1

The Meridian Gardener

Newsletter of the Meridian Garden Club, Inc. Editor: Susan Kropschot

Member of Michigan Garden Clubs, Inc., Central Region Garden Clubs and National Garden Clubs, Inc.

January 2015 Volume OneWebsite - meridiangardenclub.weebly.com

Monthly Meeting January 11, 2016

“Japanese and Chinese Garden Design”

Dr Jon Burley

Agenda

8:30 Refreshments/Social time (BYO Cup)

9:00 Business Meeting

10:15 Program: MSU professor Dr. Jon Burley

Dr. Burley has visited China and Japan frequently, has

worked with Chinese and Japanese landscape scholars,

and has coauthored a comprehensive new book on

landscape design that includes chapters on both Chinese

and Japanese gardens. Learn about the relationships

between these two design styles--and look for ideas on

designing lower maintenance landscapes.

Hostesses: Brigitta Bruning and Shirley Tsai

Flower Power 8:00am DeShaun Snead and Shirley Tsai

Floral Design Moment: Sue Wittick

Plant Road Show: Sue Kropschot

Check Us Out

To learn more about the Meridian Garden Club and to access

our meeting calendar, archived photos, previous newsletters,

and minutes, bylaws, and history, please take the time to

check out our Website: meridiangardenclub.weebly.com

To check us out on Facebook: here is the link you need to click

on www.facebook.com/meridiangardenclub

Newsletter Correction

Please note that Cindy Chalou's birthday is 8/30.

Facebook - www.facebook.com/meridiangardenclub

President's Column

Happy New Year dear garden partners! We start off the

New Year with an excellent program which I hope you will

not miss. Many of us have really been looking forward to

this one. The details are in a separate article. Please note

that it is on the second Monday, January 11, because our

usual date is on the Martin Luther King holiday when the

Township Hall is closed.

Our December Holiday Luncheon at the Turner-Dodge

Mansion was a huge success. Many thanks to everyone's

participation. It was truly a group effort. Your comments

to any officer on this venue for the future are welcome.

The collection for the Greater Lansing Food Bank resulted

in a donation of 94 lbs. of food and $665 in

contributions. Thank you for that as well.

One of our most active members, Andi Kramer, is moving

away very soon. Andi has been an officer and a garden

chair to mention just a couple of her contributions. We

wish her well in her new home in Traverse City and thank

her for all she has done for our club.

My very best wishes to every member for not only a happy

and healthy New Year but also a wonderful gardening

year.

Madeline

Garden Vine

The Garden Vine is a chance for Meridian GC members

and friends to socialize outside our monthly meetings.

We meet on the second Wednesday of the month at the

Coral Gables Restaurant in East Lansing. For any

questions, call Larry Aronson at 332-5844. Come join us

on January 13, 2016, at 9:30 and get to know your fellow

members!

2

Conifers to Consider by R. William Thomas - Fine Gardening issue 88

These slow-growing and dwarf varieties add color,

texture, and shape to garden plantings

Click here

shared by Peggy Bryson

Holiday Salad Luncheon Turner/Dodge House

Though the ground was not covered with snow, December

21still dawned with a festive air (and a bit of rain). About

fifty-seven Meridian Garden Club members were in

attendance at our Annual Holiday Salad Luncheon, at the

Turner/Dodge House, filling the home, and bringing with

them oodles of delicious salads, desserts, and breads.

After a short business meeting, a lovely lunch was

enjoyed with a chance to converse with our friends and

explore all three floors of the house which were filled with

beautiful Festival of the Trees exhibits. Thanks to Bill

Bryson and Russ Kropschot for helping the members carry

in their dishes and food bank donations.

Our members gave generously to the food bank (see

article on page 3). Thanks to Jean Goetz, Melody Potter

and Sharon Theroux for delivering our donations.

Our thanks also to planning committee members Char

Sulin, Lois Snover-Hanson, Peggy Bryson, Marlene Walker,

Madeline Masterson, Iris Freridge, Brigitta Bruning, Susan

Kropschot, Andi Kramer; and members who assisted in

numerous ways on the day of the luncheon.

