Workdays 8/22 & 25/11

On Monday, I worked with Kay Balzer in the garden and Laura Davis came to water the MMG. I spent my time watering, weeding, and deadheading Shasta Daisy. Kay removed a large grass in front of our angel statue, dug some iris, and weeded in the front 1/2 circle. There is no end to the ragweed and bell flowers even after revamping the garden.

On Thursday several regulars were off doing other things in their life, but we were able to get many things done. David Hockman planted another Sumac and reinforced the rebar surrounding our new willow. Becky Lewis and Crys Wells thinned and cut back iris. Marcia Lamkin and Rebecca Moore helped Laura Davis in the MMG. Laura gave us a short in-service on the progress with that garden and plans for the future. Cynthia Katte worked on the compost and deadheading throughout the garden. Judith Chaddock took care of the sun porch and house plants and deadheaded. Betty Marcus watered pots and new plantings. I spent my time deadheading, watering, and planting some new plants by our angel.

New plants:
Rock Rose and Dianthus (FG)
Sumac (Rose Garden Walkway)

Upcoming:
Coconino County Fair Sept. 2-5
Fall Harvest Lunch - Sept. 17, Judith Chaddocks, 12pm-2pm
Northland Hospice Volunteer Lunch - Sept. 30 12pm-2pm
Monthly Saturday Workday - Sept. 25, 9am-12pm

Plans for this week:
Help with Fair entries
Continue iris thinning/cutting back
Deadheading
Plant another Sumac
Plant some day lilies
Need 1 load of soil/compost for north garden
Compost - shredding material
Drip - continue adding lines

The extension of the FUTS trail will not happen until next spring so we have plants that we need to get rid of. We will plant 4 large pots of Shasta daisy and keep 3 shrubs for planting on the corner. Free plants (gaillardia, Shasta daisy, day lily) and iris available on Monday/Thursday workdays. Donations accepted.
CMGA 2012 Calendars for sale

Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 8/15 & 8/18 & 8/20/11

On Monday, after heavy rains on Sunday, I worked alone in the garden. I spent my time cleaning up, deadheading, and watering pots that are sheltered from the rain. It rained heavily in the afternoon after I left. Between Sunday and today we had almost 5 inches in the rain gauge.

On Thursday, we again had a large crew. Laura Davis, Rebecca Moore, Nancy Palmer, and Marcia Lamkin all worked in the MMG. Carol Lease made some plant tags and helped with the iris thinning. Becky Lewis planted some new additions and also helped with the iris. Linda Guarino worked on the compost, drip system, and instructed others in iris thinning and planting. Gail Reed, worked on the compost area, transporting dirt to surround our pavers, and helped with the iris thinning. Kay Balzer spent her time cleaning up the 1/2 circle and thinning some gallardia in the back gardens. David Hockman did his usual tree hole digging and then put a fence around the new tree. He was helped by Jim Woods who also planted a couple of aspens in the MMG. Marilynn VanWagner and Betty Marcus watered some of the gardens. Marilynn also managed to pick some lettuce for the house. I spent my time watering, finding jobs and material for people, and picking some more vegetables.

On Saturday Nancy Palmer had a small crew - Debbie Crisp and LInda - and they worked on the MMG, watering, weeding, and thinning iris.

New plantings:
2 Double Coneflowers - white and orange
More Kinnikkinnik
Navajo willow tree behind the faerie garden
2 Aspen in the MMG

New blooms:
Asiatic Lily and some fall asters
Signs of fall include some red leaves on the virginia creeper

Upcoming:
Coconino County Fair - Sept. 2-5 (plant entry preparation 8/31
Fall Harvest Lunch - Sept. 17 - at Judith Chaddocks - 11am-2pm
Northland Hospice Volunteer Lunch - Sept. 23 - details TBA

Plans for workdays 8/22 & 25:
Thinning iris
Gathering hollyhock seed
Deadheading
Weeding
Watering as needed
Work on pathways (leveling and adding sand)
Planting a new shrub and tree

Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 8/8/11 & 8/12/11

On Thursday, Kay Balzer came and worked on the 1/2 circle garden and dug up some native phlox for the Native Gardne. Laura Davis worked on the Michael Moore Garden and I spent time watering and deadheading.

