Garden Clippings
McMinnville
Garden Club
PO Box 386,
McMinnville, OR
503-434-4344
January 18th – MEETING
Hillside Retirement Community “Activity Room” at the
Manor
900 N. Hill Road
PLEASE DON’T FORGET TO
PARK IN THE CHURCH PARKING LOT
*Remember: “The
Making a Difference Campaign” is a national garden club project. Our Pioneer District is collecting inkjet,
laser printer cartridges and cell phones that will be recycled. If you have any that you wish to contribute
to the project please bring them to a meeting and we will forward them to the
Pioneer District. They take clean bottle caps, the plastic ones. No
medicine bottle caps. *Also bring your magazines to share
with others.
9:30a.m. - 10:00a.m.
- Social time:
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. - Business
Meeting and FUN:
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Speaker: Ann Nickerson, How to Design a Four Season Border
CHANGE IN SPEAKER!!!
Due to a family
illness, Charlotte will be unable to attend our January meeting. In her place we are very pleased to announce
that we will be hearing from Ann Nickerson, a Landscape Designer.
Ann recently presented at the Fall Pioneer District Luncheon and is a regular
at the Yard, Garden, and Patio Show. Since incorporating her business in 1993,
she has designed well over one hundred gardens. They have ranged from four-acre
country estates, complete with a small lake, to patio gardens and neighborhood
parks. She has interpreted such styles as Japanese, Mediterranean, and English
Cottage Garden to our climate and to the specific needs of the site. She has
created waterfalls, dry creek beds and boulder rookeries. Ann enjoys finding
the right structures and accents to transform a plain corner into an inviting
sanctuary. While doing all this, she says she has had fun and always look
forward to the next challenge and to the opportunity to share what she’s
learned and experienced with others.
Her
Topic will be: HOW TO DESIGN A FOUR SEASON BORDER
Ann
will share basic design principals and plant selection for a border that has
structure and interest all year around.
Flowers to Share?
At the
October meeting a new meeting project was announced. For each meeting,
members are asked to bring along cuttings from their yards. This can
include flowers, branches, bulbs, etc. There will be a flower container
for you to add your finds to and help arrange. During the meeting, we’ll
select someone to take home the great bouquet all ready for their house.
Blooper
Session at YGP Show Vote
At our January meeting we will be voting about what date
we will take a field trip to the Yard, Garden, and Patio Show at the Convention
Center. We currently have it scheduled for Friday, Feb. 12th
BUT the Garden Blooper session that Barbara Blossom
Asmum mentioned at our December luncheon is on Saturday, Feb. 13th
at 1:30. Panel members are Barbara, Dulcy Mahar (she writes for the
Oregonian)and Robb Rosser (he writes the garden column for the
Columbian). We need to vote as to whether we want to leave the field trip
on Friday or switch to Saturday so members could attend this panel
session. If you can’t make it to the January meeting and want to add your
vote, please contact our President, Patty Sorensen, prior to the January 18th
meeting. THANKS!
This
beautiful hand-made quilt donated and made by Beryl Anderson will be auctioned
with the proceeds going to Penny Pines for reforesting acres in the Willamette
National Forest. The tickets are 1 for
$1.00 and 6 for $5.00
January 2-11- Portland Classical Chinese Garden 10th Anniversary & 10 Days
of Free Admission,
Portland Classical Chinese Garden , 239
NW Everett, Portland. In celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Portland
Classical Chinese Garden, there will be free admission during these ten days.
If you've not been to this gem in Portland's Old Town/Chinatown, here is an
opportunity to visit at no charge. 10am—5pm.
January 9 - Saturday, 1pm - What To Do in
the Garden, Al's Garden Center, 16920 Roy Rogers Road/Sherwood. Presenter Kirk
Wade will tell you what to do in the garden in January. Topics include
pruning, spraying, and planting. Free event, all welcome.
January 23- 10am - The Simplified Garden: How to
Create an Earth-Friendly, Productive and Beautiful Garden and Still Have Time
to Enjoy It, Hardy Plant Society of Oregon
Winter Program, Saturday, Reed College, Kaul Auditorium, 3203 SE Woodstock,
Portland. Presenter is Valerie Easton, Seattle writer who writes a weekly
'Plant Life' column for the Pacific Northwest Magazine of the Seattle Times.
Her articles have appeared in Fine Gardening and she is the author of several
books. Fee: members $15, non members $20. Register at
www.hardyplantsociety.org/jan.htm.
