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Dear Friends,
I feel like I've learned so much about so many things since joining KGC -- floral design, horticulture, conservation, historic gardens, beekeeping, pollination, ecosystems, water and so much more.
We learned so much from Roy Diblik, our September speaker. He certainly knows his horticulture and captivated everyone. Thank you to Kelly Chestnut for putting together the great fall kick-off program; to Terri Lorenz for opening her lovely home; to Terri and Joan Senko for the fabulous floral arrangements; to our supercalifragilisticexpialidocious hostesses: Elizabeth Dugan, Kirsten Rider, Stephanie Keehn, Kelly Chestnut, Liz Armstrong and Joan Dodson; and to Leslie North for editing and distributing our new Yearbook. It was an educational and festive way to begin a new KGC season.
Speaking of educational opportunities, on Tuesday, November 7
th at 1:00 p.m., we will have the opportunity to learn about finding cures for dreadful diseases like ALS, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and AIDS by studying proven patterns of wellness and disease from indigenous people and their plants.
The Institute for Ethnomedicine has developed potential cures for these diseases using flora native to those indigenous people. Even if you have no interest the potential cures, you will still come away with an understanding of how living situations and environments impact disease, health and well-being.
KGC has been allocated 30 seats at the lecture. As I write this, 13 are spoken for. Please get your $20 check, payable to Kenilworth Garden Club, to Kelly Chestnut ASAP. Very soon we will have to return our extra seats back to the Chicago Council and they will be allocated to the other five clubs.
All of us tend to wait and see, but the lecture and documentary viewing are only a month away. I would hate to have to tell you when you call the week before that all of the seats have been filled. We will know on October 19th if we have room for guests.
Mark your calendars for Tuesday, November 14
th and Tuesday, February 6
th! Flower Arranging 101 and 201 are back! If you took FA101 Part A last year, plan to attend the November 14
th afternoon session for Part B. Molly Stepan and Weezie Monroe are our instructors at the Church of the Holy Comforter. Please watch your inbox for more information and sign up immediately! There are only about 20 slots available for all sessions. A big KGC thank you to Marty Shaw for arranging these great GCA educational opportunities.
And there's more! There are seats available for the Zone XI Awards Dinner on Wednesday, October 11
th at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Meet and mingle with other GCA members and enjoy a lovely dinner. Please scroll down for more information.
A big KGC thank you to KGC members who are arranging, growing and photographing for the show. We can't wait to see your entries!
Finally, Mary Lois Hakewill, Joan Dodson, Barb McDonough and I have received quite an education while researching, developing and submitting KGC's Founders Fund proposal. It is due on October 1
st. Mary Lois will present it to us at our November meeting. You will not want to miss this. It is the first time in 40 years that KGC has submitted one. Please join me in thanking Mary Lois for her leadership and tenacity, and her committee for all of their hard work.
There's so much more, so please keep reading! We are off to a wonderful start thanks to our fabulous members.
Always,
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Monthy News & Updates
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October Program --
Accessible Gardening for
Everyone
Wed., October 18 -- 9:30 a.m.
Kenilworth Assembly Hall,
410 Kenilworth Ave., Kenilworth
Join your Kenilworth friends at KGC's second annual Community Keynote Program and learn all about universal garden design with Barbara Kreski, the CBG's Director of Horticultural Therapy Services.
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October Board Meeting
Monday, October 16 -- 10 a.m.
Church of the Holy Comforter
222 Kenilworth Ave., Kenilworth
Please note the new board meeting time!!
Please let Lenore know if you have anything to add to the agenda.
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Photography Workshop
Tuesday, October 26 --
9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Location TBD
Join us for a review of the photographs
from last June's
Show of Summer.
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Floral Arranging 101
Part A & B
Tuesday, November 14
9 a.m. - noon & 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Church of the Holy Comforter
222 Kenilworth Ave., Kenilworth
Zone XI Floral Design Chairmen
Molly Stephan and Weezie Monroe will conduct GCA's Flower Arranging 101.
Part A, which was offered last February,
takes place in the morning and is
open to anyone who wishes to participate.
Part B, the afternoon session, is open only to those who participated in Part A.
Be watching your Inbox for a special email invitation.
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Please submit your checks for the Paul Cox Program ASAP!