On Thursday, Joe Harte, Laura Davis, Kay Balzer,David Hockman, Carol Lease, and I worked on getting ready for the garden tours on Sunday. Joe trimmed some trees and weed whacked around the compost area. Laura worked on the Faeried Garden. Carol Lease put up our new fencing between the arbors at the garden entrance. I helped her a little but spent most of my time as usual running around to help people find things or start other tasks. David Hockman put in our new Pet Memorial paver area. Joe Harte pruned trees and took down an elm tree behind the Faerie Garden. Marcia Lamkin stopped by to say hi and tell us she was busy with feeding birds. The garden is ready for the Sunday tours except for watering some new plantings and transplanted tree and shrub.

On Sunday the tours began on a cloudy day with the sound of an impending storm about an hour after we opened. The birds were very active in anticipation of the visitors. With the exception of about an hour (heavy thunderstorm with 1.5 inches accumulation) we were very busy all day. We didn't take a count but are sure we had close to 100 people. Some came to just enjoy the beauty of the garden and others had many questions. The most frequent "What is that?" was the pink double coneflower. It is a hybrid that we purchased 2 years ago and it has done wonderfully. From one small plant (quart) we have a nice grouping of flowers. It won a ribbon at the county fair last year. Most frequent request was for hollyhock seeds. If you need some we are about 1-2 weeks away. You are welcome to come and gather seeds when we are in the garden on Monday and Tuesday mornings.

Upcoming:
August Saturday workday, 8/20, from 9am-12pm
County Fair Entries and Display in Floriculture - 9/2-5
Annual Fall Harvest and Potluck - September/date TBA

New in the garden:
Fencing at garden entrance
Pet Memorial area
Lilac shrub donation (150 year old tree original specie from Europe. Has travelled throughout the US

Thanks to all who came to visit the garden on Sunday. It gives us the opportunity to show off all the hard work we put in, and see others of all ages appreciate it. special thanks to Nancy Palmer, Kay Balzer, Marcia Lamkin, and Laura Davis for hanging out in the rain with me on Sunday

Loni

Workdays - week of 8/1-6/2011

We had another busy week in the garden which is looking wonderful after all the rain. It looks better than it has since I have been working in it. On Monday, we had a small crew - Susan Thompson worked on watering, while I washed pots. Kay Balzer came and tended to the 1/2 circle, weeded, and sprayed some nasty weeds.

On Tuesday some of the docents from the Arboretum came for a tour of the gardens for their monthly Brown Bag. On Friday we had the Senior Companions and Foster Grand Parents touring the garden. Both groups enjoyed seeing parts of the garden not visible from the street and hearing about the development of the gardens.


On Thursday we had a large crew working in the garden. Laura Davis, Rebecca Moore and Nancy Palmer all worked on weeding, hardscaping, and planting in the MMG. Kay Balzer and Joe Harte went out to retrieve a lilac from a recent resident of OW. It was replanted after David Hockman dug a hole in the Switzer Canyon beds in front of the house. Linda Guarino worked on sifting compost with Christine Orr and continued to add lines to the drip, she also found time to plant a couple of succulents in our strawberry pot. Christine washed pots and put them back in the greenhouse. Gail Reed weeded several beds. Julie Holmes deadheaded flowers. Judith Chaddock helped deadhead, watered indoors, and they both cleaned up some donated house plants. Crys Wells deadheaded and help clean-up in prepartion for the senior tours on Friday. Carol Lease worked on plant labels, the fountain, and general clean-up.

