VOLUME8,Issue9,November2016
A Message from our Vice-President ~~~~~~~
HiEveryone.
HappyThanksgiving!
Ican’tbelievethatIamalreadymakingthatcomment.It’scrazythattheholidaysareinoursights.ImustsaythoughthatIhaveenjoyedthefallcolorsonafewtreesaroundthearea.
Idon’tknowifI’llgetachancetomakeituptoAppleHillnearPlacervillethisyear.Everyyearinthefallthereisaspec-tacularviewofautumncolorsinthefoothills.
I’mexcitedaboutourGardenersoftheGrovemeetingcominguponMonday,November7th.JenniferKhalfromtheSecretGardenwillbeourspeaker.Shewilldemonstratehowtomakeacolorfulwreath.That’saverytimelysubjectfortheholidays.BesuretoreadherarticleinthiseditionoftheScarecrow(seepage3).Also,don’tmisstheSecretGarden’sHolidayOpenHouse(seepage7).
WeareveryluckythatourClubwillbecontinuingintothefuture.I’mlookingforwardtoagreatyearofsharinggardeninginformationandideas.
Seeyousoonandhappygardening,
Bonnie Jones
Next Meeting ~~~~~ Monday,November7
Holiday WreathsJenniferKhal
TheSecretGarden(moreonpage3)
Inside This Issue ~~~~ 2–SassySucculents-Kalanchoe2–What’sBlooming?
3–ThisMonth’sSpeaker3–RemovePomegranateSeeds
4–What’sBlooming4–NovemberChecklist4–LastMonth’sSpeaker
5–SpeedyRecovery–RuthHayes5–UpcomingTour—Poinsettias!5–CalendarofEvents
TheScarecrow|November2016 2
Sassy Succulents ~~~~~~~~~~~ Kalanchoe(pronouncedkal-un-KOH-ee).ASouthAfricannative.Theseguysneedmorewaterthanmostsucculents.Bringtheminthehouseforwinterasmostofthemdon’tlikefrost.
Kalanchoeblossfeldiana.Theseareacommonplantfoundingrocerystoresandnurseries.Theymakebeautifulbloomsoveralongseason.Tryseveralwhiteonesinapotforholidaydecorating.
Kalanchoeluciae.ThePaddlePlant.Leafedgesaretingedredinthesun.Theycangetto18incheswidebutnotthattall.Snailswillpermanentlydisfigureleaves.
Kalanchoeluciae‘Fantastic’(nextcolumn)isthelovelyvar-iegatedversionofthePaddlePlant.Itgetsalittlebigger—upto2feettall/wide.
Kalanchoetomentosa.ThePandaPlant.Slowgrowingto2feettallandwide.Thesefurryleavedbeautiescantaketempsto25degrees.Theyliketobequitedryinwinter.
Kalanchoetomentosa‘ChocolateSoldier’.AwarmercolorversionofthePandaPlant.
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TheScarecrow|November2016 3
November Speaker ~~~~~~~~~~
JenniferKhalandDaniStutzmanfromTheSecretGardeninElkGrovewillpresentontheamazingversatilityand"craftability"ofsucculents.Weallknowhowamazingsuc-culentslookinpotsandinourgardens,butwhataboutinourpumpkins,onourwreaths,inourhair!Watchastheydemonstratehowtomaketwodifferentstylesofsucculentwreaths,teachingyoutechniquesyou'lleasilybeabletouseathometomakeyourownfabulousdecoratingandfashionaccessories.
Remove Pomegranate Seeds ~~~~ ByJanFetler
Nowyou’veharvestedthosepomegranatestoprotectthemfromrainandpotentialsplittingthatitcancause.OrmaybeyouboughtabunchattheFarmer’sMarket.Whiletheyarefreshfromthetreeisthebesttimetogetthoseseeds,calledarils,outforuseinthekitchen.
Beginbycuttingthroughtheskinfromendtoend.Thepic-tureshowsscoringinthirds,butquartersworktoo.Youonlyneedtogo1/4inchdeep.
Afullyripe,freshpomegranatewillsplitopenonitsownoryieldtomodestpressurewhencutlikethis.Breakthepomegranateintothirdsorquarters.
Holdthecutpiecewiththeseedsdowninyourhand.Ifyouhaveanolderpomegranateyoumightneedtogentlybendittoflattentheskinside.Useakitchentoolwithaheavyhandle.Thisslottedspoonhasaheavystonehandle.Holdthespooninonehandandwhackthebacksideofthepomegranatewiththehandle.Theseedswillliterallypopintothebowlthroughyourfingers.Iftheydon't,you'renothittingithardenough!
Thisbowlisholding20cupsofseedsthattookabout30minutestoremovefrom15pomegranates.It'sAMAZING!
Seedscomeoutnearlyperfect,readyforasaladorjuiceorjelly,or???!
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TheScarecrow|November2016 4
What’s Blooming? ~~~~~~~~~~ Okay,whatwillbeblooming?It’snottoolatetoplantseedsforSweetPeas.Theywillrewardyouwithprettyflowersandaheavenlyfragranceonawarmspringday.Findlotsofvarietiesatlocalgardenstores.
Soakseedsinwaterovernighttosoftenthetoughshell.Mostvarietiesliketoclimbatrellisornetting,butifthatdoesn’tworkforyou,lookforbushvarietiesthatstaytidyandevendowellinpots!
PhotobyJanFetler
Gardenism ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PhotobyJanFetler
November Garden Checklist ~~~
ByJanFetlerHerearesomesuggestionsforgardenchoresthismonth.
• Drainwaterfromtheirrigationsystemsbeforeturningitofftopreventicefromdamagingpipes.
• Plantvegetableseedsoutdoors:favabeans,bokchoi,chard,lettuce,mustard,spinach,radishesandpeas.
