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August 2004 newsletter Newsletter Shortcuts:
(Click on the article title or you can
scroll down to the article) August Activity - Sedalia Field Trip  Jim Garden Maintenance Schedule Where to buy water garden pond liner !! Golf Course Community Service Project
J J J J J J J J J J J J August Activity - Sedalia Field Trip
Our August meeting will be a field trip to Sedalia on Saturday, August 21. Our trip will be hosted by Jim and Marguerite Ellis. We will meet at 10 AM to start the tour at the Thompson Hills Shopping Center on Highway 50. (From Highway 65 and Highway 50, go west on Highway 50 to the Thompson Hills Shopping Center on the South side of the highway.) We will group together on the north side of the parking lot. Our day will include a visit to several water gardens in Sedalia and end with lunch at the home of the Jim and Marguerite. Participants will be asked to pay $4 for the lunch. The phone number to call on the day of the tour for questions or problems is 660-631-2025. We will hold a short business meeting following lunch.
Click here to see pictures of the Sedalia Field Trip !!!!
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² Golf Course Community Service Project
We are starting work on the water garden at the Indian Foothills Golf Course. The golf course is located on Watermill Road on the eastside of Marshall. Plans include a water garden in the shape of a golf green surrounded by “sandtrap“ bogs with a golf flag pole fountain in the middle. The bio-falls will look like a golf tee and the stream will be the fairway to the “green”. The area around the water garden will be landscaped with large boulders, trees, and flowers.
The work schedule will be announced at the August 21 meeting. If you want to help with this project, contact Larry Arrowood, 886-8191. This project is partially funded by memorial donations for Earl Twillman. The club will provide additional funding and the labor to complete the garden.
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Croaking From the Lily PadBy Larry Arrowood, Club President
Yes, I know it has been a long time since I have written a “Croaking” article. You know, sometimes a frog just doesn’t feel like croaking. Maybe the right lady frog hasn’t been around to make him croak. Any way, I’m croaking now and will be croaking more in the future. As your club president, I see most of the things that are done in the club. I see the hard but enjoyable work that is done on our community service projects. I appreciate the effort that our pond tour hosts put into their gardens so they look perfect on tour day. I enjoy watching as one club member helps another member with a water gardening problem. I feel the togetherness that we have at our club meetings and activities. As I have said so many times before “what a great club we have”. It is too bad that our 180 members are so spread out around central Missouri. I am sure that many of our club members would like to participate in more club events, but the distance makes that difficult. But many of our members are there to help when they can---such as selling water garden tour tickets. I hope that as many members as possible will make an effort to participate in our club activities. You will get the most out of the club that way.
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² Craft Idea of the MonthBy LaDonna Arrowood, (Mrs. Glue fingers)
Rusty iron pots from plastic pots !!!
Supplies: Plastic pot, Instant Iron, Instant Rust (available from craft stores) S hooks, small chains
Paint the plastic pot with Instant Iron using an old paint brush. Let dry and spray on the Instant Rust. Let dry for about 6 hours. Drill 3 holes in the pot and use the S hooks and chains to hang the pot.
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² Jim
Garden Maintenance Schedule The following members have
agreed to maintain the water garden at the Jim the Wonder Dog Park. If you are unable to do it on the
weeks for which you signed up, notify Arline Borchers at 886-2413. The box of materials is stored at
Arline’s home, 730 E. Eastwood.
August 8-21 Connie and Bill Rieth August 22-Sept 4 Dewey and Sandy Hendrix September 4- 18 Randy and Angie Morton September 19-Oct. 2 Carl Hufford
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² Where to buy water garden pond liner !!
One of the most asked questions to the club is where can I buy liner material for my water garden. Our course, you can buy liner at any water garden supply store or most large garden centers. Because the cost of liner is so expensive, many people purchase rubber roofing membrane instead of actual water garden liner. The two materials are the same depending on the thickness you want. Be sure that the roofing membrane has not been treated to prevent mildew. The mildew treatment can get into the water and kill your fish. A good source of rubber liners that we have found is DJ Roofing, 2904 Paris Road, Columbia, Missouri. Their phone number is 573-474-4880.(Please notice that this phone number is different from the one originally posted. This is a correction!) The liner comes in either 10 or 20 feet wide rolls. You can buy it in any quantity at the same price. The cost is 34 cents a square foot for 45 mil liner and 44 cents a square foot for 60 mil liner. (Be sure to call to confirm prices ! ) You can check with other roofing companies to see if they can provide it to you. Many roofing companies want to sell a large roll to get the same price as stated above. Be sure to ask if there is a minimum quantity required.
