VOLUME 45, NUMBER 5// SEPT/OCT 2021

SUNDAY, SEPT 12: CHAPTER MEMBER SALE INSIDE THIS ISSUE Bloomfield Farm at Morris Arboretum ...submitted by Laura Axel, Program Chair Upcoming three programs...... 1 12:30-1:30 Plant Donations 2:00 Sale begins Catawba Island...... 1 See page 3 for details Chair’s Corner...... 2 Sept. Member Sale...... 3 SATURDAY, OCT 9: THE UNIQUE ROCK GARDEN AT LAUREL HILL Sale...... 3 10am, October 9, Zoom Tour of the planting at West Laurel Hill Cemetery by Gregg Tepper Nov. Luncheon Entry Form...... 4 ...submitted by Laura Axel, Program Chair Catawba Island cont’d...... 5 Join horticulturist Gregg Tepper for an entertaining and informative lecture on the unique Firefly Gardening...... 6 rock garden he created inside the main entrance at Laurel Hill Cemetery. Gregg will share with you its history, design, implementation, and effective plant combinations to reveal Firefly Gardening cont’d...... 7 what makes it a truly one-of-a-kind garden. Looking Ahead & Notices...... 8

SATURDAY, NOV 20: ANNUAL LUNCHEON AND LECTURE 11-3, Overbrook Golf Club Ballroom in Villanova. Reservation Form on page 4 ...submitted by Laura Axel, Program Chair “Alpines and Troughs” by Lori Chips, Alpine Manager of Oliver Nurseries, plus she will be selling her book!

Gregg Tepper Catawba Island, Ohio. Photo coutesy Jackie Tong, for Linda Marcucci 1 THE DODECATHEON

This publication is issued on the first of odd-numbered months. All THE CHAIR’S CORNER copy must reach the editor no later than the 15th day of the preceding ...submitted by Louise Clarke, Chairperson month. Any text in this newsletter may be used in any other NARGS With the revised health guidance due to the Covid-19 Delta variant’s spread, traveling is still publication, unless otherwise a fraught process, and it may impact our ability to meet in person for monthly meetings. specified. Please credit the author With my impending retirement, I am ready to bust loose, and go somewhere- anywhere. For and The Dodecatheon. fully vaccinated persons “You should continue to wear a mask where required by laws, rules, regulations, or local guidance,” according to the CDC website. That clears things up, doesn’t it? This sounds like a road trip in my car is the best alternative for soothing my wanderlust. 2021 CHAPTER OFFICERS: Chairperson: Louise Clarke A dash to the beach after Labor Day is in store, and many more garden visits, as I can [email protected] distance from others in outdoor settings. And outdoor plant sales also sound like fun… Program Chair: Laura Axel Sunday, September 12th will bring us another members’ plant sale, outdoors, at [email protected] Morris Arboretum’s Bloomfield Farm, expertly organized by Janet Novak. She has been Recording Secretaries: busy searching nurseries near and far for rock garden to tempt us. With the choice Hope Punnett & TBD offerings Janet is ordering, plus the donations of our members, I urge you to come out Treasurer: Jerry Rifkin and support the sale. Charles Cresson has promised me he will donate some choice Membership Secretary: and perennial divisions, which I expect to end up on our silent auction table. How about David Lauer [email protected] a Leucojum not available in the USA? I’m bidding! Look for troughs as well; I’ve been Dodecatheon Editor: Sharee Solow molding a few unusual pieces this summer. For our sale attendees, we will ask that [email protected] masks be worn by those unvaccinated. Directors at Large: Surfing the Internet for rock garden content, I stumbled across a “rock garden” in Lisa Roper and Jill Evans Springfield, Ohio. The Hartman Rock Garden, constructed between 1932 to 1944, doesn’t conform to our interpretation of a rock garden, but looks intriguing nevertheless. Harry COMMITTEES: “Ben” Hartman constructed a cement fishing pond on his property, which then led him to AV equipment: Rick Ray create over 50 structures and figures. Themes included religion, patriotism, and history. Coffee & Tea: Paula Burns, Louise Clarke Ben used hundreds of thousands of stones, most embedded in cement, in creating his folk- Garden Visits: TBD art themed rock garden. Today the site is preserved and administered by Friends of the Meeting Logistics: TBD Hartman Rock Garden, a non-profit organization. Visithttp://hartmanrocks.org/ to see for Name Tags: Helen Lightcap yourself. Nominations Committee: TBD If I get to the Hartman Rock Garden, I’ll give you a full report on what I find. In the Phila. Flower Show Coordinator: TBD meantime, check out this issue of The Dodecatheon for more detailed information on the Plant Sales: Janet Novak chapters’ plant sale and news of our upcoming programming. I hope to see you in person Plant Show: Radford MacFarlane & Michele Hall very soon. Rock on! Pot Shop: Sharee Solow Web Master: Janet Novak

