A scheduling change for our April meeting meant switching our topic from iris cultivation to a presentation of Martha Stewart’s spring gardening tips. So what does a lemur have to do with spring gardening and the ORGC activities? Check out the rest of our 2019 April Meeting post to learn more!
Martha Stewart has a video series on seasonal gardening, and a viewing of selections from her Spring Gardening collection was on target for a spring meeting of the ORGC. We focused on tips for dividing perennials, choosing necessary garden tools, and how to clean and maintain garden equipment. In addition, the ORGC leadership team presented Martha Stewart clips on planting primrose and lettuce, including placement in beds as well as planters.
Our committee chairs gave updates for the club. Nancy Whiteley, chair of the Youth Gardening committee, spoke about activities at Booth Hill and Perry Hill schools. For Garden Therapy, the committee involved in visiting assisted living community Crosby Commons, chair Judy Pavone spoke about upcoming events. Lisa DiNardo and Pat Robik, co-chairs of the Civic Beautification committee, updated members on gardening on the Shelton green.
Renee Marsh stepped in for Joyce Fedorko and provided the horticulture presentation. Members brought both cultivated dish gardens as well as early specimens from their yards. A white basket of kalinchoe, overwintered in a member’s house, was in full bloom. Lisa DiNardo’s small ceramic pot of Oxalis triangularis, flush with broad burgundy leaves and white flowers, was a particular surprise, having started from a gifted stem in December. DonnaKay Pensiero brought a long-handled umbrella decorated with a spray of bright yellow flowers and pink ribbon (“April showers bring May flowers!”).
Update: 2019 Osborne Homestead Museum holiday decorating theme, Pollinators. Introducing the lemur, the ORGC-assigned pollinator for this year’s holiday decorating event at the state-owned Osborne Homestead in Derby, Connecticut!
Joyce Donnelly brought a lemur plushie to the meeting to get members thinking about decoration possibilities. The Osborne Homestead Decorating Committee typically gets an early start on planning activities, and this year will be a special challenge to integrate the lovable (but endangered) tropical pollinator into a Christmas theme! For more information on the Osborne Homestead Holiday Decorating event and ORGC committee, check out our entries for 2016, 2017, and 2018, as well as previous years on our Projects page.
ORGC members react to the lemur plushie