March Newsletter
Happy Spring!
This small delight emerged in my patio garden last week. In the fall I planted 100 Elwesii snowdrops just to get things going in that brand new bed, and was thus rewarded with an early arrival. That area gets full sun from 8 am onward these days, so I am not surprised this is the first part of the garden to show signs of spring’s renewal.
Dennis Fiori sent along his own spring harbinger: some of the witch hazels that began to bloom for him in late February. Here is superstar of the Hamamelis species, Arnold’s Promise, photographed on February 22nd:
and H. mollis “Jelena”, one of the beautiful “un-yellows” now available:
Many of you no doubt will have bulbs and hellebores and other things blooming soon. Please send them along so they can be shared in a future post!
Spring Basket Outreach
From organizers Anne Hrabchak and Anne Umphrey:
Spring is almost here and so is the Garden Club’s Spring Outreach event. If you have yet to sign up, or are unsure if you did, the link is here. Many thanks for volunteering and here are a couple of reminder bullet points about the event:
- event date – Wed March 16
- Location – Andrea Meyers’ barn, 116 Estabrook Road
- Time – 11am-12:30pm
- you will be delivering 3-4 arrangements, so please bring some type of box that would be good to carry the arrangements (liquor store is a good place to get cardboard boxes)
- Please bring clippers, apron, name tag, boxes, and masks are encouraged.
- we will be arranging in a barn with the doors open. As it will be cool please be sure to dress appropriately.
- Parking – park along the drive or in the pasture as directed. There will be indicators where to park.
Here is a mock up of the arangements we will be making. Many thanks to Erika for the inspiration and Ruth Piper for picking the vases. See you soon and thanks again, Anne & Anne.
April Meeting in Person!
Put a gold star on your calendar for April 20th when we will meet in person at the Trinitarian Congregational Church for a regularly scheduled program. Flowers will be provided by Ellen Whitney, and a hospitality sign up will be sent out for kitchen hosts. A zoom link will be made available a few days before for members not ready to join in-person. We are also planning a similar arrangement for May, and have just signed the contract with the Country Club for June Luncheon, so there are a few happy things looking forward.
Please welcome our newest member, Laurie O’Neill
Laurie O’Neill is a freelance writer who has been published in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, DownEast, Maine Homes, and many other periodicals, and she is the author of four history books for younger readers. Most recently she taught English and then served as the publications director at The Fenn School, producing its magazine. Laurie moved to Concord from Lexington with her husband, George, a professor of biology at Harvard, in 2020. She owns a small seasonal home in southern Maine. Laurie loves to garden and to care for her perennial beds in Maine and in Concord.
Laurie’s sponsor is Ruth Piper.
In May – after the Plant Sale – there will be a new Member Tea for the 17 members (and their sponsors) who joined since 2019. Stay tuned.
Plant Sale: May 7th
The committee is meeting and planning, and so should you! Keep an eye on your beds, consult your cookbooks for the bake sale, and when the general task sign up arrives in your email, click your way into helping. This is just a reminder that every active member is expected to provide at least 12 plants for the sale, and to pleasehelp out in some way. This is our biggest fund raiser for the year so we really need all hands on the shovel handle. Any questions or suggestions can be directed to me, or to our Sale Co-chairs, Sarah MacEachern and Leann Griesinger.
Gardening Chat
While we are primarily a Community Service organization, we do have that wonderful word in our title which is both a noun and a verb: “Garden”! Normally we check in at meetings with each other about our successes and questions, so we do have some time to make up! Would you like to join an informal meet-up for members with dirt under our fingernails? A Google Doc poll is posted here to survey interest and select a convenient time for a bring-your-own-chair gathering outside, possibly (and this is just an idea) under the beeches at Buttrick House where there is parking and wide open grass in shade or sun, according to your preference. This group could meet once a month through the gardening season.
Directory Changes
Dennis Fiori and Leann Griesinger both have new email addresses. Please consult the directory.
News You Can Use
The Garden Club Federation has a new group for Garden Photographers. Check it out here.
The New Hampshire Orchid Society is hosting an especially spectacular version of their annual sale this year with Orchid celebrities and vendors from around the world, March 25-27 at the Nashua Courtyard Marriot. Details are on their website: 2022 NHOS Annual Orchid Show and Sale
This Bee-centric website came through the Master Gardener’s email list this week. I found it fascinating! Beecology
I’ve had a few forsythia sprigs plunked on my kitchen counter for awhile, but a lot of other flowering woodies out there can also be coaxed into early bloom early inside. Here’s a reminder of how to do that from the Chicago Botanical Garden.
And time table for various species brought into a cool greenhouse, from a 1955 volume of the Arnoldia bulletin, from Arnold Arboretum.