February 11 & 12 -
9am—6 pm - February 13 -
9am—3 pm SWCD 2010 Native Plant Sale
At
the Yamhill Soil & Water Conservation District, 2200 SW 2nd Street,
McMinnville
Pre-order
forms and plant descriptions available for sale available at the
OSU
Extension office, the SWCD offices or online at:
http://www.yamhillswcd.org/proj_events/native_plant.html
Feb. 12 - Field
Trip, Yard, Garden and Patio Show
WE WILL BE VOTING ON WHETHER TO
CHANGE THIS DATE AT JAN MEETING
Carpool from the Bethel Baptist parking lot leaving at
9:30 AM to the Oregon Convention Center. Ticket cost is $11 onsite. If
you purchase them ahead of time at Dennis 7 Dee’s Nurseries they are
$7. Plan to spend most of the day and feel free to bring a sack
lunch. We’ll try to organize carpool groups by return time. Check
their website for more info: http://www.ygpshow.com/
Feb. 24-28 - Portland Home and Garden Show, ,
Portland Expo Center
We don’t have a field trip to this show organized. If
there is enough interest, we can add it to our schedule. Check out more
information at: http://otshows.com/shows/phs/
Feb. 26-27 - Yamhill County Master
Gardeners’ Bare Root Tree and Shrub Sale,
The Yamhill
County Master Gardeners will hold their annual tree and shrub sale at the
Yamhill County Fairgrounds on Friday and Saturday, February 26 and 27, 2010,
from 9 am until 3 pm. 100% of net proceeds go to fund scholarships for students
at local schools. http://extension.oregonstate.edu/yamhill/sites/default/files/bare_root10.pdf
6 Month Budget
Progress Report - Stephanie Janik
McMinnville Garden Club has been very busy
with their community projects. We have donated $2500 for the Yamhill County
Historical Museum to help with the cost of the landscaping. We donated $2000
for the downtown kiosk improvement. Everyone can agree that project really
beautifies our town. The club members have been very generous with the Penny
Pines. We have been able to buy one area of trees and are working on the second
area. Aaron McLaughlin, our scholarship winner from last year received his
$1000 to help continue his education. I
think everyone has enjoyed the speakers that Ann was able to schedule.
In 2009 most of our major projects have been
paid. We have spent $7,032.18 so far. At this time our balance stands at
$11,827.81. There is still enough in our budget to continue with the rest of
our yearly projects as approved by our membership. We have been able to help a
number of projects and people this year through our various community projects
funded by our annual Garden Tour and Faire.
Henderson House Donations at our December Meeting
-Our
Garden Club members should be proud of their giving spirit this holiday
season. At our December luncheon we collected over $350 for the residents
at Henderson House. Hopefully that will help them buy medications,
clothing, and other necessities that they need during their stay at Henderson
House. Congratulations! Job well-done.
December Speaker - Barbara
Blossom Asmum
There are many tired gardeners but
I've seldom met old gardeners. I know many elderly gardeners but the majority
are young at heart. Gardening simply does not allow one to be mentally old,
because too many hopes and dreams are yet to be realized. The one absolute of
gardeners is faith. Regardless of how bad past gardens have been, every
gardener believes that next year's will be better. It is easy to age when there
is nothing to believe in, nothing to hope for; gardeners, however, simply
refuse to grow up. Thomas Jefferson said once, "Though an old man, I am
but a young gardener.” - Allan Armitage
January President’s message
“Dig In”
Develop
Skills, Increase Civic Service,
and Grow Friendships
by
Involvement
& Nurturing
Resolutions for 2010
I spent this afternoon finishing some yard
work outside in the cold and straightening up our garage. I found a box
that I had overlooked in the garage. It had bulbs in it!!! YIKES. So I
just planted my five special bleeding heart bulbs (in a pot!). Resolution
#1: Plant what I buy within two weeks of purchase?
This past year I’ve learned a lot
about gardening, enjoyed MANY trips to nurseries, tried some new ideas, and met
the challenges of deer, feeding birds and gardening with a dog with a
smile. The deer continue to love my front yard which they have ready
access to. My winter pansies didn’t last one night. I love watching
the birds eat right outside our windows but must admit that I detest cleaning
their feeders throughout the winter. With all the snow last year, I just
threw sunflower seeds in huge piles out onto the snow. Then in the spring
I had sunflowers coming up everywhere!!! The fall of 2008 we put bark
dust around our flower beds. AND as many of you know, our dog, Bailey ate
some. When he jumped off our bed he managed to get one sliver stuck in
his throat. (We didn’t know what happened until two months, lots of $ and
a surgery later.) The bacteria it left behind grew into a huge puss
pocket. What a mess! SO, this fall I decided we’d put top soil/compost on
the flower beds. Great idea? Maybe not. He has white paws
that now are muddy black every time he comes back in the house…. SO, we
are going to add some hazelnut shells on top of the mud this week to see if we
can keep our house mud free. Watch, he’ll eat that too. Oh, did I
mention he also loves to dig back up the bulbs I put in the ground?
