Club Minutes: Horticultural Society, 1949

"Tanglewood" April 1949 Lovely bouquets anticipating the joys of the gardening season bloomed in the hall and on every mantle at"Tanglewood", as the Horticultural formally ushered in Spring at its first meeting in 1949. President Fred McReynolds called the gathering of members and distinguished friends together, and the minutes were read as the first order of buisness. The romantic story of "Orchids of the Fantastic Clan" was read by Martha Nesbitt. The Spaniard Hernandez took cacti and night-blooming flowers to Europe, There, in 1830, was made the first crossing of orchids and cacti, resulting in the development of hundreds of named varieties of hybrids by 1914. The night blooming cereus is one of these epiphytical or air plants. Pictures of the hybrid cacti showed huge, but delicate flowers of exquisite coloring. Edward Iddingd next gave a report of the Seeds of Peace Project of the National Council of State Garden Clubs. 70,000 garden units were sent abroad which included 13 kinds of tested vegetable seeds. A harvest of letters is now coming from the thousands of people benefited. In lighter vein Lofton Wesley told the Tanglewood-Longwood cactus story, and Jessie McReynolds decribed vividly the 9" earthworm. The Forethought Chairman, Rebecca Small (blessings on her and on Elza Thomas, too) presented a host of excellent suggestions: replace mulch around rose bushes with an inch of compost. Set out new rose bushes now. Divide phlox and shasta daisies. Peat moss may be obtained in either acid or alkaline forms. Ted Nesbitt listed exhibits of mertensia and daffodils brought by Edward Iddings. Edward and Lillie Stabler both brought exotic crown imperial blossoms. Clermont's daffodils and assorted magnolias were strikingly beautiful. Prettyflowering crab came from Alloway.

It was a great pleasure to vote into membership Edith and Henry Owings of "Hickory Ridge". We accepted with deep regret the resignation of Camille and Clarke Slade whose kind invitation to meet at Sharon we declined. The pros and cons of salton the asparagus bed were discussed historicallyand empirically by many of the present. Some have salted the bed (6 lbs. to 100 sq. ft. is a good proportion) and some have had good, relatively weedless asparagus for years without benefit of salt. There is no doubt whatever, however, about the value of spraying arbor vitae now with arsenic of lead if there are more bagworms then can be handpicked. Riverside decided after our profitable airing of the subject, to let the lawn sycamore tree remain, but not to add another. Moles may be more plentiful as has been noted, because the ground was not frozen this winter as usual. To prune lilacs cut out the old wood at the base of the shrub, and after flowering cut off the old blossoms. Forsynthia blooms profusely the following season if cut down to two feet of the ground. Donald Hobbs or Edgar Erwin will take down old trees if desired. A surprising amount of interest was expressed over Ted Nesbitt's proposal that we visit the Dubious(?) Longwood Greenestates(?) this summer as a group. Adjournment, and then came a covered dish supper fit for the gods.

Clermont May 1949 The month of May is like a teenager,- neither child now man yet partaking of the characteristics of both periods. May is not just spring nor it it summer,- yet the sporadic hot days and the blossoming of the tree, shrub and flower make us feel the summer season is really here. Flowering driveway and sunken garden at Clermont were very pretty on the day of May when the Horticultural met there. President McReynolds called us in from the balmy outside and we sat down decorously for the meeting. The minutes were read and amended. A moment of silence was observed in memory of our former, loved member, Albert Stabler. It is not necessary to admit (!) the omission or appointed readers because of the volunteer articles Isabel Wesley read about how bluish flowers, shrubs and trees lend distance to any garden,- shrubs like the caryopteris or blue spirea, and trees like the smoke tree (Rhus cotinus) and the Lilac chaste-tree (Vitex agnus castus). And Ulric Hutton read an interesting description of the use of sawdust as a mulch is getting a good second crop from everbearing strawberry plants. Either hardwood or softwood sawdust may be used. Hoeing and weedkilling are minimized. This system is written up is a Farm and Home Bulletin. Many helpful Forethought Notes were then given by Rebecca Small. It is time to pinch side buds of chrysanthemums and peonies; to feed rhubarb with a generous hand. Tall, bearded iris should be given lots of bonemeal. Plant daphne of a sunny, shaley slope. Strawberry beds may be made now. If the new plants are well watered, they will produce fruit this year. The list of exhibits read by Elizabeth Ligon was creditable. Eight places were represented. Flowers came from Edgewood &(?) Hickory Ridge, consisting of gigantic scyllas, roses and tulips. Lovely branches of viburnum tomitosum were from Millwood; translucent white azalea from Ercilfown, Scotch Broom from Tanglewood; and a charming arrangement of four varieties of lilacs, was brought from Homestone. The unusual marica was Catherine Adamses. Vegetables from Homestone, Tangle wood and the Highlands ranged from 1948 parseley and a beautiful