For membership info, the latest program changes and bad weather cancellations check out our web site: www.dvcnargs.org We do send out email notices from time to time between issues of The Dodecatheon to those who have given us email addresses. Please check your email address in the membership list and if it is wrong, send us the right one!

2 SEPTEMBER MEMBERS’ PLANT SALE MOVES TO SUNDAY AFTERNOON ...submitted by Janet Novak, Plant Sale Coordinator Our June members’ plant sale introduced a lot of new features: a new location, alphabetized plants, and new systems for plant pricing and checkout. In a survey on the sale, these practices proved to be popular, so we’re retaining them for the September sale. We have one further innovation for September: the sale will be held on Sunday afternoon. The second Saturday in September tends to be a busy time for plant-related events, so attendance at our September sale has been light. I’m hoping that Sunday afternoon will work for more of you. The sale is Sunday, September 12:

12:30-1:30 PM: Plant donations accepted 12:30-2 PM: Plant preview 2 PM: Sale opens

The sale is open to DVC-NARGS members and their guests, so feel free to invite some friends. As always, the sale relies on your donations of plants, troughs, and related items. Especially nice items will go into a silent auction.

Location: Morris Arboretum’s Bloomfield Farm (303 E. Northwestern Avenue, Lafayette Hill, PA). This is directly opposite the entrance to the public part of the Arboretum. A restroom will be available. Note that the sale will be in the open, so if the forecast calls for rain, wear a raincoat!

Safety Rules: Anyone who is not fully vaccinated is required to wear a mask.

Plant Pricing: We are requesting that members price their donated items themselves. We’ll provide pre-printed price stickers and a pricing guide. If you want help with pricing, a volunteer will be available. If you are donating 20 or more items, you can consider pricing them ahead of time at home. I can mail you the stickers and a pricing guide (contact me at [email protected]).

Plant Preview: You can look over the plants on sale as we’re setting up.

Sales Period: As usual, the sale will open with a short donor’s shopping period. Donor are entitled to buy one early-choice plant for every 10 plants donated, up to 5 early choices. Then the sale will open to everyone. Plants sell fast, so don’t be late! Plants will be arranged by first letter of the scientific name.

Payment: We accept checks or cash. Exact change is appreciated.

Lend us a table? Renting tables for the sale is a substantial expense for the chapter. If you can lend us some tables, we’ll be very grateful. Every table lent saves the chapter $10-$15! We’re looking for folding tables that can be used outdoors. You would need to bring the tables to Bloomfield/Morris Arb. by noon. If you’re willing to lend us one or more tables, contact me ([email protected] or 215-248-2642).

IT IS NOT TOO LATE! ORDER ROCK GARDEN BULBS ...submitted by Janet Novak, Chair of Plant Sales

There’s still time to order bulbs from DVC-NARGS.

For $20, you get 50 bulbs: five each of these varieties:Allium oreophilum, Crocus minimus ‘Spring Beauty’, Muscari armeniacum ‘Siberian Tiger’, bulbocodium ‘White Petticoat’, Narcissus ‘Sun Disc’, Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica, Tulipa batalinii ‘Bright Gem’, Tulipa ‘Little Princess’, Tulipa bakeri ‘Lilac Wonder’, and Tulipa clusiana ‘Honky Tonk’. Each variety will be in a separate, labeled bag. The bulbs will grow 3-8” tall, the right size for a rock garden.

