President's Letter - November 2020

Greetings, Garden Friends,

Trees!  I have tree news. At our Board meeting this morning we voted to go ahead with a tree planting project to commemorate our 100th year of affiliation with the Garden Club of America.  A grove of six trees will be planted near the Lower Lake in the chain of lakes the Shakers dammed in the mid-19th century. The space is west of “Lovers’ Lane” and south of the footbridge over the west end of the lake as it empties into Doan Brook on the way out to Lake Erie. This area was hit hard by the microburst in September 2019 and a number of surviving trees are not in good shape. Our trees will be native species.

A little background: When we began thinking about our GCA Anniversary, an initial suggestion was mass plantings of daffodils around the Shaker Lakes. We wanted to highlight our history with the Lakes – there’s our name, of course, but a number of our members were instrumental in the drive to save the Lakes and surrounding neighborhoods from the freeways that the County Engineer wanted to build through these spaces we treasure. That unfolded in the early 1970’s, and the establishment of the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes was one result. Those ladies were indomitable!

As we delved into the project, we learned that daffodils would be problematic for a variety of reasons. Trees would be not only long-lasting – another century? – but would provide year-round interest and would help to repair the devastation of the microburst. A committee led by Sarah Dimling, Robin Schachat and Cynthia Druckenbrod met and worked with the Shaker Heights Forester, the Friends of Lower Lake, and the leadership of the Doan Brook Watershed, among other interested parties. Because the Board took action at the last board meeting, we will be able to proceed with the planting. Fall is an ideal time to plant. You will read more about the trees in this newsletter and in subsequent communications, and you will soon be able to visit the site and see our trees. Signage identifying the species and noting our contribution is being planned. 

In the meantime, my thanks to the Board and to all of you gardeners. I might see you walking around the Lower Lake, or enjoying the fall color at the Arboretum!

Leigh