|
|
Editor's note: Due to the publication deadline, the minutes from the Polk Chapter July meeting will be printed in next month's newsletter.
The Des Moines Chapter will meet on August 26 at 7:00 PM at the home of Sharon and John McDonald to see their pond. They live at 1143 Pinehurst Circle, Norwalk, and phone is 285-2228 in case you'd need to call. Directions to their home are as follows: go west on Army Post Road until it "T's" with Highway 28. Take a left on Highway 28 going south toward Norwalk for about one mile. At the top of a hill you will come to Pinehurst Drive, turn left (east). Follow this road as it curves and becomes Pinehurst Circle. The McDonald's yellow house will be on the east side of the street and has a large fountain in the front courtyard. Parking is on one side of the street only - look for signs. PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN LAWN CHAIRS.
The McDonald's pond sounds wonderful! It features an 8,000 gallon pond and 1,000 gallon stream. There are 8 waterfalls with drops ranging from 3 ft. to 2 inches. Sharon and John state "last year we made the decision to double the size of the pond and this spring converted a single waterfall to the current arrangement. Through trial and error, and a few costly mistakes, we now have a water garden that is easy to maintain and makes great use of the space around our home. " They describe their water garden as appealing to our senses as we will see it, hear it, and smell it because of the abundant tropical flowers surrounding the area. Other features of note are 50 tons of rock used to make the landscaping, a 600 pound flagstone bridge across the pond, and over 39 water plants of 10 different varieties.
They have numerous pond lights highlighting the waterfalls and other features. This will really be fun to see and thanks to Sharon and John in advance for sharing your pond with the group!
We will also have a brief meeting and a Q & A program. Bring your pond questions!
We could not have chosen a better night or site for our July 21, 2003 meeting than the Fitz-Reading Gardens in Rockford, IA. In 1993 Stan and his wife Corlyss began a small project of adding a "garden or two" which today covers their entire lawn! There are over 4,000 bricks interlacing the various flower gardens, 800 varieties of hostas, a beautiful lattice gazebo, prairie area, dry river bed, fountains, and other features. The cut Fenton glass shines brilliantly catching one's attention while other features are cleverly tucked away and only the very observant notice. Members spent more than an hour visiting with Stan and enjoying the fruits of his and his wife's labor of love before our meeting began.
Twenty members and guests responded to roll. Ed welcomed Vonnie and Merv Koozer who moved to Hampton from Oregon, Jane and Jim Johanns from Osage, and Lorettta Behnke from Brillion, Wisconsin. Minutes were approved. Great job, Deb!!
Treasurer reported membership dues were collected and fees sent to CIWGA leaving a balance of $592.00. Pat Dahl-Winther reported we are 29 members strong and growing! We discussed placing brochures in more places of business in our communities.
Old Business: Janan Griggs gave a brief overview of the ponds she visited on the Ames Pond Tour. She highly recommends everyone set aside time to go next year as it is well worth the trip. She and others stated they liked only having eight ponds as it gave them time to visit each pond without rushing. It was suggested we keep this is mind for our pond tour next year.
Under New Business Chuck Hall talked about the Central Garden Project in Clear Lake and asked if our club would write a letter supporting this project. Motion was made by Mary Schultz to send a letter to Central Gardens supporting their concept of having a Regional Garden that benefits all of North Iowa. Motion was seconded. After discussion and the assurance that no money was being solicited, the motion passed. Chuck and Mary Schultz will draft a letter and present it at the next meeting for club approval.
Fun Business! Nels Dall-Winther brought a picture of Lizzy2 coquettisly flirting with her new boyfriend,"Prince Charming". Pat shared her story of Nels adding new plants to their pond and stating he didn't need to add gravel or rocks on top. It wasn't long before the fish had the plants dug out and the plants were floating on top. But as Pat said when she tried to tell Nels it wasn't a good idea, "What do I know, I'm just a woman!" Chuck Hall won the privilege of spending the next month with Lizzy. We look forward to his pictures and stories.
Our next meeting will be at 10:00 at the JB Ranch in Webster City on Saturday, August 2nd. We hope to see everyone there. At the close of the meeting at 9:00 PM, we enjoyed brownies, Rice Krispy treats, lemonade and water courtesy of Kathy Schroeder. Thank you Kathy the treats were delicious.
For more information or to obtain a brochure, call or email Ed Schroeder at 641-923-3512 or krafty@ncn.net.
Submitted by Mary Schultz, secretary