KEY WEST GARDEN CLUB !!!!!2016!

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1 KEY WEST GARDEN CLUB!! Summer Newsletter!!!!!2016! Message from the President Dear Garden Club Members, Summer at the Martello is always a challenge due to the departure of many of our stalwart volunteers. This summer produced some new volunteers who have taken on many of the weekly responsibilities. We have managed to get everything watered and cleaned with around 20 volunteers each week. The slower summer season hasn t dampened our visitors schedules. We are showing off our flora to ever more locals and tourists. Our weekly column in the Key West Citizen on Sundays is going strong with a little help from the members. We are on our 440th week. That s 7 1/2 years of educating the public about Keys plants. The new policy of selling flowering plants from propagation in the Fort courtyard is a bust-out success. Thanks to our receptionists we have hosted a myriad of weddings this summer. The temperature is dropping degree by degree. Welcome to fall. Scholarship Award Thank you to Annette Liggett for all her work with our scholarship program. For 30 years the Key West Garden Club has provided scholarships to deserving Keys students whose studies align with the interests of the club. The goal of the Lois Kitching Scholarship is to honor a Key West High School senior who holds a well-balanced commitment to academics and the environmental community. The total scholarship amount is $4,000. Upon successful completion of an application and all renewal requirements, $1,000 will be given annually for a maximum of 4 years. This scholarship has been awarded to Sydney Gallagher and was presented to her at the Annual Class Night in June. Sydney is a 2016 graduate of Key West High School and was accepted into the University of Florida s Freshman Academic Honors Program where she plans to major in Environmental Science and Biology. Sydney is a dedicated student with outstanding grades and during her high school years was a leader in numerous clubs and organizations. The scholarship committee was especially impressed with her love of travel and her leadership skills in fundraising and doing community service projects in Kenya and Haiti. One recommender said it well: Sydney is a seasoned and accomplished candidate for your scholarship; she is the epitome of your (Lois Kitching) motto, Promise little, do much. Congratulations, Sydney! We are so pleased to help support your Gator career!

2 Propagation. From Kitty Somerville: Hot, hot, hot..that is what propagation in the summer has been. We ve had some nice showers to keep the plants happy, but it seems to be hotter than we can all remember. Sharon Lieberman s living wall is growing well. The staghorn ferns that Lynne and Mary propagated from Kitty s big plant are getting big and are lush green. Barbara Smith s palm seeds from Pat Roger s garden have germinated and are 3 tall and we have our fingers crossed that they grow to healthy palms. The dozen amaryllis bulbs from Carol Borland s garden are showing potential for beautiful flowers like this one from last year. Jason Lopez, our consultant from Fairchild Tropical and Botanical Gardens said to always check to see that the plants are bright green, and with TLC and lots of rain, the propagation plants are lush and green. In just a few weeks we will be starting our tomato and herb seeds to have for sale before and at the November plant sale. Sharon Thomas will be ready to educate us on those tasty plants. The June crew of propagation volunteers: Kitty Somerville, Mary Brady, Barbara Smith, Carol Borland, Sharon Lieberman, Lynne Bentley- Kemp and Christa Varacalli. Sharon Lieberman created this beautiful living wall. She has also made several very popular succulent dish gardens that we have for sale.

3 Garden Volunteers June is the perfect time to propagate staghorn ferns. Mary Brady learned the how to with veteran propagation volunteer, Lynne Bentley-Kemp. Thanks to Claudette Getters and Kitty Somerville for sharing a few of their staghorn fern pups. These will be for sale at the plant sale November 19 and 20.

4 International Volunteers. From Rosi Ware: Rosi, Henry and his Dad. " An English couple with their 10 year old son, Henry, visited the gardens one Monday morning, and offered to work in the gardens with the other volunteers. They were in transit from Japan, where they had been living for the past 4 years, back to England, and wanted to make an adventure of their journey. They had stopped in many different places in the USA, and everywhere they visited they had volunteered to "give back" something to the local community; in Key West they chose the Garden Club! All three worked very hard and enthusiastically, clearing weeds and Ruellia from the top of the hill for 3 hours! Henry filled 10 wheelbarrows, and emptied them into our brush bin over the course of the morning...and did not want to leave! What a wonderful outlook and spirit to engender in the next generation!" Thanks to Rosi for her indefatigable enthusiasm and hard labor in managing the gardens. Isabella and Vincent from Cudjoe Key The Skeleton orchid crew, Glen and Sharon

5 Floral Design Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Polka Dot Bikinis and Summer!!!

6 Around the Garden Garden Club Patron, Fran Ford, on a visit with her new support dog Hunter. West Martello was the venue for the MARC Ice Cream Social. Lots of folks showed up for the treats. View from the Peace Garden at the top of the hill.