Deadline: October 15, 2017 -- FIRM
Make your Check Payable to Kenilworth Garden Club
Deliver to Kelly Chestnut, 133 Kenilworth Avenue, Kenilworth
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Simple Steps to Adding Your Photo
to Your GCA Profile
Until we have a photo directory, the GCA website can be a source for putting faces with names of our club members. But first we all need to upload our photos. It is very easy to do! I cropped a photo from my computer desktop that I'd downloaded from my daughter's Facebook page, logged onto GCA's website and the whole process took approximately two minutes.
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Cristy Laier chats with Marty Shaw
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September Meeting Recap
Terri Lorenz's lovely home was the gathering place for the 2017 Fall Kick-Off meeting and lunch. Roy Diblik, owner of Northwind Perennial Farm shared with us how to create a spectacularly lush, colorful, diverse garden with minimal maintenance, his trademarked "Know Maintenance". With his soft voice, quick wit and analogies of human to plant life, we listened with rapture.
Before delving into the slides of the many incredible gardens he has helped to envision, plan or plant, (The Art Institute, The Shedd Aquarium, Millenium Park), Roy explained the social life of plants, their community and what they require for a "good life".
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Roy Diblik of Northwind Perennial Farm
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Roy encouraged us to continue to be true gardeners, by asking questions and understanding the plants we choose for our space. He explained it is important to understand the characteristics of the plants selected for a garden. By learning what the plant needs as it evolves from it's child state into a mature plant, will help with decisions as to how it will be introduced into the community. It is imperative when different types of plants are placed together; they respect one another and live together in harmony. The plants that are placed need to add value to the community. Non-native and native plants can lend themselves to beautiful textures, colors and diversity and live supporting one another. As long as plants are compatible, each plant within the planned community says welcome, which in turn can reduce labor costs by 50%-75%. The key to success begins with the durability and stability of the plants from the onset.
Impressionist artists are an inspiration for Roy. He examines various paintings to observe how the artist uses tones of colors as well as creating patterns. He insists that once patterns can be mastered, the possibilities in the garden are endless.
Roy touched upon an outreach program he is involved with, The Gardeneers, a group of dedicated leaders who sustain school gardens and empower students to enrich their knowledge of nutrition, connect with their community and become stewards for the environment.
Roy joined us for a delicious lunch, where he was gracious about answering any and all of the questions we had for him. He was even so kind as to visit our Ware Garden with Sara Morgan to provide some ideas and suggestions.
It was a wonderful way to spend the morning.
--
Kelly Chestnut
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A portion of Roy's talk is on the Members Page of our KGC website. To access, click here.
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One of many beautiful arrangements at host Terri Lorenz' home.
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Joan Dodson, Nancy Kurz & Elizabeth Dugan
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Nancy Kurz, Lenore Macdonald & Kim Piekos
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Cristy Laier chats with Zone XI Chair Celine Lillie about their trip to England.
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Joan Senko, Shelley Galloway and Stephanie Keehn catch up after the summer.
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Directory Correction:
Kim Piekos' village was listed incorrectly in the 2017-18 Handbook.
Please make a note that she lives in Winnetka, not Wilmette.
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PRACTICE
For aspiring floral designers, don't miss the GCA Flower Show "Glaciers to Gardens", October 10-11th, hosted by the Garden Guild of Winnetka, and being held at the Chicago Botanic Garden in conjunction with the annual Zone XI Meeting. Come support your fellow KGCers who have been brave enough to enter ... and get ideas for the next Flower Show YOU enter!
LEARN
GCA Floral Design workshops are designed to build skills and create new generations of flower arrangers, flower show exhibitors and floral design judges. We are fortunate to have two seasoned Zone XI Floral Design instructors in our backyard: Weezie Monroe and Molly Stephan, who will be conducting our training. They will discuss mechanics, techniques and resources, and demonstrate two or more floral designs. Each participant creates her own arrangements.
We have confirmed dates for two levels of workshops: GCA Flower Arranging 101 will be held Tuesday, November 14 in the Great Room at Holy Comforter Church in Kenilworth. Part A of the 101 class - which many of you completed last year - will be held from 9 a.m. - noon; Part B will be held 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Further details regarding price and sign up will be sent out in the next few weeks. Please note: this will be open to the six area GCA Clubs; optimal size is 15-20 participants, so you will want to sign up early!
Also, please mark you calendars for GCA Flower Arranging 201 - Contemporary Design, which will be held Tuesday, February 6
th.
This beginners' workshop provides the next level of contemporary designs to inspire creativity and interest in entering flower shows. Details will be forthcoming.
SPEAKING OF FLORAL DESIGN ...