• Plantseedlingsofbokchoi,kale,lettuceandpeas.
• FertilizeOctober-plantedvegetables.
• Planfrostprotectionforcitrus,tenderperenni-als,succulentsandtropicalplants.Usewhenforecasttemperaturesdropbelowfreezing.
• Lethipsformonrosesforwintercolor.
• Cleantoolsbeforetheyarestoredforthewinter.Sharpenprunersforthewinterpruningseason.
• Savefallenleavestoaddtothecompostpilewhentherearefewer“browns”availablenextspringandsummer.
• Applycoppersprayonpeachesandnectarinestoreducepeachleafcurl.ApplyinlateNovemberorearlyDecemberafterleavesdrop.
• Cleanupplantwaste,fallenfruitanddeadfruitremainingontreestoreducediseaseandinsectsnextyear.
Last Month’s Speaker ~~~~~~~~
Thanksgotoournewestmember,VivianSellers,MasterGardener,forherpresentationonthecareandpropagationofperenni-als.Welearnedlotsofuse-fultipsandgotalistofsomenewfavoritetools.Whoknewa#2pencilworksbestonplantlabelsifyouwanttheprinttolast!PhotobyConnieAdamsGeorgiu
TheScarecrow|November2016 5
JeanneWilliamsongaveanupdateonRuthHayeswhosuf-feredastrokelastyear.
RuthisnowlivinginNorthCarolinawithtwoofhersisterswhowillhelpherinherrecovery.
RuthhopestobebackinSacramentointhespring.Jeanneprovidedmemberswithhernewcontactinformationsothattheycansendcards:
RuthHayesC/OGertrudeWatson2823FriarTuckRoadRaleigh,NC27610(919)212-8091
33andgoingstrong.Welcomebackeveryone!
Bringafriendtothenextmeeting—wewelcomevisitors!
Upcoming Tour ~~~~~~~~~~~~ ByBonnieJones
DuartePoinsettiaFarmonThursday,November17.
Ifyoulikepoinsettias,yousimplyhavetojoinus.YouwillbeAMAZED!
Duartebegansellingpoinsettias20yearsagowith500plants(allred).In2013theysoldtensofthousandsofpoinsettiasinmorethan25varieties.
Choosefromtableaftertablecoveredwithdifferentcol-oredpoinsettiasandaniceselectionofcyclamen.Mostplantsare$9foran8-inchpotoflushcolor.Alsoavailablearelotsofelegant“colorbowls”indecoratorpots.
ThenurseryislocatednearModesto,sowe’llgetanearlystartforthedriveofmorethananhour.Weplantostopforlunchbeforereturninghome.
DetailsattheNovembermeeting.Ifyoucan’tattendthemeetingbutwouldliketogoonthetour,pleasecall:
BonnieJones–684-1285orDianneCadwallader–685-5369
Thiswillbeafunday.Wehopeyouwillplantojoinus!
Calendar ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Next GOTG Meeting/
November7(Monday)6:30pm
JenniferKhal,TheSecretGardenHolidayWreaths
9250LagunaSpringsDr.,Suite100Keller-WilliamsReality,ElkGroveLocatedonthewestsideofLagunaSpringsacrossthestreetfromBJ’sRestaurant.
Franklin School Garden Club
November7(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
November28(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
TheScarecrow|November2016 6
Franklin School Garden Club Continued
January30(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
February27(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
March13(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
March27(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
April3(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
April24(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
May8(Monday)2:30till3:30pm
Other Events
November5(Saturday)9atill1p(public)
UCDavisArboretumFallPlantSaleGarrodDrive(acrossfromVetSchool),DavisFreeunlessyoubuysomething!http://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/
November5(Saturday)1ptill5pNovember6(Sunday)10atill4p
NationalChrysanthemumShowSacramentoMarriottRanchoCordova11211PointEDr.,RanchoCordovaFree!Seeflyeronpage9
November7(Monday)6ptill9p
ElkGroveCitizenoftheYearBanquetHonoringJimandAnnaclareEntricanValleyHiCountryClub$60perperson
November16(Wednesday)6:30ptill8:30p
PreservingPersimmons,Pomegranates&More!UCMasterFoodPreservers4145BranchCenterRoadSacramento,CA95827$5materialsfee.Noregistrationnecessary—juststopby!Moreinfo:875-6913
December10(Saturday)10atillNoon
AllDriedUp–FoodDehydratingtechniquesUCMasterFoodPreservers4145BranchCenterRoadSacramento,CA95827Free!Noregistrationnecessary—juststopby!Moreinfo:875-6913
Support Our Local Friends ~~~~ BigOakNursery
ElkGroveCommunityGarden
ElkGroveFoodBank
ElkGroveGreenerGardens
ElkGroveHistoricalSociety
GreenAcresNurseryandSupply
TheSecretGarden
UCCEMasterGardeners
Happy Thanksgiving!
PhotobyJanFetler
TheScarecrow|November2016 7
~~~ Gardeners of the Grove ~~~ Co-Presidents
ConnieGeorgiuandKathleenAlbiani
Vice-President–BonnieJones
Secretary–DianneCadwallader
Treasurer–LindaLichtenberg
POBox2418ElkGrove,CA95759-2418
http://www.gardenersofthegrove.orgFacebook:
https://www.facebook.com/GOTGElkGrove2016/
GardenersoftheGroveisamemberof:
SacramentoRiverValleyDistrict
CaliforniaGardenClubs,Inc.
PacificRegionofNationalGardenClubs,Inc.
NationalGardenClubsInc.
~~~ The Scarecrow ~~~ Editor–JanFetler
This Month’s Contributors:
BonnieJonesJenniferKhal
ConnieAdamsGeorgiuJeanneWilliamson