12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter
January 2018
In This Issue
President's Message A Message January Program Floral Commitee From the P resident Membership Gamble Garden Horticulture Plant of the Month January Birthdays May your Holiday Season be Merry and Bright! Such a "SPECIAL" time of the year to celebrate with Family and On Your Calendar Friends! All the hustle and bustle of the Holiday Season...and then comes January!
"January brings the snow,
Makes our feet and fingers glow." Jan 2 GCPA Member Meeting Sara Coleridge
Being Garden Club gals, each of us knows that:
"January is the quietest month in the garden. But just because it looks quiet doesn't mean that nothing is happening. The soil, open to the sky, absorbs the pure rainfall while microorganisms convert tilledunder fodder into usable nutrients for the next crop of plants. The feasting earthworms tunnel along, aerating the soil and preparing it to welcome the seeds and bare roots to come." Rosalie Muller Wright
Well, so it is with Garden Club Activities, things are brewing that are not clearly apparent to us all yet, but trust and know that good things are coming our way in the New Year! See all of you "Happy Hearts" on January 2, 2018!
Happy! Happy!
Robin Allen
January Program
Our guest speaker for the January meeting is Sarah Callan. She is a charming young woman, a 2014 graduate of Harvard University https://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/visual_editor_preview.jsp?agent.uid=1129621543225&format=html&print=true 1/7 12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter where she studied entomology and botany. Upon graduation she lived for three months in Western Uganda researching bees and a year in Botswana studying native food plants.
She is currently a Garden Assistant at Gamble Garden twice a week and a Curatorial Intern at the San Francisco Botanical Garden.
Sarah will speak to us about The Good, The Bad, and The You can read the Ugly Bugs. latest issue of the Gamble Garden Debbie Roth member newsletter by Chairwoman of the Day clicking here.
Floral Committee The flower committee would like to suggest that those interested go to the DeYoung Museum's "Bouquets To Art" exhibit March 1318, 2018 and bring home inspiration for Garden Club arrangements to share.
The committee would like to have some way to have our own "showandtell," including more opportunities for everyone to share than just those at our monthly meetings. One possibility: the Holiday Marketplace could offer some sort of exhibit. Let me know what you think of that idea...
Thanks again to all those who shared their floral designs in 2017.
June Voorsanger Chair of the floral committee
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Membership Happy 2018. We're all looking forward to another year of Garden Club programs, projects and friendship.
Last month I wrote to you of Nicole Akerman's change of address, but not only did I misspell Nicole's name, but got her address wrong too! It is: 2370 Club Drive, Gilroy, CA 95020. Her phone number and email are the same. Sorry, Nicole.
Gabby Flather has also moved. Her new address is: 185 Primrose Way, Palo Alto, CA 94303. Her email and phone number are unchanged.
Mary Grace Bertsch has a new email. It is: [email protected]. The best way to keep track of all these changes is to note the new information in your Membership Directory. Thanks.
See you all at the Membership Table on January 2nd.
Sue Beebe and Mindy Kirkpatrick Membership Cochairs Gamble Garden in January
TUESDAY, JANUARY 2ND GARDEN CLUB MEMBERSHIP MEETING We will have the pleasure of introducing our new Gamble Garden Director Richard Hayden at our first Garden Club membership meeting of the new year. He will briefly share his new role at Gamble and his vision for our beloved urban garden.
Be sure to welcome him at the Hospitality Hour before the meeting begins. https://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/visual_editor_preview.jsp?agent.uid=1129621543225&format=html&print=true 3/7 12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter SATURDAY, JANUARY 13TH 9:00NOON SECOND SATURDAY EVENTS On the second Saturday of each month, Gamble hosts a morning of activities.Take a docent tour of our 1902 house, meet Master Gardeners and ask any plant question you may have, and shop at our plant sale. The house will be decorated and the dining room table set, as it would have been, in Miss Gamble's day.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 13TH 10:0011:30 AM ESTHER GOKHALE, THE POSTURE GURU OF SILICON VALLEY Learn how to garden pain free, by using Esther's techniques that will help your body be ready for that early spring planting. This class is offered free as part of Gamble Garden's Second Saturday Series. Registration is requested.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 20TH 10:0011:30 AM SMALL FRUIT TREES FOR THE HOME GARDEN with JEFF SCROGGIN Do you love the idea of harvesting your own fruit but aren't sure how to grow healthy, productive fruit trees in your yard? Join this class to learn an easy technique for planting and maintaining smallersized, easyharvest trees in your garden.
