The Spade & Trowel Garden Club, Inc.
Seaford, Delaware 19973
*Celebrating its 60th Membership Year*
Monthly Events
September, 2016
6th - Board Meeting, 10:05, Seaford Library, Allen Room
13th - General Meeting, 12:30, Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design Competition: "Morning Break"
Horticulture Judging: For all meeting unless redefined.
All horticulture specimens submitted for entry should have the correct
botanical name. This requirement is in preparation for the next flower
show.
Horticulture entries will be accepted for judging on their own merits.
Entries may be:
• Any house plant that is small enough to carry
• Anything in your garden that looks good.
• Branches of trees and shrubs should not exceed 18 inches (no
individual leaves)
• Cut blooms should be according to flower show standards (for
example, a floribunda rose should have a cluster of blooms. One
cluster is a specimen. Tall bearded iris are shown in a complete
stalk with several blooms. A hydrangea macrophylla bloom is one
mophead).
Program: "Daffodils" - Presenter: Betty Kramarck
NGC Master Flower Show Judge & ADS Accredited Daffodil Judge
28th, DFGC Workshops--Free to members, Delaware Ag. Museum
29th, Local Trip, Noon, Del Tech, Scholarship Discussion
October, 2016
4th - Board Meeting, 10:05, Seaford Library, Allen Room
11th - General Meeting, 12:30, Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Autumn Arrival" - Build a Plaque
Horticulture: See September
Program: "Forcing Bulbs" - Eddie Filemyr, Master Gardener
19th - Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory and Botanic Gardens,
Baltimore, MD. Guided Tour Cost: $7 Transportation: TBA
November, 2016
1st - Board Meeting, 10:05, Seaford Library, Allen Room
8th - General Meeting, 12:30, Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: Not This Month
Horticulture: Not This Month
Program: "Holiday Floral Arranging" - Mary Noel & Carol Johnson
Both are Master Gardeners. This will be a "hands-on" workshop.
Bring your own container up to 6 inches or use a round, plastic container that will be provided along with flowers, greens and oasis.
17th - Workshop - "Bow Making" 10 a.m. - Mary Noel will teach you how to
make lovely bows. Library Allen Room
You should be taking Greens Sales Orders and Lining Up Greens!!
December, 2016
5th - Board Mtg. - At Galestown Prior to Making Greens
No General Mtg. - A Busy Month
GREENS SALE - Our Major Annual Fund Raiser
Galestown Community Center
Dec. 3rd & 4th - Collect and Bring greens to Galestown
Dec. 4th - Sunday - Setup, 2 p.m. at Galestown Community Center
Dec. 5th - Work Day at Galestown Community Center, Greens Making, 9 a.m.
Dec. 6th - Work Day at Galestown Community Center, Greens Making, 9 a.m.
Take Greens to Ross Mansion
Dec. 7th - Pickup at Ross Mansion, Setup 1 p.m. - Customers 3-6 p.m.
Dec. 7th - Decorate Ross Mansion, 1 p.m.
Dec. 13th - Christmas Party - At "The Brick" in Georgetown, Noon
Club Members $15, Guests $25
January, 2017
3rd - Board Mtg., 10:05 a.m., Seaford Library, Allen Room,
10th - General Mtg., 12:30 p.m., Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Winter White"
Horticulture: See September
Program: "Accessible Gardening Tips" - Presenter: Bob Williams
Master Gardener and Chairman of Accessible Gardening Committee
19th - Field Trip to Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge for Eagle Watch
24th - Workshop: "Soil Improvement" - Carol Kinsley, Master Gardener
February, 2017
7th - Board Mtg., 10:05 a.m., Seaford Library, Allen Room
14th - General Mtg., 12:30 p.m., Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Be My Valentine"
Horticulture: See September
Program: "Accessible Gardening Tips" - Presenter: Bob Williams
Master Gardener and Chairman of Accessible Gardening Committee
University of Delaware Cooperative Extenstion, College of
Agriculture & Natural Resources
March, 2017
7th - Board Mtg., 10:05 a.m., Seaford Library, Allen Room
14th - General Mtg., 12:30 p.m., Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Wearing of the Green"
Horticulture: See September
Program: World Gardening. A Video: "The Queens Gardens"
16th - Philadelphia Flower Show bus trip - Members $30 (Register Early)
Meet at Lowe's at 9:30 a.m. - $55 for non-members
This year's theme is "The Wonders of Holland"
28th - Workshop: "Corsage Making" - Mary Noel's Home, 10 a.m.
