Next Meeting Tuesday May 14th

There will be more info, but our next meeting will be 7:00, May 14th (second Tuesday of the month), in the community room at Templeton Pool.

Also, the GGC plant sale is Sunday May 5th on Rose St. 10-2.

GGC's new meeting day, new venue! Next meeting, March 12th!

We're changing both our meeting day and our venue and we just want to make sure you save the date. March 12th.

 Our new meeting place is the community room at Templeton Pool. It’s a nice big room and perfect for us. It was available on Tuesdays. Now we’ll be meeting on the second TUESDAY of each month (except for April, which is Templeton's pool-maintenance closure). We’re not sure where we’ll meet for April — it might be an outing or it might be Zoom —  but we’ll let you know.

 So our first meeting at Templeton will be on Tuesday, March 12th.

 Topic: Lawn Alternatives: Enhancing the Ecological Value of Your Garden by Replacing Your Lawn with Low Groundcovers

 Speaker: Jane Sherrott.

 Jane is a hobby gardener who lives on the North Shore. She has been a knowledgeable and valued member of the Vancouver Master Gardeners Association since 1998. Like many of us, she is trying to learn more about developing ecologically-vibrant habitat in her garden and her presentation will share how she has seen life return to the previously grassed areas at her home and cabin on the Sunshine Coast after she replaced the lawns with easy-care, low plants  that require minimal care or watering once established.  

 Manicured grass lawns attract chemicals, mowers and blowers. Jane will discuss planting tough, easy-care groundcovers that support butterflies, bees and birds across all four seasons while also serving as a usable lawn.

Any questions? Send an email to grandviewgardenclub@gmail.com

 

Our Grandview Garden Club Holiday Potluck Dinner — December 14th!

For our GGC December meeting this year, we will be hosting a Holiday Potluck Dinner, 6-8, Thursday, December 14th. It will be held in the Grandview Room at Trout Lake Community Centre (3360 Victoria Drive). 

Please bring:

• Food to share — appetizer, main, salad, dessert — whatever you like, with serving utensils. We will have access to limited kitchen facilities, but it would probably be best if you could figure out a dish that doesn’t require an oven or too much fuss.
• Your own plate, silverware, and a glass or cup.
• Whatever you would like to drink. (Note: No open alcohol is allowed at Trout.)
• Your partner, if you like…

No need to RSVP! We just hope to see you there!

________________

Note: We will not be having a January GGC meeting this year. Our February meeting will be on Zoom (details to follow closer to the date). We will finally meet again in person for our March meeting; the date and venue will be announced as soon as we figure it all out. 

Any questions? Send an email to grandviewgardenclub@gmail.com. 

Season’s Greetings, everyone! See you at our festive Potluck!

Penny Street

 

Grandview Garden Club Xmas Party Potluck

 A GGC Christmas Party

Instead of a regular meeting in December, we are going to have a potluck Christmas party. 

Time: 6 - 8 pm  

Date: December 14th (our usual second Thursday evening) 

Place: Grandview Room, Trout Lake Community Centre, 3360 Victoria Drive

More information will be coming soon. We hope to see you there. 

We also thought you'd like to know about the Handmade Sale taking place tomorrow, Saturday November 25, in the basement of Grandview Church at First Ave and Salsbury. 

One of our Garden Club members, Shawn Preuss, will be there selling her beautiful woodwork, including bowls made from fallen trees in our neighbourhood.

November Meeting

 Hi. 

We’ve had a bit of trouble securing an appropriate meeting space at Britannia for our regular second-Thursday meeting night, so this month we’re going to be meeting via Zoom. (Now that it’s dark by 5:00 p.m. — boo hoo — at least it’s easier to be able to meet via Zoom and not have to venture out.)

Our November speaker is Daniel Mosquin, and he’ll be talking to us on two topics, "Native Plants" and “Garden Photography Tips”. We’ll be meeting this Thursday night (November 9th), at 7:00 p.m.

Here’s the link! Remember that Zoom start time is 7:00.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89696094312

Daniel Mosquin is currently the Research and Biodiversity Informatics Manager at UBC Botanical Garden, where his duties include teaching the plant sciences coursework for UBC's Horticulture Training Program. He is also an accomplished photographer, using his camera to seek moments and places where some measure of beauty is to be found.

His presentation will focus on why gardeners should consider using native plants, with an emphasis on highlighting particular native plants for Lower Mainland gardens. Woven throughout will be Daniel's observations on these plants in wild habitats and how to use them in gardening situations.

