Club Minutes: Horticultural Society, 1989

H/7/1989-2.

The Membership Committee asked and received authorization to write to Ellis and Mary Manning inviting them to be members. The Canbys offered to invite the Brooks and Peter Ligon families to the next meeting.

Among the many Questions and Answers: Lesley Rogers was advised that laurel and copper beach leaves may be preserved by soaking for two weeks in a solution of half glycerine, half water. Mo Chance was told that Sevin was effective for Japanese beetles but also lethal to bees. Buzz Hussman, reflecting on the drive for freedom in Poland, asked if there was a peculiarly Polish plant. Potatoes for vodka was the only answer. Nancy Chance wondered what might be eating pepper leaves. Suggested culprits were slugs, and suggested remedies were an applicaion of wood ashes or encirclement of the plants by sand or diatomaceous earth. John Hartge's question on drip irrigation without water pressure resulted in an interesting discussion of water distribution systems.

Iduna Hanel passed out literature describing dogwood diseases, along with information that the dogwood blight, anthracose, has not arrived in the area according to county agents.

With warm thanks to Elie and Lesley Rogers for an excellent evening, the Society adjourned to meeting next at Jackpine.

H/8/1989-1-

Jackpine, August 1, 1989 : page 1

The weather favored us for the pre-dinner tour of the Canby's impressive array of landscaping and gardening delights. We had a sumptuous meal in a home whose decor and fittings perfectly match our world travelling and sophisticated hosts.

There were no guests and Priscilla Allen and the Bullards were sadly in absence.

The Secretary read the minutes and we proceeded to the selected article read by Ellen Hartge. It was taken from the May/June 1988 Fine Gardening and was entitled "Banded Cuttings". It dealt with propagating plants vegetatively. Essentially the article described how to propagate difficult items such as maples, oaks, and pines by putting opaque bands around first year growth for about four weeks then snipping off the branch below the band. The band comes off and the covered section is treated with rootone and planted. There were details and procedures that complicated matters but overall it seemed worth a try.

The minutes were read from Rockspring of August 6, 1889.

Harold Earp read the Forethought. Was August the time to sit back and relax? The negative answer was backed up with a unnerving list of plants to culture and pests to conquer.

The Meteorologist Report said the rainfall is 10 inches above the normal for this time of year. The Washington Post reported that the area has had 5.56 inches for July which is 1.68 inches above normal. The high temperature mark was on the 11th with 97 degrees. The lowest was on the 2nd with 51.

EXHIBITS

Vegetble tray from Havilands Black beans from the Earps. Lea House tomatoes, beans and peppers. From Riverside came Lord Baltimore hibiscus, platycodon, Blue Danube stokesia, zinnia, sweet bush pepper, red onion, red pontiac onion, and italian green beans. From the Earps came zinnias, dahilia, Queen Elizabeth rose, astilbe, lantana, chrysanthemum, and black berries. From the Chances came clematis, blackberry lily, Honest Pleasure day lily, marigold, zinnias, geranium, coreopsis, Goldstrum rudbeckia, Victoria salvia, garlic chives, and sea lavendar (statice latifolia).

The content and soaring spirit of the Bird Report once again was clipped perhaps because of the Bullards' absence. However, Bill Hartge reported a Great (big!) Blue Heron stalking about a small tributary on the Patuxant. Ari Preuss was on the Cacapon River in West Virginia and saw a large wild turkey. Peter Austin was told that clearing out bluebird boxes is only necessary to keep the eggs or nestlings away from the entrance and out of reach from raccoons and other predators.

H/8/1989-2.

Jackpine, August 1, 1989 : page 2

The major Committee Report dealt with membership. That committee retracted everything it contributed to the previous meeting. The Secretary was enjoined to fog his observations regarding membership and the dignified and mystical manner by which the Society fills its ranks. Suffice it to say the by-laws were read. Loose details, semantics, and ontology were thrashed over. We resolved to clear up some of the gray areas....later. For now the three families chronologically in line and approved for membership would be sent invitations to join and the other families would be on the waiting list or what amounted to the waiting list waiting list.

The Questions were meager probably because we had exhausted ourselved over the really BIG question: what is membership and when is the right time to harvest.

Mo Chance wondered if anyone knew when the Coffys dug up their lilies to have them in time for the hospital supper. It was assumed that they were dug up early - probably in the fall or late August and then put in a special bed to await gathering for the Hospital Supper. A postscript says the Coffys dug the bulbs up the day before the Supper.

Tom Canby has 2 bluebird houses but no bluebirds - they inspect the boxes but don't stay. Recommended that he cut down more trees and don't have the nests too close together.

John Hartge hears loud screaming at night in the woods below their house. He declined to imitate the sounds. Possibilities include foxes, bobcats, kitties from hell, loud ties that have escaped from John's wardrobe, the list goes on. Most members doubted the likelihood of bobcats but the description did not match any other beast commonly found in the area. Beth Bullard suspected barn owls. John was asked to get a recording and bring it to a future meeting.

