTURAL OIL SPRAY: 1T. vegetable oil, 1 t. liquid dish soap, 2 C. water. Mix in a spray bottle. Shake before using. Spray tops and bottoms of leaves to kill bugs on plants. Use instead of insecticidal soap. Spray in early morning or late afternoon to avoid plant burn. Repeat weekly if necessary, to kill bugs.                                                                                                                                           SOIL FUNGUS GNAT TREATMENT: 1 T. liquid dish soap, 1 t. white vinegar, 1 gallon water. Use instead of plain water for every tattering. Let soil dry out to a depth of 2” before watering again. Eventually larvae and eggs will be killed off.                                                                FROM THE HOUSTON FEDERATION OF GARDEN CLUBS NEWSLETTER, VOLUME 69, No. 7, p. 11.

NEXT MEETING: April 11, 2016 at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center.

February Monthly Meeting

How to attract Houston Hummingbirds

President, Norma Chiaramonte, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center. She welcomed visitors Ann Sansbury and Antonia George, and guests Helen Lombardo and Dale Smothers.

MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE INCLUDED: Bev & Larry Allen, Jennifer Buchert, Norma Chiaramonte, Kathie Corbett, Sandra Gilbert, Debbie Haluch, Kristina Haygood, Liz Hearn, Mark & Ellen Jones, John Marenco, Ian McWilliam, Marcia & Dave Mausolf, Mike Owens, and Ann Wiseman Schmidt.

PROGRAM: Jennifer Buchert invited Robbie Edie with Wild Birds Unlimited to speak. Robbie spoke to us about Hummingbirds which come to the Houston area. Robbie brought 4 door prizes which were won by Ian, Mike, John, and Kristina.

YARD OF THE MONTH: Bev announced that Sandra and Kenneth Gilbert were picked this month. Their beautiful home is at 11403 Garden Shadows Lane.

HOSTESS:  Thank you to Liz Hearn for being hostess this month!

DOOR PRIZES: John Marenco and Bev Allen brought door prizes which were won by Jennifer and Dave.

MINUTES:  A motion was made to dispense with the reading of the minutes.

 OLD BUSINESS:

Brick sales: Sandra reported that the bricks should be in by the end of this month.

Butterfly Garden: Larry reported that the garden is looking good. Bev and Marcia took Helen Lombardo to see how beautiful the garden had grown. (Helen designs the flower placement for the Butterfly Garden.)  Helen said that a little rain would really help the flowers bloom. Helen also gave the new plan for the 2016 spring garden to Larry. He said that we would plant it in April.

Signs: Larry reported that he placed 6 signs and John had placed 3 signs. He also said that we will need to order 3 more signs for the new entrances to the subdivision, and that he would order them when the entrances were completed.

NEW BUSINESS:

Norma announced that Clara Willibey would be the speaker next month. Her subject is decorating gourds. Clara will bring gourds for us to decorate, with her instructions for $ 10.00 per gourd. A sign-up sheet was passed around the room and 18 members signed up for a gourd. Eighteen members signed up to buy a gourd. Norma will send an email to members who were not present, to see if they would like to purchase a gourd.

Norma suggested that the club purchase a commemorative brick for the passing of a member’s immediate family (member’s parent or child). A motion was made and passed to do so. Brick forms were given to Mark, Dave and Peggy Sue.

Norma asked if any of the members needed name tags. Sandra will make them up for those needing one.

GARDENING TIP OF THE MONTH:  Valentine’s Day is rose pruning time. Prune back hybrid tea and floribunda roses no shorter than 18” in height. Make all cuts ¼”- ½” above the outward facing buds. DO NOT PRUNE climbing roses or antique roses, until after their bloom cycle.

1001 GardenLine Questions with Randy Lemmon.

January Monthly Meeting

President, Norma Chiaramonte, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. at the Cypress Creek Lakes Community Center, and welcomed new members, Kristina Haygood and Ian McWilliam

THOSE IN ATTENDANCE INCLUDED: Bev and Larry Allen, Jennifer Buchert, Norma Chiaramonte, Kathie Corbett, Sandra Gilbert, Debbie Haluch, Kristina Haygood, Elizabeth Hearn, GiGi, John, and the Marenco girls, Ian McWilliam, Marcia and David Mausolf, Cathy Oland, Mike Owens, Kathi Palacios, Ann Wiseman Schmidt, Peggy and Doc Stokley.