(continuing from bottom of previous page) old potato, to 1949 lettuce, radishes, asparagus, rhubarb, onions, etc. Edward Iddings as meteorologist reported 45 degrees as the average morning temperature in March and 39 degrees in April. This last winter was quite mild, so much so that if the ground was ever fromzen in the morning, it thawed out by night. There were only two skating days on the Alloway pond, and they occured during Christmas and New Year's day. The covered dish supper method continues to meet with the approcal of all. But as one expressed it, those who want bread-without-fail, can bring it. There is also the hazard of too many desserts. However, to quote, "It is nice to keep the menu uncertain and exciting." The secretary read the by-laws. Dues from twelve families and an associate member were collected, bringing our balance in the treasury to seven dollars. It was advantageous to have more time for questions and pointers. Who will try the old stunt,- to cover rhubarb with a half barrel, heap manure around and over it, and then to pull Rhubarb in February? Mention was made by several members of the beauty of the Sherwood Gardens in Baltimore. Maloney's and Bolgiano have celery plants. They may be put out as late as mid-June. Perhaps it was not for the minutes, but recommendations were made to eradicate the bountiful crop of dandelions everywhere by importing a lot of Italian women, or if that is not possible, to spray with 24D. The only thing to do with landcress, however, is sadly, to pull it up. Dustig tomatoes as soon as they are put out, regularly, with a spray such as 7% copper dust, is the only sure blight preventative. Don't move a tree peony. Apply bonemeal. Trying up box bushes in the winter keeps the branches frm spreading and breaking. Norwood box is pruned if desired, in early spring. The meeting was adjourned. Oh my! was not the covered dish supper a satisfying and "exciting" adventure. IW, sec

H/6/1949-1Little House. June 1949.

The wonders of June have been extolled so frequently and with such eloquence that no description will be attempted here of the beautiful afternoon on which we gathered at the McReynolds'. Surely all of us would agree that the weather quite matched the hospitality of our host and hostess, thus setting a high standard for even a June day.

President McReynolds called the meeting to order, and the minutes of the previous meeting were read and approved.

Elizabeth Ligon read an article from "Flower Grower" on the desirable qualities of Kousa dogwoods (Cornus Kousa), which are natives of the Japanese islands. These trees, on their home soil, reach a height of 20 to 30 feet, but in this country are not apt to be so large.

The blossoms appear late, as our native dogwoods are ending their display. Flowers are 3 to 5 inches across, with bracts pointed at the apex, not rounded or notched like Cornus florida, and often continue through June and well into July. In the Fall the trees bear pink berries a full half inch across, and the leaves turn brilliant tones of pink and orange.

Cornus Kousa thrives best in loamy or sandy soils in moderately dry locations, and responds to the fertilizers used for rhododendrons and azaleas. Vigorous plants are rarely affected by diseases or pests, and if seeds are cleaned and planted outdoors before winter sets in, they will germinate as readily as radishes the following spring.

Elizabeth Ligon also read from the same magazine an article on the sea hollies, or eryngiums, with emphasis on E. giganteum. This is listed as a biennial, but often does not bear until the third year. It has value not only for its garden beauty, but as a source of unusually fine dried bouquets.

E. giganteum, in its flowering year (which it does not survive) is some 3 feet high and about as wide. Its true flowers are small and white, on green cones, but its greatest decorative effect is from its spint bracts which have a white veining suggestive of the fine filigree on a background of green. Normally in full display during the entire month of July, the plant turns to varied shades of brown in August.

Though slow to produce its first flowers, it has compensating advantages; it self-seeds prolifically, it is easy to transplant, and seems to have no enemies among pests and diseases.

Lofton Wesley read and account of the work of Dr. Julian C. Miller. Dr. Miller has done development work with onions, shallots, cabbages, peppers, peas, pumpkins, Irish potatoes, and many other vegetables; but as a boy started to improve the flavor and uniformity of the sweet potato, and by reducing the progeny of 16,000 hills and their mutations to a final 12 hills has produced the Unit 1 Puerto Rico, a finer table "sweet" than our nation ever had before, and of more uniform size and shape.

It is interesting to note that the sweet potato is perhaps the most widely spread of all wild vegetables, having penetrated all major ares of the world ahead of man.