Have you subscribed to
BY DESIGN magazine?
By Design
is a quarterly magazine produced by the GCA's Floral Design Subcommittee, available by subscription. It includes information on current shows, trends, and materials and is sure to provide new insights into the world of floral design. I love flipping through photos from the archives - now so simple to do!
The link below will take you to the publication's website where you can view the archives, and print out a subscription form (unfortunately you cannot subscribe online).
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GOOD NEWS FROM MEXICO
Enjoy the following message from a San Miguel de Allende blogger I follow. Our local Monarchs spend their winter hibernation in Mexico, as do my husband and I.
--
Joan Dodson
The news is GOOD! About 160 MILLION monarchs are expected at the sanctuaries about 2 1/2 hours south of San Miguel the end of October and into November! That is three times as many as last year. Could it be that people in Canada and the USA are planting lots of milkweed and other plants that monarchs feed on? I hope so.
From BABSBLOG: "Millions of Monarchs in Migration"
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Our Zone XI flower show will be held at the Chicago Botanic Garden on Oct. 10 and 11. Please visit the photography show that will be set up in Nichols Hall as well as touring both floral and horticulture in Burnstein Hall.
Photography Tips #3
Check out the Aperture Foundation as a resource and inspiration. They have a newsletter and a wonderful magazine.
I recently purchased three books from them that are great teaching tools and I have included several other favorites.
Two are for children but apply to us as well:
Seeing Things by Joel Meyerowitz, a kid's guide to looking at photographs - but gives us all an insight into the photographer's vision and storytelling abilities.
Go Photo by Alice Proujansky - an activity book for kids, but hey aren't we all young at heart and open to games that might inspire our club's photo creativity?
The Photographer's Playbook by Jason Fulford and Gregory Halpern - 307 Assignments and Ideas - adult essays on photography exercises.
Zen and the Art of Photography workshop handbook by Douglas Beasley, http://douglasbeasley.com/store/. Also his Vision Quest Photo Assignment cards make a great stocking stuffer.
Erick Kim's Street Notes, available on Amazon or http://erickimphotography.com/blog/books/
Minh Hausler, The Fusion of Flora and Art, http://www.minhhaeusler.ch/MONOGRAPH.html
MUST SEE: At the Art Institute - The Photographer's Curator: Hugh Edwards at the Art Institute of Chicago
Through October 29, 2017
Galleries 1-4 and 10
All of the biggest names in photography in one exhibition.
Also, go to the Architectural Biennial at the Chicago Cultural Center for some interesting examples of architectural photography in various forms.
Enjoy shooting those fall colors and keep your camera with you at all times, even if it is only your phone. Are you using the app, Snapseed? It makes use of those magic NIK filters and can give you amazing results.
--Shelley Galloway
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We have been busy as bees at the Ware Garden this summer. To date, in addition to our 12 Ware Garden Committee members, 27 members from the KGC have volunteered at the Ware since May, with many members working multiple shifts. We need volunteers at the Garden until October 2nd, so if you have not yet volunteered for your annual two-hour shift, please contact Wendy Yamada. We will also need help putting the garden to bed in November. The date is yet to be determined, but we hope you can join us!
This month, we focused on several enhancements to the fountain area of the garden. We replanted the perennial beds around the fountain by dividing the existing plants, adding soil and re-spacing and replanting the plants. Plans are also underway to replace the stone path around the Fountain with a handicap friendly path. Stay tuned for details in an upcoming Newsletter.
--
Cathie Murphy
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Blessed with perfect weather conditions, a small but mighty crew gathered at Ware Garden on September 6th to take on the task of replanting the perennial planters surrounding Ware's fountain. These plantings have flourished these last few summers, even surviving last summer's fountain repair work and more, but were in need of additional soil as well as some dividing to help ensure their continued health and growth.
Armed with gloves, shovels and can-do attitudes, Kelly Chestnut, Joan Dodson, Mary Glerum, Stephanie Keehn, Sara Morgan, Carla Stephens and Tina Rice lifted and shoveled, divided and conquered ...all the while exchanging gardening tips and laughs with each other. Special thanks are due to Heather Blackwell who secured and arranged delivery of the wonderfully rich potting soil used for this replanting, and to Kevin and Jaime from Kenilworth's Park District who both lent a hand and helped us maneuver a few extra heavy rose bushes. Mission accomplished! The beds are looking great and set to flourish going forward!
--Tina Rice
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After!
