January 9, 2019 Gardening Tip Sharing and Hobby Discussion

Today's meeting was a round-robin discussion of tips and ideas from members regarding what worked in their gardens including tool recommendations, plants and techniques.  Plus - members shared their non-gardening talents and hobbies by bringing project examples for display.  Here are some examples of "can't live without" tools we discussed.  It was a fun exchange of ideas and knowledge!

December 12 Holiday Brunch and Gift Exchange

Our annual holiday brunch and gift exchange was held Wednesday, December 12 at The Barn in Fields of St. Croix.  

November 14 Wreath Making

We met at The Barn in Fields of St. Croix for a wreath making event.  Instruction was given by Jenn Hovland, Fleur de Louise Floral Studio.

Wreath forms and several varieties of evergreen were provided along with ribbon, pine cones, magnolia leaves and other materials so each attendee could create their own, unique design. 

October 10 Our Annual Business Meeting, Brunch and Silent Auction

Trillium's annual business meeting, potluck brunch and silent auction was held on Wednesday, October 10.

The 2019 slate of officers was presented and members voted.  Our leadership team includes four officers and five standing committee chairs.  Here is a summary of roles within our club.

-  Officers (elected positions) - President, Vice President/Program Chair, Secretary, Treasurer 

- Standing Chairs: Membership, Publicity/Email, Sunshine, Rock Garden Plant Sale, all of which are not elected but appointed by the President.

The silent auction was held that included a wide variety of horticulture related items.  

September 12: Seed Harvesting!

Our Program was a discussion.  The Topic: Seed Harvesting
Two of our members; Pat Murphy and Paula Hemer, facilitated the discussion and share with us their methods of collecting/saving seeds from their gardens.  A wide variety of annual and perennial plant examples were on display.  After the discussion and review of the handout, each member was able to choose their favorites and take seeds for next year!

August 15 - Two Garden Tours

We toured the private gardens of Tammy Diedrich in Woodbury and Michelle Riedel in Oakdale. 

Tammy's gardens very sunny and were jammed packed with a wide variety of perennials, annuals and several pots of tropicals.  The water feature included some very big koi and was surrounded by interesting plants and glass art.

Michelle's gardens were partial shade and included lots of texture and color.  Her use of plants in the many pots on her property were inspirational as well as interesting.  One of our team members spotted a Rusty Patch Bumble Bee which are endangered.  Photo is shown below.

A hot day but the tours were enjoyed by everyone!

August 8 - A Trip To The Arboretum

We visited the University of Minnesota Arboretum and utilized the tram tour to learn more about the facility.  Here are some examples of what was in bloom!