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December Happenings

The first few weeks of the new year offer a chance to reflect on the festivities of December and to look forward to what’s in store for the coming months. A highlight of December was Susan’s  Promise Tree Luncheon  — wonderful food and great company!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Betsy V hosted her annual Swap Shop Yankee Swap party.  Anyone who’s ever attended knows it’s an afternoon of belly laughs and, ahem, interesting gifts. (See below.)

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The Holiday Luncheon at the Wentworth Country Club, sponsored by the Herb Committee, was an especially festive event.  Members enjoyed a delicious lunch followed by a gift exchange. This event is always a special way to wrap up another garden club year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The gift exchange was a hit:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Environment & Conservation Committee is dedicating the entire year to an exploration of Pollinators and the plants they call home, to encourage members to plant with the native plants that will attract pollinators.  Here is an overview, from Chair Linda V, of what we can expect from E&C’s research:

We hope that by May you will want to join our effort to register gardens as part of the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge sponsored by www.MillionPollinatorGardens.org.
At our general meetings we will feature pollinators and the native plants that will encourage them. (Did you know that most pollinators pollinate specific plants?)

Each month we will have our usual posters, but we will also have handouts for you to take home. Be sure to look for them.

In April we will have a sign-up sheet for those who would like a booklet of the information presented during the year. You may use these booklets to educate your grandchildren about the importance of pollination and pollinators.

So – Bee sure to look for our table at each general meeting. We will be presenting the following:
November: Bees and Wasps
January: Butterflies and Moths
February: Other Pollinators in Our Landscape
April: Native Plants that Attract Pollinators
May: Wrap-Up the Year
June Luncheon: Raffle of pollinator items – so remember to bring your coffee cups to monthly meetings to be punched.

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Fresh off the Press — Horticulture Tips!

Be sure to click here to see the January Hort Tips, presented this month by Linda V. You won’t want to miss this timely information. The birds will thank you!

 

 

 

October Happenings

What could go better with leftover Halloween candy than an entertaining look back at October’s garden club fun?  Unwrap a couple of those mini candy bars and enjoy the pictures!

A hard-working team of volunteers cleaned up the plantings at the bandstand for the winter. Chair Nance J promised a sunny day for the job – and Mother Nature followed through.

 

                             

 

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Liz Barbour impressed attendees with her “Edible Landscaping” presentation at the October General Meeting. Not only did she explain her recipes, but she also demonstrated them for an attentive audience, which included members of the Rye Driftwood Garden Club.

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

           

                

 

 

      

 

         

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“Halloween Howl”
A Promise Tree Event 

A spooktacular time was had by eleven members of EAGC at a Halloween Promise Tree bash at Max’s home in Newburyport. Our hosts, Max and Betsy V., greeted guests, all of whom were decked out in Halloween colors… and/or costumes. Spooky tablescapes and ghoulish decor met guests at the door, with numerous zombies, black cats, crows, and witches greeting everyone throughout the rooms.

After libation, nibbles, chitchat, and a stroll through the garden, our party-givers presented guests with a smorgasbord of ghostly delights for lunch and dessert. Quizes and prizes and much laughter filled the afternoon. Everyone had a hauntingly good time and much appreciation goes to Max and Betsy for planning the event. 

Friends:

                   

 

     

Food:


  

 

Fright:

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Congrats!:

Nancy B was the pleased winner of a surprise drawing at the September General Meeting. She went home with this very pretty sedum, after her name was drawn from the meeting attendees. The board will be holding other drawings at General Meetings  — be sure to look for them at the Membership table.

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Mini-Grant Followup:

EAGC received the following thank you email and photo from  one of the volunteer gardeners who tends to the beds in Swasey Parkway. She and her fellow volunteers were awarded one of our Beautification Mini Grants this past spring.

Bjarni Brown wrote:
Hello,
I just wanted to update the EAGC about our use of the 2017 mini-grant we were awarded.

