To Celebrate SLGC’s First Century as a Member of the Garden Club of America

In 1915 a group of ladies gathered to plan a garden for installation at the western end of Lower Shaker Lake.  This was the first accomplishment of the organization that came to be called the Shaker Lakes Garden Club.  Five years later that group elected to join the fledgling national organization called the Garden Club of America, an organization that had formed in 1912 to pull together garden clubs from across the United States in a like-minded sisterhood (as it was then) of clubs whose goal was to educate their members and neighbors on botanic, artistic, and conservation topics.  Both SLGC and GCA went on to prosper.

Now, in 2020, the SLGC has selected and begun implementation of a plan to celebrate our centennial as a member club of GCA.  After lengthy consideration, a committee of our members has chosen to celebrate this century by planting a grove of native trees at the southwestern end of Lower Shaker Lake.  Those trees have been selected to be long-lived – hopefully, at least a century themselves.  They are native varieties that will serve to feed and house native pollinators, birds, and wildlife.  And the club will establish an educational platform to explain to the public the values of these particular trees, and perhaps other native trees as well, once the grove is in place.

The grove is being planted in the area immediately west of Lover’s Lane, between Doan Brook and South Park Boulevard.  This area was devastated by tree loss following last year’s microburst.  Six trees are to be planted in our grove this fall, all of 2” caliper or better.  The tree varieties are Aesculus flava, the Yellow Buckeye;  Acer rubrum, the Red Maple;  Carpinus caroliniana, the American Hornbeam;  Gymnocladus dioica, the Kentucky Coffee Tree;  Nyssa sylvatica, the Tupelo (or Black Gum, or Pepperidge);  and Quercus muhlenbergii, the Chinkapin Oak.  Most of these are not commonly planted in the Shaker Parklands, but all are valuable and hardy trees native to Cuyahoga County.  We have researched their potential lifespans given changing climate conditions forecast here over coming decades, as well as known diseases and pests, and feel fairly sure that the trees will remain hearty over time.

This panoramic photo shows a number of committee members standing at the sites where trees will be planted,  From left to right, you will see Cynthia Druckenbrod as the Buckeye, Gail Clarry as the Oak, Robin Schachat as the Hornbeam, Dozie Herbruck as the Maple, Barb Shockey as the Kentucky Coffee, and Suzy Hartford as the Tupelo.  Jane Ellison was the photographer.  Not pictured are Sarah Dimling (co-chair), Leigh Fabens, and Lee Jacobs.

If you have any questions about the project, please ask any one of us.  We’ve put a lot of research into the project and hope you all will become as excited about it as we already are.  Soon to come?  A tour for club members!