Visitors this week besides our groups included the: Bermans to look at a bench donation, and Catherine Sickafoose taking photos for painting. As usual Dave Hill was in the garden on Mon. & Thurs. with Murphy and many of the residents.

Plans for next week include:
Rose fertilizing
Deadheading and weeding
Placing pavers in the Pet Memorial Garden
Watering as needed
General clean-up in prep for the Garden Tours on Sunday
Moving some native phlox into the gardens from the east side of the property

New blooms:
More roses, some agastache, 4-o'clock, honeysuckle berries

For picking:
lettuce, spinach, some herbs, zucchini, crookneck, arugula, beginning tomatoes

Upcoming:
Native Plant Society Extravaganza - August 10, Federated Church
Native Plant Society Garden Tours - August 14, 11am-4pm OWHG
Monthly Saturday Workday - August 20, 9am-12pm
Coconino County Fair - Sept 2-5 - OWHG Display in Horticulture

Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 7/25/11 & 7/28/11

We had a small crew on Monday but as usual got many tasks done. Kay Balzer came and worked on the 1/2 circle garden, weeding and planting a new red 9-bark shrub. She also watered and weeded with me. Susan Thompson helped me carry pavers to the new Pet Memorial area for placing on our Thursday workday. Rebecca Moore came and worked in the MMG, triming trees, weeding, and watering. Kasey McConagha fed birds and filled birdbaths. As usual Dave Hill and Murphy brought out most of the residents to enjoy the gardens on a beautiful day. It began raining just before we left.


On Thursday we had our annual visit from AmeriCorp. There were 8 volunteers and 3 helped in the Michael Moore Garden with Laura Davis, 3 worked with Cynthia Katte weeding the compost area and placing pavers, one volunteer worked on weeding the north rock wall and one helped David Hockman transplant a tree. Linda Guarino worked as usual on the drip and helped Cynthia clean-up the compost. Judith Chaddock cleaned the sun porch, watered indoors, and cut lavender to dry. I helped Linda, did some watering, and supervised the crew.

We had fewer volunteers than anticipated and will have a full schedule for this week. Happily it rained and more is expected, and we have a 2x a week volunteer to feed and water the birds (Kasey McConagha).

New in the garden:
Red Nine-bark shrub
Moved a "Starburst Locust"

New blooms:
Karen Kent's Peace Rose

Indian Paintbrush in the 1/2 circle garden

Roses throughout the garden - Julia Child, Peace, Morden Sunrise, Carefree Delight, etc.

This week:
Placing pavers for the pet memorial area
Washing pots
Weeding in a few other beds
Cutting more lavender
Compost (sifting and chipping)
Drip continued
MMG variety of tasks

Upcoming:
August 2, visit from the Arboretum volunteers - 9:30
August 5, visit from the Senior Companions and their clients, 11am
August 10, Native Plant Society Extravaganza
August 14, Native Plant Society Garden Tours 11am-4pm
August 20, Monthly Saturday Workday 9am-12pm

A garden is a friend you can visit anytime. Unknown.

Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 7/18/11 & 7/21/11

On Monday we had a small crew watering, weeding, and doing general clean up.
On Thursday, Laura Davis, Rebecca Moore and Marcia Lamkin worked on the MMG. Linda Guarino continued to add to the drip in the gardens and spruced up the rock garden in preparation for Sunday's judging. Al Katte built some shelves in the greenhouse and made changes in the arbor construction. Cynthia Katte worked on the compost and deadheaded some plants. Gail Reed planted some house plants, and watered the back gardens and the sun porch. Betty Marcus worked on watering along with me. David Hockman and Joe Harte worked on transplanting a Starburst locust. Joe also brought some soil from the Landscape Connection. With all the heat Betty came on Saturday and help me water one more time plants not on the drip. On Sunday the Native Plant Society came for judging the Moon and Rock gardens.