To reserve your packet of bulbs, email or call Janet ([email protected] or 215-248-2642). Once the bulbs arrive (early October), you’ll be able pick them up from Jerry Rifkin’s house in Merion at a time convenient to you, or at our November 20 meeting.

3 SATURDAY, NOV 20: ANNUAL LUNCHEON AND LECTURE

The address is: Overbrook Golf Club, 799 Godfrey Road, Villanova, PA 19085 (610) 688-4000. We are scheduled to arrive at 11:00 and end at 3:00. The cost of the luncheon is $ $31 for any selection. Please make your meal choice, complete the form below and send your check and the form to Jerry Rifkin. The reservation deadline for the meeting is Friday, October 29.

MENU Appetizer Wild Mushroom Bisque Entree Choice of Chicken Marsala Asparagus with Julienne Carrots Potato Dauphinoise Roasted Tomato Or Salmon Three Citrus Asparagus with Julienne Carrots Potato Dauphinoise Roasted Tomato Or Vegetarian Lasagna Dessert Mango Sorbet with Whipped Cream

Lori Chips of Oliver Nurseries Assorted French and Italian Cookies Rolls, coffee and tea

Reservation form for the November Annual Meeting and Luncheon on Saturday, 11/20/21. Return this form with your check!

Name(s)

Address

City State ZIP

Select Your Meal m Chicken Number @ $31.00 Cost

m Salmon Number @ $31.00 Cost

m Vegetarian Number @ $31.00 Cost

Total Make your check payable to DVC NARGS and send it to Jerry Rifkin, 310 Valley Rd, Merion PA 19066. DEADLINE FOR RESERVATIONS IS: Friday, October 29

4 CATAWBA STONE ...submitted by Linda Marcucci, Member Vacation! We went to Ohio, doesn’t everybody? Catawba Island is a peninsula on Lake Erie north of Sandusky. (Map at right) Grape growing became an important part of Catawba’s economy and it’s still known for its peach orchards. Deposits of limestone were known to early residents but were not exploited until 1850, when Mr. J. R. James, of New York City, established a limestone quarry. The lime kiln which he built to process the stone can still be seen just inside the north entrance to Catawba Cliffs, but the adjoining barrel factory is long gone.

Karst Topography The red star marks the entrance to the peninsula with An area of irregular limestone in which erosion has produced fissures, sinkholes, Catawba Island toward the tip. underground streams, and caverns as shown in red on the map.

Geology “The shore west of Sandusky, bedrock units—exposed at the surface or buried beneath glacial deposits—are mostly Silurian- and Devonian-age limestone and dolomite. Silurian-age dolomite underlies Sandusky Bay and crops out at Catawba Island and in the Bass Islands.” According to Mike Angle, a geologist with the Ohio Division of Geological “Tufa, a soft, volcanic-looking rock that ages and hardens in the sun, is essentially a porous deposit of calcium carbonate.”“It will form anywhere where groundwater is supersaturated with calcium carbonate” says retired Ohio geologist, Nate Fuller. Karst topography is in red. When the precipitation of calcium carbonate occurs underground, marl is formed. When it precipitates aboveground, tufa is formed. Upon settling, the carbonate encrusts objects with which it comes in contact. Deposits of tufa and marl are fairly rare and not widespread. These deposits are part of this karst topogaphy.

More information: http://www.lakeerieliving.com/Main/Articles/Love_at_First_Sight_485.aspx https://ohiodnr.gov/static/documents/coastal/ohio-coastal-atlas/CH09_Geology.pdf

My visit Locally, they don’t call it tufa but “Catawba Stone.” If you Google it, only the local quarries refer to selling it with this name because it isn’t scientific—more like our layman’s name for plants. Everywhere you drive around the “island” you’ll Catawba Island, Ohio. Photo coutesy Jackie Tong, find examples of creative ways to use it in the garden. They build houses, columns, for Linda Marcucci walls and you name it. As you can imagine, the plants that are commonly planted there like to bake in the sun. Drought tolerant, colorful things like conifers (junipers), sedum, dianthus, guara, roses and plenty of annuals.

