Gardens created for the 2008 Beijing Summer Oympics

Free Digital Photo Seminars

Find out how to Capture, Share, Enhance and View your Digital Photos!
Come to the FREE seminars on Digital Photography at the Mystic & Noank Library

Tuesday, Sept. 9 at 6:30 PM

and

Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 6:30 PM

For more info go to http://mysticnoanklibrary.org/NancyHFlyer2.pdf

Arija's Delightful Garden

Arija's garden is 3 1/2 acres of flowers, shrubs,& trees which she planted & so beautifully landscaped in Old Mystic. A trip there is a real delight.

These photos, taken by Carol Connor, give a glimse of the beauty there.

Wine & Cheese at the Denison Homestead

The Denison Society

Invites You

to a

Wine and Cheese Reception

and

Tour of the Denison Homestead Museum

on

Friday, August 1, 2008

5:30- 7:30 PM

120 Pequotsepos Road, Mystic CT

This reception is part of our annual Denison Reunion Weekend and an opportunity for The Denison Society to thank our Friends and volunteers and to introduce ourselves to others. It is surprising how many people have lived in this area all their lives but say they have never heard of us. The Denison Society was formed in 1930 as a family society when house museums were in vogue. However, what turned out to be unique was not only the Society commitment to local history, but the Denison Society commitment to the environment and open space. Maggie Jones, director of the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center, stated it this way, "Long before there were Nature Conservancies, before there were any local land trusts, in fact prior to any general awareness about nature education and habitat preservation, The Denison Society, of Stonington, CT made a commitment to environmental preservation." The Society created the first nature/wildlife center in 1946 and leased 125 acres to it for a nominal fee of $1.00 a year, a lease that still continues to the year 2030! Today the Society is open to both Denison family members and Friends. We still own about 160 acres of land, part of the original land granted to Captain George Denison in 1654 by John Winthrop Jr. In 1992 we spear headed The Denison Fund Campaign to purchase the Morgan Farm land, 50 acres below our house, where we now hold the Denison Farm Market. (This land was to be a sub-division with a road running from the Aquarium to Pequotsepos Road.) We also run a seasonal museum for the public and sponsor local events, reenactments and school programs. In May we had a CPTV documentary filmed on Frederick Douglass at the Homestead. We currently have an exhibit on the filming and local slavery. We look forward to seeing you on August 1.
The Reception will be outside on our lawn weather permitting or inside the museum if inclement weather.
We hope to see you there!
Jean Evans, President of the Denison Society
RSVP membership@DenisonSociety.org or djevans3@aol.com
860-536-9248 http://www.denisonsociety.org/

A Visit to Portland Rose Garden

Diane Davis visited The International Rose Test Garden, in Portland, Oregon. It is the oldest official continuously operated public use test garden in the U.S. Its primary purpose is to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties. The 4.5 acre garden with over 7,000 rose plants is on a hill with beautiful views of the city below, and of Mt. Hood in the distance. We have been here probably six times in the last dozen years or so, and today was one of the few days we could not see Mt. Hood. The main season for the roses passed by a couple of weeks ago, but there were still many beautiful specimens.

More on Farmer's Market

In case you missed it there was a good article in the Hartford Courant on Connecticut Farmer's Markets. >Click here to read the article. Or you can go directly to the list of Connecticut Farmer's Markets.

Arija's Summer Garden

I thought I'd give you an update on my gardening activities.
A week ago I had a group from New Zealand come tour my garden. The weather co-operated and we had a wonderful tour. A couple of "Kiwis" even informed me that viewing my garden was the highlight of their visit to CT.
Last Saturday I had an opportunity to visit Louis Raymond's garden in Hopkinton, RI. It certainly was not the run of the mill garden. Hopefully we may have him as a club speaker sometime next year, although he does "speak Latin" ...
Last Sunday I entered the CT Rose Society's annual Rose Show in Hartford and walked away with 11 (eleven) ribbons, three of them were blue. Not shabby, I'd say.
Too bad the Club doesn't meet during the summer. There's so many gardening activities to share.
Hope your gardening activities are off to an equally good start.
Arija

Local Farmer's Markets

The Saturday Morning Farmer's Market in the Stonington Borough is a real delight. With fresh and frozen seafood, local produce, baked goods, handmade pottery and flowers there is always something to bring home. And being located on the town docks makes it a very special treat. It is Saturday, May through October, 9 AM to Noon.