This class provides an overview of tree selection, planting, and maintenance. February is the ideal time to plant your own bareroot trees, so come learn how to get started! Jeff Scroggin runs his own landscape business and is an avid horticulturalist and fruitgrower. He currently volunteers his time maintaining the orchard at Filoli.
$20 for members (use promo code IRIS)/$35 nonmembers
PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE GARDEN Photographer Selwyn Quan discovered the beauty of Gamble Garden this fall and informed us that Gamble is host to one of the most diverse group of pollinators he has seen in the Bay Area!
Click here to view more of Selwyn Quan's photos on his Instagram Account.
Carmen Pekelsma & Gary Dunker Gamble Garden Representatives Project Funding A Reminder from The Project Funding Committee
February 6, 2018 is the deadline for applications.
The purpose of the Project Funding is to award grants to deserving nonprofits whose goals align with our mission statement.
The recipient organization must be a 501(c)3 organization. Two GC members need to submit the application for the grant: one must be an Active Member of The Garden Club of Palo Alto and one member sponsor must be active and/or well informed about the project of the community organization. Some of the past recipients of grants in recent years are:
Abilities Unlimited, Canopy, Environment Volunteers, Friends of Palo Alto Parks, Gamble Garden, Living Classroom, Palo Alto High School, Save the Bay.
Some are eligible for grants in 2018. We welcome applications from new members and the https://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/visual_editor_preview.jsp?agent.uid=1129621543225&format=html&print=true 4/7 12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter organizations they support. Application forms are available on www.gardenclubofpaloalto.org
Questions, or if you need a hardcopy application, see or call Mary Hughes, 6503274473 or Pat Starrett, 6504249988.
Mary Hughes & Pat Starrett Project Funding CoChairs Horticulture January in the garden...
January is the middle of winter, and yet I have flowers, because this is prime camellia season. Be sure that the surface roots of camellias (and azaleas and rhodies and gardenias) are moist despite our lack of rainfall. Also, pick up faded blossoms to keep soil diseasefree. I plan to mulch all my acid loving plants to insure that their soil holds moisture and retains a slight acidity. No mulch? Use the dried up needles of that Christmas tree. Right after they bloom, camellias, rhodies, and azaleas develop green growth and new buds for next year. So feed and prune them. Light pinching of the tip growth right after blooming encourages bushy, compact growth, and is better than cutting back to bare wood.
I grow potted cymbidium orchids on shelves at my side door. I feed each pot to encourage flower spike, following orchid food directions. Any orchids with spikes get moved, in December or January or February, to a prized spot at my front door. If a pot doesn't bloom, it stays in isolation at the side door.
The month of January is also my time to prune ALL things deciduous. I cut roses ALL THE WAY back. I get rid of doglegs, and thin out shrubs to let the light in and remove dead, damaged, diseased, and crossing branches (Prune away the 3D's). I aim for a balanced bush with an open center. Even citrus shrubs should have dead inner twigs removed. I clean Snow peas protected from squirrels by Pine Sol up around roses and fruit trees. I feed my Meyer lemon shrubs to keep them producing. To control overwintering buggers such as aphids, mites, and scale, I spray with a dormant oil, coating the trunk and branches of roses. I also spray my peach and apricot trees for peach leaf curl. Please read all instructions and heed safety warnings on the container. January in this area is often the coldest month of the year.So mulch to keep the roots warm. Once these chores are done and mulch is spread on top of the soil, the garden really can take care of itself until spring.