Catawba Island, Ohio. Photo coutesy Jackie Tong, for Linda Marcucci

Catawba Island, Ohio. Photo coutesy Jackie Tong, for Linda Marcucci 5 HOW TO GARDEN FOR FIREFLIES They are attracted to liminal spaces between open and denser habitats, such as field and woodland, as the larvae prefer dense Author, Barbara Lee. Originally published in ORG&HPS Journal, cover while the adults need more open spaces for mating. June 2021 with permission, Sharee Solow, Editor These days we have all received the memo about planting for pollinators. We realize the important role our gardens can play in helping crucial insect such as bees and butterflies to survive. But much less press is given to helping another charismatic insect –our backyard fireflies, also under threat of extinction.

Photinus carolinus fireflies in Pennsylvania. Photo from Wikipedia. June 22 2013. Author; Firefly Photos by Radim Schreiber; FireflyExperience.org

In the garden, then, good firefly habitat practices would include Firefly on blade of grass. Photo from Wikipedia. June 5 2013. Author; @ borders with mixed canopy heights around a central open lawn. Try yb_woodstock https://www.flickr.com/photos/ yellow_bird_woodstock/ to maintain some brush or rotting woodpiles in unobtrusive spots in the border, and do not remove leaf litter. A pond would be ideal, but The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation estimates that even small water low-lying, moisture-retentive areas should be of at least eight percent of US and Canadian fireflies are at risk of some benefit. extinction, but crucially, this number is almost certainly low. Of the approximately 2000 species of beetles in the Lampyridae family known as glow worms, lightning bugs, or fireflies, anecdotal reports around the world describe declining populations. Nearly half the described species are data deficient or simply not yet assessed, so it is likely the population declines are greater than currently known. Apart from the sheer joy of seeing brilliant dots of light intermittently floating through the evenings in June, how does it benefit the gardener to offer habitat to fireflies? To be blunt, they are carnivorous. Fireflies spend up to two years as larvae, during which time they feed primarily on snails, slugs, and worms. As adults, many species do not eat at all for the few Woodland puddle, Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Author Evelyn Simak / weeks of their mobile stage, but some do consume nectar and A woodland puddle / CC BY-SA 2.0 , Nov. 1 2008 pollen (and occasionally other fireflies). So some fireflies are Gardens should be able to provide mating habitat as well. Males pollinators as well as pest management specialists. crawl up grass stalks before taking flight, and females need open It is thought that the reasons behind declining firefly populations patches to lay their eggs in the soil. Keeping lawn grass at a longer include: length is helpful, as is providing plantings with mixed vegetation • Habitat destruction heights, including various native grass species. These borders • Light pollution should include broad leaved woody plants for additional cover. • Chemicals including pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers • Collection from wild populations

So what can we as gardeners do to help our fireflies survive?

Provide Gardens as Habitat Firefly larvae prefer rotting forest and vegetation litter at the edges of ponds and streams, which attract the food they need. They are not migratory insects—populations remain where they have hatched. According to firefly.org, “Their environment of choice is warm, humid and near standing water of some kind— ponds, streams and rivers, or even shallow depressions that retain water longer than the surrounding ground.” Mixed border on edge of lawn Photo: Barb Lee ...continued on page 7 6 ...Fireflies - continued from page 6

Gardens can provide support for the crucial larval stage by including plants that build leaf litter and organic material in the soil, by providing places to find food, including wood and brush piles, and by providing additional moisture in the soil and garden.

Plants for Firefly Habitats The most detailed resource I found online for specific planting guidance was from firefly.org, a Texan conservation non-profit organization. Firefly.org recommends “….plants that are described as facultative wetland plants, which are plants that occur in riparian areas but do well in wet and non-wet habitats. These are good plants to consider if you are planting for fireflies in areas that need to be restored or if you are starting from scratch to encourage fireflies to land.”

