Upcoming Meetings

May brings on the colorful azaleas, including this fragrant, deciduous variety. 

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THANK YOU, CAPERS, for coming out in droves to support our annual Plant Sale fundraiser — We are so grateful for your support!!!   Your loyal support despite the muddy field moved all of our 5 varieties of Milkweed during and after the sale, along with all our perennials & annuals for sun and shade.
THANK YOU for your generous and continuing support!

We always accept empty plant pots, red solo cups, and *plastic* venetian mini-blinds to cut up for plant tags for use in our plant sale.  Please drop either anytime in the driveway at 1121 River Bay Road.  Thanks for helping us to reduce and reuse!

Friday evenings & Saturday mornings in April: Potting Parties at various locations, please contact capegardenclub@gmail.com if you’d like to join the fun.

Tuesday, May 7th, 7pm: Members’ Preview Auction & Plant Sale Planning
Saturday, May 18th, 8am-2pm:   PLANT SALE     Event on 

Tuesday, June 4th, 7pm: Dr. Harold White speaks on Dragonflies & Damselflies.  Come learn about these important predator insects that provide natural pest control for our gardens.

Saturday, June 22nd: Secret Garden Tours

July & August: summer break

All meetings are held in the Cape St. Claire Clubhouse meeting room (1223 River Bay Road, 21409) unless otherwise noted.  Questions?  Phone Catherine at 410-212-1944 or salca01@comcast.net, or reach us at capegardenclub@gmail.com.  New faces always welcome!

Read more about our year’s events and speakers.

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Dividing Perennials Workshop

Happy spring, everyone!

Our Members gathered at our April meeting to prepare for our plant sale by learning to divide and pot up perennials for our sale.  We shared an informative slideshow and discussion on the tools and methods of  Dividing Perennials, then jumped right in to get our hands dirty!  Thanks to all the Members who made this such a fun and productive evening, and especially those who stayed to wipe, sweep, and put everything away.  Many hands make such light work and we so appreciate your hard work!

2019 Plant Sale Preview

You’re invited to join us on Saturday, May 18th for our annual PLANT SALE — A Cape tradition!  Until then, please feast your eyes on these gorgeous plants that we will have available at the sale!

*** Click for our Plant Sale Event on Facebook   ****

 

 

Color in the Winter Garden

The winter garden can seem grey and dull, yet we learned it doesn’t have to be so!  At our February meeting, Members learned all about plants that provide color, structure, and even fragrant blooms – yes, in the dead of winter!

We learned how our eyes perceive color only in bright, even light, and Catherine presented beautiful photographs from the entire colorwheel: white, pink, red, purple, blue, yellow, orange.  We remembered the intrepid explorers who brought us seeds and cuttings of magnificent plants from Europe, Asia, and the Middle east, giving us garden jewels like Camellias, witch hazels, and all our spring blooming bulbs.  Thanks to Catherine for such an informative, colorful, and inspiring talk, giving Members many ideas for future plantings in their own gardens!

You can see the entire slideshow here: Color in the Winter Garden.  Enjoy!

Wreath-Making Workshop 2018

So many wreaths, so many hands — all done in one hour. Now it’s time for our gift exchange!

Every year, our Members bring evergreen cuttings from over own gardens to use in creating festive evergreen wreaths together.  Two have always been donated to decorate the Maryland Statehouse, along with wreaths from dozens of other Maryland garden clubs.  Three are made for the Cape Clubhouse doors, one for the Guard Shack, and new this year, one was donated to the Broadneck Library.  We are so grateful to our Members who contribute their greens and handiwork for this workshop, and for another productive and educational year of gardening fun and fellowship.

Clubhouse Doors

Witch hazel blooming amidst our evergreen cuttings

The youngest gardeners are great at shuttling supplies while we work

Making the wreaths: 2 on straw forms, 5 on wire

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And what a year 2018 was!  We added 10 new Members, had another record-breaking Plant Sale, began our Zero Waste Initiative, and made seven evergreen wreaths together,

No more landfill waste!

also a new record.  Thanks to all our hard-working Members who made all this possible — we so appreciate your contributions!

And finally, we said a fond farewell to our founder and former president Kitty Donovan.  Members shared stories from our times together, and we sent to her family our condolences and appreciation of all her years of service to the Garden Club.  

September 2018: Members Sharing Garden Stories Slideshow

Members gathered after our summer break to catch up and hear each others’ news.  In addition, we are proud to have the Garden Club go ZERO WASTE, thanks to the efforts of our hardworking Member Tracy, who volunteered to lead the effort!

 

Click to see our entire slideshow!
Sharing Garden Stories Sept 2018 + Zero Waste Plan

Nibbling Caterpillar Video from Audrey’s Science slide is viewable here + info on Swallowtails cocoons here

Bay-Wise Challenge is On!

This February, we had speakers from the Bay-Wise Program (A project of the Maryland Extension and Master Gardeners), who showed us simple steps we can all take while gardening at home, to protect our precious Chesapeake Bay.  All the steps serve the larger goal: to reduce pollutant flows into the Bay by soaking in and filtering rain water from our yards.

Some of those easy steps  that we learned are: Mowing our grass high with a mulching mower, picking up pet waste daily, keeping storm drains clear, directing downspouts into flower beds so the water soaks in, adding rain barrels or rain gardens, planting groundcovers to decrease erosion, watering at dawn or dusk to reduce evaporation, reducing pesticide use, using slow-release or organic fertilizers and compost.  You can read more at their website or see the entire checklist online.

Club Members enthusiastically took up a challenge to get more gardens certified Bay-Wise, and to help spread the word to our neighbors about gardening Bay-Wise.  Our Clubhouse Committee even got the beds at our neighborhood Clubhouse certified.  We are so excited about contributing to the CSCIA efforts to manage stormwater run off in our community, and to help spread the word to residents that they too can contribute right in their own gardens.

Our waterways contribute such joy and quality of life to all of us here in Maryland, so please join us in protecting our waterways!  Visit the Bay-Wise website or see the entire checklist online.  Thanks for reading!

Clubhouse Committee gets Bay-Wise certified!  

 

 

 

 

Larry & Margarette get certified

Kari gets Bay-Wise certified

Larry & Margarette, and Kari get Bay-Wise Certified, and Carol and Kathy as well!

 

Kathy gets Bay-Wise certified

Carol gets certified Bay-Wise

 

Jeanne M gets certified!

Barb W gets certified!

 

Jeanne M, Barb W, Jeanne K, and Audrey & helpers get Bay-Wise Certified!

Jeanne gets Bay-Wise Certified!

Audrey & helpers get Bay-Wise certified.

2018 Secret Garden Tours

Thanks to Garden Tours Chair Paula Brand for setting up another year of beautiful gardens for us to visit.  We saw many gorgeous plants, novel foliage, colorful fruits, a beautiful rain garden, and elegant stone paths.

Special thanks to our hosts, the Perrys, the Holoskis, and the Ridgeways, for sharing their gardens and even edible fruits from the vine for us to nibble while we toured — delicious and delightful!

Such a sassy group of gardeners!

We were invited to taste so we did. Delicious!

So many edibles at the Ridgeways!

Hypericum, beautiful & delicious

Beautiful border at the Perrys’

Catching stormwater never looked so good!

Admiring the Perry’s Garden

Admiring the Holoski’s serene oasis

Beautiful while Growing Food at the Ridgeways’ Garden.