President Nancy Baldwin called the July 25 meeting of the Hillsboro Garden Club to order with members standing for the Pledge of Allegiance and singing of “God Bless America.” Roll Call showed 17 members present, one absent and two guests, Darlene Eicher and Judy Moore.
The annual Pot Luck Carry-In Dinner and Guest Night always brings lots of great dishes and plenty of time to visit and welcome guests before the meeting. Many choices of main dishes, salads and desserts filled the buffet tables to overflowing.
Opening the business meeting, Baldwin remarked on the publicity in The Times-Gazette about Landscaping Awards presented to Cedar Woods Apartments for commercial landscaping, the Veterans Memorial at Liberty Park for community landscaping, and to Randy and Charlene Roush, 607 S. West St.; John and Carolyn Kellis, 510 N. High St.; Mindy Lee, 418 W. Pleasant St.; and Tom and Ruby Gall, 440 W. Walnut St. for residential landscaping awards. These folks have put a lot of time and effort to beautify Hillsboro. We urge everyone to visit and appreciate their efforts.
Omitted from the last report was the horticulture specimen of the month by Nancy Sonner. A very healthy Lantana plant in full bloom was displayed. Sonner has kept this plant alive over the winter to flourish once again, not an easy feat. The July horticulture specimen was a beautiful orchid plant received by Rose Marie Cowdrey. Still blooming after several months, she explained that her orchid was watered by placing six ice cubes on top of the soil once a week to slowly water the plant. They obviously appreciate the cool drinks of water.
Nancy and Charles Baldwin recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. It was wrongly reported to have been only 40 years. Nancy showed a lovely floral design she created for the occasion. Featuring a self-designed black container made of large metal rings, it was adorned with golden wheat foliage symbolizing their 50 years together.
A report was given on the Ohio Assocaition of Garden Clubs State Convention where attendees learned of a new but ages-old type of composting called Bokashi. It is a closed-container system whereby microbes gradually ferment all types of refuse within a few weeks, then it is buried in your garden where soil creatures and microbes transform it into rich, black compost again within weeks. It is a very easy way to improve the soil and prevent filling up landfills. Programs during the three-day convention were hands-on corsage creation, a fun program on floral designs, Birds of Prey program with live owl demonstration, and installation of Carol Gorby as regional director of Region 16. Next year’s Spring Regional Meeting is May 10, 2018 hosted by the Hillsboro Garden Club, followed by the state convention hosted by Region 16 garden clubs on June 25-27, 2018. Gorby and a committee of Sonner, Andrea Schneider, and Larry and Judy Moore are responsible for providing table centerpieces for each meal. A very busy year ahead is of us.
Other items discussed were possible installation of screen on the Floral Hall entrance door during the fair, cards sent to members dealing with illnesses, final details on the flower shows, reminder to rest up for the August meeting where cleaning the building is a top priority. Final business of the meeting was the announcement of officers for 2017-2019: President, Nancy Baldwin; vice president, Shelly Rayburn; treasurer, Ruth Anna Duff; and secretary, Jennifer West.
West conducted a very fun and interesting program. First, she distributed old/worn tennis shoes of various sizes and colors which were pre-filled with potting soil. Next, a variety of plants, succulents and ground covers were chosen by members to ‘plant’ in our shoe. Each shoe turned out to be different but very attractive and eye-catching when placed in a flower bed. Great idea, Jennifer.
The Hillsboro Garden Club is always happy to welcome visitors and new members to its meetings. Contact Baldwin at 937-981-2876 for more information.
Submitted by Carol Gorby, Hillsboro Garden Club secretary.
