the diggers - dorchester garden club · "chesapeake gardening & landscaping: the essential...

THE DIGGERS Dorchester Garden Club April-May 2016

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Mark Your Calendars

APRIL, 2016

19 “Gardening Smarter” A Day Dedicated to Horticulture sponsored by District 1, Easton Volunteer Fire Department Fire Hall, 315 Aurora Park Drive, Easton. 8am-4pm. Registration by April 10. $40 (includes lunch)

19-20 The 2016 Maryland Daffodil Show, Shops of Kenilworth, Towson. April 19 2:30-8pm, April 20 10am-3pm. Free

22 Earth Day 26-27 Landscape Design School Course 3 Crown Plaza

Hotel, Annapolis. Fee. Registration required. 30 Chicone Village Day at Handsell. Indiantown Rd. Vienna, MD. Noon-4pm. 30 “Violets by the Bay” Baltimore African Violet

and Gesneriad Show & Sale The Shops at Kennilworth, Towson. April 30 1-7pm. May 1 9am-5pm. Free

MAY, 2016

8 Mother’s Day 13 DGC “Don’t Mess with Mother Nature:

Biological Control of Insects” May meeting. Speaker Jonathan Cowherd, Certified Arborist, Bartlett Tree Experts. Cambridge Yacht Club, Cambridge 11 am. Entries 9:30-10:30 am

14 Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage, Talbot County 10am-5pm

25 “The Potting Shed” Standard Flower Show Sponsored by the Dorchester Garden Club, Immanuel United Methodist Church of Christ, Cambridge 1:30-5:30 pm

30 Memorial Day

JUNE, 2016 4-5 “Bloomin Wedding” Standard Flower Show Sponsored by Oxford Garden Club, Oxford Community Center 6/4 1-4pm 6/5 11-3pm 10 DGC “Gardeners Aglow. Plants to Sow” Annual Picnic and Club Awards, Home of Julia Berman 307 Oakley St, Cambridge 11:30am-1:15 pm 29 Daylily Garden Tour Sponsored by District 1 Hillstead Gardens, Easton Information for programs sponsored by other Clubs is at http://www.fgcofmd.org/Calendar_Events.html

http://www.fgcofmd.org/Calendar_Events.html


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“All Wrapped Up” DGC Annual Meeting Dorchester Garden Club members met at the Cambridge Yacht Club for the March 11th Annual Meeting. Julia Berman welcomed members, associate members and their guests, including the club’s newest Active Member, Sue Jones and new Prospective Members Donna Dunlap and Nancy Barger. The meeting marked the end of the 2015-16 program year and a wealth of information about the upcoming 2016-2017 program year was shared with participants

DGC’s Dynamic Duo, Judy Slaughter and Susie Middleton co-presented the meeting’s special program “Tips on Flower Show Preparation” to help members prepare for the club’s May 25, 2016 Standard Flower show “The Potting Shed” that will be held at Immanuel United Church of Christ in Cambridge.


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The DGC’s 2016-2017 Yearbooks, themed “Soil Sisterhood *Planting *Growing *Glowing” were handed out to members. The Yearbook was produced by Dee Terry and is dedicated to Mary Jo Papin as a thank you and recognition of Mary Jo’s many contributions to the club. Jeanne Bernard, a member of the Program Committee chaired by Linda Rossi, introduced the exciting line-up of programs for 2016-2017. Rounding out the agenda, Nancy Hastings, Legislative Chair for FGCMD District I, presented members with valuable information about “The Pollinator Protection Act of 2016” Maryland house legislation. UPDATE: The Act has passed the Maryland General Assembly and is awaiting the final signature of Governor Hogan. Maryland will now be the first state in the Country to protect our pollinators by prohibiting retail stores from selling pesticides containing harmful neonicotinoids starting in 2018. Here are some samples of the day’s Horticulture and Design entries, followed by the listing of the awards.


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Division I - Horticulture Class 1 Forced Branches 1b. Pussy Willow, 2nd Beverly Waggoner 1c. Other, 1st Cookie Brohawn, 2nd Joan S. Johnson

Class 3 Conifers-One branch 3a. With Cones or Berries: 1st Mary Jo Papin 3b. Without Cones or Berries: 1st Cookie Brohawn, 2nd Mary Jo Papin, 3rd Beverly Shelly

Class 4 Broadleaf Evergreen Tree or Shrub-one branch 4b. Foliage: 1st Cookie Brohawn, 2nd Mary Jo Papin 4c. Fruited: 1st Cookie Brohawn, 2nd Jenny Rideout, 3rd Beverly Shelly, HM Kathy Miller Class 5 Ilex (Holly)-one branch 5a. Foliage: 1st Beverly Shelly, 2nd Jane Parks 5b. Fruited: 1st Beverly Shelly, 3rd Beverly Waggoner

