december 2015 gcv journal
DESCRIPTION
Quarterly newsletter of the Garden Club of VirginiaTRANSCRIPT
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JournalVOL LX, NO. 4, DECEMBER 2015
WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
The Garden Club of Virginia exists to celebrate the beauty of the land, to conserve the gifts of nature and to challenge future generations to build on this heritage.
From The EditorGenerosity: The ground’s generosity takes in our compost and grows beauty.
Look at this. Try and be more like the ground. Give back. – Rumi
This is the season of giving and reflecting on our many blessings. Our gratitude often spurs us to help others. The 2015 Common Wealth Award
winners (page 11) exemplify this sentiment. Congratulations and thank you to the Charlottesville, Rivanna and Winchester-Clarke Garden Clubs
for their efforts in giving back to their communities.
Tell us how your club gives back. We look forward to receiving your articles. Write to us at [email protected]. Submission guidelines may be found
on the GCV website.
Journal Editorial Board2015-2016
Editor and Chairman: Karla MacKimmie, The Warrenton Garden Club
ExOfficio MembersGCV President, Jeanette Cadwallender, The Rappahannock Valley Garden ClubGCV Corresponding Secretary, Linda Consolvo, The Nansemond River Garden ClubJournal Cover Editor, Jeanette McKittrick, Three Chopt Garden ClubGCV Photographer, Esther Carpi, The Hunting Creek Garden Club GCV Communications Coordinator, Ann Heller
Journal Advertising Chairman, Anne Beals, The Rappahannock Valley Garden Club
MembersBetty Anne Garrett, The Garden Club of the Middle PeninsulaLyn Hutchens, The Huntington Garden ClubAileen Laing, The Warrenton Garden ClubSusan Morten, The Martinsville Garden ClubHelen Pinckney, The Tuckahoe Garden Club of Westhampton
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 1
ON THE COVER...
Most call it amaryllis, but this showy flower often forced to bloom indoors in the darkest days of winter is actually Hippeastrum, a genus in the family Amaryllidaceae, native to Brazil. Marcia Long of The Williamsburg Garden Club rendered this beautiful painting in watercolor.
IN THIS ISSUE ...
Tried and True ..................................... 2Tradescant Window .............................. 3Calling All Pack Rats ............................4First Day Hikes .....................................5Grandmothers’ Seeds ................................. 6Greening Your KV House .....................8Graywater Rain Garden .......................9Dugdale Award .................................. 10Common Wealth Award ...................... 1177th Annual Rose Show .......................12Legislative Day ................................... 14Historic Garden Week ........................ 15 Historic Henry County Courthouse ..... 16Lily Notes ........................................... 17Horticulture Field Day ....................... 18Ex Libris ............................................. 19Club Notes ........................................ 20Daffodil Notes ................................... 21Contributions ..................................... 23
OTHER REFERENCES...Kent-Valentine HousePhone: (804) 643-4137 Fax: (804) 644-7778Email: [email protected]
Historic Garden Week OfficePhone: (804) 644-7776 Fax: (804) 644-7778Email: [email protected]
Postmaster, please send address changes to:Garden Club of Virginia12 East Franklin StreetRichmond, VA 23219
The Garden Club of Virginia Journal
The Garden Club of Virginia Journal (USPS 574-520, ISSN 0431-0233) is published four times a year for members by the GCV, 12 East Franklin St., Richmond, VA 23219. Periodical postage paid in Richmond, VA. Single issue price, $5.00.
Copy and ad deadlines are: January 15 for the March issueApril 15 for the June issueJuly 15 for the September issueOctober 15 for the December issueEmail copy to the Editor and advertising to the Ad Chairman
President of the Garden Club of Virginia:Jeanette Cadwallender
Journal Editor:Karla MacKimmie8505 Lees Ridge RoadWarrenton, VA 20186Phone: (540) 341-3432Email: [email protected]
Journal Advertising Chairman:Anne Beals801 Hanover Street #1Fredericksburg, VA 22401Phone: (540) 226-2841Email: [email protected]
Vol. LX, No. 4Printed on recycled paper byCarter Printing CompanyRichmond, VA
2 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Tried and True Restoration Shrubs and Treesby Fleet Hurlbatt
The Garden Club of the Eastern Shore
Since 1998 the Garden Club of Virginia, with the advice of GCV Landscape Architect William Rieley, has included a variety of plants in its restored gardens. Many have become favorites based on their ability to withstand the variable
weather and soil conditions across the commonwealth; some are native trees and shrubs, a few are not. GCV members may wish to use some of these tried and true plants in their own gardens.