Luckily he lasts about an hour outside with me then heads in to sleep on the
couch. I’ve learned to wait until he tires of helping me then taking on
chores that involve digging. Resolution #2: Keep smiling and
enjoying the company of critters: deer, birds, and dog… EVEN when they mess
with my gardening plans. (Please note that I will not smile and enjoy the
company of any more skunks! We captured 8 in our back yard last summer.
YUCK)
PS I’m
really looking forward to the January speaker’s topic of “healing gardens”!!!
Backyard
Habitats – Marilyn Coats
COOPER’S HAWKS
Cooper’s
Hawks are forest and woodland birds, but the trees in our backyards seem nearly
as good. They are a regular sight in
parks, quiet neighborhoods, over fields, at backyard feeders, and even along
busy streets if there are trees around.
They are identified by a bluish-grey crown, back and
upper wings with fine, horizontal, reddish barring on under parts. Their eyes are red and the tail is long,
round-ended, banded and white tipped.
The male is 15-17” long, 27-32” wide, while the females are 17-19” long
and 32-37” wide.
Their diet consists mainly of birds—small to medium
sizes. They also eat chipmunks', hares,
mice, squirrels and bats and sometimes rob nests.
Males tend to be submissive to females and to listen for
reassuring call notes the females make when they are willing to be
approached. Males build the nest, then
provide nearly all the food to the females and the young over the next 90 days
before the young fledge.
Nests are built in tall trees such as oaks, Douglas firs,
pines and other tree species, often on flat ground rather than hillsides.
These hawks are among the bird world’s most skillful
flyers. In pursuit of their prey, their
flight becomes powerful, quick and agile, allowing the birds to thread their
way through the tree branches at top speed.
If you feed the birds, there’s a chance you’ll also
attract the attention of the Cooper’s Hawk.
While catching birds is natural for them, many of us would prefer not to
sacrifice any bird at our birdfeeder! If
the hawk takes up residence in your yard, quit feeding the birds for a few days
and the hawk will move on.
One day, I was wondering what happened to all the birds
and then I saw a Cooper’s Hawk perched on my fence. It was quite impressive to see the large bird
up close. But, of course, I was hoping
that my birds would stay hidden so the hawk couldn’t capture them. He didn’t stay long.
Their population was greatly reduced at one time because
of the use of the pesticide DDT. Now
Cooper’s Hawks have made a good comeback.
They are wonderful to watch as they fly overhead (as long as they catch
their meals in the fields or woods)!
Meet
Judy Eggers
Roving
Reporter: Jacci Reed
Judy Eggers was born to Bob and Luna Jackson
in Riverside, CA. The family moved to Oregon where Judy graduated from
Eugene High School and later attended the University of Oregon. She
worked in banking and in the stock market with Dean Witter.
Judy married
Lee Eggers. They have two children. David has three children; Ann
Marie, 15, Jackson, 11, and Cole, 9. Julie has one child, Paxton who is
20 months. Judy and Lee really enjoy the company of their
grandchildren. They also have a Havanese Shih Tzu mix named Coco who is
their current plaything.
After
retirement, Judy and Lee sold their home, bought a motor home and traveled for
six years. Vacationing mainly in the warmer months and wintering in Palm
Springs. They enjoyed a lot of golf and still enjoy walking. (Although Judy has to wait for her brace from
her recent surgery to come off before she can do much walking again.)
Judy has a
small garden which is increasingly becoming more shaded. She really likes
here hellebores, hostas, perennials and all of her trees. She likes all
aspects of gardening. Judy has been a real asset to our club. She
was secretary just months after she became a member. She has also served
as chairman and co-chairman of the garden tour/faire just several years
apart! She has also been our field trip chair for three years. We
have been taken to some of the best nurseries, shows, luncheons and other
events. Her schedules, maps, and directions were greatly appreciated.
We are
fortunate to have this Great Egg among us. She is a Faberge’ Egg with a
beautiful garden inside which she shares with everyone around her.
Internet Links
Pioneer
District Newsletter
http://gardencentral.org/oregon/pioneerdistrictnewsletter/
State
Garden Club website
http://oregongardenclubs.org/default.htm
Winter
Gardening http://www.wintergardeningtips.com/index.html
The American
Camellia Society http://www.camellias-acs.com/display.aspx?catid=3,9
Strawberry
Trees http://strawberrytrees.com/
Euphorbia
info http://www.portlandnursery.com/plants/perennialPicks/annuals_perennials_euphorbia.shtml
Winter Garden Forum http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/winter/
2010 February Events to look forward to!
Yamhill County Soil and Conservation
District’s Native Plant Sale, Feb. 11-13
http://www.yamhillswcd.org/proj_events/native_plant.html
Oregonian’s
list of Plant Lovers http://blog.oregonlive.com/homesandgardens/2009/12/connect_with_plant_lovers.html