Class 6 Container Grown Plants 6a. Flowering: 1st Fran Collins, 2nd Cookie Brohawn, 3rd Jane Parks, HM Kathy Miller 6b. Foliage: 1st Susie Middleton, 2nd Cookie Brohawn, 3rd Dee Terry, HM Beverly Shelly, Helen Saum, Jeanne Bernard

Class 7 Open Class 7b1. Perennial- Daffodil: 1st Deana Kozak, 2nd Beverly Shelly, 3rd Ellen Higgins, HM Joan S. Johnson 7b2. Perennials- Other: 1st Cookie Brohawn, 2nd Donna Harms, 3rd Helen Saum, HM Mary Jo Papin 7d1. Bulb, corm, rhizome, tuber – ‘Tete-a-Tete’: 1st: Judy Slaughter, 2nd Joan P Johnson, 3rd Joan S Johnson, HM Beverly Shelly, Kathy Miller 7d2. Bulb, corm, rhizome, tuber – Other: 1st Deana Kozak, 2nd Helen Saum, 3rd Jane Parks

Division II Design Class 1 “Protected”- A Transparency Design Class 2 “Morning has Broken” – A Stretch Design

Kay Karminski, 1st Place Julia Berman, 2nd Place


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DGC’S 2015-16 Yearbook “For the Love of Gardening” Wins First Place Award

Our club’s 2015-16 Yearbook “For the Love of Gardening” won first place in the state’s Category 5 for clubs with 70-99 members. The award was presented at the Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland District 1 Meeting in March. The Yearbook was produced by Dee Terry, with cover design by Julia Berman.

Eastern Shore Hospital Center Hosts April 8th Club Meeting The first meeting of the 2016-17 Program Year was held at the ESHC’s English Hall on April 8th. Many thanks to Judy Slaughter and the very talented ESHC chefs for a delicious luncheon spread.


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Following lunch, Ruth Bramble, Cambridge Travel and Collette Vacations presented the day’s special program “Sisterhood of the Traveling Plants”: a Royal Horticultural Society Garden Holiday “The Chelsea Flower Show and Gardens of London” tour to be offered to Dorchester Garden Club members and guests in May, 2017. More information will be provided, or members can contact Ruth Bramble 410 228-5720.


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The mini flower show in April always features a lovely array of Daffodil and other horticultural entries and this year was no exception. Here are some examples…


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Division I – Horticulture Class 1 Standard Daffodils 1a. Division 1 Trumpet: 1st Gloria Warner, 2nd Jane Parks, 3rd Julia Berman, HM Helen Davies 1b. Division 2 Large cup: 1st Wanda Ciekot, 2nd Evelyn Renkwitz, 3rd Nancy Hebdon, HM Eulah Lee Legg 1c. Division 3 Small cup: 1st Eulah Lee Legg, HM Susie Middleton, Jane Parks, Susie Middleton 1d.1 Division 4 Double 1 bloom: 1st Susie Middleton, 2nd Gloria Warner, 3rd Jane Parks 1d.2 Division 4 Double More than 1 bloom: 1st Sandy Lucas, 2nd Susie Middleton, 3rd Susie Middleton, HM Susie Middleton 1e. Division 5 Triandrus: 1st Wanda Ciekot, 2nd Barbara Stockton, 3rd Gloria Warner, HM Evelyn Renkwitz 1f. Division 6 Cyclamineus: 1st Susie Middleton 1g. Division 7 Jonquilla and Apodanthus: 1st Susie Middleton 1h. Division 8 Tazetta: 1st Wanda Ciekot, 2nd Susie Middleton, 3rd Susie Middleton, HM Harriet Leech, Kathy Miller 1i. Division 9 Poeticus: 1st Susie Middleton 1k. Division 11 Split Corona: 1st Susie Middleton, 2nd Susie Middleton, 3rd Susie Middleton Class 2 Miniature Daffodils 2d. Division 4 Double 1 bloom: 1st Susie Middleton Class 3 A collection of 5 different cultivars of daffodils in the same or different divisions 3b. 1st Faye Phillips Class 4 Conifers 4a. with cones or berries: 1st Joan S. Johnson Class 5 Broadleaf Evergreen Tree or Shrub 5a. Flowering: 1st Patti Hopkins 5c. Fruited: 2nd Barbara Stockton Class 6 Deciduous Tree or Shrub 6a. Flowering: 1st Susie Middleton, 2nd Harriet Leech, 3rd Jane Parks, HM Bobbie Tamplin 6a1. Flowering-White: 1st Kathy Miller, HM Lynne Davis 6b. Foliage: 1st Kathy Miller, 3rd Martha Keating, HM Lynne Davis Class 8 Open Class 8a. Annual: 1st Linda Allen 8a2. Annual All Others: 2nd Kathy Miller, 3rd Lynne Davis 8b. Perennial: 1st Gloria Warner, 2nd Donna Harms, 3rd Patti Hopkins, HM Susie Middleton, Clara Mae Stephens 8b.1 Perennial: 1st Barbara Stockton, 2nd Barbara Stockton 8d. Bulb, corm, rhizome, tuber: 1st Joan S. Johnson, 2nd Susie Middleton, 3rd Bobbie Tamplin, HM Wanda Ciekot, Faye Phillips 8e. Vines: 2nd Barbara Stockton


