Dear Fellow Gardeners,
GROWING GREEN IN 2016 is the theme for the convention this year in Green Bay. The committee has worked very hard in getting this all put together. We really have some fantastic speakers along with a great tour and picnic, so I hope that all members can attend. Scott, Perry, and Patti are doing the decorating of the tables, and they will need some volunteers to help, so please if you can help even a little, that would be great. continued on page 3
Club of Green Bay a great success this past year—it really went by very fast with all the activities going on. Thank you all.
January is the time to start our winter pruning for the summer. There are many articles on how to do your pruning for shrubs, fruit trees, and so forth. I have been in some stores and I see that the seeds are out. I really did not see anything new to try but I am sure there are some new ones—there always are.
12/2/2015 Minutes
2017 Calendar 2
Officers and Chairpersons
Club/Member News 3
Garden Club Schedule
GBBG Events 4
GBBG Soup With Substance
Schedule
GBBG Travelogues
5
2016 Garden Series
Seasonal Garden Tips 6
WPT Madison Garden Expo
Scotland/Ireland Trip 7
Dig in the Dirt—It’s Healthy for
You! 8
Selected Plants for 2016
2016 Dues Form 9
Tiller Advertisers 3-8
10
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Tiller
The January 2016
Volume 34, No. 1
From the President . . .
So with the new year, there are new things we have to do—first we have to elect a member to the board and also to the executive board—the confusing thing is that it can be just one person but only the executive person has vot-ing rights, the other one is only a board member. I will try to explain it at the meet-ing, I hope.
I also hope that everyone had a great time over the holi-days. I sure did. I would also like to thank everyone that helped make the Gardeners
Shirley Winnes, Club Member Travelogue: Mosaïculture at the Montréal Botanical Garden
6:30 p.m., Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Visitors Center, Green Bay Botanical Garden
Refreshments Rose Borowitz
Agnes Schussman Shirley Winnes
Considered to be the world’s most prestigious competition of horti-cultural art, the 2013 mosaïculture exhibit at Montréal Botanical Garden is a feast for the eyes! Many of the world’s most talented horticultural artists take part in this international event and create beautiful sculptures filled with plants, flowers, and foliage. One of Shirley’s photos appears in the 2016 national calendar for the month of August. This presentation will also be one of the sessions planned for the national convention in July.
PAGE 2 Til l er
National Convention: Carl announced that plans are going well, and our next meeting is
December 7th –1:30 at his house. Scott
Casperson passed a sign-up sheet for those
who want to help with table decorations.
Recognition: Carl passed out pins from
national to officers and past officers
recognizing them for their work in our club.
Fundraisers: Shirley Winnes was selling photo cards made from our photography
competitions. Betty Cox has ordered
asparagus and sweet potato plants for our 2016 asparagus event. Room rental will be $65 at
the Extension for that day.
Other: Brian Nighorn passed out name tags
for new members and others who needed one.
Plant Life: For fungus on house plants, spray alcohol or peroxide on them. A fan for air
movement helps too.
Our meeting was adjourned, and Patti Nellis
won the door prize. Refreshments were served
by Marlene Bergum, Maxine Cashman, Betty
Cox, and Clara McGarity.
Agnes Schussman, Secretary
Tonight’s meeting was held at the UW Extension at 1150 Bellevue Street. Our guest
speaker was Kristine Klasen, owner of the
Enchanted Florist. A video showing the
process of growing cut flowers, packaging, and shipping from California, and another
video on a Florida foliage farm was shown.
Kristine showed samples of the different types of foliage she uses. Along with handouts on
the best cut flowers to use in a vase, she had a
recipe and tips for longer lasting blooms.
President Carl Christensen opened our
business meeting at 7:30 p.m. Visitors and
guests were welcomed. October’s minutes were approved, and Betty Cox gave the
treasurer’s report.
Harvest Banquet: Scott Casperson thanked
Patti Nellis for opening up her home to make
the table decorations, Shirley Winnes for her work printing the programs and taking the
photos for the slide show, Mary Berg for
doing the silent auction, and all the others who
made it a success. Betty Cox reported that we made $100 more than last year on the auction.
Our 2016 banquet will be November 11 at the
Rock Garden.
Meeting Minutes - 12/2/2015
Please have
articles for
the next
Tiller by
February 10
to Shirley
Winnes, 301
David Drive,
Green Bay,
WI 54303 or
e‑mail [email protected].