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Our September meeting will be September 16, 2004, at 7 pm at Butterfield Youth Services, 1180 Highway WW in Marshall. Our program for the meeting will be Linda Siler, President of the Springfield Water Garden Society. Linda has many years of experience with water gardening.
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The winner of the drawing at Elsea Gardens during the tour in June was Ron Clevenger of Bramer, Missouri. Ron won a Lotus plant from Elsea Gardens.
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By LaDonna Arrowood(Mrs. Greenthumb with the dirty fingers)
When planting daylilies, Leta Robb said use a mixture of 0-46-0 triple phosphate and a slow release fertilizer. Everyone seems to think Osmocoat fertilzer is the best. You can get it at Lowes and other garden centers.
Jefferson City member, Alice Hansen, has a lovely blue urn water feature. She keeps the algae off the sides of the urn by adding a small drop of dish soap to the water.
We have found if the lilies are closer to the surface of the water (about 6 inches) they bloom better. This is especially true if the weather is cool. Arline Borchers removes all her large leaves from her lilies. She feels that this encourages better blooming.
Create more natural looking plant markers by using smooth flat rounded stones. Write the name of the plant on the stone with a felt tip marker. Place the stone at the planting site and next spring you will know where your perennials are planted.
Katye Elsea cuts back her grasses by circling the clump about waist high several times with string. Tighten the string so the grass stands in a column. Cut the grass with hedge clippers or a chain saw at the desired height below the string. The string keeps the grass in a neat bundle and leaves you with very little mess.
Use your spade, hoe or rake for measuring by marking the handles in measuring units. This way you will always have a yard stick at hand when in the garden.
Keep garden tools organized by hanging a clear-pocketed multi-shoe bag on the wall of your garden shed or garage. This way you can store everything from garden gloves, to hand tools, seeds and leaf bags. Everything is easily viewed and completely organized.
If you don’t have a moist place in your garden but love ferns, try planting them underneath your window air-conditioner unit or at the base of the down spout.
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The July 15th, 2004 Saline Co. Watergarden Club meeting was called to order by President Larry Arrowood. Larry asked all the members and guests to introduce themselves and share what is new in their ponds. ? ? ? ? ? ? The July meeting was held at the home of Herman Peters. Everyone was invited to view the watergarden as well as the grounds. Mr. Peters is an avid train collector and he spoke about them and answered questions. His wife's quilting area was also open for everyone to enjoy. ? ? ? ? ? ? Pam Thomeczek has agreed to take over the membership chair position. ? ? ? ? ? ? The pond tour this year was down about 100 visitors, mostly likely due to the weather. The Golf Coarse project will begin in August. ? ? ? ? ? ? Connie had a report on the Library books. The books have been left at the library but the employees have not put them on the shelves for check out yet. Connie & Jeanne will go to the August board meeting to try and work out the problem. ? ? ? ? ? ? The August meeting will be the 21st at 10AM which is a Sat. There will be a picnic lunch following a watergarden tour. ? ? ? ? ? ? The September meeting will be at Butterfield's with Linda Siller as the speaker. Linda is President of the Springfield Watergarden Club. ? ? ? ? ? ? Denise Cantlin won the tabletop fountain door prize. ? ? ? ? ? ? Refreshments were provided by the Peters.
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Dear Polly, I have a lotus plant in my water garden. It has nice large leaves but rarely blooms. A water gardening friend told me that it was too deep in the water. That didn’t seem right since it is only about 2 feet deep to the top of the pot. I would think wild lotus would grow in water deeper than that. What do you think is wrong with my lotus? No Lotus Blossoms
Dear No Blossoms, There could be many reasons for a lotus that does not bloom well. I have seen some plants that needed 2 or more years before they started to bloom. I assume you are fertilizing the plant, that it is in a large round container, and gets plenty of sun. If all this is true, your friend could be right. Lotus varieties range from very large to dwarf plants. If you have one of the smaller varieties deep in the water, it will not bloom well. The top of the pot should not be deeper than 12 inches below water for large varieties and 2 inches for small varieties. You are right about wild lotus plants growing in deep water, but many lotus varieties are not like their wild cousins. I would suggest that you try raising the lotus plant up for one season and see if it blooms better. The lotus blossom is well worth any extra effort necessary for it to bloom. Polly
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If you have any gardening
problems you need help with, write Polly. With years of experience with both flower
gardening and water gardening, she possesses a wealth of information and
wisdom!
Send your
questions to: Polly Ponder Saline County
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