Evergreen shrubs uninteresting to deer are the many cultivars of both Buxus sempervirens (boxwood) and Cephalotaxus harringtonia (Japanese plum yew). Boxwood is used in the Pavilion gardens at the University of Virginia, the Mary Washington House and the Moses Myers House, and plum yew is used at Centre Hill. Both shrubs are slow growing, hardy to Zone 5 and prefer part shade in Virginia’s summer heat. Shade loving Danae racemosa (poet’s laurel), which grows up to 3 feet tall and is hardy to Zone 7, is planted at Historic St. Luke’s Church, Moses Myers House and Historic Portsmouth Courthouse. Boxwoods and poet’s laurel both need a little addition of lime for optimum health. Poet’s laurel is loved by flower arrangers.
An understory tree that has been most successful is the native Cercis canadensis (redbud). Planted at Christ Church, Lee Hall, and the Beale Garden at Hollins, redbud blooms in both pinky-purple and white, satisfies requirements for both sun and shade, and survives where Cornus florida (dogwood) will not.
Large landscape trees used in restorations include two native deciduous oaks, Quercus alba (white oak) and Quercus phellos (willow oak). Pyramidal as young trees, both oaks become rounded with spreading canopies in maturity. In the fall, willow oaks are generally yellow with small acorns; white oaks are reddish-brown with large acorns. Willow oaks are planted at Centre Hill, and white oaks are planted at Monticello and Lee Hall.
Mr. Rieley’s favorite, Celtis occidentalis (hackberry), is planted at Belle Grove and the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library. Our native hackberry is more vase-shaped than oaks, holds the soil with strong fibrous roots and attracts birds in winter with its small reddish-purple fruits. When mature, hackberries resemble American elms in shape and leaf. Ulmus americana ‘Princeton’ (Princeton elm) is a cultivar of our native tree planted at Maymont and Belmont. Averaging 80 feet tall and 55 feet wide, this tree is considered to be best for resisting Dutch elm disease.
Members are encouraged to visit GCV restored gardens and use these planting ideas in their own gardens. ❁
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 3
Rab Thompson (FLGC), Mary Lou Seilheimer (WGC), Mimi Abel-Smith (FLGC), Jeannie Perin (FLGC),
Ingrid Lindsay (WGC), Kim Nash (WGC)
Tradescant Window
Inspired by a December 2012 Journal article written by Heidi James of the Lynchburg Garden Club, members of the Fauquier and Loudoun, and Warrenton Garden Clubs visited the Tradescant Window in the Museum of the History of
Science, Oxford, England.In 1926, Mrs. Fairfax Harrison,
a member of both clubs, was instrumental in raising the funds from GCV members for the window honoring John Tradescant the Younger (1608-1662), gardener to King Charles I. Tradescant made numerous trips to Virginia to collect plants, including Virginia spiderwort, named Tradescantia virginiana. Note that a wreath of the plant surrounds the Tradescant coat of arms. ❁
1.800.889.7688 • www.hubspeanuts.com
HubsJournalAd15.pdf 1 10/1/15 4:22 PMEditor’s note: To learn more about the Tradescant Window, visit gcvirginia.org, go to Journal, Journal Archives and click the December 2012 edition.
4 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Calling All Pack Ratsby Joanna Catron
The Rappahannock Valley Garden Club
In preparation for the 100th anniversary of the Garden Club of Virginia in 2020, a Centennial Committee has been formed to organize celebratory activities. Out of that commission, a subcommittee is working in partnership with the Virginia
Historical Society to organize an exhibition showcasing GCV’s longtime commitment to the Virginia landscape.
