Hill Garden News. Message From The Board

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1 From: Subject: Date: To: Capitol Hill Garden Club CHGC Newsletter, April 2017 April 6, 2017 at 6:01 AM Joseph Purdy The Capitol Hill Garden Club's Hill Garden News April, 2017 Message From The Board As we look forward to the season for the Capitol Hill Garden Club, we find ourselves with what may be several key vacancies on the Board Of Directors. First, our president, Gail Guiffreda will be stepping down. Normally a 2 year position, Gail graciously offered to serve one year as President last year as we had no other members with the time or interest in doing so. You may recall that Ed Peterman, our Vice President was performing the duties of President. So, we are now seeking candidates to serve as President for the coming year. And, serving in a leadership position is a wonderful way to get to know the membership and offer your personal thoughts on the direction of the club. Meanwhile, we have 2 other Board members who are leaving Capitol Hill! Anthony Pontorno and Joseph Purdy have sold their home here, and will be living in Rehoboth Beach for a while. That means that the Club will need for someone to take Anthony's position (where he has served for 20 years) and serve on the Board as Hospitality Chair, organizing refreshments for meetings and events. Joe has been our webmaster and newsletter publisher for the past 4 years, so we ll need for one or 2 people to come forward and take over these responsibilities, too. If you are thinking that you may want to take on any of these tasks, you can find out more by calling on the people doing these jobs now. You may chat with Gail or Ed regarding what serving as President will involve. Joe can chat with you about doing the newsletter and website, and call Anthony about the position of Hospitality Chair. Remember, without members who perform functions like these, the Club cannot

2 Remember, without members who perform functions like these, the Club cannot exist. Spring Has Arrived! Photo Credit: Carol Edwards Photo Credit: Sonia Conly

3 Meetings and Events Our Next Event Salvias Featured Speaker: Piper Zittel, National Arboretum At our meetings, members enjoy lectures, demonstrations, and workshops. At this meeting, Piper Zittel from the National Arboretum will help us understand the defining characteristics of this important plant. How to spot, care and feed some of the ornamental and herbal varieties in our gardens sage chia and much more. Refreshments: Anthony needs 3 people to bring a sweet or savory treat to share. Click Here to tell him if you can do it. Tuesday, April 11, :15 p.m. Refreshments start at 6:45 Northeast Library 330 Seventh Street NE (7th St. and Maryland Ave.) Our Last Event Birds, Butterflies & Other Critters In Your Garden Featured Speaker: George Jett George Jett, conservationist from Lothian, Maryland, used his photographs to give us a lively talk about the plants and wildlife that can be found in our Capitol Hill gardens. We saw pictures of owls, hawks, and other birds, butterflies, moths and caterpillars and plants that host many critters. He also showed us photos of the small mammals (e.g., cotton tail rabbits), harmless snakes, and skinks that also occur here. After March's meeting he sent handouts that will be available in April describing ways to create bird-friendly and pollinator-friendly backyards. More information on Mr. Jett as well as some of his handouts can be found here on our website. Thanks to Sonia Conly and Sandra Bruce for organizing this program. And, thanks also to Eileen Reagan and Anthony Pontorno for bringing and setting up the coffee and tea; Betty Hageman, Doris Celarier, Marian Wiseman, and Mary Ann & Jerry Sroufe for the edible refreshments; and to Sonia and Bob Conly for setting up the meeting room.

4 Sonia and Bob Conly for setting up the meeting room. Save The Dates The next 2 event are favorites! The May Walk will be held on Tuesday May 9th at 6PM. The meeting point for this year's garden tour will be on F St NE between 9th and 10th. The owners of five gardens in a two block area will have about 15 minutes to discuss their gardens. We will end at the garden of Mike & Mona Andrews for garden talk & refreshments. Contact EJ now if you'll have time to help her with this event. The June Garden Party will be held on Sunday afternoon, June 4, at the Hill Center. Leanna Fenske and Sandra Bruce will co-chair the event. Attendees contribute a dish to the potluck-style lunch. Your contribution might be your special appetizer, entrée, side dish, salad, or dessert. Members each bring enough to serve eight people. To ensure a variety of dishes, the event organizer will be asking you to call and chat about what you will be bringing.this event is open to members only, with up to 2 guests per member permitted. Contact Leanna or Sandra now if you'll have time to help them with this event. More details will be provided about these events at the next club meeting and in the next newsletters. Other News From The Club Letter of Resignation Gail Martin Giuffrida This is to inform you that I will be regretfully resigning as President of the Capitol Hill Garden Club as of June Family commitments and the fact that I am not in DC for three very important months, namely January, February, and March when my husband, Mike and I go to our condo in Florida have precipitated this decision. The club will go back to very capable hands with Ed Peterman once again steering the ship in This does not mean I will abandon working with and for the club. My desire is to promote a better commitment to fund raising that I started this past year with a donation of $1000 from Derek Landscaping. My original thoughts on this were to implement a scholarship fund for a person to pursue a degree in environmental science or landscaping. The Capitol Hill Garden Club is the envy of our sister organizations in the region. We have at the moment 85 dues paying members and a healthy balance in our bank account. Our monthly