With no other questions we thanked the Canbys for their hospitality and adjourned the meeting, agreeing to meet next at the Community House on September 5 when Priscilla Allen would host the gathering and Ari Preuss would be the reader

With humble apologies for cheekiness, mispellings, and thinly veiled character self-assassination,

Peter Austin Secretary

H/9/1989-1

Friends Community House, September 5, 1989; page 1

The evening was cloudy and cool but no less pleasant for it as we gathered at the Friends Community House for our September meeting. With the Allen's lovely house and garden a few miles away we arranged ourselves on the porch, men on the right and ladies on the left and chatted in a relaxed and congenial manner.

When the last anticipated participant arrived we went in to an excellent meal. Missing were the Hanels and the Earps. A welcome sight were Sylvia Woodward, Mary Moore Miller, and Martha Nesbitt as well as the one new member who was able to attend, Ellis Manning.

With the meal over the meeting was called to order. Ellis Manning was welcomed to the fold. The minutes were read, corrected, and approved. Ari Preuss read the selected article entitled "Shrinking Gene Pool". It was taken from the British journal New Science and dealt with a possible horticultural crisis stemming from the standardization of plant varieties. The reason behind this genetic retreat was commericialization at its worst and most ambitious whereby advances in plant breeding and marketing would result in fruits and vegetables that look alike, taste alike, behave the same, preserves well, tastes bland, and ultimately reduces plant viability, vitality, and resistance to disease.

Elizabeth Thornton read the minutes from 100 years ago after which we moved on to the forethought.

Harvesting dominated the forethought some of whose content Ellen Hartge cribbed from 1950's minutes. We were told that the war on weeds is either won or lost by now and that we can still plant lettuce and radishes. Pumpkins can stay on the vine up until just before the first frosts which we should look for towards the end of the month.

Bring in houseplants and divide peonies and any daylilies over 5 years old.

Fertilize lawns and put in new shrubs. Do not waste money on scentless marigolds and remember that grapes do not ripen after they've been picked - a point worth debate from the vintners among the assembly.

The Meteorologist Report noted that the coldest day of the last month was on the 9th when it was 46 degrees. The warmest was on the 6th when it was 94. Peak gust happened on the 30th when the wind puffed 23 mph. National Airport rainfall was 1.15 inches - down for the month but still 6.8 inches above average for the year at this time.

EXHIBITS

The Chances brought in a nice basket of vegetables. Lydia Haviland offered a pair of big sunflowers. Priscilla Allen brought in a tomato that had been chewed on during its youth but the wound had scarred over into a vague likeness of Richard Nixon. Rose Hill brought a beautiful anjou pear and some pecans.

H/9/1989-2-

Friends Community House, September 5, 1989; page 2

From Jackpine came ogeratum, tropicana roses, phlox, mums, Japanese anemone, zinnias, and sedum. Riverside offered cleome, a prima donna rose, purple and white amyrath, and balsam.

Bird Report

The graceful acrobatics of nighthawks have been admired as migrating flocks move through the area in the early evening hours. Barn owls and the installation of barn owl boxes were lightly touched upon.

Committee Reports

The Membership Committee explained why the fruits of our summer-long membership efforts including debates, nearly Talmudic study of the by-laws, inner contemplation, outer discourse, and intuitive guesswork only resulted in one lone but hardy new member in our ranks that evening. The Committee explained that reaching people is more complicated than it seems and recommended faith and patience or patience and faith.

There was no new business so we went on to Questions.

Question

Elizabeth Thornton has flocks in her garden that have been treated well and pinched back appropriately but have come forth with only one flower. ""Why not" suggestions included fertilizing and dividing. Mary Seiler forwarded the opinion that it's been a good year for butterflies. There was a 2 to 1 opinion in agreement with her. John Hartge reported on the Riverside Tomato Taste Off. Celebrity won over Supersonic and Big Girl. Further discussion favored as well Jet Star. San Marizano was judged a better canning tomato than Roma. Susan Canby radiating dislike for brussel sprouts tested the waters for likeminded gardeners. Brussel sprout lovers, likers, and apologists defended the vegetable as quite acceptable when fresh and properly cooked. All the same Susan submitted a graph paper study that put the ideal Brussel sprout size somewhere between the head of a pin and a poppy seed. Nancy Chance mentioned earwigs in her peppers - no improvement over last year when there were worms instead. Opinion was that it's too late now to do anything but aim for prevention next year. Eli Rogers had the impression that it was a good year for grasshoppers. There were shrugs of agreement but not with enthusiasm. Ari Preuss reported that the Sandy Spring Friends School Oaks have rebounded nicely from earlier gypsy moth damage. Mo Chance has branches of Austrian Pine that appear sickly. A couple wisecrackers observed that branches don't have roots. They were ignored and diplodia tip wilt was suggested as the cause. Spraying was said to help. Buzz Hussman has a previously productive sour cherry tree that is suffering from borer. From description, sounded as if there was no hope: tree is dying from bore-dom.