January General Meeting

Attendees: Bonnie, Buhl, Norma Chiaramonte, Debbie Haluch, Norma Islam,  Mark and Ellen Jones, Ian and Nicole McWilliam, Cathy Oland, Ann Sansbury, Dale Smothers, Rhonda Bouldin (Visitor)

Speaker: Mike Serant, founder of MicroLife Organic Fertilizers, spoke on the benefits of using organic nutrients in your yards and gardens..

Refreshments: Refreshments and door prize were provided by Mark and Ellen Jones.

Minutes –  November 11 Meeting Minutes – a motion was made by Mark and seconded by Bonnie to dispense with reading of the minutes.

Treasurer’s Report - Treasurer Report was given by Secretary/Treasurer, Ann Sansbury and approved by all

Old Business:

·       

      Debbie will be redoing the QR labels in the Gardens due to the old ones fading.

·       

      We raised $650 at the Round Top Collection Fundraiser.

·       

      Norma Chiaramonte delivered approximately $450 of food to Ault Elementary School for families at Christmas.

·      

      IMS Landscaping has had the contract in Phases 1 and 2 for several years and is in danger of losing the contract this year. They have been very supportive of the garden club (providing plants, mulch and advice for the butterfly garden in Phase 1. All members are urged to call the CCL board to let them know we would like to keep IMS.

·       

      Ellen asked when the new bricks will be installed in the gardens. We are waiting on Larry and Mike to redo the path for the bricks where it is sinking in places.

New Business:

·       

      We will have a contest to name the butterfly gardens. Winners will be announced at the Mother’s Day event.

·     

          Ann and Debbie will be attending a free organic gardening workshop in The Woodlands on Saturday, February 1 from 8 am to 1 pm. Everyone is invited to sign up.

·        

      We have the signs and brochures for butterfly garden #2. We can possibly get Pinpoint Magazine to do an article on the garden.

·      

      We voted to put a brick in the garden in honor of member Peggy Sue Owen who passed away last week.

Share Table: We have Meyer lemon products on the share table courtesy of Debbie and Dale.

Gardening Tips of the Month:

·      

      From Buchanan Native Plants blog:  Fertilize established trees and shrubs, except azaleas and camellias with a good all-around organic fertilizer like MicroLife.

Our next meeting  will be Monday, February 10, 2020.

Christmas Party

Fall Fundraising Activity

Round Top Collection fundraising was a wonderful experience to create awareness about our growing environment and commitment to creating butterfly gardens.

November General Meeting

Attendees: Larry and Beverly Allen, Cathy Bortz, Lindey Bortz, Bonnie, Buhl, Norma Chiaramonte, Joe D’Virgilio, Debbie Haluch, Norma Islam, Norma Islam’s Mother, Ellen Jones, David and Marcia Mausolf, Ian and Nicole McWilliam, Mike Owens, Mike Roberts, Ann Sansbury, Dale Smothers

 Speaker: Sherri Harrah from A Plant for All Seasons, spoke on Going Green with Winter. She spoke on organic gardening and minimizing chemicals in your landscape and then auctioned off some of her products.

Refreshments: Refreshments and door prize were provided by Larry and Beverly Allen.

Minutes –  September 9 Meeting Minutes – a motion was made by Norma Chiaramonte and seconded by Marcia Mausolf to dispense with reading of the minutes.

Treasurer’s Report - Treasurer Report was given by Secretary/Treasurer, Ann Sansbury and approved by all.

Old Business:

·       The replanting for the Butterfly Garden in Phase 1 is complete. Debbie has added cards for each type of plant in the garden and gave a lesson for members to use the QR codes on the cards.

·      

      Mike Owens announced that we had sold three bricks for the garden tonight.

·       

      The signs for the Butterfly Garden in Phase 3 have been ordered.

·       

      Debbie has been using borax and sugar to remove ants from both gardens.

·       

      Larry Allen has ordered 7 new signs and associated riders for meeting announcements.

·       

      We will be doing a fundraiser at Round Top Collection all day on Saturday, November 16^th. 20 percent of all sales will be donated to the Garden Club for anyone who mentions us when they check out.

·       

      Norma Chiaramonte announced an upcoming social on Friday, November 22^nd. It was voted to have the social at Marvinos.

New Business:

·       

      The Garden Club Federation Meeting was the second Friday and the speaker spoke on the Audubon Society Ally.

·       

      Wreaths Across America will be on December 14^th at 11:00 for anyone who would like to participate.

·       

      We should all be working toward becoming Butterfly Certified in our own yards.

·       

      Norma is working on a donation project for December.

Share Table: We have Wandering Jew plants and Frost Cloth on the share table.

Gardening Tips of the Month:

Spray your favorite garden shovel with a silicone or Teflon lubricant to make shoveling a breeze. A good coating of this spray will make any type of soil slip right off the shovel without a mess.

Next meeting is Friday, December 6th at Debbie's house for annual Christmas party.

Upcoming Fundraiser for Butterfly Gardens

Come join us Saturday, November 16th 

Refreshing our #1 Butterfly Garden for Winter

Before Replanting

Garden club members meet this "coolish" morning to clean up garden bed and replant for winter.  Color plants and mulch were provided by IMS Landscaping.

Marking plants with QR codes

What is in milkweed?

Caterpillar

Ready for next butterfly cycle

Apparently, someone needed color plants and took quite a few before we arrived.  The garden looks great with the remaining ones.  Thank you to members for all your support and work.

Luncheon with Garden Club members and friends

Cafe at Brookwood Luncheon

Each year, garden club members and friends enjoy lunch and a holiday decorating program at Brookwood Community Center.  Brookwood is a God-centered educational, residential, and entrepreneurial community
for adults with disabilities.