Spring Has Sprung: A Time to Rejuvenate Your Garden and Embrace the Outdoors
As the crisp chill of winter fades and the snow melts away, the promise of warmer days is finally here. Spring has sprung! The days are growing longer, the sun shines brighter, and our gardens begin to stir from their winter slumber. It is the perfect time to roll up your sleeves, dig out those pots from the basement, and prepare your favorite flowers for another glorious season.
Each year, we look forward to bringing our begonias and geraniums back to life. It is a practice that some elderly mentors passed down to us. In the Fall, just before a hard frost arrives, we prepare the plants for their winter hibernation. The begonias are trimmed down to just the top of the soil, and the geranium leaves are stripped back to their main stems. Then, we place the pots in the basement along the outside wall near the door, where they remain out of the ailments of the weather and remain dormant through the cold months.
Come middle of March, it is time to awaken these resilient plants. We bring the pots inside the main house and place them by a window with north light. With care, we begin watering them again. Patience is key, as it takes about six weeks for the begonias to show life. Soon enough, you'll notice a small tip of red pushing up from the soil. It's the first sign of life after the long winter. As the weeks pass, that red tip turns into a full, vibrant plant, and by early summer, our begonias are in full, breathtaking bloom. Meanwhile, the geraniums tend to show new growth much sooner, usually within a week or so. They quickly begin to sprout fresh green leaves, ready to thrive in the coming warmth, showing their glorious red blooms. Once the threat of the last frost has passed (usually between Mother's Day and Memorial Day) the pots are moved outside to the garden. Our backyard oasis is once again alive with color, the begonias a testament to our winter patience and care.
In addition to our begonias and geraniums, we have also discovered the joy of propagating German ivy. For years, we started creating four hanging baskets of this lush, trailing vine for our porch. What begins as two small plants soon transforms into a cascading beauty by mid-August, reaching all the way to the porch floor and provides a privacy screen. The ivy grows so quickly, it is truly amazing.
vases filled with water. These cuttings are then tucked away in front of a cool bedroom window over the winter months. Come early spring, we transfer them to soil pots to help harden their roots. By mid-May, they are ready to be planted in our reusable hanging baskets, ready to greet the summer sun.
These small gardening rituals not only bring beauty to our garden but also create a sense of peace and connection to the seasons. Our backyard becomes an inviting sanctuary, a place to gather with friends and family or simply relax and enjoy the natural world around us. It's amazing how the simple act of nurturing plants can transform a space, and bring such joy to our lives.
So, as you prepare to welcome spring into your space, don't forget to give your plants the attention they deserve. With a little patience, some thoughtful care, and a lot of love, you too can create a flourishing garden that will bloom brightly all summer long. H&T
Floral Design Challenge: Celebrating September’s Sunrise and Sunset
This past September, we welcomed our members back with a floral design challenge, “September’s Sunrise and Sunset”, during our general meeting at the Buhrmaster barn on the Pruyn House grounds. In celebration of the golden hour and blue hour of our beautiful autumn days, the event was designed to encourage members to explore the art of floral arranging in a relaxed, creative, and fun environment.
These magical moments of the day, where many of us find time to relax, meditate, or photograph our gardens, were the inspiration for our floral designs. Members were invited to create arrangements that captured the essence of either the golden hour or the blue hour, using rose and aqua mason jars. The golden hour, with its warm, radiant tones just after sunrise and before sunset, was contrasted by the blue hour’s cool, serene hues right before sunrise and after sunset.
Once the business portion of the meeting wrapped up, members excitedly gathered around tables filled with mason jars in varying sizes and buckets overflowing with fresh flowers and fillers. Some worked together in groups, while others took a more personal approach to their designs. The golden hour arrangements came alive with warm yellows, soft oranges, rich golds, and vibrant pinks and reds, evoking the sun’s radiant glow. In contrast, the blue hour creations featured cooler, tranquil tones of deep blues, purples, and silvery whites, capturing the serenity of twilight. Each arrangement was accented by lush greens, adding texture and depth.
By the end of the event, members proudly took home their own beautiful arrangements, each one a unique reflection of the golden or blue hour. The atmosphere was filled with creativity, collaboration, and fun, as everyone embraced the art of floral arranging. It was a fantastic way to reconnect, share inspiration, and celebrate the beauty of the changing seasons. The floral design challenge was a creative and enjoyable experience for all, and members left inspired and excited for the busy season ahead.
Old Fashion Sunday at the Pruyn House: A Floral Success with the Fort Orange Garden Club
This year’s “Old Fashion Sunday,” hosted by The Friends of Pruyn House, marked its 40th anniversary, and what a celebration it was! Held on the first Sunday after Labor Day, the event was filled with sunshine, lively music, delicious food, pony rides, a petting zoo, and, of course, stunning floral arrangements crafted by the talented members of our garden club.
Our club had a fantastic turnout of volunteers, with members cutting fresh flowers from the Pruyn House gardens and gathering blooms from their own homes. Some members even crafted beautiful floral arrangements at home, bringing their finished pieces to the event. On the morning of the event, we came together for a couple of hours of fun, creating arrangements in glass vases to be sold during the festivities.