The Exhibit Committee requests the assistance of member clubs and individual members to identify documents, objects and artifacts of significance that might help tell the GCV story in an informative and entertaining manner. Consideration should be given only to items that pertain directly to a GCV or local club project, effort or significant event, pertinent human-interest story, testimonial of accomplishments, etc. Items can include correspondence, photographs, film and video, oral histories, publication/media materials, and memorabilia of all kinds. Some examples already identified:
♣ The GCV president’s gavel fashioned from a tree planted by George Washington in Fredericksburg;
♣ The needlepoint rug at the Kent-Valentine House displaying hand-worked club logos; and
♣ A 1920s era “Save the Dogwood” poster printed by the GCV.
Scour your memory, and if need be, the memories you have tucked away in that dusty old attic trunk. Ask yourself what might be an intriguing object or memorable quote. All members could query one another for ideas. This can take time, so begin the search as soon as possible to help provide the staff at the VHS with a solid working list by mid-2016.
Please submit your suggestions by email, including a brief description and/or digital scan, to Exhibit Chairman Joanna Catron at [email protected] ❁
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DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 5
First Day Hikes are part of a nationwide initiative led by America’s State Parks to get people outdoors while enjoying the beauty of a state park. Visit your state park website for details on First Day Hikes near you. There are more than 160 miles of Virginia State Parks system’s 626 miles of trails reserved for hiking. Join friends, families and people all across America on a First Day Hike in your state park. Find your park.
www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/
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6 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Grandmothers’ Seedsby Laura Anne Brooks, GCV Horticulture Committee
The Garden Club of the Middle Peninsula
Traveling from eastern North Carolina in 1823, my great-great grandmother traded 100 acres
near the Dismal Swamp for 600 acres in the “Blue Pasture” of Middle Tennessee. With her precious family, she took her best cow, horses, an Indian wedding-ring quilt, an iron kettle and her flower seed. The kettle would serve as a watering can for the prolific annuals. Her pioneer children would become custodians of the quilt and the “birthing kettle,” and become cattlemen, farmers, seamstresses, merchants, teachers, theologians and seed savers. By the early 20th century, her 14 grandchildren had settled across the country. They planted the same annuals from Tennessee to Oregon, from Alabama to Michigan, from Georgia back to the Carolinas. Their gardens bloomed in patchwork delight.
One of the 14 was my own grandmother, a retired schoolteacher who settled in Essex County, Virginia. She sent envelopes of flower seed in her weekly correspondence to her siblings, offering sweet peas, petunias and cleome. In return, from Fayetteville came Tennessee nasturtium and from Tullahoma, love-in-a-mist (Nigella). The bright four o’clocks that bordered a city block in Lewisburg were sent in Mary’s note cards, and from Jane in Michigan came the hardy bronze marigolds. From the twin sister in California came hard-to-germinate hibiscus. From Georgia came cosmos, from Alabama, in tiny waxed paper flaps, came viola seed. Brown-eyed Susans were sent to my dark-eyed mother, and my dad teasingly received sweet William, his own name.
To ease my grandmother’s dark winter days without her kinfolk, she filled sunny window sills with trays of petunia and cleome, while planning the wedding-ring beds to be planted around tree trunks in our Virginia yard, come spring.
Recently, a cousin placed in my hand shriveled black seed she had found on the tips of fuchsia bloom stems growing on the Essex farm. I became the custodian of Mirabilis jalapa (four o’clocks) like the ones that had grown along the old Nashville Pike. Having fallen heir to the teakettle, the quilt and now the seed, I turned my King William, Virginia, garden into a harlequin array of letter-seed from summers of long ago: cleome, cosmos, hollyhock, larkspur, marigold, nasturtium, Nigella, petunia, Rudbeckia, sweet peas, sweet William, verbena and, in lucky years, hibiscus. As my six-year-old granddaughter harvests seed-balls from the ends of four o’clocks, I marvel at August’s patchwork in tangerine, fuchsia, cream, gold, bronze, carmine, magenta, indigo and mauve—an Indian wedding-ring of Grandmother’s bloom into yet another century. ❁
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 7
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8 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Greening Your Kent-Valentine Houseby Anne Beals, GCV Conservation and Beautification Committee
The Rappahannock Valley Garden Club
For the past few months, a task force of the Garden Club of Virginia’s Conservation and Beautification
Committee has been investigating the environmental condition of the Kent-Valentine House. The goal of the analysis has been to comprehend better how our old house is faring functionally, to see what might be done to minimize its carbon footprint, to keep the building in good physical health and to save on operating costs.