7 Sometimes our receptionists get a little crabby. Our new table in the orchid arbor.

8 Notes from Fort Chair, Hazel Hans: Fort Update: The Fort is perking along this summer. We have a new drinking fountain, so still have cool drinking water for our visitors and volunteers but have eliminated the mountain of cups we were buying and recycling. Your Clean and Green Committee reminds you that while recycling is good, reducing is even better. We also have new eco-flush toilets, thanks to the County. No more clogs we hope. We have been replacing bulbs in the Fort with LED bulbs. You will notice it is much brighter in the floral design area but with huge energy savings. Maintenance is ongoing and our current project is repainting the outdoor metal furniture. Throughout the warm humid, often wet summer days, our receptionists carry on while dealing with computer glitches, greeting even more visitors than last year as well as coordinating events. As always, say Hi! and Thanks! Chicken Update: Some of you may have noticed the trap we put out for chickens every summer. The reason we trap them is to minimize the mess made on our brick walkways when the chickens scratch in the mulch for bugs. We try to keep the hens with a brood of chicks out of the garden, as those mothers are the most vigorous scratchers. This is why the gates have mesh to the ground. The mature chickens, of course, just fly in and out over the fence. Inquiring minds may wonder what happens to the chickens we trap. Key West is a bird sanctuary so we take the chickens to Key West Wildlife Center at the Indigenous Park on White St. They have a large holding pen for the chickens, separate from the areas where they treat and rehabilitate injured birds. The feral chickens are well cared for (The City of Key West funds this care) until they are relocated to good homes in the mainland. Our Key West chickens are survivors, they roost in trees at night, so have a much higher survival rate than domesticated chickens. The Wildlife Center has established relationships with some farmers who are very pleased to have Key West chickens in their organic groves and farms eating insects and aerating the soil, saving money and time. And we are pleased to have a positive relationship with our neighboring non-profit; propagation has donated a number of native plants to the Wildlife Center; and many of you may have enjoyed their annual fundraiser held at West Martello, with the highlight of a bird release on the beach. If you have not been over to see their permanent exhibits and to enjoy the Indigenous Park, a special place which attracts all sorts of birds, butterflies and other wildlife, take the time to do so. Check out their website at keywestwildlifecenter.org for more information on our Key West chickens and the rehabilitation services for wildlife the Center provides. Many members have asked and will be happy to hear that we now have more embroidered aprons in our merchandise. Thank you to Hazel and Bob Hans for their amazing energy in keeping the Fort in good condition. Au Revoir to Mali Wagner Our membership Chair, Mali Wagner, has sold her house on Bay Point and moved back with family to Buffalo, N.Y. We will miss her bright smile and clever ideas. Mali was not only a great membership chair but also worked tirelessly for the environment. She and Hazel Hans have done much for the Club as our Clean and Green Team. Hazel would love to have other members step up to help with this Committee. We hope Mali will come and visit us often. Our new Membership Chair is Christa Varacalli. Christa has graciously accepted the post and you will be hearing from her soon. A note to members, please add Christa s membership address to your contacts so her missives do not go into SPAM. kwgcmembership@gmail.com. A huge thank you to Christa!

9 Working with other non-profits This summer the Club made donations to silent auctions for the Hospice/VNA and Mel Fisher days. The latter was to help with the nonprofit Wesley House Family Services. We donated plants, merchandise and books. The Buccaneer palm donated for Wesley House was bid on by a couple who live on the Gulf Coast and who later came to the Club to buy two more of the palms. They were impressed with our gardens! The KWGC has agreed to help the Boys and Girls Club in working with the children if they receive a grant from the Community Foundation of the Florida Keys. The program is Positive Sprouts and will be teaching gardening techniques to the young ones. From Receptionist, Ron Zemlicka: I had a very interesting discussion today with a gentleman from southern Illinois, the home of some of the best soil in the world. He was curious about the creation of our garden, which evolved into a brief conversation. I explained how naturally there is no soil in the Keys (just sand and rock) and that the early Garden Club members had to start the garden from nothing. The black and white picture over my left shoulder at the desk is always a terrific visual. Anyway, when I mentioned that the garden is about 1 ½ acres he asked, Do you know how many tons of soil are on an acre, assuming the soil is only 6 inches deep? Obviously I knew the answer immediately (NOT), and waited for his information. The answer is 1 acre of soil, 6 inches deep, is 1500 tons. A standard dump truck holds 15 tons of soil. The Club has certainly been busy over the years!!! From Yard Sale Coordinator, Donna Farrow: Hey! Garden Club Members. It is Fall and time for cleaning out cabinets and closets, so keep in mind that we will have our annual Yard Sale November 19 and 20 as part of our Annual Plant and Art Sale. Please keep your precious items for our sale. If you have a special need to get things out of your home, contact Donna Farrow at dkfarrow@verizon.net or We have very limited space to store things, but will try to work with you. Otherwise we will be collecting items beginning Monday, November 14th at the Garden Club. Trip Advisor quotes, all five star!! A cool Oasis The Garden Club have developed a really lovely tranquil garden in the ruined Martello tower. Lots of lovely places to sit in the shade as well as great number of different plant varieties. Reviewed Sept 12, 2016 Derby, United Kingdom Go there! This is a great place in Key West! We have been there during noon and we really enjoyed this place. It is a very calmed and relaxed place which is maintained by volunteers. They were very nice and friendly. When you're in Key West go to this place and enjoy!! Germany Reviewed July 27,2016 Thanks to Kitty and Steve Somerville for monitoring Trip Advisor. The new Year Book is ready and can be picked up at the front desk. If you would like the online version just send a request to Sue Sullivan, keywestsuzie@gmail.com.

10 Programs We look forward to welcoming our members back from their travels and hope the summer went well for all. Jane Tiedeman has a great line-up for our general meetings. Hope to see you there! Thursday, October 6, :30 PM, West Martello Peter Kuchalakos, PCK Orchids Orchids, of Course! Thursday, November 3, :30 PM, West Martello Kathryn DePoo Edible Plants to Grow in Keys Environment!!A special, HUGE thank you to all who volunteered at the Club during an especially hot summer in Key West. You should all be proud of yourselves. The Gardens look beautiful. Many thanks for photos from Robin Robinson, Kitty Somerville, Lynne Bentley-Kemp, Eloise Pratt, Sue Sullivan, Hazel Hans and Kathleen Gillis. Thank you for edits from Joyce Drake and Christa Varacalli. Editor, Sue Sullivan Volunteers who came in on a non-work day to have lunch in the peaceful atmosphere of the Gardens,