The community embraced our efforts, and we sold 32 of the 53 arrangements we created. The remaining bouquets were placed in the Pruyn House or gifted to visiting vendors, adding a special touch to their day. It was a great success, raising $361 in profits, which will support our Centennial Scholarship fund. The proceeds will help local students through the FOGC Centennial Scholarship, maintained by the Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region.
This year’s event not only brought joy to the local community with beautiful, affordable floral creations but also strengthened our club’s commitment to supporting education in the Capital Region. All in all, it was a wonderful day celebrating the spirit of giving and community.
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Heidi's Tea Garden
It’s that time of year! The tea garden is open for relaxing mornings listening to the cheerful bird songs, gentle rhyme of a vintage fountain and vibrant blooms with fragrant hues allowing you to get lost in your thoughts. One of our favorite times of year!
Once a forgotten corner overrun by neglect, it has blossomed into a picturesque of tranquility. What was once a haphazard collection of soil, concrete rocks and weeds has been lovingly transformed, each element curated to create a sense of harmony and calm.
A pathway of slate leads you to the garden entrance of a yellow pine trellis and an antique gate framed with river stones. At the garden’s center rests a marble table and quaint cafe chairs. It invites our guests to reflect and lose themselves in deep thought. It is the ultimate way to wake yourself up in the morning with your cup of tea or coffee, and drink in the peaceful atmosphere.
In Heidi’s Tea Garden, every moment is an invitation to welcome the simple joys of life, to linger a little longer, and to find downtime accepting nature's embrace.
The Tale of Our Wisteria Vine
In the entrance of our garden, there stands a wisteria vine at Heidi and Tim's Place. For two decades, it graced us sparingly with its blooms, a modest offering from a plant seemingly content with its silent existence. A once sturdy trellis groaned under the weight of the wisteria's resurgence, its aging frame struggling to bear its weight. We started the conversations of the vine’s removal in its presence. Something miraculous happened this year. The wisteria vine gave us joy with hundreds of blooms in a burst of white and a beautiful fragrance. Needless to say the vine is staying and we will rebuild the trellis around it! This is proof of the power of talking to your plants. Highly recommended!! H&T
#Bloom
#PlantTalk
#Wisteria
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The Philadelphia Flower Show, 2024
The PHS Philadelphia Flower Show is the nation's largest and longest running horticultural event in the United States. Stunning displays by award winning world premier floral and landscape designers welcome you upon entering the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia's Chinatown. The scene is beautiful, but only an introduction to the show that you are about to experience.
The enormous space was divided by featured show displays, which included, floral, landscape, educational, display, design gallery, plant societies, sponsors, tourism sponsors, potting parties, kids cocoon, butterflies live, artisan row and makers market. The map provided when entering was very helpful in laying this enormous space out visually. We are going to touch upon some of the displays in the show. There were so many it is impossible to cover all of them!
The Entrance Garden explored the theme of “Edges and Reflections”, aligning with the 2024 Flower Show's overarching theme, “United by Flowers”. This draws inspiration from the crisp, straight lines of garden ponds and the mesmerizing reflections of plant life in the water. At the heart of this garden is the intriguing concept of edges; where two distinct spaces meet and merge. It's a space of connection, showcasing the beauty that arises when the different elements come together. “Edges and Reflections” features stunning, vibrant plants and a variety of reflective surfaces, creating a dynamic interplay of color and light. This garden is a testament to the beauty of juxtaposition, embodying both the precision of geometric water features and the organic charm of the natural world reflected in them.
The next display was an incredible installation called “Connected: A Floral Legacy” by Schaffer Designs. Celebrating 18 years as exhibitors they shared their legacy by leaving competition to embrace collaboration. Inspired by their design friends from around the globe, we were invited to walk beneath an immersive floral entryway as it joined dry-arid and wet-tropical environments that reflected nature's diversity through floral art.
The “Edges and Reflections” and “Connected: A Floral Legacy” were spectacular and the highlight of the show!
Along the right hand side of the convention center there was “Harmony in Geometry” by Robertson's Flowers & Events. This exhibition was inspired by geometric shapes, which can be found everywhere in nature: the square stems of herbs, the rings of a tree or the honeycombs of a beehive. Our world is filled with shapes, purposefully different yet existing in harmony.
“Columbia's Beauty Unveiled” by American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD) was next on our tour. The front panel captures attention with seemingly random “flecks” of vibrant colors through a sea of color, symbolizing the diverse aspects that make up an individual. When viewed directly, these flecks create a mesmerizing mosaic, but there's more to the story. As viewers shift their perspective, the second panel comes into focus. Revealing a more harmonious visual. This transformative experience underscores the idea that true beauty lies beneath the surface, waiting to be seen by those willing to look beyond initial impressions.