“Forget-Me-Not” Pressed Flower Exhibit Tressa McAllister

Be sure to stop in to see Meridian Garden Club’s beautiful

pressed flower artwork exhibit, taking place during the

months of January and February at The Bookend Gallery in

the Haslett Public Library, 1590 Franklin Street, Haslett,

Michigan. There will be greeting cards, small framed

items, and larger works for wall display - all for sale.

The Grand Opening and Artist's Reception will be held

Sunday, January 10, 2016 from 2:00-4:00 pm. We hope

to see our members there, and please tell your friends

and neighbors!

January

Marlene Geers 2

Georgia Styka 5

Shirley Tsai 10

Rosemary Buscetta 11

Jean Weinert 19

Larry Aronson 20

Gail Meadows 21

Margaret Seres-Burkart 25

Helen Tanner 25

JoAnn Peterson 27

Andi Kramer 28

February

Sue Leahy 1

Simar Kaur Pawar 5

Joyce Wang 8

Peggy Fankhauser 16

Kathleen Murphy-Keedy 23

Merry Warner 23

2016 Michigan Garden Clubs, Inc. State Convention

3

Food Bank Collection Successful!

For many years, our Annual Holiday Luncheon has

included a collection of food and monetary donations for

the Greater Lansing Food Bank. This year, Meridian

Garden Club member's checks and food donations were

delivered to the Food Bank offices after our luncheon by

Jean Goetz, Melodie Potter and Sharon Theroux. They

counted the money together and checked the totals. They

were: $665 in checks and 94 lbs of food. Thank you for

your outstanding generosity!

Orchid Tales Floral Designs Using Orchids

February 27 - February 28, 2016

Attached to this newsletter mailing, you will find a

schedule for the 2016 Orchid Show. All those interested

are invited to participate.

If you need orchids for your designs or have questions,

you may call or email Marilyn Lee at 517-242-6395; or

lee@cse.msu.edu - Pre-registering for design classes is

encouraged.

2016 Central Region Convention

October 7 - 9, 2016

Springfield, Illinois

Land of Lincoln

Tour the Lincoln Museum

Visit Lincoln Memorial Gardens

Held at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Hotel

www.ngccentralregion.org

Dates to Remember

January 7 Club Competition meeting on Thursday,

January 7th at 1 pm at Peggy Bryson's

home - 5512 Jessael, Bath, Michigan

January 10 Pressed Flower Exhibit - The Grand

Opening and Artist's Reception will be held

Sunday, January 10, 2016 from 2:00-4:00

pm at the Bookend Gallery in the Haslett

Public Library, 1590 Franklin St, Haslett.

Exhibit continues through January and

February.

January 11 January Club Meeting - 8:30 - 12:30 -

Meridian Admin Bldg, 5151 Marsh Road,

Okemos, MI

January 12 Flower Show Planning Meeting 11:00am

Lois Snover-Hanson's home, West Rd,

Holt, MI

January 13 Garden Vine gathering at 9:30 at Coral Gables in East Lansing.

10 Ways Your Christmas Tree Can Live On After the Holidays

Houzz Magazine - Shared by Peggy Bryson

To learn how to recycle your Christmas tree and reap

benefits for the environment, click here

Grand Rapids looks forward to welcoming

National Garden Clubs "Bloomin' on the Grand" 87th Annual Convention

May 2-6, 2016 Grand Rapids is pulling out all the stops to assure an

incredible meeting experience! All of the Convention

News and Notes will be updated frequently, so check back

regularly. As new news items become available, the top

item will be listed in the "Convention News and Notes."

Access by clicking here

4

Be a Part of the District IIB Standard Flower Show

March 17-20, 2016

District IIB Standard Flower Show – held March 17-20,

2016, it is titled “Magic, Mystery and Illusions” and is

presented by the District IIB Garden Clubs – in the MSU

Pavilion. Horticulture enthusiasts, get your houseplants

groomed, bulbs forced, and branches chosen. For those

who enjoy floral design, there might be some design or

artistic crafts categories yet to be filled. Check with Sue

Wittick. witticks@gmail.com or 517-242-8259. Want to

be a host/hostess - call Cristy Bennett - 517-351-88208.