Want to plant something simple that has color, smells sweet, likes the cold? Sow sweet pea seeds now for spring blooms. Be sure to pin up the vines as they grow. SummerWinds has strawberries, pansies, primroses for early spring harvest. In January, I plant 4inch or 6packs of broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy varieties, and lettuce for early spring harvest. Bare root edibles are also available now: blackberry and raspberry canes, as well as grape vines and roses. Why buy bare root? Often they are 5060% less than the same plant potted up one month later. Be sure to soak the bare root in a bucket before planting.
In November I replaced tomatoes with snow peas, and the squirrels thought they had a tasty side dish. However, I have hung small bottles with eau de Pine Sol near the snow peas, and the squirrels stay away. January is when I clean my tools and get them sharpened. I use a wire scrubber to get rid of rust on tools. Even my shovels and hoes get sharpened. I also try to keep major plants labeled. I trim discarded miniblinds to the size of label I need, and use a Brother labeler to identify plants. The laminated tape lasts for years, far better than a Sharpie. https://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/visual_editor_preview.jsp?agent.uid=1129621543225&format=html&print=true 5/7 12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter Happy Gardening!! Vicki Sullivan
Plant of the Month Iris Confusa
Bamboo Iris
Many are very familiar with the Dutch and Bearded iris but when I came across this distinct species I was so delighted I brought 3 for my garden to test them out. They have not disappointed me.
Origin:
It is a rhizomatous perennial plant native to western China in the provinces of Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan and Yunnan. It is pronounced in Chinese as bian zhu lan which translates in English as 'flat bamboo orchid'. Iris Confusa is not related to bamboo, deriving its common name because its broad shiny leaves are attached to bamboolike stems and rhizomes. It is a stout, creeping rhizome. The creeping habit eventually forms thick clumps and my 3 plants soon filled an area that was previously barren. This is a perfect plant for division, freebies to plant in other areas in your garden or for sharing at the Great Plant Giveaway.
Foliage and flowers:
Unlike most Iris, the foliage is sword shaped and yellowish to bright green in color. Leaves can grow to 1131 inches in length and 12 inches in width. I love the delicate flowers produced in the spring evoking an expression of happiness. The flowers are a ½ inch in diameter each but 2 inches as a cluster in shades of pale blue, white or lavender. The lavender flowers are marked with lavender stripes and yellow and white blotches. Truly stunning.
Growing conditions:
It grows best in well drained, light, rich acidic soil. Iris Confusa tolerates sun to partial shade with average watering during the growing season. It can be propagated by division (after flowering), from seed or from stem cuttings. Immerse the stem cuttings in water for 12 weeks and plant when the roots appear.
Toxicity:
Like many other Irises, most parts of this plant are poisonous and if ingested it can cause stomach pains and vomiting. Use gloves when handling this plant as it may also cause skin irritation. The good news is the deer won't touch it. It is used in Yunnan as an ingredient in Chinese medicine. In the province of Guangxi the leaves are used for healing broken bones and sprains. The leaves are macerated and applied as a poultice with a splint to the affected area. It is patented in China as a health care tea (from the blue flowers) to help with acute tonsillitis, acute laryngopharyngitis, acute bronchitis, nephritis edema and urinary tract infection. Iris Confusa; not only beautiful but of great utility.
Kathy Egan
January Birthdays! https://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/visual_editor_preview.jsp?agent.uid=1129621543225&format=html&print=true 6/7 12/21/2017 Garden Club of Palo Alto-January Newsletter Susan Benton Stephanie Biorn Gabrielle Flather Joan Haynes Nan Knoblauch Kathryn Ladra Susan McDonnell Elizabeth ModerStern Judy Paris Marla Rathbun Deborah Rose Jane Stocklin Katsy Swan Sylvia Thompson Joan Urquhart Judy Williams
Joan Zwiep
Happy Birthday Ladies! Anne Draeger, Corresponding Secr etary
GARDEN CLUB OF PALO ALTO PO BOX 898 PALO ALTO. CA 94302
Celebrating 97 Years of Gardening in Palo Alto
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