TGOA-MGCA 2017 Gardener’s Calendar Yes, it’s the beginning of 2016, but the 2017
calendar is being created so that it will be ready
for the July 2016 convention! Here is the cover
for the 2017 calendar. This photo was taken by
Andy Kimmel from the Gardeners of Central
Lake County, Illinois. The photo was taken in
2014 on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. The
featured tree is Betula papyrifera (birch tree).
Ritalyn Arps and Shirley Winnes each have a
photo in the 2017 calendar.
Calendars ordered prior to March 31, 2016,
are available at a reduced price, $2.50 as opposed to $2.95. There will be no shipping
expense with the convention being in Green Bay. Calendars will be available at the
convention and each participant receives one. If you want extras for gifts, you will need to
order them. I will pass a sign-up sheet for those who are interested in ordering calendars
and will submit the order by the due date.
Shirley Winnes
J AN UARY 2016 PAGE 3
Club and Member News . . . The Gardeners Club of Green Bay
Officers and Chairpersons
President
Carl Christensen, 920-425-3224
Vice President
Scott Casperson, 920-435-1780
Secretary
Agnes Schussman, 920-327-1138
Treasurer
Betty Cox, 920-468-8693 2510 Heather Road
Green Bay, WI 54311-5243
Past President
Barb Vandersteen, 920-435-0568
Membership and Public Relations
Brian Nighorn, 920-865-4311
Sunshine
Ruth Goeben, 920-494-3008
Tiller Editor, Website Manager, and
TGOA-MGCA National Photography
Competition and Calendar Chairperson Shirley Winnes, 920-499-4441
Historian
Barb Vandersteen, 920-435-0568
Civic Projects and Fund Raising
Asparagus Sale
Betty Cox, 920-468-8693
Silver Trowel
Scott Casperson, 920-435-1780
Inventory Control and
Education and Plant Records
———————-Open———————-
House and Program
Paul Hartman, 920-437-6831
Refreshments Coordinators Sue Rohan, 920-336-3004
Mary Naumann, 920-866-2282
Welcome to our newest advertiser!
Fresh New Year
Another fresh new year is here . . .
Another year to live! To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!
The bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest . . .
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!
I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!
William Arthur Ward, 1921-1994
American Author and Poet
This month Shirley will be showing some of her great pictures—they are always so good.
We will have many things to discuss at the meeting so I hope you all will come if the weather is good. Sometimes it gets a little hard with bad weather.
Your President,
Carl Christensen
From the President, continued
Our website has been updated with photos of our Silver
Trowel and pumpkin/sunflower winners. Check it out:
gardenclubgreenbay.weebly.com
PAGE 4 Ti l l er
Coming Attractions Sponsored by the Green Bay Botanical Garden
Call 920-490-9457 or see http://www.gbbg.org for complete information, reservations,
and cost about any of the following:
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay
Upcoming Schedule of 2016 Meetings
Jan. 27 .......... Travelogue - Mosaïculture Exhibit at
the Montreal Botanical Garden,
Shirley Winnes
Feb. 24.......... Adaptive Gardening Tools, Bill
Wright
March 23 ...... Convention Work Night
April 27 ........ New Plants for Your Garden, Brian
Schroeder
May 25 .......... Plant Whiskey Barrels at Curative
Workshop
June 22......... 2014 Silver Trowel Award Winner’s
Garden – Joe Van Beek
July 27 .......... Solar Project and Gardens - Sisters
of St. Francis
Aug. 24 ......... Picnic
Sept. 28........ Cooking with Squash, Dan Froehlich,
Chef, St. Norbert’s College
Oct. 26 ......... Brag Night – How Did Your Garden
Grow?
Dec. 7 ............ Christmas Traditions, Nancy Hamann
Special Events
April 23 ........ Celebrate Asparagus!
July 13-15 ... TGOA-MGCA National Convention,
Green Bay, WI
“Growing Green in 2016”
Sept. 10 ........ Fall Family Art Festival at GBBG
Sept. 17 ........ Farmers Market - Large Produce
Weigh-in
Oct. 8 ............ Farmers Market - Pumpkin
Weigh-in
Nov. 11........... Harvest Banquet
Attracting Winter Birds, Tues., Jan. 19, 3-4:30 p.m., Instructor: Nancy Paul – Wild Bird
Feeding Specialist and Owner of Wild Birds
Unlimited of Green Bay. Nancy will share
secrets for attracting winter birds to your yard. She will show you what type of birds you can
attract, how to feed them and some tips for
taking a closer look at your feathered friends. Various types of feeders will be discussed and
displayed.
From Curd to Press, Tues., Jan. 26, 6-8 p.m. Instructor: Linda Conroy - Moonwise Herbs.