List of Local Farmer's Markets
Stonington/Mystic

Quiambaug Fire House, 50 Old Stonington Rd
Tuesdays, 2 to 6 PM, June through October

Denison Farm Market, 120 Pequotsepos Rd
Sundays, noon to 3 PM, June through October

Olde Mistick Village, 27 Coogan Blvd.
TBA, Sept through November

Stonington Borough, Town Docks
Saturdays, 9 AM to Noon, May through October

Westerly
Westerly Farmers' Market, 85 Main Street
Thursdays, 11 AM to 3 PM, May through October

Groton
Groton Farmers' Market, Groton Shopping Plaza Rte 1
Wednesdays, 2 to 6 PM, May through October

MGC 2008 Annual Meeting

The Mystic Garden Club 2008 Annual Meeting was a really fantastic event. It was held at the Mystic Arts Center, where the artwork was a beautiful backdrop for the lovely ladies and their decorated hats. Our new members were welcomed to the club at that time with Amy Laidlaw and Pauline Grippo able to participate. Our scholarship recipient was introduced to the group. Our retiring President, Gail Ettinger, thanked all of her board members and passed the presidential pin along to the new co-presidents, Betsy Van Winkle and Ceil Gallup.
There were prizes for the most creative hats with

• The Most Mystic going to Betsy Van Winkle whose red, white & blue creation was very patriotic
• The Most Elegant to Joy Molloy
• The Greenest to Sue Johnson with her asparagus decorate hat.
• The Most Suited to her Personality to Cam Bertsche whose hat was decorated with a whooping crane.

The lunch was absolutely delicious and the year ended on a particularly high note. The results from the Plant Sale exceeded anything that was done before. So a special thanks to everyone for donating their plants to this worthwhile fundraiser for the Mystic & Noank Library.

Plum Beach Garden Club Event

We received the following invitation to an event put on by the Plum Beach Garden Club http://www.gardencentral.org/rigardenclubs/pbgc/ in Wickford, RI.

Hi there...a group of us from the PLUM BEACH GARDEN CLUB in Wickford RI happened
to enjoy your recent Plant Sale. Well Done!Congratulations. We had the best
time!

Thought you might want to relax and enjoy an afternoon out so I am sending you
some info on our upcoming luncheon:

Do you think that oak leaves and pine needles make soil acidic?

Have you heard that moss in the lawn means you need to add lime?

Find out why this so-called garden wisdom may not be wise at all when C.L. Fornari, http://www.gardenlady.com/ author, photographer, radio host and master gardener returns to Rhode Island to speak at The Plum Beach Garden Club's September 10th luncheon fundraiser at the Dunes Club in Narragansett.

All interested gardeners and lovers of Wednesday afternoon lunches at a beautiful seaside location are invited. "MYTHS, LIES and ALL THE LATEST DIRT" is the presentation by this popular, witty and entertaining speaker who will be lecturing on the down and dirty folklore on plants, practices and products. The Plum Beach Garden Club was started in 1927, and continues to support civic beautification projects. This luncheon fundraiser is for the "Island Project", the ambitious landscaping that will transform the traffic islands that are on Route 1 and West Main Street that are the entrance to the historic Village of Wickford.

This event starts at 10:30 AM

Space is limited, and as in past years, often sells out quickly.

Reservations are confirmed with a $40.00 check made payable to

THE PLUM BEACH GARDEN CLUB.

Send them to treasurer,

Clare Northrup

105 Stony Lane

Exeter, RI, 02822

For more information, contact Anne O'Neil at 783-8959.

LECTURE & LUNCHEON

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2008

The Dunes Club

137 Boston Neck Rd

Narragansett, RI 02882
Speaker: C.L. Fornari

MYTHS LIES AND ALL THE LATEST DIRT

$40.00 advanced reservations

Thank you

Karen Pizzaruso

Publicity Plum Beach Garden Club

401-295-1910 31 Fishing Cove Road

North Kingstown, Rhode Island 02852
C.L. Fornari http://www.gardenlady.com/

(508) 428-5895

"Want guidance and inspiration? It's all in your own backyard."