April, 2017
4th - Board Mtg., 10:05 a.m., Seaford Library, Allen Room
11th - General Mtg., 12:30 p.m., Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Ugly Vase Contest"
Horticulture: Anything from Your Garden
Program: To Be Announced
20th - Field Trip: Gardens of Nancy Lowry Moitrier and Pierre Moitrier
Annapollis, MD, Owners of "Designs for Greener Gardens"
May, 2017
2nd - Board Mtg., 10:10 a.m. - Seaford Library, Allen Room
9th - General Mtg., 12:30 p.m. - Seaford Library, Woodruff Room
Design: "Welcome Spring"
Horticulture: See September
Program: "Gifts From The Garden" - Presenter: Tracy Mulveny
Master Gardener
June, 2017
3rd - Garden Tour Sponsored by The Spade & Trowel Garden Club
6th - Board Mtg., 10:05 a.m., Seaford Library, Allen Room
13th - Picnic at the home of our president, Carol Johnson, 12:30 p.m.
Design: None
Horticulture: None
National Garden Club Week: June 4-10, 2017
Installation of Officers by DFGC president, Marty Rushlow. A reception followed.
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Plant a Garden
Attend a Flower Show
Take Time to Smell the Roses
The Spade & Trowel Garden Club announced "National Garden Week" by decorating the Seaford Chamber of Commerce" window. John Kinsley, spouse of club member Carol Kinsley, made the 7 foot window box which was planted by the club. Other downtown merchants may order window boxes from John and for a fee the club will plant them. The business next door has already placed an order. All of this is part of the club's "Seaford Beautification" project.
"CATS and PLANTS--Can be a poisonous mix
An experience reported by Joanne Whalon
Cats and Plants
Two of my cats had a bad experience last week with lilies; one is still recovering.
I was offered some lilies by a dear friend. I put them in a tall vase on Saturday afternoon and left them on the kitchen counter to run off to a garden club project. Back home that evening, I witnessed my male cat vomit on the kitchen floor. Among his regurgitated dinner were strands of green. I immediately remembered the vase of lilies which, in my rush, I had carelessly left on the counter. I rarely have cut flowers in the house because the cats – curious beings that they are -- seem to find them and pull them from the vase, sometimes knocking the vase over and spilling water onto the table.
I immediately went to the computer and Googled “plants poisonous to cats”. One of the most toxic plants is the lily. It causes kidney failure and can be fatal. None of the articles I read said which variety of lily or which part of the lily is toxic; I assume all. Nor was there a list of symptoms. I felt that “Stripes” was OK because he had vomited the leaves and seemed otherwise fine.
Meanwhile, my female, “Precious”, was acting strangely: No evidence that she had consumed any part of a lily and no clear medical issues such as vomiting, drooling, rapid respiration, etc. She just kept appearing in places I had never seen her -- beside the toaster oven; on the dryer. Nor was she eating. I resisted the notion of taking her to the emergency clinic in Salisbury on Saturday night. On Sunday her symptoms were the same.
On Monday morning I enlisted the help of my cat rescue partner to catch Precious. Although I have had her for seven years, she still acts feral and is extremely elusive and slippery. A cat that does not want to be caught and restrained can be extremely strong! Off to the vet we went without an appointment. They saw us right away and started blood work and a kidney panel. I was told to bring in Stripes as well, since we knew that he had eaten lily leaves, so I ran home for him and returned to the vet. Both cats spent the day in the hospital.
When I returned to pick up the cats, I was told that Stripes’ tests came out negative but that Precious had a fever, and her blood work indicated infection, so she was given an antibiotic injection. Plus, she was dehydrated, so they gave her subcutaneous fluids.
Back home, Precious was still acting strangely and not eating or drinking. I returned her to the vet on Wednesday morning where she was again examined, given fluids and observed for the day. She was found to have ulcers in her mouth, which we assumed to have come from licking or biting the lily leaves. That explained why she wasn’t eating: It was painful. I was given an oral antibiotic and an anti-inflammatory and some special “recovery” food and was told that, if she didn’t eat Wednesday evening, I was to bring her in on Thursday morning to have a feeding tube inserted. Thankfully, she ate the food!
Precious has been in the guest bedroom since Wednesday so I can observe her eating and drinking and so she can’t run far when it’s time to medicate her. I soon gave up trying to scruff her to stick a syringe in her mouth and put the meds in her food instead. I have also spent the last four nights sleeping with her; cat owners will understand this!
The moral of this story is to be very careful about bringing cut flowers into the house if you have pets. My vet said that simply touching its nose to the pollen of a lily can cause an allergic reaction in a cat. She also said that many vets advise local florists to inquire about cats in the home before including lilies in a floral arrangement. House plants, as well, can cause problems. I have two house plants – a croton and a sansevieria – neither of which the cats have ever shown interest in.