Recent changes include the new exceptionally energy-efficient kitchen. The task force looked for good ways to introduce daily conservation practices by using green caterers and separating boxes from food waste, shredding and recycling office paper, using water pitchers instead of bottled water, returning ink cartridges from printers and copiers, and using energy-efficient light bulbs in all but our chandeliers. It has been noted that a historic house is the ultimate in recycling.
To evaluate the building itself, Richmond Region Energy Alliance brought in Bain Waring Home Energy Remodeling. They studied our home from top to bottom, and their assessments range from something as simple as weather stripping around the doors to more ambitious alterations such as solar collectors on the roof.
These conclusions will help the Kent-Valentine House Committee in its management of the house, and the Development Committee and the Board of Directors in their planning. Through wise management, we all hope to extend the life of this special house well into the future. ❁
Photo Provided by: Jay Paul
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 9
Graywater Rain Garden for Native Plantsby Ginny Costenbader
The Princess Anne Garden Club
The Brock Environmental Center is a flagship demonstration site for environmental restoration and serves as the regional headquarters for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Elevated just 14 feet above sea level at the
junction of the Linkhorn and Chesapeake Bays in Virginia Beach, it is a prototype for coping with climate change in this area which is prone to severe flooding. With its solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal wells, rain cisterns, waterless toilets and natural landscaping, it is an international model for energy and water efficiency. The center meets the strictest standards of the Living Building Code and has been designated LEED Platinum. It sets a new bar for sustainable development. Currently, just four such “living structures” exist in the world.
In January 2015, the Princess Anne Garden Club committed $75,000 over five years to support the Graywater Rain Garden and Cistern at the Brock Center. This represents the largest financial award in the history of the PAGC. Club members have agreed to work hard at our fundraising projects in order to meet this obligation. We are committed to working with the CBF and Lynnhaven River Now, our local grassroots environmental organization housed in the Brock Center, to help to restore and protect waterways and wetlands here and throughout the commonwealth.
The graywater garden containing all native plants reuses the Brock Center’s captured sink and shower water for irrigation. Reusing water instead of dumping it into the sewage system saves energy; graywater irrigation replaces water that otherwise would have been treated to drinking water quality. The graywater garden has a pop-up emitter to release water for absorption by native plants and eliminates run off and pollution into adjacent rivers and estuaries, including Pleasure House Creek, Crab Creek, the Lynnhaven River and the Chesapeake Bay. Efficient water use protects a scarce natural resource. Despite diminishing underground aquifer levels and land subsidence, graywater recycling is a nascent practice on the East Coast. The graywater garden signs explain the Brock Center’s commitment to be a net-zero water and net-zero run-off facility.
In addition to our monetary commitment, the PAGC has some members serving as docents at the Brock Center. The Brock Center welcomed tour participants during Historic Garden Week in 2015 and will be a venue for the GCV Board of Governors meeting in Virginia Beach in 2016. ❁
If you have a business that needs to be seen, or if you know of one, the Journal is always looking for appropriate advertisers to brighten our pages.
Please contact Anne Beals at [email protected] with your ideas.
10 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
The 2015 Dugdale Awardby Katherine Knopf, Award Chairman
Roanoke Valley Garden Club
Washington and Lee University and Virginia Military Institute were awarded the Elizabeth Cabell Dugdale Award for Conservation at the 2015 Conservation Forum this November in Lynchburg. These two leading
Virginia institutions of higher education have demonstrated a commitment to conservation and energy responsibility. Both schools developed plans and principles to guide decisions as they strive to provide the best campus facilities in the 21st century.
VMI’s most noticeable project is its stewardship of the Chessie Nature Trail, a seven mile “Rail-to-Trail” project along the Maury River. The VMI Foundation assumed ownership of the trail from the Nature Conservancy and the Rockbridge Area Conservation Council in order to keep the trail open and well maintained. VMI developed a master plan for the long term preservation of the Chessie Trail which will include interpretive markers so that users will learn about the history, geology, flower, and fauna of the trail. VMI has an Office of Sustainability and a Committee of Energy Conservation and Sustainability that oversee recycling and energy conservation plans for all VMI facilities. For many years, VMI has hosted the Environment Virginia Conference, which brings together industry, government and the community to discuss issues and options.