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Class 9 Group of three perennials in one container 9a. Same cultivar: 1st Wanda Ciekot, 2nd Patti Hopkins 9b. Different cultivars: 1st Patti Hopkins Division II Design Class 2 “The World is My Oyster” Traditional Design, European Period reflecting Dutch and Flemish influence from the 17th and 18th Century

1st Place Kay Karminski


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Bee-Safe Gardening Tips

… Friends of the Earth/District I Annual Meeting Slides

There has been much written lately about the plight of our pollinators… the butterflies, particularly the Monarchs, the bees and behive collapse, the lack of food for the birds, bees and pollinators. New words have been introduced into our vocabulary, such as Neonicotinoids or more commonly, “Neonics”, the whole concept and science of climate change – and so much more. It makes us wonder what we can do in our own gardens to help, even in the smallest of ways. Here are a few tips that were brought up at the recent FGCMD District I Annual Meeting:

Grow Bee-Safe – Plant bee and butterfly-friendly plants using only organic starts or untreated seeds in

organic potting soil for your home vegetable and flower gardens to help provide safe food and habitat for bees. This should include asters, black-eyed Susans, goldenrod, Joe-Pye Weed, lupine, coneflowers, sunflowers and sage, to name just a few.

Practice Bee and Butterfly Safe Pest Control - Avoid the use of systemic bee and butterfly toxic pesticides in your garden and use alternative approaches such as providing habitat to attract beneficial insects that prey on pest insects in your garden. If pest pressure is too high, use insecticidal soaps or oils and other eco-friendly pest control products.

Do not buy products that contain Neonicotinoids – These products were developed over the last 20 years by such companies as Bayer and Shell to control a variety of pests. They are systemic pesticides that are chemically related to nicotine and are found in a variety of off-the-shelf plant treatments such as:

o Bayer Complete Insect Control o Ortho Flower, Fruit and Vegetable Insect Killer o Bayer Rose and Flower Insect Killer

If you have these products at home, please dispose of them properly. Take action and learn more by going to www.BeeAction.org

http://www.beeaction.org/


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Chesapeake Bay-focused gardening book appeals to anyone who loves plants … by Kathy Van Mullekom for Daily Press

Whether you garden along the vibrant vistas of a creek or bay or under the serene shade of oaks and pines, there's a new book to help you plant with good health in mind.

"Chesapeake Gardening & Landscaping: The Essential Green Guide" by Barbara Ellis, an Eastern Shore Maryland gardener, focuses on "conservation landscaping," or all the good things that people can do to make their landscapes not only beautiful but healthy for people and other living things, according to the author. Most gardens spotlighted in the 328-page, $40 book are located in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. "As a garden writer and horticulturist, I was already quite interested in the topic, plus I was an enthusiastic gardener in the Chesapeake Bay watershed," she says. Ellis lives on Kent County's Worton Creek, which is one of several creeks that lead directly into the Chesapeake Bay, she adds. “Gardeners who live directly on the water appreciate the challenges of gardening in tidal flooding situations where salt water impacts roots and winds desiccate foliage.”

For Ellis, it's brackish water, and figuring out which spots are damp and or wet and which ones tend to be dry. "Matching plants to sites is at the core of becoming a successful gardener," she says. "It means that you start a garden by selecting plants that will be happy with the soil, exposure, and other conditions on that site.


