Hello again Garden Club members! So, as it turns out, I did forget to mention a couple things…
1. SILENT AUCTION:
If you were at the February meeting, you might remember that when we asked what our club could donate to the silent auction for the Clackamas District Spring Luncheon on April 2nd, Katherene Kerner generously offered a beautiful floral lap quilt that she made! (Thank you so much Katherene!)
Anyway, I was thinking about that beautiful lap quilt, and came up with an idea… maybe our club could put together a “Relaxation” themed auction basket, centered around Katherene’s gorgeous lap quilt! I asked Katherene and she agreed that it might be a fun idea too! I would be happy to put the basket together, if a few of you wouldn’t mind donating some items to put in the basket…. what do you think?
So…..If you would like to contribute to the auction basket with a little something, please let me know, so we don’t have duplicates. Items might be a gardening magazine, a novel, a box of special tea or hot chocolate, a box of cookies, a plant catalog, a gardening diary, hand cream, a gardening puzzle, or a spring candle…. that kind of thing. You might have some other great ideas! It just needs to follow that Relaxation theme.
If you would like to contribute a little something to our basket, you could bring your item to our meeting on Tuesday or I can pick it up from you sometime in the next couple of weeks….
Katherene’s quilt:
2. SALES TABLE:
Also, if you have anything you would like to donate to the Spring Luncheon sales table, please bring those donations to our meeting this Tuesday, or to the luncheon on April 2nd if you are attending. These sale items can be just about anything that is in decent condition that you just don’t need anymore, and it doesn’t have to be garden related. It can be a lovely vase you don’t use anymore, a pile of fabric you won’t be using, garden tools you don’t need, a pile of gently used novels you are done with, a very nice Santa decoration you don’t want anymore, whatever! Every year members find treasures at the sales table! There’s all kinds of goodies!
I hope you’re planning to attend! It will be so much more fun if you are there!
I hope you are doing well and enjoying this soft unfurling of an early spring! There are a couple things to share, so I will try to keep it concise and easy to read.
Most importantly, I am sure you have read Julie’s email by now and know that our dear friend Leta Wyler recently passed away. This is such a great loss to anyone who had the blessed privilege of knowing her, as Leta was a warm, caring, and fun-loving friend to all. One of Leta’s daughters, Patty, called me this morning and asked that I pass some information on to our members. Patty and her sister, Cindy, are busy trying to work through all the logistics and it will definitely take time. Patty wanted to share with everyone that Leta’s final resting place will be in the Willamette National Cemetery, with her husband Ed. Also, they will have a Celebration of Life sometime in the future, but both of those events are still in the planning stages. Leta’s pastor is out of town until the 12th, so they have to wait until he’s back, so they can further plan. As Patty and Cindy figure things out, they will let me know, and have asked that I share it with all of you. There are so many people Leta knew and they are trying to find a way to keep everyone informed while still trying to get done all that needs to be done. In the meantime, if you have any special photos of Leta, please set them aside, as Patty and Cindy are considering a slide show for the Celebration of Life and might be asking us for photos. They will let us know, so let’s wait for their word on that.
I also want to let you know that we will have our next meeting this coming Tuesday (March 10), at the church. Social hour starts at 9:15! Our speaker is Dakota Hufford and she is an entomologist from the Clackamas Basin Council. She will be sharing with us the importance of dragonflies, and probably a few other invertebrates! She loves her work, so it will be interesting to see what she has to say! Our hosts are Elizabeth Cathey, Katherene Kerner, Helen Nolen, and Lona Azar!
Also, if you are planning to go to the Clackamas Spring Luncheon on April 2, please be sure to bring a check for $25 to our meeting this coming Tuesday! Checks should be made out to the Happy Valley Garden Club. Our treasurer, Sandy Platz, will be collecting those. Please note that the Spring Luncheon invitation below has two pages – with location, time, and so forth. You don’t need to fill anything out, but on Tuesday, be sure to let Sandy know if you have a food preference when you give her your check, so she can make note of it.