Washington & Lee has created an Office of Sustainability Initiatives and Education and is making remarkable progress toward energy efficiency and conservation. Most prominent is W&L’s installation of solar panels on both the law school and parking garage. This was the largest solar installation in Virginia when it was installed in 2012. Some of W&L’s recent accomplishments include a Campus Garden, a Composting Program, a Sustainability Development House, Energy Audits, a Recycling Program, a Green Offices Initiative, numerous campus activities that offer engagement with student groups, and its University Sustainability Committee.
The Garden Club of Virginia honors VMI and W&L in their commitment to conservation and energy responsibility. Their efforts illustrate what can be accomplished by institutions that care for the environment. ❁
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 11
Jean Gilpin, Winchester-Clarke Garden Club, accepts a $4,000 Common Wealth Award check
for the Discovery Museum Green Roof Top from Katherine Knopf, GCV Awards Chairman
Presidents Rachel Watson, the Charlottesville Garden Club, and Phyllis Ripper, Rivanna Garden Club,
accept the $10,000 Common Wealth Award check for their project, the Blue Ridge Detention Center Gardens
Common Wealth Award 2015
12 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
For more photos and a complete list of winners, go to www.gcvirginia.org and see Flower Shows Grateful appreciation extended to Mary Wynn and Charles McDaniel and Hilldrup Transfer and Storage for support of the GCV Flower Shows
Artistic Awards
Inter Club Class 40-AItalian Renaissance
Blue RibbonMill Mountain Garden Club
The Elizabeth Gwathmey Jeffress Bowl
for Best Inter Club Arrangement Quad Blue
Inter Club Class 40-BFederal Design Blue Ribbon
The Elizabeth River Garden Club
Inter Club Class 40-CLate Georgian Design
Blue RibbonHunting Creek Garden Club
Inter Club Class 40-DMid Victorian Design
BlueThe Princess Anne
Garden Club
Individual Artistic Class 43Horizontal Line Design
Bev EarmanSpotswood Garden Club
The Elizabeth Bradley Kincheloe Stull Award for
Best Artistic Arrangement by a Novice
Small Design BlueJanie VaughanHillside Garden ClubThe Virginia Brown Guild Perpetual Award for Best Arrangement by an Individualand The Georgia S. Vance Award forThe Most Creative Arrangement in a GCV Rose Show
Hosted by The Gabriella Garden Club
The 77th Annual Rose Show, 2015
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 13
For more photos and a complete list of winners, go to www.gcvirginia.org and see Flower Shows Grateful appreciation extended to Mary Wynn and Charles McDaniel and Hilldrup Transfer and Storage for support of the GCV Flower Shows
Number of Horticulture Exhibitors: 4 clubs; 23 individualsNumber of Horticulture Exhibits: 94 Number of Artistic Exhibitors: 46 clubs; 18 individualsNumber of Arrangements: 69
Queen of Show“Let Freedom Ring”
Lyman and Carolyn Johnson
Miniature Queen of Show“Joy”
Bernice WalkerDolley Madison Garden Club
members Clubs Award
Best Modern Shrub“Gentle Hermoine”
Gail BabnewDolley Madison Garden Club
Dowager Queen Award“Souvenir de la Malmaison”
Carol StrangeThe Garden Club of DanvilleThe Yancie Donegan Casey
Trophy forBest Old Garden Rose
GCV President Jeanette Cadwallender with
Bernice Walker, Dolley Madison Garden Club,Winner of the Bernice
Walker Perpetual Trophy for The Hi-Lo Challenge
Best Floribunda One Bloom per Stem“Easy Does It”
Karen WachtmeisterThe Warrenton Garden ClubWinner of the Dr. and Mrs. James R. Hundley Perpetual
Trophy for Horticulture GCV Member Sweepstakes
Horticulture Awards
Hosted by The Gabriella Garden Club
The 77th Annual Rose Show, 2015
Photos by Esther Carpi
14 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Join the GCV Conservation and Beautification Committee in partnership with Virginia Conservation Network
for Legislative Day
Monday, January 25, 2016We will begin at 8 a.m. with a breakfast Q & A,
then head over to the General Assembly building at 9 a.m.