While we were in the garden we spotted a strange beelike insect on the Shasta daisy, and it was acting and looking like a hawk moth. Rebecca Moore found this photo that seems to look like what we saw. It is called a Bumblebee Moth and it has a long proboscis to suck nectar from the flowers. She also spotted one at the arboretum.

New in the garden:
Shelving in the greenhouse thanks to Al Katte
A weed whacker and birdhouse from the Paul Montoya family

New blooms:
Shasta Daisy throughout the garden, more roses, all the yarrows, hollyhock

Upcoming:
Arboretum Docent Visit - August 2, 930am
Senior Companion Program Visit - August 5, 11am
Native Plant Society Extravaganza - August 10
Native Plant Society Garden Tours - August 14
Monthly Saturday Workday - August 20, 9am-12pm
"Hello Dolly" with David Hockman - watch for dates in September

Plans for this week include our yearly help from AmeriCorp
Creating a pet memorial area
Revamping the compost area (weeding, weedcloth and maybe pavers)
Weeding (several areas on the property)
Pot washing and putting away for the year
Cleaning the sun porch
MMG - several activities
Tree moving - digging and replanting
Extras - garbage on Turquoise, lavender bundles, flower pressing, watering as needed

Did you know that Victorians used plants and plantings to create a special language in the garden? Two that I thought you might find interesting are symbols of humility - morning glory and bindweed. I must say that symbol is appropriate as I work along the Inferno Strip. Lavender has several symbols - memory and peace - also appropriate. The smell seems to sharpen the mind (wakes you up) and leaves you in a peaceful state.

Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 7/11-14-16.2011

Old shed with new pavers for entrance.

Thursday was another beautiful and productive day in the gardens at Olivia White. Julie Holmes stopped by to deliver some sign-in records for Northland Hospice and she filled the bird feeders before leaving. Laura Davis came and worked on the Michael Moore Garden which now has many new plants. Carol Lease worked on two paver pathways for the sheds. This will allow entry without dragging in all the dirt. Carol also managed to clean the water feature which was full of pine pollen. Gail Reed planted some of our leftover plant sale plants, watered and weeded. Becky Lewis re-sanded the back patio and the new north pathway. David Hockman repaired one of our redwood gliders and weeded. Betty Marcus watered and deadheaded. Marilynn VanWagner watered and again picked lettuce for the house. Jim Woods weeded the south rockwall area - steep incline and nasty weeds. Marcia Lamkin came by and swept and watered indoors. I spent most of my time finding work for others in between washing pots.

On Saturday, Laura Davis supervised and worked on the vines in the gazebo, Betty Marcus watered, and Debbie Crisp worked on sanding the walkways and planting some new hens and chicks.

Thanks to:
Pats Shriver for making a beautiful cushion for our bentwood bench with a cover to protect it from the sap and rain.

Betty Marcus and Becky Lewis for treats. Becky brought some of her homemade goat's milk cheese (yum).
Val Bryant for the donation of some hens and chicks.
Laura Davis for supervising the Saturday workday.
Becky Lewis, Joe Harte,and Marillynn Van Wagner for working the 10% day at Warners.



New blooms:
Coreopsis, coneflower, more roses

New plantings:
Licorace Mint, Mountain Hollyhock, Penstemon Barbatos, Calliroe (Wine Cup)

Upcoming:
Native Plant Society Contest Judging - July 24 or 25
Arboretum Docent Visit - August 2, 930am
Senior Companion Program Visit - August 5, 11am
Native Plant Society Garden Tours - August 14
Monthly Saturday Workday - August 20, 9am-12pm
"Hello Dolly" with David Hockman - watch for dates in September

"More things grow in the garden than the gardener sows" Spanish Proverb

I have noticed that we have many purple flowers in the garden - more than any other color. From the book "A Garden of Love and Healing" - the symbolism of the color purple (intuition, idealism, self-sacrifice, inspiration, kindness, spirituality). Lamb's Ear, which we have an abundance of, symbolizes healing. Thank you for all you do!

Loni