2016 Newsletter Deadlines

Month Articles Due Print Date

February February 3 February 6

March March 9 March 12

April April 7 April 10

May May 5 May 8

June June 8 June 11

July July 6 July 9

August August 3 August 6

September September 7 September 10

October October 5 October 8

November November 9 November 12

December December 7 December 10

Holiday Luncheon - Turner/Dodge House

Luncheon guests, Iris F, Simar P, JoEllyn R and Suzanne R

IIB District Flower Arrangers Guild Meeting Wednesday, February 24 2016

If you have not had a chance to attend a guild meeting,

please think about participating in this February 24th

gathering. The workshop is from 10:00am till 12 noon,

at the Dewitt Fire Station, 911 W Main Street, DeWitt.

Meridian GC to provide snack/ DeWitt Millennium coffee.

Any garden club member can attend and participate.

Don't just observe; it's just more fun when everyone

creates. This is the only meeting prior to the March 17th -

20th flower show. Project topic: Lois will lead overview

on Leaf Manipulation – Prior to attending, you may wish to

purchase the book from NGC, written by Gail Emmons,

“Leaf Manipulation,” There may be a small cost for plant

materials.

12:00 noon, Final Staging Meeting for 2016 District IIB

Flower Show – Bring lunch to share.

RSVP Contact Kathi Dominguez, with questions or to

sign up. Her phone number is (517)669-5112 and e-mail

is dominguezk@comcast.net

Leaf Manipulation

Club Competition Committee meeting is on January 7,

2016 at 1:00. It will be held at Peggy Bryson's home -

5512 Jessael, Bath, Michigan. Bring ideas or articles for

assembling a scene or vignette like a crystal ball, top hat,

magic wand or flying carpet... using the theme of

"Abracadabra"....

5

January Greetings from the little tugboat Lydia Jackie Hughes

We have really enjoyed our stay here at Hudson Marina,

especially since we rented a car so we could come and go

as we pleased. As a result we were in Tampa area 3

different times, visiting friends, seeing my daughter who

had flown in from San Diego to attend an educational

conference, and running errands for parts. We had

company come to see us and the boat too, being close to

the RV park where we normally winter. We attended 2

dances and the Christmas potluck in the park, and Dwain

got his “boy time” fix by playing billiards 3 times each

week with all his buddies. But now that all the holiday

festivities are over it’s time to move on and we are

heading to Tarpon Springs as our next stop.

Tarpon Springs was established in 1876 and the

harvesting of sponges quickly became an industry. In

1905 John Cocoris introduced techniques for sponge

diving and recruited men and their families from the

Greek Islands. This city has the largest percent of Greek

Americans in the USA and the sponge industry, while

smaller than it once was, is still a consistent source of

employment. The street along the sponge docks has

much Greek influence, with bakeries and restaurants

serving Greek food, and many souvenir shops selling

items reflecting the culture. On Jan. 6, feast of the

Epiphany, there is a huge celebration hosted by the St.

Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. This is the 110th

year

and it draws a huge crowd. The main event is the

throwing of a cross blessed by the Archbishop into the

back bay of the bayou. Boys age 16-18 swim frantically to

retrieve it, for the one who does is blessed for the next

year. He is carried on their shoulders back to the church,

where he receives his blessing and the rest of the

dancing, singing, and eating culminate in an all-day fest.

After Tarpon Springs we head further south to Anna Marie

Island where we meet up with friends and also some

travel companions for the journey down to the Keys. We

will cruise down the west coast, past the Everglades,

being ever watchful for the notorious and noxious

Burmese Pythons who might wish to hitch a ride on our

back deck, and should reach Marathon Key by middle of

January, depending on weather conditions of course.

There we plan to stay a month or more, swilling

margaritas, playing pirate and dancing to Jimmy Buffet

tunes till it’s time to move on again. I’ll raise a toast to

the garden club!

Historical Village Decorated for the Holidays

A photo of the farmhouse showing two of the fifteen

swags assembled and hung by Meridian Garden Club

members. The other swags were hung on the barn,

chapel, gazebo, cabin, schoolhouse, Barnes House, brick

house, school house, tollhouse and outhouse. The swags

are a holiday tradition for our members, and always give

the village a festive air.

Holiday Luncheon - Jodie Sz, Jean W and Linda M

??, Gail M, Iris F, Char S, Tressa M, Kris B, and Sue L