He will follow his native-plant talk with a second, shorter presentation giving you composition tips to improve your photography, illustrated with photos of plants and gardens from his travels. 

See you Thursday!

We’re also hoping to organize a GGC holiday potluck supper. We’ll let you know as our plans progress.

And do let me know if you’re thinking you might want to take over the GGC communication responsibilities. I’ll be happy to meet with you and go over what’s involved.

Cheers,

Penny

GGC October 4th meeting reminder: "The Complete Talk on Groundcovers"

GGC tomorrow night!! Wednesday, October 4th!!

See below. We're co-hosting with Seed to Sky and meeting at 7 pm. It's Gary Lewis and his presentation "The Complete Talk on Groundcovers,"  in the Lower Hall of Cityview Church at East 28th and Sophia.  Please enter from East 28th.

He will be bringing a few plants to sell, so please bring cash if you think you'd like to buy some.

Penny Street

grandviewgardenclub@gmail.com

https://grandviewgardenclub.blogspot.com

From: Elaine Spilos <espilos@telus.net>
Date: Wed, Sep 27, 2023 at 1:05 PM
Subject: Subject October 4th meeting reminder: "The Complete Talk on Groundcovers"
To: <seedtosky@googlegroups.com>

Seed to Sky and Grandview Garden Clubs are co-hosting this month. Gary Lewis is presenting on "The Complete Talk on Groundcovers,"  in the Lower Hall of Cityview Church at East 28th and Sophia.  Please enter from East 28th.

Wednesday, October 4, 7 pm

Gary, our presenter, is an avid plant person, the author of The Complete Book of Ground Covers, a sought-after speaker, and the owner of Phoenix Perennials in Richmond.  We are thrilled to have him with us.

He will talk to us about the functional and aesthetic value of groundcovers, and inspire us with his beautiful photos of these valuable plants.  

Please remember to bring:

• a mug for tea
• a donation for the draw table or refreshment table
• a pillow/something soft to cushion your chair (if you get a metal one)
• $5 drop-in fee for non-members (of either club)

We would appreciate some Seed to Sky helping hands arriving early at 6:30 to 6:45 to help set up chairs and the tables.  Thank you in advance.

Seed to Sky members, another reminder, this time about the quest for a logo for our club.  Thank you for the interest that has been shown already.  Please submit your design by December 6, the date of our last event of this year, to espilos@telus.net on behalf of the executive.  

See you on October 4th, 7 pm!

Elaine Spilos

Seed to Sky Education Coordinator

 

                                                                    

                                          

Our September Meeting — A Farm Visit

 

Hello friends,

We’ll be having our Grandview Garden Club meeting on Thursday, September 14th, in person. And we’re doing something a little bit unusual this time.

We will meet at 5:00 p.m. at Katherine Oblock’s South Burnaby farm.

Katherine is inviting us to hold our September GGC meeting at her farm. September is usually a good month weather-wise, so let’s just hope the weather cooperates....

Those of us who have already visited her farm know how impressive it is, and since we didn't have a field trip this summer, this is a good opportunity to do that and also support one of our own members. 

Katherine says: 

Come join us for a fun & informative talk at Big Bend Urban Farms! Katherine Oblock will be providing a tour of this unique 2.9 acre piece of ALR land in South Burnaby, which currently has 8 different urban farming projects & a small community garden on-site. Once the site context has been established, we will learn more about the specifics of what Katherine & her husband J.P. are growing, how they are applying their values of land stewardship in this unique urban/rural/intensive agriculture environment & what they have learned over the past 2 seasons.

After the talk, we will each use fresh flowers from their field to make a small seasonal floral arrangement to take home. Please bring a pair of secateurs if you have them & a clean jar to put your floral arrangement into.  

The address for the farm is 4972 Byrne Rd. Folks can park on Byrne Rd. & enter the farm through a woodchipped driveway next to a purple shed with a red roof.  

A few safety / housekeeping notes regarding the farm: 

• Please wear closed-toed shoes that are good for walking on uneven surfaces
• There are bees & wasps on site, if anyone has a serious allergy, please come prepared
• It is a working farm with some hazards - please stay on designated paths & please don't wander into other people's fields
• We have a simple sawdust composting toilet available for folks to use if need be
• As always, please dress for the weather!

It might require a bit of car-pooling and bringing some extra chairs, but this will be a great way to round out the summer. 

Please let us know if you are coming at grandviewgardenclub@gmail.com— Katherine needs to know how many guests to expect — and if you need a ride or will provide a ride for others. If it’s easy for you to take along a chair or two, please do.

Cheers,

Penny