5 moment 85 dues paying members and a healthy balance in our bank account. Our monthly programs are outstanding and the committee chairs are creative and diligently responsible. Keep on thinking GREEN and GROWING Gail Martin Giuffrida Mulching At Eastern Market If you d like to help with a short, easy task - join a group from the Garden Club for about an hour on Saturday, April 8, at 8:00 AM at the North end of Eastern Market. We ll be weeding and mulching the tree boxes. Bring a rake, gloves and weed pulling tool if you have such items. Extra tools, water and a small snack will be provided. Please call or Leanna Fenske ( , leanna.fenske@gmail.com ) for questions or to sign up for the fun. Clean Up Day At Turtle Park The Community Projects Committee is again sponsoring a work day at Turtle Park on Saturday, April 22 from 9:00am to noon. We will do some general cleaning and a bit of weeding, and we will plant some perennials and possibly a small tree. Please come if you can help for an hour or longer. The park is located at the intersection of Independence and North Carolina Avenues., just north of Eastern Market. Bring garden gloves and digging tools if you have them. We will bring extras and some water for drinking. NCAGC Conference 2017 The National Capital Area Garden Club's Conference 2017 will be held at the Kenwood Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland on June 9 and 10. This conference is open to members of the Capitol Hill Garden Club and their guests. For more information, their flyer in on our website, Click Here Now to view it. Friends Of The Northeast Library The Friends of the Northeast Library (where we hold are meetings) is looking for a few more volunteers this year, and we re reaching out to groups who use the library often in hopes you can pass this message along to anyone interested in supporting the library. Mainly, volunteers are needed to sort through book donations about once a week and assist at book sales a few times per year. The sorting involves going through donated books, keeping nice titles that are likely to sell at a used book sale and putting the majority back into boxes to ship to Better World Books, an organization that supports global

6 majority back into boxes to ship to Better World Books, an organization that supports global literacy efforts. Funds from the Friends book sales are used to support library programs and supply needs. For more information, contact Heather or stop into the library to inquire. There Is So Much For Gardeners To Do In Washington The Capitol Hill Gardens Club's Local Events and Opportunities page on our website has lots of things for you to do in and around the Washington area. A great example is the Georgetown Garden Tour on Saturday May 13 from 10 to 5. This year there will be eight private gardens to inspire and enchant, plus Tudor Place in celebration of their 200th anniversary. Click Here Now for more information. Plan to visit this page often to see what new items are posted, or just visit the page one time and click Subscribe. When you subscribe, you'll receive automatic s each time a new activity is posted. Dear Problem Lady Feeling beset by gardening problems? Send them to the Problem Lady c/o theproblemlady@gmail.com. Your problems might prove instructive to others, and help them feel superior to you. Complete anonymity is assured. We have a cheerful Jasmine shrub that blooms in January. Friends tell me it is not really Jasmine because it has no scent. That is not my fault -- I do wish it did. Now I am curious about what true Jasmine is, and how I can get some. Your plant, a deciduous shrub with a weeping habit, is known as Winter Jasmine. It is extremely hardy here. While not a vine, it can cascade nicely down a slope, if you have one. Winter Jasmine, deciduous, zone 6-9, sun to part shade, yellow flowers in late winter, not fragrant Perhaps your friends allude to an evergreen vine with intensely fragrant blooms, also in late winter, that blooms all summer too. This is known as Carolina Jessamine or Jasmine. It is South Carolina s State Flower. It thrives there in zone 8 but it thrives here, too. It is hardy in the same zones as yours 6 through 9. Because it is a vigorous vine, you might wish to situate it on a strong trellis or fence.

7 it on a strong trellis or fence. Carolina Jessamine (or Jasmine), evergreen vine, zone 6-9, Intensely fragrant, small trumpet-shaped flowers spring through summer Our new townhouse back yard is entirely unplanted. There is a brick patio at the back door, a nine-foot wood fence around three sides, and nothing. What perennials do you suggest we might plant first? The Problem Lady loves a tabula rasa, but not if it exists inside the gardener s own mind! Please stop all planting plans for a few seconds to focus on some questions. What purpose must this back yard serve in your life? A place to sunbathe? Meditate? Entertain? Impress your mother? Grow vegetables? Bury pets? Does your household consist of other persons beside yourself? For example, do you have a three-year-old child whose needs might be fully met by a sand box and a birdbath? Will you receive gardening help from spouse or friend? From which direction, and for how long, does sunshine enter the yard? Does your yard have any exposure to winds coming from the Northwest? Of what composition is the existing soil in your yard? Why must you know? How will you water your garden? It is easier to install an underground watering system now, at the outset, before any planting, if you can afford one. Do you wish to have any trees or shrubs? Do you like shade gardens at all? What Hardiness Zone do you live in? How much time each week, if any, can you devote to caring for -- nay, working in -- a garden? Some say this work is a garden s chief pleasure. How many Capitol Hill backyards have you seen? Capitol Hill Garden Club monthly Programs and Walks can provide ideas close to home that might blow your mind! Contact Information Gail Guiffrida, President Joseph Purdy, Webmaster Click here for a complete list of our Club's Key Contacts Visit Our Website! or Find us on facebook. For More Information about the Capitol Hill Garden Club please visit our website or find us on facebook. Copyright 2016 Capitol Hill Garden Club. All rights reserved. Contact heyjoe.here@verizon.net You are receiving this message because you opted in at

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