4 Swasey Parkway volunteers met this morning (Oct. 29) to plant $200 worth of bulbs at 3 different locations on Swasey Parkway in Exeter. We planted various tulips, daffodils, hyacinth, scilla and crocus at the Entrance Garden, pavilion and “the rock.” I have attached a picture of Lilly Moran, of Exeter, who helped out. She was working to fulfill her Community Service hours through her 6th grade at CMS. Also in the picture are Susan Moran (volunteer) and Mark Damsell, Swasey Parkway Trustee.

Once again, thank you very much for awarding us this grant. Swasey Parkway will have beautiful spring bulbs for all to enjoy this coming spring!
Best,
Bjarni Brown                                           

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New to The Website:

The minutes of EAGC’s Board and General Meetings will be posted each month on a new website page titled “Meeting Minutes”. This page can be found under “Members Only” on the site. To see the minutes from the most recent meetings, click here.

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A Reminder:

If you know of a member who would enjoy receiving a card from our club — get-well, sympathy, encouragement — please contact Florence W, our Corresponding Secretary, and Florence will send the appropriate card. You can find her contact info on the website under “Members Only” or in your Yearbook.

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If you’re having any problems with the links on this post, or have any other website-related questions or issues, don’t hesitate to contact me. That’s why I’m here!

LuAnn

 

July Happenings

Our July 20th meeting at Lee’s home was well attended and everyone had a chance to admire Lee’s beautiful home and gardens. The gathering was also an opportunity to exchange gardening experiences and, of course, share good food with friends.

 

Discussions ensued:

 

 

Food was enjoyed:

 

 

And photo opportunities were smiled for:

 

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Last spring the Environment & Conservation Committee awarded a $200 mini-grant to the Kingston Conservation Commision to help them with establishing a pollinator garden. This summer the Commission sent Chair Linda V pictures of the beautiful garden they created with the help of our mini-grant. Here’s their letter:

 

Good morning,
You gave us a mini grant last year for a pollinator garden. I just wanted to show you that the garden is flourishing and acting its part very well. The large patch of milkweed, which was the inspiration for the garden to begin with, is doing exceptionally well. The kids have started a composting program as well.
Thank you again for providing the “seed money” for this project.
Best,

Evelyn Nathan, Chair
Kingston Conservation Commission
ESRLAC
Coverts cooperator
Plant ConservationVolunteer, NEWFS

 

And here are some pictures of the results:

 

The pollinators are obviously enjoying this lush garden!

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It’s difficult to believe, but fall will soon be upon us.  Our last summer celebration, sponsored by Environment & Conservation, An Appleiciuous Afternoon, will take place on August 17.

EAGC’s first General Meeting of the season will be Thursday, September 21, where our 2017 Mini-Grant winners will be announced.

 

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If  you have a gardening success that you’re especially proud of, share it with other members! Email me a picture and I’ll make it available on the website. Send it to Webmaster at [email protected].

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

June Happenings

It’s hard to believe June is behind us. But we have so many fun pictures to share…

Of course the highlight of the month was our Annual Plant Auction and Luncheon, held on June 14 at the Portsmouth Country Club. (As you may be able to tell, garden hats were part of the theme.)

Tables overflowed with plants donated by members, including some beautiful house plants. Max did a stellar job of auctioning off everything by lunchtime.

Garden Hats were everywhere. Some made a fashion statement.  Some made a  different kind of statement (about the size of this year’s mosquitos, perhaps?)

 

 

               

How about these stylish gardeners?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were even honored by the presence of two “Czarinas”.

 

More auction action…

 

 

 

 

 

 

These lovely table centerpieces were raffled off to some lucky members. They were created by Betsy A & Donna.

 

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On June 20th, some members enjoyed a Promise Tree tour of Max’s  beautiful & very interesting gardens in Newburyport. Everyone found a least one plant that she wasn’t able to identify in Max’s mix of unusual and old-standby flowers.

 

 

 

 

 

As you can tell, it was a gorgeous day in a gorgeous garden.