I sincerely hope you will consider attending the Clackamas Spring Luncheon! It promises to be one of our best! All members are invited and it’s always more fun when YOU are there!!! Sherry Sheng will be speaking and she has so many tips on how to be successful with all kinds of plants! She has played an enormous role in the Master Gardener 10-minute University too! There will be a sales table, a raffle, and a silent auction, so it promises to be a fun and educational morning!
Our Coffee Chat will be on March 31st at the Food Carts off of Sunnyside. There’s a great little coffee/sandwich kiosk which serves wonderful breakfast delights! We’ve been there before and it’s usually fairly quiet at the time we meet (9:30 am). Watch the weather, as it can be a little cool in there in the morning!
I think that is everything for now. If I have forgotten anything, I’ll write again…. otherwise, see you on Tuesday!!
Just want to remind you that this coming Tuesday (February 24) we have two wonderful events to consider!
First, we have our coffee chat at Biscuits at 9:30 am. This is the Biscuits right off Johnson Creek Blvd and 92nd, right next to River City Eyecare. (They actually share a wall.)
However, for those of you riskier types, we are also looking for volunteers to help with pruning at the Sara Hite Rose Garden. We will be pruning from 8-noon, but even an hour of your help would be sooo appreciated, and really makes the work go so much faster. Bring your pruners, gloves, a bucket, and if you have any, some rubbing alcohol and a rag to keep your pruners clean between rose beds. No weeding involved!
If you are really seeking adventure, join me in trying to prune 8 – 9:30 am, and then enjoying some waffles at Biscuits with friends! Some of our members will be holding a seat for you!
At the District meeting, last week, we were given information about the Pacific Region Garden Clubs’ Firewise Webinars. There are 4 out of the 5 still upcoming…. and they cover everything from making our homes fire resistant to insurance matters and so on. Members can go to the link below and scroll down to “Firewise Webinars” to register for any of the available webinars.
Just wanted to remind you that we have a Coffee Chat scheduled for Tuesday, Jan 27th at ElkaBee’s, at 9:30 am, in the side room! Stop in for a special coffee or hot tea and join us in catching up with some great friends!
I hope this finds you well, warm, and perusing seed catalogs, now that the holidays are behind us! We have lots of upcoming events to share as we look forward to the new year…. So pull out your pencil and calendar!
First, great news regarding the leadership academy:
LEADERSHIP ACADEMY – please read!
I am thrilled to share that our Clackamas District co-directors, Jennifer Buss and Susan Piper, have been working hard to create the “Leadership Academy,” for all garden club members in our district. The Leadership Academy will provide club officers and members opportunities to learn how to make their clubs more effective – be it through parliamentary procedures, fundraising, growing membership, understanding bylaws, or whatever!
The upcoming Leadership Academy Zoom sessions are scheduled for January 28th and February 25th. All garden club officers are strongly encouraged to attend these introductory sessions, but everyone is invited to participate so you too can help your club! This is truly a wonderful opportunity for everyone, but especially if you serve in a leadership or committee role, or would ever want to think about doing so!
Currently, only five people have registered. Jennifer and Susan have put a lot of time and thought into this and are really hoping for more attendance and enthusiasm. The session information is attached and each Zoom meeting has its own registration link included. If you need help registering, please contact Jennifer, Julie, or myself and we will happily help you! Please consider joining us for one or both of these zoom sessions!
If you don’t feel comfortable zooming, but would like to participate, let me know, and maybe we can find another member with whom you can zoom!
LEADERSHIP ACADEMY INFORMATION
Leadership Academy #1 on ZOOM
Wednesday, January 28, 2026 10-11:30 am
Board Leadership & Parliamentary Procedure
1.Best Practices and LegalResponsibilities as Officers and Board Members, led by OSFGC First Vice President, Bernadette Sterry.