Support our mission to conserve Virginia’s natural resources, become informed and let your legislators hear from you.
Online registration opens after Dec. 7, 2015.
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April 23 –30, 2016Tour proceeds fund the restoration & preservation
of Virginia’s historic gardens landscapes and state parks.
House & Garden Tours Offered Statewide
For a complete listing of tours and to purchase tickets please visit
www.vagardenweek.org
16 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
GCV President Jeanette Cadwallender, Past GCV President and Chairman
of the Restoration Committee Kim Nash, Virginia King of the Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society and Mary Ann
Johnson, Roanoke Valley Garden Club
Kim Nash presenting the restored grounds of the Historic Henry County
Courthouse to Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society President
Steve Rucker
Martinsville Mayor Danny Turner proclaiming Oct. 15, 2015,
Garden Club of Virginia Day in Martinsville-Henry County.
Program cover
Hamlet VineyardsPhoto: Rick DawsonMartinsville, Virginia
Thursday, October 15, 2015
11:30 a.m.1 East Main Street
PRESENTATION
Historic Henry County Courthouse
The Restored Grounds of the
Historic Henry County Courthouse
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 17
Lily NotesIn the Chipsby Jim McKenney
Past President of Potomac Lily Society
Those of you who have access to the leavings of large herbivorous quadrupeds probably know from experience what a difference such stuff can make in the culture of lilies. It can be dangerous, but used correctly can work wonders.
Most of us don’t have access to that stuff, but there is a growing body of anecdotal evidence that a readily available substitute might work just as well: wood chips.
The chips can be used to advantage in several ways. For one, they can be tilled into the ground when new beds are prepared. This will give the permanent roots, the ones that form on the underside of the bulb, an easily penetrated medium. After the bulbs are planted into the tilled medium, cover the area with several more inches of the wood chips to provide the medium in which the plants’ annual roots, the roots that form at the base of the stem, will thrive.
Are all wood chips equally effective? I don’t know. The ones I have been using are probably conifer chips derived from recycled Christmas trees, but some might be derived from roadside tree trimming of various species. Also, they are in varying stages of decomposition. I’m running a garden here, not an agricultural experimental station.
I am also experimenting with another way to plant lilies, a way that is definitely kinder to our backs and, from what my early results suggest, very agreeable to the lilies. Place the bulbs on the surface of the existing soil and then heap at least six inches of wood chips over them. If the lilies are in rows, leave enough space between the rows to till. That will help with weed control.
If you are not wholly sold on this idea now, why not give it a try with a few new plantings? Dig a hole about the size of a bushel basket, fill it with wood chips, put a bulb or two in about halfway down and heap more chips over the site. First year results will be average, but by the third year you should have lilies to give the rest of us real competition at the shows. ❁
Editor’s Note: Mr. McKenney is a member of the North American Lily Society and an experienced lily judge who has consistently helped conduct GCV Lily Shows.
He shares his deep knowledge of horticulture through articles in NALS, other publications and on his blog, My Virtual Maryland Garden.
18 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
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Ex Librisby Joan Pollard and Virginia Cherry, GCV Library Committee
The Petersburg Garden Club
Once a garden has been created or has become established, the gardener can choose man-made objects for the finishing touches. But which one or ones? The Bartlett
Book of Garden Elements: A Practical Compendium of Inspired Designs for the Working Gardener (David R. Godine, Publisher, 2014) offers 20 chapters devoted to garden features of virtually every description: allées, arbors, beehives and birdhouses, bollards, boot scrapers, bridges, drains, fences, fountains, furniture, gates, gazebos, lighting, paving, pergolas, planters, porches, reflecting pools and ponds, sculptures and statuary, stairs, sundials, swimming pools, topiary and walls.
Rose Love Bartlett and her late husband, Michael Valentine Bartlett, filled 259 pages with information, design insights and more than 1,000 photographs from 30 years of travel to more than 20 countries. He designed gardens for schools, churches, commercial projects, private homes, and the French, Moroccan and Finnish embassies in the United States. His work was featured in publications from Architectural Digest to W. Together, Bartlett and his wife conducted lectures based on her research and organization. During 28 years of working together, she fleshed out the bones of his garden design with flower, herb and edible plantings. She also served on the board of directors of the Friends of the U.S. National Arboretum.