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Matching plant to site stacks the deck in favor of success. There is lots of information on this principle in 'Chesapeake Gardening & Landscaping,' along with lots of list of different kinds of plants for different site conditions." But, even gardeners who do not live directly on the water should care about and help improve the water quality and environment as a whole, she says, because water that runs down a driveway and its carried off in a gutter eventually makes its way to the Chesapeake Bay. "Gardening for the bay helps improve water quality in the bay itself along with all the rivers, streams and creeks that feed into it," she says. "It also creates healthy, beautiful spaces for people, their pets and wildlife. Using the six principles I describe in the Introduction and Chapter 1 of 'Chesapeake Gardening & Landscaping' helps readers create gardens that are both beautiful and environmentally friendly." Here, Ellis cites her favorite plants from different chapters in the book: Chapter 4: Shrubs, Trees and Vines for Landscaping. In addition to being handsome shade trees, native oaks, Quercus spp, support a huge diversity of insects, which in turn support a wide variety of other wildlife, especially birds. Chapter 5: Ground Covers for Chesapeake Landscapes. The native Christmas fern, Polystichum acrostichoides, isn't used as much as it could be. It thrives in partial to full shade, is evergreen, and is attractive year round. The plants prefer rich, moist soil, but they also tolerate dry soil and drought once they are established. Chapter 6: Flowers for Chesapeake Gardens. Orange coneflower, Rudbeckia fulgida, is tough, adapts to nature and blooms a long time. Like other members of the aster family, Asteraceae, rudbeckias are valuable plants for pollinators and butterflies. Chapter 7: Plants and Gardens for Shade. The top bloomer in my shade garden is probably wild blue phlox, Phlox divaricate, she says. It bears flowers in shades of lavender, plus white, from late spring to early summer, and the foliage persists well into winter. The plants self-sow, and once they are in your garden, they pop up in both shade and surprisingly sunny spots. Chapter 8: Water, Rain Gardens, and Wet Soil. For these sites, Ellis favors Joe-pye weeds for their late bloom, the massive numbers of butterflies they attract, and their value to a wide range of pollinators. All were once classified as Eupatorium spp., but they are now classified as Eutrochium and Eupatoriadelphus spp. Chapter 9: Gardens for Wildlife. There are lots of plants that attract wildlife, Ellis says, but she likes native viburnums, Viburnum spp., such as arrowwood (V. dentatum) and possumhaw viburnum (V. nudum). Viburnum berries provide valuable food for birds and other wildlife late in the season, plus they bear pretty flower clusters and attractive foliage, making them handsome and useful additions to the landscape, she adds. Blueberries and their relatives (Vaccinium spp.) are also valuable for wildlife and make great landscape plants for the Chesapeake Bay area.


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"The book has loads of information on a wide variety of great native plants for our area, but as a gardener, I think my favorite part are the six steps that anyone can use to make their garden more bay friendly," says Ellis.

1. Reduce lawn. 2. Build plant diversity. 3. Grow native plants 4. Manage water runoff 5. Welcome wildlife 6. Gardeb wisely!

"I use those steps to figure out long-term and short-term projects so I can plan beneficial projects that fit into my schedule. I also use them to help guide me in plant selection — plants for pollinators or plants to replace lawn, for example." Former managing editor of gardening books at Rodale Press and publications director at the American Horticultural Society, Ellis is the author of "Covering Ground: Unexpected Ideas for Landscaping with Colorful, Low-Maintenance Ground Covers," as well as other books. “Chesapeake Gardening and Landscaping: The Essential Green Guide is available at amazon.com and is at Adkins Arboreteum. ************************************************************************************

On the Lighter Side…


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“The Potting Shed” Flower Show: Just 5 Weeks to Go! The Dorchester Garden Club’s Standard Flower Show, “The Potting Shed” is quickly approaching! The Show takes place on Wednesday, May 25th at Immanuel United Church of Christ at 5401 White Hall Road, Cambridge Flower Show Chairwoman, Faye Phillips, has these reminders… Set-up on May 24th will require many hands – hopefully including some “men hands!” Help our design consultants make sure all design classes are filled Take a close look at things in your landscape to see what you might want to exhibit in Horticulture Our club will be an evaluated show by the judges and are aiming for a top award in the state. We need everyone’s help to make the show a success!

Please review “The Potting Shed” Program Brochure that you received for additional information and Committee Chairs.

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New Maryland Native Plant Society Brochure The Maryland Native Plant Society has just produced a new booklet on landscaping with native plants. This booklet is packed with excellent information for all gardeners that are serious about introducing native plants into their garden landscape. A pdf copy of the brochure will be included in the email that accompanies the April-May 2016 Diggers. You can also visit their website www.mdflora.org for additional information or to download the brochure.

http://www.mdflora.org/

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