2.A Primer on Parliamentary Procedure, led by our own District Parliamentarian Mary
L.K. Davis. (You’ll find the information useful for your other community leadership activities,
as well.) The entire first session is 90 minutes, from 10 – 11:30 am. Preregistration is
required. All Garden Club officers highly encouraged to attend.
Second, below is a list of our club’s upcoming events:
You can also find this on our webpage, at happyvalleygardenclub.org. Please remember that this is a tentative schedule. You will get a reminder email from me at the beginning of each month, just confirming the details.
UPCOMING EVENTS AT A GLANCE
JANUARY
Jan 13 – No Meeting
Jan 27– COFFEE CHAT – Elka Bee’s on Sunnyside – 9:30 am, in the backroom (come when you
can, leave when you must)
FEBRUARY
February 10 – Protecting Ourselves From Scams & Fraud –Presentation by AARP representative
February 24 – COFFEE CHAT – Biscuits,off of Stevens Creek Rd – 9:30 am
MARCH
March 10 –The Importance of Dragonflies – Dakota Hufford Entomologist from the Clackamas Basin Council
March 31 – COFFEE CHAT – Lux Coffee Lounge (11059 Division) – 9:30 am
APRIL
April 14 – Thompson Farms – Mr. Thompson will discuss farming & share veggie gardening tips
April 28 – COFFEE CHAT/LUNCH – Oswego Grill – 11:30 a.m. (Clackamas Town Center)
MAY
May 12 –Garden Futures – Presentation by a Master Gardener from the Garden Futures
Program that will help us learn how to garden (landscape) in the warmer, drier climate
we are seeing in the Pacific Northwest.
May 26 – FIELD TRIP: Rare Plant Research Nursery (THIS IS TENTATIVE) – time to be determined
Lastly, but probably most important, Leona wanted me to be sure to give you the recipe for the slug solution! And February is the time to start applying it! Here you go:
The following is a combination of two articles, both attributed to Elsie Skinner, longtime president of the Northwest Hosta and Shade Gardening Society. Her motto was “Never let a slug escape!”
From a well-worn article saved by Leona, “In late February before shoots emerge, Elsie advises sprinkling about ½ to 1 cup of this mixture: one part non-sudsy ammonia (which Leona can no longer find, so she uses plain ammonia) and four parts water onto the crown of hostas and other susceptible perennials. This does in the slug eggs.”
From the Wilsonville Garden Club:
Household ammonia at the correct dilution not only destroys slugs, at the 5:1 dilution the solution it actually provides a source of nitrogen which plants absorb through their foliage. It is effective at killing baby slugs early in the spring as plant growth is emerging. Spray it on the emerging plant and on the soil around it. It is also effective on larger slugs in midsummer, as long as the ammonia is sprayed on the slug.
Mix 1 part household ammonia with 5 parts of water – for a total of 6 parts. (Example: mix 1 cup of ammonia with 5 cups water, for a total of 6 cups.) Some like to use a squirt of liquid dish soap to help the ammonia stay in contact with the slug, or use a “spreader/sticker” product. You’ll need to use some sort of a sprayer – either a garden type or an old Windex-type bottle.
NOTE: Whether you use the 4 to 1, or 5 to 1 ratio, either will probably produce the results you desire. Any further questions should be directed to Leona, the expert.
I know that was a lot to read, but you and I both know it was well worth it! Hoping to see you soon!
The district, state and region are issuing newsletters on a regular schedule! You can find those publications under the tab (at the top of our webpage) of “Resources” as “Publications”. As we receive updates, we’ll get them posted and include a quick note here under “What’s Growing?”.
If you have any suggestions on how to make our website simpler to navigate, please let Yvonne, our webster, know!And if you find interesting articles you think members might like to read or pictures of gardens to enjoy, we’re happy to share those too. Just forward them to admin@happyvalleygardenclub.org.
Our schedule through May is posted under the “Calendars” tab. January and February are weather-permitting. A couple of the discussions and locations are tentative; updates coming soon.
