Mini Plant & Crafts Sale September 2011

The Mini Plant & Crafts Sale held in conjunction with the Fall Farmers' Market in the Congregational Church parking lot was successful in raising almost $150 for the Scholarship Fund.

Members brought perennial plant divisions and house plants to sell.  Many members are sewers, quilters, bakers, and papercrafters in the spare time when they are not gardening.

Ellen and Donna hang dried hydrangea.

Bonnie and Donna set up the raffle and some items for sale at the Fall Market.

Donna and Hollye set up Hollye's antique jewelry.

It was a gloomy day, but the sale was successful in raising some money for the Scholarship Fund.  A $250 scholarship will be awarded to a senior graduating East Hampton High School in the spring.

Fall Membership Meeting, September 26, 2011

We had an interesting program at our first meeting of the 2011-12 membership year--and we had remarkable attendance with many returning members and eleven guests. Five new members joined the garden club last night.  We look forward to getting to know them better as we go through our year of activities with them.

Sabrina Granniss and Sioux Wimler of crunchybits.net spoke on Sustainable Gardening.  They shared stories involving their families about composting and red wigglers, making manure tea, finding and eating wild edibles, and medicinal uses of plants such as a concoction called "boo-boo goo."

Sabrina and Sioux shared their enthusiasm for sprouts by describing how to grow fresh sprouts from raw buckwheat, snap pea, and sunflower seeds. You can find directions by typing "sprouting" in the search box on their blog called crunchy bits.

After the program while the speakers answered questions, some returning members refreshed themselves:  Donna, Sue, Gloria, Ellen, and Hollye.

President Karen Gallmon called the business meeting to order. Lori Wilcox, Secretary, took minutes on her laptop.  Bonnie Desaulnier, Vice President (far right), gave a report of the year's upcoming activities.

Karen Gallmon, President (center) and JoAnn Hewett, Treasurer, (right) talk with a new member.

Welcome to Emma, Marsha, Deborah, Katherine, and Kim.  We hope you enjoy our group.  We hope to see everyone at the next meeting, Monday, October 24, 2011 at 7 p.m. at the East Hampton Public Library Community Room.  Bring the materials needed to make a fall arrangement at the meeting.

Reminder:  Gazebo Dig, Monday, October 3rd at 4:30 p.m. at the Gazebo in the Village Center.  Please bring plastic bags, garden gloves, pruners, shovels, and some energy!  Projects Committee:  Sue Hewes, Judy Turck, Lori Wilcox, and Ellen Pettengill will show us what to do!  The gazebo is located in front of the Congregational Church in the village center.  Park in the school (upper drive next to post office) or church parking lot (lower) off Main Street.

Books and Websites mentioned by Sioux and Sabrina

Eat for Health by Dr. Joel Fuhrman

Nutrient density and ANDI scores

Elise and her sweet potato project and chlorpropham or Bud Nip

Lasagna gardening

Mary the Worm Woman and worm composting

Wild Man Steve Brill and wild edibles

Edible Landscaping with Rosalind Creasy

Sproutman Steve Meyerowitz



Fall Mini Plant & Craft Sale Saturday, Sept. 24th

Garden club members:

BE ready to participate in the Mini Plant & Craft Sale

Saturday, Sept. 24th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Have your crafts and perennial plant divisions ready

to drop off Friday night or Saturday morning.

Call Hollye Thomas for more details.

Old Home Days Parade 2011

Great Day!  Ninety degree temperatures and low humity.  Clear skies, white puffy clouds and lots of sunshine.  The lake is very choppy and the winds steady after last night's storms brought in a new front.  Peggy and Lori rode in the Old Home Days Parade along with many Fife & Drum units, East Hampton High School and Middle School bands, and the Mummers Band from South Philadelphia. Jessica of Jessica's Garden was an ice cream cone and Paul of Paul and Sandy's Too wore Groucho Marx glasses and nose.  A fun and enjoyable community spirit from everyone!

The Belltown Garden Club was glad to join in the community spirit.  We are proud of our community and its public projects, especially those including gardeners and gardens.

Riders Needed for Old Home Days Parade

Last year Peggy and Lori loaded Peggy's car with plants and joined the Old Home Days parade. Anyone want to ride with Peggy this year?  The parade is Saturday morning, July 9, 2011.  Give Peggy a call.

Berkshire Botanical Gardens and Naumkeag Mansion Tours

Belltown Garden Club members gather 'round a large twig planter at the Berkshire Botanical Gardens on Saturday, June 18, 2011.  Everyone was intrigued by it and decided it could be made for a home garden.

Belltown Garden Club members at Naumkeag Mansion in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.  The mansion is lovely but the garden tour attendees may be even lovelier!

The panaromic views were wonderful.  One of the lawn areas had a small wooden fence, very short. It was said to mimic the rolling hills.

Our Ellen and Diana, goddess of love.  We definitely loved our trip to Stockbridge and its surrounding gardens.





Labeling Your Plants for the Perennial Sale

Thank you for taking home (from the Gazebo clean-up) some divisions to "nurse" for the plant sale on Sturday, May 28.  Mine are looking fine and not needing much care except for watering with the windy days we've had recently. Many of us are also dividing our perennials and potting them up in our home gardens.  Hollye, Ellen, and Bonnie have been working in some gardens around town with Dig 'n Donate.

You'll need to label your plants when you bring them Friday night, May 27, to the plant sale set-up at the Congregational Church.  We've used many labeling systems over the years:  metal blind slats, stick-on labels for the pots, tongue depressors, and a fill-in-the blank card. All of these work and Holly thinks the metal blind slats written on with permanent marker are great.  Here's another choice from last year that is easy to use: 

Skewers, cardstock, and clear plastic packaging tape

We have a box of  labels pre-printed on card stock.  We can tape the label to barbecue skewers with clear package tape front and back, making them waterproof.  The skewers go in the soil in the pot and --Voila!-- the plant is labeled.  We just need to know what plants you may have to make this work.  Please check the list below to see if your plant's information card is already printed and filed in the label box.  If not, we'll make a new set of cards for that plant.

These are plants we have sold in the past:  Astilbe, Bee Balm, Bishop's Cap, Black-eyed Susan, Bleeding Heart, Bugleweed, Catmint, Colombine, Cone Flower, Coral Bells, Cranesbill, Daylily, Dead Nettle, Evening Primrose, Feverfew, Forget-Me-Nots, Foxglove, Gayfeather, Globe Thistle, Goldenstar, Goose Neck Loosestrife, Ground Phlox, Hakone Grass, Hardy Chrysanthemum, Hosta, Jacob's Ladder, Joe Pye Weed,  Korean Lilac (Dwarf), Lady's Mantle, Lamb's Ear, Lily of the Valley, Montauk Daisy, Obedient Plant, Ox-Eye Sunflower, Peonie, Pot of Gold, Rose of Sharon, Shasta Daisy, Siberian Iris, Spiderwort, Stonecrop, Summer Phlox, Sundrops,  Sweet Woodruff, Tickseed 'Moonbeam', Tiger Lily, Trout Plant, Vinca, Wisteria.  If you don't see your plant here, contact Dianne and we'll have a label ready for you Friday evening at set-up. Many thanks, Dianne and Hollye