Each chapter of their book begins with a definition or description of a garden element, its history and evolution, design, climate and weather concerns, installation and maintenance considerations, appropriate construction materials where relevant, and pictures. The chapter on benches and furniture, for example, has 50 photographs, plus another on the chapter’s title page.
The book’s glossary offers concise descriptions of each type of each feature. Types of construction materials and processes are also defined, such as filling compounds, Coade stone, Cor-Ten steel, cast stone, cast iron, galvanizing, Gunite dry concrete, gilded iron and pitting.
The Bartletts’ book has been added to the Kent-Valentine Library. ❁
20 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
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Club NotesTeamwork Pays Off
by Tata KellamThe Garden Club of the Eastern Shore
The Garden Club of the Eastern Shore won a yellow ribbon at the Rose Show hosted by the
Gabriella Garden Club in Danville. This yellow ribbon has a story behind it.
The Eastern Shore’s entry honored William Shakespeare; the design was an arrangement of the 16th century that paid homage to Romeo and Juliet. Our club arrangers were new or almost new members who had never competed in a flower show: Paula Cameron, Laurie Klingel, and Jenny Barker.
Virginia Savage gave Paula all of her flower arranging books. Anne Nock loaned a flower container that once belonged to Nannie Mears, our first club president who arranged her roses in this vase for years. Paula, Laurie and Jenny met with our pros, Ellen Lusk and Claiborne Dickinson, and the arrangement evolved.
The arrangement arrived at my house, and the next morning we went to Danville. With only one rose that needed to be replaced, our arrangement was placed on the pedestal. A bit of misting, a little water, and off we went to let the judges decide on the winners. We won the yellow ribbon, and we were excited for our new members to be winners for our club.
This was truly a sharing time. Teamwork and events like this make club members want to come back for more. To all who participated in making the Rose Show such a success:
Way to go! ❁
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 21
DaffodilNotes
Come to Daffodil Schoolby Janet G. Hickman, GCV Daffodil Committee Chairman
The Hillside Garden Club
Now is a good time to make plans for daffodil enjoyment and education next spring. Enjoyment includes attending and entering the Garden Club of Virginia Daffodil Show. The Huntington Garden Club will host the 82nd
Garden Club of Virginia Daffodil Show at the Hampton Roads Convention Center in Hampton, Virginia. Entries may be placed beginning the afternoon of March 29, 2016. The show opens to the public and the awards are announced on the afternoon of March 30. The show continues the next morning.
Never entered a daffodil show before? No problem. We make it easy. Pick your best and freshest flowers and bring them to the horticulture workroom. It certainly helps if you know the names of your daffodils, but even if you do not, help is available. If you are a novice, come early on March 29. Starting at noon, members of the Daffodil Committee will be on hand to help. Entries may be placed beginning at 2 p.m.
There are special classes for Small Growers, those who grow fewer than 50 varieties. This year a new feature for Small Growers will be classes for miniatures. This is good news for those with limited room to plant. Most people will have room for a few miniatures such as ‘Téte-a-Téte’ or ‘Hawera,’ both of which are readily available and easy to grow, even in pots.
There will be a special opportunity to learn more about daffodils this spring, also. The GCV Daffodil Committee will be hosting an American Daffodil Society Judging School I at the show site on Tuesday, March 29. Qualifying as an accredited ADS judge involves attendance at a series of three schools and student judging. If you have ever considered becoming a horticulture judge, this school is the first step. Current judges may attend as a refresher. However, this program is not just for future judges. Consider it “Daffodils 101,” a chance to learn about growing, classifying, and exhibiting daffodils from some of the most expert teachers. This will be useful to all club daffodil chairs and anyone interested in learning more about these beloved flowers.
Watch the GCV website for enrollment or contact me at [email protected] for questions or registration information. ❁
22 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
Supporting local organizations makes our community a better place to live. We’re more than bankers — we’re neighbors you can bank on.
