The Kind of September

It's September and that means the start of another Garden Club of Switzerland program year!  We have a new roster of officers for 2017-2019, installed at our May luncheon (thank you for the photo, Deborah), and we appreciate their willingness to serve.  A note of appreciation too for our outgoing officers from the 2015-2017 term!

Our monthly meetings are the second Thursday of the month from 10AM-noon from September through May.  They take place at the Bartram Trail Library and are open to the public, unless otherwise indicated.   The program schedule is at our Events page and on our Calendar.  If you see a program you would like to attend, consider yourself invited!  Please do us the courtesy of letting us know in advance so that we may have enough refreshments for everyone.  Use our contact info, SwitzerlandGC@gmail.com.  If you would like to become a member after you meet us (how could you resist?) ask for an application form or open the online Membership Application and mail it or bring it to a meeting.

The photos above and below are of our end-of year luncheon at the Bailey Ranch.  As always, it was a lovely event, and we thank Sarah for hosting it and Deborah for taking the pictures.  At the start of this "Kind of September" may your grass grow green and you be mellow.  And don't forget to join us for some memorable moments starting on September 14!

Springing Ahead for Spring!

March 12 is the first day of Daylight Saving time, but we're not waiting for the clock change to spring ahead.  We're sprucing up the butterfly garden at Alpine Groves so it will be ready for the Bartram Bash on May 13.  Our monarch committee had its kickoff meeting to plan for distribution of the native milkweed we expect shortly.  We had the pleasure of visiting Jeanne's flower garden and monarch nursery featuring the biggest monarch rearing tent we'd ever seen.  Two chrysalis' were already hanging inside!

We also saw the biggest staghorn fern we'd ever encountered.  It is so big it has to be hoisted up into a tree by crane so it can take advantage of warmer temperatures.  Jeanne's husband acquired it in 1978 and it's become a member of the family.   Lastly, Jeanne was kind enough to give us some of the spring flower bulbs she collected at the end of the planting season.  They'll keep nicely in the refrigerator as long as we keep them away from fruits or vegetables (which emit gasses that can interfere with flower production).


The latest issue of the St. Johns Sun has hit the streets featuring, "Monarchs on the March," an article about the monarchs returning from their overwintering grounds and our own experiences raising monarchs at home.  The monarch committee has some history doing this and we are always adding to our store of knowledge.  See our updated Resources section and the posting, "More About Monarchs."