Learn to make delicious cheese curds. We will
make these and learn how to press them to
make cheddar cheese. Learning to press and age this cheese will be instructive for those who
want to experiment. For those who simply want
curds, you will be delighted at the results. We will sample curds and previously finished
cheese.
Garden in a Bottle, Thurs., Jan. 28, 6-8 p.m. Instructor: Jamie Hemenway-Peotter -
Mayflower Greenhouse. In this workshop, you
will discover how and what plants need in order
to be self-sustaining in a terrarium. Design your own attractive plant terrarium for your home or
as a gift for family and friends. All materials
included. Herbal Infused Oils, Salves, and Lotions,
Tues., Feb. 2, 6-8 p.m. Instructor: Linda
Conroy Moonwise Herbs. Herbalist Linda
Conroy will lead participants through the process of making oils, salves, and lotions. The
focus will be on creating remedies from herbs
in the garden. Participants will leave with a list of healing herbs, recipes, and preparations
made in this workshop. Fee covers oils, jars,
beeswax, and all supplies for making an infused oil, a massage oil blend, a salve, and a lotion.
Grow Your Own Mushrooms, Thurs., Feb. 4,
6-8 p.m. Instructor: Lindsey Bender -
Mycologist, Field & Forest Products. Learn the many benefits of fungi and the basics of gour-
met and medicinal mushroom cultivation. Then
put your new skills to work. Join us in making your own oyster mushroom farm to take home!
All materials included.
J AN UARY 2016 PAGE 5
Thank You Note
Advanced Tickets: GBBG Members: $10
Non-Members: $15
At the Door: GBBG Members: $12
Non-Members: $17
Limited number of tickets available.
Advance purchase recommended.
GBBG Soup With Substance Schedule
Hike, snowshoe, or blaze your own skiing trail at Green
Bay Botanical Garden in the late afternoon. Then come
indoors to enjoy homemade soup, bread, and dessert, a
garden-related presentation, and musical entertainment.
Schedule 5:30 - 8 p.m. each evening
Friday, January 29 “DIY Eye Popping Color in Your Yard”
Tom Jensen, Vande Hey Company, Inc.
Entertainment: Erin Krebs & Jeff Johnston (Jazz)
Friday, February 12 “Go Organic! Organic Gardening 101”
Val Dantoin, NWTC Sustainable Ag Educator
Entertainment: Kati Dahl (Folk/Country)
Friday, February 26 “Sneak Peek Annuals for 2016”
Connie Schroeder, Representative of Proven Winners
Entertainment: Randi Fay (Jazz)
Friday, March 11 “Indoor Succulent Shade Gardens”
Brian Schroeder, Schroeder’s Flowers
Entertainment: Mike Magee (Acoustic Guitar)
Friday, April 1 “Magical Nature Photos with Your Smartphone”
Marc Amenson, Amenson Studios
Entertainment: TBA
GBBG Travelogues—Free!
Bring a bag lunch or meet friends to go for lunch
after. No registration necessary—just come!
Germany, Wed., Feb. 3, Noon-1 p.m., Doug &
Kathy Hartman - GBBG Members. Join us as we
travel across Germany from east to west. See remnants of the Berlin wall, the romantic city of
Rothenburg ob der Tauber, and explore castles near
the Deutsches Eck (German Corner) where the Rhine
and Moselle Rivers meet.
Africa, Wed., Feb. 17, Noon-1 p.m., Bill & Pat Larsen – GBBG Members. Bill and Pat will share
their travels throughout Africa during this lunchtime
presentation. View amazing photos of animals
migrating across the Serengeti Plain including lions, elephants, Cape buffalo, zebras, cheetas, giraffes,
and so much more! Learn about the culture and
customs of the Masai people, Mount Kilimanjaro,
and general travel trips for Africa.
Portugal and The Azores, Wed., March 2, Noon-1 p.m., Shirley Winnes, GBBG Member. Spectacular
lakes fill extinct volcano craters, geysers, and hot
mineral springs steam from the rock, fields like
patchwork quilts cover the ground. Villages of dark red roofed, white-washed houses punctuate the
landscape. The archipelago of the Azores is situated
one third of the way across the Atlantic between Portugal and New York, and was uninhabited until
the Portuguese discovered it in 1427. Sao Miguel is
the largest, famous for its crater with two adjoining lakes of sapphire blue and emerald green. Special
soups and stews are cooked in sealed pots sunk into
the ground at thermal springs. Its capital, Ponta
Delgada, boasts wonderful 15th and 16th century churches with incredible Baroque interiors. The
hand-painted ceramics of Lagoa are typical of the
many local handicrafts.