PROGRAM: Sandra Gilbert introduced her speakers, Lana King (owner of Blooms from the Heart) and Diana Hanley (President of Society for the Advancement of Floral Design SAFD). The subject this evening was “What Every Good Floral Enthusiast Should Know” – Floral Tips and Techniques! Lana explained the principals of floral design and created several floral arrangements while she was speaking to illustrate her subject. Diana invited anyone interested in floral design to join SAFD and explained the group and told us about floral programs and schools in our area.

DOOR PRIZES: Lana and Diana left all their flower arrangements to be given as door prizes. Ann brought plants from her garden and Mike brought a door prize. The door prizes were won by Ian, Ann, Peggy, Debbie, Cathy, Norma, Sandra, Mike, Kristina, Larry, Dave and GiGi who picked a prize in the order drawn.

HOSTESS:  Thank you to Mike Owens for being host this month!

NEW BUSINESS

YARD OF THE MONTH: Bev and her team picked Peggy and Doc Stokley's yard as Yard of the Month. Congratulations. 

MINUTES:  A motion was made by Ann to dispense with the reading of the minutes, and seconded by Larry.

OLD BUSINESS

BRICKS:  Sandra reported that Ian McWilliam and Doc & Peggy Stokley had ordered bricks for the Butterfly Garden. She will order the bricks. She reminded us that bricks are a great gift or memorial for loved ones.

BUTTERFLY GARDEN:  Larry reported that the Butterfly Garden is looking good.

SIGNS:  Larry reported that the metal frame for Yard of the Month sign is badly rusted and should be replaced soon. He also said that new entrances to Cypress Creek Lakes subdivision are nearing completion and we will be needing signs for those new entrances. Larry also reported that he is leaving a Club sign set at the Butterfly Garden during the month to let visitors at the Garden know about the garden club meetings.

NEW BUSINESS

SIGNS:  Norma requested help setting the meeting signs at the subdivision entrances. John volunteered to help.

MEMBER FOLDERS: New inserts for the member folders were handed out to the members present and folders were given to new members. The inserts included a cover page, a club roster and the monthly speaker information with hostess and door prizes.

OTHER: Norma said she needed pictures of the club’s activities to send to Federation for their newsletter.

Norma also reported that CAM was delighted with our donation of money and food for their Christmas food drive.

GARDENING TIP OF THE MONTH:  ­­­­­­­­­­­Extend the life of Poinsettias from Christmas, by keeping the soil moist and keeping them away from drafts and heat. They thrive in temperatures between 60 and 70 degrees.

1001 GardenLine Questions with Randy Lemmon.

NEXT MEETING: February 8, 2016 at the CCL Community Center.

PROGRAM: Jennifer Buchert is having Richard and Robbie Edie (with Wild Birds Unlimited) speak on “Backyard Birding for Spring”

Happy Holidays...May your garden grow bright

Our Butterfly Garden is growing in this beautiful warm weather. 

Our planted flowers are Rocket Mix Snapdragons, Pansy Matrix Red Blotch, Viola Penny Orange and Lobelia Midnight Blue. 

Each have been marked with QR codes to smartphone more information.



We hope everyone will be healthy and enjoy family and neighbors this season.   It has been a great year!

December 2015 Meeting

  Enjoying the Holiday Season with fellow gardeners, spouses and neighbors.






Sandra, Ann and everyone appreciate Ed and Norma for hosting our annual Christmas Party. 




Members brought potluck dishes to share and enjoyed lively
conversations prior to eating.
























Mike Owens, our resident gardener and poet, read some of his poems to the group.





Each member who brought an exchange gift, took turns selecting packages under the tree. 


Happy Holidays Everyone!

Fall Planting of Butterfly Garden

CCL Garden Club Butterfly Garden was replanted by club members, family and friends. 

It went off like clock-work starting  at 8:00 am and finished by 9:30 am.  It is great to have  completed a very good neighborhood service project that the CCL residents and guest will enjoy the next six months.  

Thank you... Larry Allen for coordinating the project and Helen Lombardo for plant design. 

Those who participated in planting are: 

Mike Owens

Ellen & Mark Jones and grandchildren

Dave & Marsha Mausolf

Ian McWilliams

Kathie Corbet

John, Gigi Marenco and  girls

Larry & Bev Allen