Ware Garden looks neat & tidy with its beautiful new fence to hide mechanicals and garden equipment in the northeast corner.
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This event is closed and the waiting list full, but the book is still available!
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To Members of GCA Clubs,
I am pleased to let you know that there are places available on the GCA trip to South Africa set for October 8-18, 2018
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Attached is the itinerary and registration materials for this trip of a lifetime! Click here
If you want to join the trip, please download the Application Form and the Terms and Conditions Form, and send them, together with the deposit, to the address indicated on the Application Form.
If you have questions, email: visitinggardens@gcamerica.org
Come travel with GCA!
--Betty
Betty Snellings
Chairman, Visiting Gardens Committee
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Photo from National Trust Images -- Jonathan Buckley
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SISSINGHURST
On Tuesday, September 19
th Alexis Datta, a delightful gardener from England, spoke at the Botanic Garden about Sissinghurst, the beautiful garden in Kent designed by Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson. Datta had been the head gardener with a staff of 7 for nine years. With slides she presented a portrait of the many garden rooms of Sissinghurst as well as some history of the manor home that dates back to the 1400's. Queen Elizabeth I visited during her reign and the impressive tower built for her arrival still stands as a gate for the property. Several members of KGC attended the luncheon and then more joined for the interesting afternoon lecture.
While Harold and Vita bought the house and land in 1930 in order to create a garden, Sissinghurst is now part of the National Trust of grand English castles and gardens. The garden design is formal but the plantings have a lush casual feel. Using clipped hedges and pink brick walls the spaces are divided into separate gardens. "It works brilliantly," Datta commented as she related stories about the charming garden. From the Lime Walk (linden trees), to the orchard, the famous White Garden, a cottage garden, a rose garden, a herb garden and more, it seems much more than seven acres. While this manor house and its grounds are only open 9 months of the year, it is probably the most visited of the National Trust properties.
Because many of the roses in the garden are old and very delicate, the staff does employ some chemicals at the beginning of the season. However after the initial treatments, soap can control the many aphids and mildew that attack roses. They are trying to be as green as possible. They do grow and propagate their own plants as plants need to be replaced. 80% of the garden is perennials. Datta indicated come in May for the iris and in June for the roses.
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To place an order, or for more information,
click here.
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To begin the celebration of House Walk 2018
Lake Forest Garden Club presents...
An Afternoon with Alexa Hampton
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Onwentsia Club.
Tickets are $75 per person and available for purchase on the LFGC website,
CLICK HERE for a direct link. LFGC members are encouraged to attend and to bring guests. Seating is limited and members are asked to make their reservations promptly, so any remaining tickets can be offered for sale to area garden clubs.
Proceeds from the event will benefit the club's projects in environmental education, conservation, restoration of historic gardens and landscape and design services and/or planting materials for public gardens.
Alexa Hampton is an internationally renowned interior designer and carries on the legacy of her father, Mark Hampton, as owner and design director at the New York City based design firm bearing his name. She is the author of two books, The Language of Interior Design and Decorating in Detail. Following the presentation, both books will be available for sale and Alexa will personalize them upon request.
For information, please contact Molly South or Susan Chandler, 2018 House Walk Co-Chairs.
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A sunny KGC thank you to:
Our September House Hostess, Terri Lorenz;
Our September Hostesses for the lovely and delicious luncheon: Elizabeth Dugan, Kirsten Rider, Stephanie Keehn, Kelly Chestnut, Liz Armstrong and Joan Dodson;
Our September Floral Designers extraordinaire, Terri Lorenz and Joan Senko;
Kelly Chestnut, our fabulous Program Chair, for the great September program;
Terri Lorenz, our Assistant Program Chair for getting everyone organized;
Zone Chair Celine Lille for joining us at our September meeting;
Mary Lois Hakewill, Founders Fund Chair, and her Committee, Joan Dodson, Lenore Macdonald and Barb McDonough for filing the Founders Fund proposal;
Leslie North for editing the Yearbook and getting it out on time;
Marty Shaw for organizing Flower Arranging 101 and Flower Arranging 201 and encouraging us to continue developing our floral design skills;
Marty Shaw for representing KGC at the 2017 Zone XI Meeting in October;
Ann Jones for her commitment to conservation and sharing information and opportunities with us; and,
Kelly Chestnut for taking the reservations for the Paul Alan Cox Ethnobotany lecture.
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Kenilworth Garden Club www. kenilworthgardenclub.org
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