PAGE 6 Ti l l er
A Few Seasonal Gardening Tips Check for heaving. Check plants in case anything
has heaved up from freeze and thaw cycles.
Make sure mulch has stayed secure. Heavy snow
cover is a perfect “mulch” so if the snow is deep,
don’t worry about them. Gently step down any
plants that have heaved and replace the mulch.
Sort tubers. Sort through stored tubers, roots,
and bulbs such as dahlias, cannas, glads, and
begonias. Dispose of anything that has decayed.
A light spraying of water may be necessary to
prevent drying out.
Relax and read. Dream with those garden cata-
logs that come in the mail. Order seeds, plan
your next garden, start a garden journal, or start
a book you’ve been planning to read.
J AN UARY 2016 PAGE 7
Find out more about this trip at a meeting on Friday, January 15, from 6 to 8 p.m.
at the Brown County Extension Bldg., 1150 Bellevue Street.
February 11 - February 14, 2016
Alliant Energy Center in Madison
Wisconsin Public Television’s Garden Expo is a
midwinter oasis for people ready to venture out
and dig their hands in the dirt. This three-day event
celebrates the latest trends in gardening and land-
scaping and attracts more than 20,000 people
from across the Midwest. Join other gardening
enthusiasts to share ideas, gain inspiration and
create something new. All proceeds support
Wisconsin Public Television.
Things to Do at the Garden Expo
Learn something new at one of the more than
150 free educational seminars and demon-
strations.
Visit with hundreds of businesses, inde-
pendent contractors, nonprofits, and artists to
share ideas and learn about the newest in
gardening, landscaping, and local foods.
Discuss innovative gardening techniques with
experts from UW-Extension–Horticulture.
Relax with a casual walk through the central
garden—courtesy of Wisconsin Nursery &
Landscape Association, Madison Chapter Inc.
Purchase seeds, tools, and everything else you
need to be ready when the trees bud and the
ground thaws.
General Admission
One-day ticket – $7 in advance/$8 at the door
Two-day ticket – $11 in advance/$12 at the door
Three-day ticket – $16 in advance/$17 at the
door
Children 12 and under are free.
$2 off Friday admission with coupon.
Go to http://www.wigardenexpo.com for advance
ticket sales and workshop registration. Advance
tickets are available at the Green Bay Botanical
Garden.
Ti l l er PAGE 8
Dig in the Dirt—It’s Healthy for You!
The path to good
health, it turns out, is
through your stomach.
It used to be that the
gastrointestinal
system was all about
digestion, heartburn, maybe some acid reflux. But
in the past 30 years, research has shown it to be
way more complex—and consequential. Maybe
you’ve heard of the bacteria in your belly? There
are trillions, producing essential chemicals and
vitamins and hormones. Nearly 80 percent of the
body’s immune cells are found in the gut, which is
thought to also produce 90 percent of the mood
regulating chemical serotonin. Researchers think
gut health can have an impact on everything from
your likelihood of catching a cold to our mood and
your metabolism. In fact, research shows that the
right amount of “good” bacteria in the gut may
help protect against many conditions, including
diabetes, depression, obesity, and gastro-
intestinal disorders. The whole shebang—
technically called the gut microbiome—is
sometimes referred to as the body’s “second
brain” because it produces chemicals that directly
communicate with the central nervous system,
creating a “gut-brain axis.”
Spending all that time indoors can keep the good
bacteria from getting into your gut.
Fresh air and dirt are where the good bacteria
live, and experts think the more time you spend
outdoors, the more likely it is that those microbes
will make their way into your system, explains
Justin L. Sonnenburg, Ph.D., co-author of The
Good Gut. Gardening or doing yard work is one
way ingestion can happen; you touch dirt and
surfaces that may have collected microbes, then
unconsciously touch your nose and eyes. Even
just taking care of an indoor plant or a window
box garden can give you that exposure. So go
ahead, get your hands dirty!
Source: Howard, Beth. “Tummy Talk,” Better Homes and
Gardens, June 2015, pp. 156-160.
Lighten Up in the New Year! An optimist stays up until mid-night to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.
Bill Vaughan On New Year's Eve, one of the wives of the couples in atten-dance at a local pub stood up and said that it was time to get ready. At the stroke of midnight, she wanted every husband to be standing next to the one person who made his life worth living. Well, it was kind of embar-rassing. As the clock struck twelve, the bartender was almost crushed to death.
Just in case you have already broken a resolution, you
can reset it on January 14th (Orthodox New Year) and
February 8th (Chinese New Year)!
