"Sowing the Seeds of Harmony through Nature"
Members and guests of the Parkland Garden Club enjoyed a wonderful time at the annual Christmas Banquet at the Brookside Country Club on December 13th. The evening featured cocktails, a delicious meal and a gift raffle. Lehigh Valley Harmonizers provided beautiful holiday music to keep everyone in the Christmas spirit. Laurel Awards were presented to members highlighting their contributions to club activities during the past year. Member and club donations to Meals on Wheels totaled $815. Many rolls of wrapping paper were also collected to benefit a project for students at Sheridan Elementary.
From our President Claire:
First, Merry Christmas to all. We had a wonderful time at our Christmas dinner. Thanks to all who helped to create this magical evening: Nancy Smith, Cynthia Dunton, Sue Weber, and Darlene Wenhold. Thanks also to the wonderful flower arrangers Nancy Smith, Patti Molitoris, Donna Wagner and myself. Thanks to Bonnie for helping with our auction. Thanks to the attendees. I wish you could have all been there.
Guest Night! The usual fee was waived for this night!
Patricia Johnson, owner of Ornithea House of Flowers in Bethlehem, demonstrated the techniques to make a winter arrangement and also how to use an accompanying arrangement.
Patricia’s passion for “all things floral” can be traced back to her time spent in NYC attending The Fashion Institute of Technology.
She spent significant time wandering the streets of the Flower Market, which was very close to her school.
This visual and sensual stimulation served as an inspiration for her work in fashion design, as well as a haven amongst nature, when she was missing her hometown of Bethlehem, Pa., where she was born and raised.
Patricia continued in the fashion industry for many years, working for some of the top designers in the fashion world.
Flowers became a constant source of inspiration. Traveling through Europe and Asia fueled her interest in flowers and gardening at home became a personal passion.
Arranging and growing flowers for special occasions for family and friends quickly became routine and was very fulfilling creatively.
The connection between fashion and flowers began to merge and on a trip to Antigua in 2019, while attending a Floral Workshop, the message became clear.
Patricia’s connections to the NYC Flower Market and strong ties with local growers have given her knowledge and a place to purchase unique florals and greenery from the best sources in the world.Patricia currently lives in Allentown and continues to keep a place in NYC close to the Flower District.
Our Hospitality Committee at November meeting provided a delicious display of Thanksgiving themed refreshments that helped get everyone into the spirit of giving thanks for all of our blessings. Thank you to Bonnie, Nancy and Judy for providing a beautiful table of treats to share!
Nancy Smith, a member of the Parkland Garden Club and program chairperson, instructed us in a hands-on workshop. We created an arrangement using a small pumpkin and a glue gun with items gathered from our yards and gardens to use in the arrangement. Things such as leaves, acorns, seed pods, berries, nuts, goldenrod, sedum and hens/chicks were used on top of the pumpkins to create a pleasing arrangement.
Program was presented by Chad Schwartz.
Nestled within the Kittatinny Ridge between Slatington and Palmerton, Lehigh Gap Nature Center (LGNC) is the only environmental education center in the United States created from a Superfund site. LGNC Director of Science & Education, Chad Schwartz, discussed how the organization has used native plants to restore ecological function and beauty to a once barren and polluted ‘moonscape.’
LGNC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting conservation through education, research and outdoor recreation. Chad has spent his life studying and exploring the natural world and enjoys sharing his passion with you and adults through his work at LGNC. Chad graduated from Muhlenberg College in 2016 with a degree in Environmental Science and Sustainability Studies and has been on the LGNC staff for six years.
Pamela Hubbard presented a program on making a charming cottage garden in the English style. She described the design elements of an English cottage garden. She suggested plants appropriate to the gardening conditions of our area. Pamela also illustrated her presentation with photographs of her gardens and of gardens in England.
Pamela has been a garden writer, eduator, and speakers for more than 12 years. She writes an award-winning blog, and her monthly newspaper articles, Gardening in the Poconos, earned a GardenComm Media 2019 silver medal. Her gardens have received three blue ribbons from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.
"Succulents Savvy" was presented by Susan Wilson. She is a secondary level science teacher and is involved in the Master Gardener program's speakers bureau and manages the community garden at the Lehigh Extension office. The talk covered some of the most common and easy to grow succulents, and how you can be successful growing these in your home. The talk also covered water and light requirements, creating arrangements and planters, as well as the best propagation methods of succulents.
Kayla Fusselman is a beekeeper from Kempton. In 2017, she served as the Pennsylvania Honey Queen where she traveled the state promoting honey bees at fairs, libraries, schools , and festivals. In 2018 she was selected to be the American Honey Queen and represented the American Beekeeping Federation and was a spokesperson, ambassador, and educator for honey bees, beekeepers, and honey . Kayla has started her own hives and continues to educate the public on bees. Her presentation covered basic facts about the life of honey bees, how they make honey, why they are so important, and how to help them. There was also a honey tasting experience.