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Becoming a member of AIFD changed my outlook on the floral industry. It has allowed me to gather with industry colleagues from around the world. When we come together to work with incredible products sourced from every inch of the globe, we not only make beauty but are united regardless of where we come from and our differences. The underlying thread that unites us is the flower we all hold in our hand. -Adam Havrilla AIFS PFCI AAF |
AIFD brings together a collaboration of international professional floral designers to create floral artistry at the highest skill level. Working together, each team member contributes their inspiration and talents into the final design. “Hawaiian Serenity Kauai” was an example of this. The “Garden Isle” of Kauai is a home to tropical rainforests, filled with diversity of lush vegetarian and flowers unique ecosystems. Cooled by the mist of waterfalls cascading into deep blue pools, a walk in this natural paradise inspired the vision of Serenity.
Continuing on the orchid theme the arrange floral and event design invited the audience to explore the diverse and intricate world of “The Orchid”. As symbols of grace and natural perfection, orchids have compelled a multitude of enthusiasts. Native to all the habitable continents, orchids are masters of evolution and adaptability. Whether in botanical gardens, exhibitions, or flower bouquets, the reverence orchids command is an acknowledgement of the beauty and cultural significance these flowers hold in the hearts of admirers worldwide. Do not over water!
We loved this display as it reminded us of our days of college and young adult life in Brooklyn. “A Beautiful Disturbance” by Kelly D Norris, LLC. In this exhibit, an abandoned lot, an artifact of the human-urban century, finds new life as a novel ecosystem. To some, this empty lot may appear natural, but it bears the legacy of an industrial society. How can gardening amplify dynamic, spontaneous vegetation to promote a message of renewal, hope and community? In this era of global change, we need to reimagine the vegetation of cities as homes for future nature.
The Men's Garden Club of Philadelphia presented “Quiet Respite: Japanese Green Harmony”. This installation reminded us of the peaceful gardens of Kyoto from our past trips to Japan. Hidden away in a tranquil and private corner of Philadelphia lies a small, serene Japanese backyard. Delicate cherry blossoms and a tranquil landscape create a harmonious ambiance. This intimate oasis serves as a respite, drawing inspiration from nature's artistry, and fostering meaningful connections that transcend borders. Amidst the gentle rustle of bamboo, friends find solace, making it an exclusive and cherished gathering place for those with a passion for horticulture. Through shared knowledge and a love for plants, this garden unites friends, nurturing a sense of community and belonging. Just stunning!
“The Ikebana International Philadelphia 71” was an educational exhibit. The Japanese flower arrangements in this noncompetitive and educational exhibit was created by students and teachers from the Philadelphia Chapter of Ikebana International, including the Ikebana, Ohara, Sogetsu and Ichiyo schools. The Sogetsu school is know for freedom of expression. Truly amazing arrangements.
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The Sogetsu school was founded by Tofu Teshigahara in 1927. A beautiful arrangement can be made by anyone, anywhere , anytime and with any material. |
Moving along to “Garden Gate” in the design gallery was a gateway or entrance to a real or imaginary place. This was a novice class limited to exhibitors who had not won a blue ribbon in a design class in the PHS Philadelphia Flower Show prior to 2024. This class showed much creativity. The above store window is called “South Street Spiritual”. The streets of Philadelphia have their own individual spirits. South Street is known for its bohemian, eclectic and artistic vibes. Step inside “South Street Spiritual” and be guided by its spiritual healer, botanical products, palm-ology and natural plants to embrace your Philadelphia spirit in love, life and wellness. This won the Philadelphia unit of the Herb Society of America Inc. award. Judges comment was a classy exhibit with herbs and their products, They loved the mannequin. We could not agree more but then we do have a thing for mannequins covered in flowers!
Mini greenhouses
Pansy orchid
Venus slipper orchid
The next enormous display area was the “Hamilton PHS Horticourt”. Each Year the PHS invites plant lovers to show off their very best plants in a massive competition. There was everything from citrus trees, rosemary or other herbs intertwined along trellis's, one species of a plant grown on or around a log, mini greenhouses to small succulent gardens in stone or vessel containers. Additional categories were miniatures which included non-flowering cactus, miniature non-flowering succulent, miniature gesneriad, miniature flowering or fruiting plants. There were floral varieties such as Cymbidium species/hybrids and Begonia Richmondensis. Lastly there was a youth class called foliage plant. No cactus, other succulent plant, Clivia or bulb allowed. Open only to exhibitors in 8th grade or under. This added to the family aspect of the show.
Lastly was an enormous sponsor area with vendors selling products. Lots of plants, flowers and seeds available. Great place to shop for yourself or those gardeners and flower lovers in your life!
We found 3-4 hours was a good amount of time to absorb all the exhibitions. It was crowded and walking through some of the displays was slow. If you pre-purchased your tickets on line prior there was a small discount for attending on a week day vs. a weekend. There were also discounted tickets for evenings. As you arrive by car there are many parking lots around the convention center for day parking. Prices were not displayed so we chose one near Florist Street ( as thought it was appropriate for the theme of the day) at a day rate. The Reading Terminal Market, one of America's largest and oldest public markets, housed in a historic landmark building just across the street from the Convention Center was a great place to grab lunch. It offers an incredible variety of restaurants under one roof. It is casual and you can find just about any food type you desire. All in all the day was immersive, inspiring, beautiful and creative. Every day, flowers unite our hearts worldwide as we send and receive love from near and far. Well worth the trip!
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