President's Letter November 2018

Dear Friends,

It is the middle of October and it has been a whirlwind week. It began with Rick Darke’s program for our joint meeting with Garden Club of Cleveland. Our sister club brought us a wonderful speaker, known for his work in regenerative landscapes. Rick’s knowledge and experience is immense. He is recognized for his use of native plants to restore habitats and to design landscapes. His photos and videos were stunning. I know that when I have future walks in the woods, I will be more observant of the collaboration between trees, shrubs and plants. Many thanks to GCC for putting on a special program.

It was also a pleasure to hear Keri Plevin speak about her work on prairie restoration. Keri is our 2018 Grosscup Scholar. She gave a fascinating talk about her work in establishing prairies to restore depleted fields. She showed beautiful before and after photos of tired land restored with the use of native prairie plants. She also highlighted how these restorations attract wild life. For one so young, Keri was a poised and engaging speaker.

The next day, Susan White and I were bound for Dayton, Ohio, and the Zone X Presidents’ Council Meeting. Did you know that “you can’t have a day without Dayton”? We learned the answer to that tantalizing question along with an amazing amount of information from our Zone Representatives and GCA leadership. Our Dayton Garden Club hosts gave us a warm welcome and exceptional hospitality. Our Zone Chairman, Lindsey Clark, happens to be one of my oldest friends; we met at age 5. I look forward to sharing information and ideas from our Zone X garden clubs with you.

One of the most exciting initiatives announced at the meeting was from our Zone Horticulture Chair, Nancy Linz. Remember Nancy? She had all those exquisite irises at our Flower Show this past June. She is passionate about Horticulture! She has introduced a plan for a Native Plant Month for the state of Ohio. After enlisting the help of State Representative Scott Wiggam to sponsor this bill to Ohio’s legislature, Nancy now needs the help of each garden club member. Please read the article linked here and contact your local state representative. Click here for a suggested letter written by Nancy Linz. The benefit of an April Native Plant Month will increase the awareness of the value of native plants for pollinators, our economy, and the environment. With Rick Darke’s and Keri Plevin’s words fresh in my mind, support of this bill makes imminent sense.

 Fondly, Mary Bruce

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