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 23
Donor In Honor ofChatham Garden Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joyce MoormanRoanoke Valley Garden Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Margaret MorrisVirginia R. Cherry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tori BrockMargo Eppard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Tricia KincheloeMarijane Harper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Garden Club of Fairfax
Donor In Memory ofThe Brunswick Garden Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mrs. Alta BrownThe Hunting Creek Garden Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jack LamondDr. and Mrs. W. L. Old III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ann Morrison ReamsBetty Lou Pigg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Virginia HodnettBetsy Quarles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Martha EmbreyMargaret Richardson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ann Morrison ReamsJane G. Schaubach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mrs. Barbara Jane CrossSusan Wight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Olive Cadwallender
Dominion FoundationGrace L. Battle Ellen BevilleMrs. W. Chan BollingJudith BoydBurgess Burn BradshawJeanette Rowe CadwallenderJanet CampbellMeg ClementCatherine ClextonTanya Denckla CobbClaiborne M. Dickinson
Lucy R. EllettMary C. FredianiMartha GeigerJean GilpinMrs. Fred HodnettEllen JoyceGladys LewisCamilla H. MoffattMercer W. O’HaraJamie A. Old Mrs. E. Lee PinneyKathryn Quarles
Denise RevercombMary Kay Ryan Mrs. Charles B. Ryan Doris Smith Lizz Stanley Jane Owen StringerMs. Gina SullivanLouise L. TomsMrs. R. Carter Wellford IVSusan and Alan WinnPaige WisemanPage Young
Donor
C O N T R I B U T I O N SReport Period From 07/01/2015 Through 09/30/2015
Annual FundProvides essential ongoing support necessary to maintain GCV operations.
24 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
The Garden Club of Virginia appreciates responsible advertising and reserves the right to accept or reject submitted advertisements. Inclusion in the Journal is not to be
construed as an endorsement by the Garden Club of the advertised goods or services.
Bessie Bocock Carter Conservation Award FundDonorThe Robert & Bessie Carter Foundation
Garden Club of Virginia EndowmentSupports the ongoing preservation of the historic Kent-Valentine House, headquarters of the Garden Club of Virginia and Historic Garden Week.
DonorLeesburg Garden Club
Donor In Honor ofNick and Jeanette Cadwallender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Martha Embrey
Donor In Memory ofMr. and Mrs. C. Lynch Christian, III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ann Morrison Reams
RestorationSupports GCV Restoration projects across the Commonwealth.
Donor In Honor ofChatham Garden Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeanette CadwallenderAnne G. Baldwin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeanette Cadwallender Kathryn Wafle
Donor In Memory ofThe Garden Club of Fairfax. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Paul ReberMarianne Stryker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mr. John Robert Landolt
DECEMBER 2015 WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG 25
Statement of OwnershipThe ownership, management and circulation of The Garden Club of Virginia’s
Journal, published four times a year in Richmond, Virginia, is hereby stated in the first issue published after the first of October, 2015.
The name and address of the publisher is: The Garden Club of Virginia, Kent-Valentine House, 12 East Franklin Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219. The name and address of the editor is: Karla MacKimmie, 8505 Lees Ridge Road, Warrenton, VA 20186. The owner is: The Garden Club of Virginia, Kent-Valentine House, 12 East Franklin Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219. There are no bond-holders, mortgages, or security holders.
The purpose, function, and non-profit status of this organization and the exempt status for Federal Income Tax purposes have not changed during the preceding 12 months.
The total number of copies published nearest the filing date is 3,400. The average number of copies published in the preceding 12 months is 3,400. There are no sales through dealers, etc. Paid subscriptions average 3,312; the number nearest the filing date is 3,317. Other mailed copies average 0. Free distribution averages 35. The average number of copies not distributed for the preceding year is 53. The average number of copies not distributed nearest the filing date is 48.
The Journal Editor requests permission to mail The Garden Club of Virginia’s Journal at the phased postal rates presently authorized on form 3526 for USPS #574-520 (ISSN 0431-0233). I certify that the statements made here are correct and complete as listed in the Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation.
Karla MacKimmie, Journal Editor8505 Lees Ridge Road Warrenton, VA 20186
October 1, 2015
WWW.GCVIRGINIA.ORG The Garden Club of Virginia
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