A gardener’s broken resolution: You resolve to ask the seed
companies to no longer send you print catalogs because
you’ll just look online for their offerings, then you change
your mind because it is so hard to circle what you want on
each page and then dog-ear the page so you can find it
again. Source: http://www.maydreamsgardens.com
PAGE 9 J AN UARY 2016
Please complete this form and include it with your dues payment for 2016.
Name(s)___________________________________________________ Date ______________
Address:_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Check Applicable Classification:
______ Individual Membership = $25
______ Family Membership = $35
______ Youth Membership = $10
______ Current Life Member = $5 (local dues)
______ Purchase of Life Membership = $200 + $5 (local dues)
Make check payable to
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay
and send to:
Betty Cox
2510 Heather Road
Green Bay, WI 54311
2016 Dues Are Past Due! In order to keep your information current with the national office, please submit your dues payment as soon as possible. Please remember that if you are not receiving the national newsletter, you must give your e-mail address to national headquarters. If you have not let headquarters know your e-mail address, please do so by e-mailing [email protected]. If you want printed copies mailed to you, you will need to pay the fee of $6 for the six issues that will be mailed in 2016. You can mail your request/fee to The Gardeners of America/Men's Garden Clubs of America, P.O. Box 241, Johnston, Iowa 50131-6245.
Selected Plants for 2016 The Wisconsin Nursery and Landscape
Association (WNLA) has announced its 2016
Plants of the Year. They were selected at the
Wisconsin Nursery Association’s annual
membership meeting and workshop in
Greenfield, Wisconsin.
Picea omorika
(Serbian Spruce)
has been chosen
as the Woody
Ornamental Plant
of the Year. Tough
urban conditions
and drought-prone
sites will not
hinder the elegant
and adaptable
Serbian Spruce. It
establishes
quickly, so trans-
planting is not a problem, and its slender
outline works perfectly for the narrow spaces
that other trees grow out of. The Picea
omorika prefers full sun to partial shade and
will tolerate a wide pH range. It does well in
zones 4 through 7, reaching heights of 40 to
60 feet. The Serbian Spruce brings a vertical
grace to any landscape.
The Perennial Plant
of the Year is
Chelone lyonii ‘Hot
Lips’ (‘Hot Lips’
Turtlehead). The
partially shaded
section of the
garden comes alive
with this beauty. Its
upright stems form a 23” to 35” bushy
mound that sports bronze-green foliage in the
spring. Come late summer to mid fall, ‘Hot
Lips’ Turtlehead displays the rosy pink
hooded flowers that give the plant its name. It
prefers moist or wet soil, but is wonderfully
adaptable and perfect for a variety of uses in
the landscapes of zones 3 through 8. Deer
are not interested in this North American
native, however everyone else is, including
butterflies and hummingbirds.
Source: http://www.gardencentermag.com
Affiliated with The Gardeners of America/Men’s Garden Clubs of America
National website: www.tgoa-mgca.org Local website: http://gardenclubgreenbay.weebly.com American Horticulture Society website: http://ahs.org
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay was begun
in 1967 and became chartered in 1968 by
the Men’s Garden Clubs of America (now The
Gardeners of America, Inc./The Men’s
Garden Clubs of America, Inc.).
Purpose and objectives of our club:
to educate its members and the public
and to promote interest in horticulture per-
taining to home gardening,
to acquire and disseminate horticultural
knowledge in regard to materials, plans,
and ideas in connection with home gar-
dens to and for the benefit of individuals
and communities,
and to encourage and promote civic inter-
est and pride in individuals and communi-
ties, and to encourage and promote pride
in individual or private gardens, commun-
ity plantings, and parks.
Membership is extended to serious gardeners
who have a concern for the above objectives
of the organization. Membership categories
and dues for 2016 are
1. $25 per individual,
2. $35 per family,
3. lifetime: $200; $5 annual local dues.
In addition to the tiller, members receive a
national newsletter.
At the national level, a photography contest is
held each year with photographs selected to
use for a calendar, five annual $1,000 scho-
larships are presented, Youth Gardening and
Gardening from the Heart programs are
implemented, a national convention is held,
and much more.
At the local level, members are involved with
numerous community institutions through
financial support and contributions of labor
and plant materials. Silver Trowel awards are
given to recognize contributions to com-
munity beautification, four awards are given
to youth in the Big Sunflower and Big
Pumpkin contests, and much more.
Shirley A. Winnes
Tiller Editor
301 David Drive
Green Bay WI 54303
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay