Norcross Garden Club National Garden Week Recap

• Craig Newton, Mayor of Norcross, read and presented a proclamation for National Garden Week to the Norcross Garden club and acknowledged the club’s contributions to the City of Norcross. It is nice that Norcross recognized National Garden Week and our club.  See attached proclamation.

• The flower arrangements from our club brought smiles and joy to the Meals on Wheels clients last week.
• The Cherokee Garden Library Tour was enjoyed by all!  Here is a link to photos taken during the tour and other photos at the end of the newsletter.
• Two teams of members spent time weeding in the garden last week.  Gena Spears and Sue Hankins joined Pam Cammarata for garden weeding on Thursday evening.  Bill Berry came by and pulled out the tree growing in the winter jasmine.  Kathy Sumner, Susan Thompson, and Nancy O’Reilly worked in the garden on Friday morning.  Huge thanks to Pam and her merry weeders who have our garden looking so good.  We are asking all members to help keep our garden looking neat and tidy. If every member gave just 30 minutes of time each month, the garden would be weed-free!  As Pam reminds us: Weeding is Fun and Therapeutic! Contact Pam (770.314.9541) if you have questions and to volunteer.
• Kathy Sumner announced that our plot at Discovery Garden is thriving.  Cucumbers will be ready soon.  All members are welcome to harvest produce from our Discovery Garden plot. Contact Kathy (678-357-8684) if you can help with keeping our plot weed free and looking good.
• Thank you to Dolores Stewart for organizing our first Norcross Garden Club’s Plant Swap! It was a good way to end National Garden Club Week, 2022. Thank you to everyone who came out on Saturday. We had as many members visit as we had residents and community participants. Glad we swapped, socialized, and supported our event. Everyone was satisfied and happy with their new plant(s) and we call that Success! Dolores gave a tour of our cottage and garden to a prospective new member. Thank you, Kathy Sumner and Jeanette Shewbert who assisted with the clean-up.

·         Board and Committee Meeting was very productive. Thanks to all for planning input and discussion. See more specific information below.

^{Board and Committee Meeting Highlights}

Garden Hardscape Improvements and Pollinator Garden Areas

Bill Berry, one of our newest members, recently completed his coursework at Gwinnett Tech in landscape design. His final task is as an intern to our club and to complete a project plan.  He has elected to focus on creating pollinator garden areas within our garden.  Bill collaborated with Leanne Penman and Gail Thompson for some immediate hardscape improvements and the first phase of installing a pollinator garden. More details will follow soon.  There will be opportunities for members to roll up our sleeves and get to work!

Cottage Update

Interior painting and repairs will be completed this week. Be aware of wet paint areas if you visit the cottage.

Are you an organizer?  We would love for a member or members to volunteer to line our pretty new cabinets and to make labels for the inside of the doors for contents of each cabinet. Please contact Nancy to volunteer or ask for more information (404-435-8579

Cottage Rental REMINDER: Next rental is Saturday, June 18th.

Our members are our best marketeers!  Please recommend our cottage to family and friends who may have a need for an event or meeting rental space.  You can direct anyone interested in renting the space to our website for more information and rental application.

We are also looking into new signage and advertising options for promoting the cottage rental. If you have any suggestions or ideas, please contact norcrossgardenclubpresidents@gmail.com

Are you interested in being a backup cottage hostess for rentals?  Training will be provided.  Time commitment is minimal but may be on a weekend or evening.  The basic duties are to open and close the cottage for the rental and to inspect the cottage after the rental with the renter. Contact norcrossgardenclubpresidents@gmail.com

Website Update

Our website needs a technology and content update.  We want to complete this project over the summer.  Please send your thoughts and ideas for design and content by the end of June to norcrossgardenclubpresidents@gmail.com.  Also, if you would like to volunteer to work on this project, please let us know ASAP.

Writing Skills Needed

Do you like to write?  We have a HUGE need for several members who like to write for Awards, Publications (Dogwood Dialogue, Garden Gateways, etc.) and Grants. Please consider this opportunity to contribute your time and talent to our club. We really need someone to step up to lead this effort. Many pencils make light work, but we need a lead/coordinator. Contact norcrossgardenclubpresidents@gmail.com.

Next submissions for Garden Gateway are due by July 15^th and Dogwood Dialogue by August 15^th

Hostess Chairperson

We need a host chairperson to coordinate meeting hosts.  Hosts will be responsible for refreshments (no meals), set up and cleanup and greeting members and guests.  Host chair is responsible for creating a signup, making sure each meeting has hosts and reminding hosts of their assignment. Please contact Saundy Kittle to for more information (256-227-1106)

Historian

Trudy Rudert has stepped up to be our historian.  Our club will be 100 years old before we know it! Trudy is already at work on compiling our history.  She would like to video interview some of the long-time members this summer.  She is looking for assistance from someone who is knowledgeable about video recording.  Please contact Trudy if you are interested.  (404-713-6934)

Plant Sale Committee

The committee is working on plans for next year’s sale. They also would like to update the sale signage over the summer.  Stay tuned for more information.

Fulton Federation 2023 Awards Luncheon

Norcross Garden Club will host next year’s Fulton Federation Awards Luncheon.  It will be held during the second week of May in the Norcross Community Center.  The club will be responsible for table decorations, finding a caterer and program speaker.  More details will be discussed later.

Youth Garden Club-Norcross Earth Team (NET)

Norcross Earth Team led by Tixie Fowler, Leanne Penman, and Trudy Rudert will have a booth at the October 2022 Art Splash Festival featuring a sculpture contest made from recyclable materials.  Please save clean recyclable materials at your home over the summer. Last year’s contest yielded 6 winners!

Norcross Community Market-Weds, June 22^nd - Information/Education Booth

Sustainable Norcross Commission is partnering with Norcross Garden Club to host an information/education booth at the Norcross Community Market (located in Thrasher Park). The topic on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, is "National Pollinator Week".

Volunteers are needed from 3p to 7p to assist with setup or cleanup and to help with giving information on the programs to attendees. There will be activities for children to learn about native pollinators and the plants they need to survive.  And information for children and adults to help understand the benefits of insects and to overcome their fear of insects.

For more information and to volunteer Please contact Ana Brechtel at Dr.Brechtel@gmail.com; Mobile: 678.997.7078 Please text instead of a call.

Dogwood Dialogue-May 2022 Edition

The Spring/Summer 2022 issue of the Dogwood Dialogue is attached.  Norcross Garden Club is mentioned and featured many times.  See pages 3, 4-6 (Fulton Federation), and 12-14.  Thank you to Leanne Penman, Trudy Rudert, Susan Welch, and others who wrote and submitted articles.  Next submission date is August 15^th.  Sharpen those pencils!  If you have questions about submitting an article, please contact norcrossgardenclubpresidents@gmail.com.

All members are welcome and encouraged to attend the Dogwood District Meetings. It’s a fantastic way to network with other clubs and to make new friendships.

SAVE THE DATES:

Dogwood District Board Meeting-August 9, 2022, 10:00 AM in Sandy Springs, p.21 in Dialogue.

Dogwood District Annual Fall Meeting-October 19, 2022, 9:30AM, Dunwoody Country Club, p.9 in Dialogue.

Norcross Community Market-Thrasher Park

Every Wednesday from May through August 4-7pm.  Sign up to subscribe to weekly newsletter:  https://www.norcrosscommunitymarket.com/

Photos from the Cherokee Garden Library Tour

Dot Ransom presented Staci Catron with Edith Henderson’s design for Dot’s home garden. Edith was one of the four women in Georgia who were pioneers in Landscape Architecture. At the March 2022 Garden Club meeting, Staci discussed these women’s actions that were pivotal in providing gardens and design in our cities today.