Surrounded by the beauty of the fall garden, members of the Garden Club of Richmond set up in the covered pavilion of the Enchanted Forest Center and Plant Nursery for their October meeting. Hostess Carol Edwards and her co-hostesses Cindy Bass, Diana Kelley, Judy Adamson and Barbara Wade served the club a buffet of taco salads with assorted cookies for dessert in a comfortable outdoor setting.
Standing in front of a lot of products and plants available in his nursery, Danny Lenderman, co-owner of Enchanted Forest, part of the Enchanted Nurseries and Landscape family, gave a timely program to recover from the drought experienced by our area ‘year. A little history about the beginnings of this gardening family told members that the nursery began in the 70’s operating on weekends in Missouri City. After moving to Richmond where Enchanted Gardens was started and is currently managed by his brother Joey, he then established Enchanted Forest in 2001.
Danny welcomed questions about personal problems members had with their lawns and gardens and continued his presentation with a list of lawn care products recommended for lawns and gardens to thrive.
If a lawn has chinch bug or drought damage, Barricade is a pre-emergent that prevents the growth of weed seeds. It is recommended to apply 3 times a year, spring, summer and autumn, throughout the garden.
If ants are a problem, I suggest the Distinguish product.
Their fallback formula for stressed plants is a Micro-Gro product called Ocean Harvest. It is a probiotic for plants – not a fertilizer.
Sulfur is good for acidifying the soil for acid-loving plants such as azaleas, camellias or hollies.
To increase the production of flowers and fruits, bone meal is the key. Nelson’s Color Star is a non-organic source especially for flowers.
Infuse helps with the type on dark trees.
Oak sap can be reduced with a product called Sucker Punch. Send the “juice” back to the roots.
Danny after replacing the fall color in our garden addressed the eliminated drought. Gulf Coast Muhly grass with its white or pink plumes and purple fountain grass are hardy colorful choices.
The shade-loving lemon cypress adds 3-foot-tall color to your beds.
Showy flower choices might include amazon dianthus, cyclamen, snapdragon, violets or pansies, Molly lavender and petunias. Ornamental kale adds color in the winter months.
Color Guard Yucca is good for texture and color. Colorful nandina can grow from 1 to 5 meters high, but it is suggested to avoid domestic nandina if the gardener does not want an aggressive spread.
Nature’s pollinators are encouraged by certain plants. Monarch butterflies are encouraged by native milkweed planting. Tropical milkweed can grow easier here, but it can be harmful to butterflies. Milkweed also attracts aphids, driving them away from your other plants. Aristolochia pipevine is a great host plant for the swallowtail butterfly. Hamelia attracts both hummingbirds and butterflies. A colorful choice would be Lime Sizzler.
After the program Deidre Doggett, president of the garden club, opened the meeting by thanking the hostess for all her preparations and calling on Claudia Wright to share Words of Wisdom. “The happiest people don’t have everything. They just make the best of everything.”
Numerous business issues were covered. The Moore House’s birthday yard clean-up day is coming up and members are being asked to help. Suggestions for beauty projects are due at the end of the year. Our supplier for our bulb sale fundraiser shared good news that this year’s crop is great. A brief discussion on auction results from the fair and possible interest in a field trip to John Fairy Garden in Hempstead was covered.
The nominating committee for next year’s officers will be Lynn Hewitt, Courtney Raska and Nancie Rain.
Mrs. Doggett ended the meeting by reminding members that Cary Lamensky, Rosenberg Parks Director, will present the November program.
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