Recommended grasses, omitting, for Ontario readers, species not hardy in this province, include: • Chasmanthium latifolium, Panicum virgatum, Sorghastrum nutans, Muhlenbergia lindheimeri, Sporobolus wrightii, Elymus virginicus, and Bouteloua curtipendula. • Chasmanthium latifolium and Bouteloua curtipendula apparently provide excellent firefly habitat. Recommended Ontario-hardy perennials include: • Aster praealtus (aka Symphyotrichum praealtum), Verbesina virginica, Solidago altissima, Lobelia cardinalis, Eupatorium serotinum.

In Ontario other species of these genera could probably be substituted, eg Symphyotrichum laeve or Eupatorium rugosum. Woody plants on firefly.org’s list of recommendations include: • Cephalanthus occidentalis, Platanus occidentalis, Populus sp., Sambucus canadensis, Fraxinus sp., Ptelea trifoliata, Celtis sp., Ulmus sp., Cornus sp., and Quercus sp.

Eupatorium serotinum, Photo—Wikipedia, Author Jim Kingdon - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?

Light Pollution Though some species of fireflies are diurnal rather than nocturnal, the vast majority of species rely on bioluminescence to attract mates during darkness. Fireflies have species-specific light patterns meant to attract mates of the correct species. Non-flying females rely on observing the correct light pattern before making their own signals, thus attracting the males to mating. It is obvious, then, that artificial light sources during this period can mask or completely hide the mating signals of all nocturnal fireflies, again leading to population declines in developed areas. In our own gardens, we can help reduce light pollution by substituting motion-sensor security lights for floodlights, using low wattage solar lights for pathways, and by not using exterior lighting during peak firefly breeding season. Keeping blinds or curtains drawn in the evening will also help reduce light pollution. Light from street lamps or neighbours is more difficult to manage, but a perimeter planting zone of taller trees and shrubs between the light source and the protected area should help.

Chemical Pollution Most firefly species spend the majority of their lives as larvae consuming slugs, snails and earthworms. Any lawn or garden fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides which affect these food sources will also affect firefly health. Herbicides can indirectly affect populations by reducing the vegetation needed for shelter, mating, and overwintering. In our gardens we can help by not using harmful pesticides and herbicides, and by managing the health of our lawn grasses with organic or non-chemical interventions.

If you have fireflies in your garden and would like to keep them, please keep these points in mind this year in the garden!

7 LOOKING AHEAD

Delaware Valley Chapter NARGS – Meetings and Activities Sharee Solow, Editor 7914 Park Avenue September 12, 2021, Sunday: Chapter Members’ Plant Sale, Bloomfield Farm, Elkins Park, PA 19027 Morris Arboretum

October 9, 2021, Saturday: Zoom tour from the Laurel Hill Cemetery “The Unique Rock Garden at Laurel Hill Cemetery” with Gregg Tepper

November 20, 2021, Saturday: Annual Luncheon at Overbrook Country Club, Alpines and Troughs, Lori Chips of Oliver Nurseries

Check The Dodecatheon and the DVC/NARGS website (www.dvcnargs.org) for details before each meeting.

Our Guest Speaker for November, Lori Chips, also will be signing her book at the Annual Luncheon.

Though her first love was literature, Lori knew Who knows about his place? she was destined for a career in horticulture Fairmount Park when she spent her days gardening and her nights reading about plants. She studied at the School of Horticulture at New York Botani- cal Gardens, later earning a coveted job as a propagator and teaching classes there. Also a botanical artist and illustrator, she has judged the Philadelphia Flower Show and writes for the North American Rock Garden Society. A national expert and specialist in alpine and trough gardening, Lori says, “plant enthusiasm is contagious and our customers catch it too.”

Delaware Valley Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society Join at dvcnargs.org or by using this form Please print the information as you would like it to appear in our membership directory. This directory is solely for NARGS activities.

Name(s)

Address

City State ZIP

Email Telephone Number

m Individual $15.00 m Household $20.00

Circle the committee(s) in which you might like to participate: Plant Sales Phila Flower Show Special Events Programs Hospitality

Make your check payable to DVC NARGS and send it to: David Lauer, 1349 Cornell Ave., Churchville, PA 18966. *New members joining after July 1 pay one-half of the annual dues. 8