EVENING’S PRESENTERS … Shown are members (left) Connie Simmons, who shared her arrangement called Hot Summer Nights and Joyce Mocherman, who presented the program on How to Prepare Specimens for Flower Shows.
PRESS RELEASE – President Cam Miller opened the meeting of the Pulaski Garden Club on August 5, 2025, with roll call, which followed a potluck dinner, which included describing and showing the unusual foliages that were brought. Eighteen members responded to roll call with five guests.
The Secretary’s Report and Treasurer’s Report were given. The evening’s floral arrangement, entitled “Hot Summer Nights” was exhibited by Connie Simmons which included red, white, and blue painted dried Allium blooms and flags. For the “hot” part of the title she included bottles of iced tea!
Pests of the Month – Snails and Slugs was also given by Connie Simmons. These critters are mollusks which can have up to 14,000 teeth that scrape and chew their way through indoor and outside plants.
They feast at night leaving a slime trail. They like the shade eating astilbe, phlox, and hostas. Eggs are layed in soil where it is warm and damp. A way to eliminate is to remove their hiding places and improve air flow. Some methods are laying down cardboard, bottle caps filled with beer, or leaving salad greens.
Pick them up and place them in your compost heap to speed along decomposition. The mascot for the University of California at Santa Cruz is the large slimy banana slug!
OLD BUSINESS
Fairground cleanup will be August 25 at 6 pm. New members are encouraged to attend events outside the monthly meetings but are not mandatory.
Dues were due at the meeting or in September. Members receive the new program book when dues are paid. Keep in mind any ideas for the May 2026 Regional 1 Meeting of which we oversee the speakers.
NEW BUSINESS
Fair set up will be on September 3 at 9 am. A signup sheet was circulated for dates to visit the Rakers nursery in Litchfield Michigan.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Centennial Committee – Dates are being set for 2026. There will be an afternoon tea in April to initiate our 100th birthday followed by a plant sale in May, an open house and flower show at the Bryan library in June, and possible participation in the Flair on the Square in July.
Our Williams County fair theme will highlight the centennial, and we hope to walk in several of the local parades through 2026. Plans are in the works to build a community garden plot.
Williams County Fair – Prior to the agenda, Scott Carroll, fair board member, passed out copies of the 2025 fair booklet to each member. He explained the entry rules and thanked the club for handling the floriculture section of the Gillette building.
PROGRAM
Joyce Mocherman presented the program on how to prepare your specimens for the Flower Show at the fair. She emphasized the schedule must be followed. Check to be sure that the specimen fits into the correct class.
After submitting your entries to the fair office, the entry tags will be printed for you. Use string to fasten the tag to a clear glass bottle. A handy recommendation is to use cardboard wine cooler cartons for carrying.
Take blooms that are only just opened cutting the longest stem that you can and use warm water. No leaves must be in the water but can be above the water line in the bottle.
Bubble wrap can be used to wedge the specimen so that it stands upright. A spike constitutes one bloom whereas a spray can have three or more.
A spray should have blooms which indicate yesterday, today, and tomorrow blooms. Be sure foliage has no pinholes. More than one variety of a leaf or blossom can be entered.
The door prize was brought by Rhonda Obus and was won by Barb Deetz. The meeting was then adjourned.
SHARE AND TELL
JoAnne Beucler reminded us to check soil temperature in the spring before planting seeds. It should be at least 65 degrees for seeds to germinate. It is hard to do, but waiting for warmer weather is crucial for sprouting. But remember that some seeds require a freezing temperature first. Check your seed packet.
Hostesses for the meeting were thanked for their potluck dishes, and some recipes were requested.
The next meeting of the Pulaski Garden Club will be September 2, 2025, at 6:30 at Pulaski United Methodist Church.