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Special Bloom Report - Event Postponements

Hi Garden Clubbers!
Many of you will have already received this message, but better twice than not at all when it comes to postponements! Thank you for spreading the word!
 
Historic Gardens
Stop & Smell the Roses
Special Bloom Report
July 3 2014
Before the storm...
Recognized as one of North America's Best!
Call it a hurricane, a post-tropical storm, or in the words of Pooh,  "a rather blustery day"...
whatever way you look at it, this weekend is just not the time for large scale outdoor events.
So...
EVENT POSTPONEMENT
We have POSTPONED both Wine & Roses and the Annapolis Royal House & Garden Tour to the following weekend.
More specifically:
Wine & Roses - NEW DATE
Friday, July 11, 5-7pm
Annapolis Royal House & Garden Tour - NEW DATE
Saturday, July 12, 10am-4pm
This decision was made based on the best possible weather predictions available thus far. The storm is expected to bring heavy rains and very strong winds through Saturday evening, which is likely to cause very unfavourable and potentially hazardous conditions through Sunday. We will keep our fingers crossed for better weather on July 11 & 12.
We apologize for any inconvenience this postponement causes.
Please call 902-532-7018 for further information.  
 We have attempted throughout the afternoon to call and email everyone who had already booked or reserved tickets, and post announcements through the media and social networks. But please do us the favour of spreading the word about the change, and even more than that, of spreading the word about these two great events now scheduled for July 11 & 12 in Annapolis Royal.
Let's try this revised promotion:
Annapolis Royal is THE Place to Be July 11-13!
Wine & Roses
Friday, July 11, 5-7pm
(NEW DATE)
Start your weekend experience in Annapolis Royal with "Wine & Roses", Friday, July 11, 5-7pm, a unique opportunity to explore the Historic Gardens with a glass of wine in hand!  Wine, hor d'ouvres and some great jazz music: add lots of  friends and more friends-to-be and you will have a magical evening.
It's rain-or-shine event - but not hurricane!
Annapolis Royal House & Garden Tour
Saturday, July 12, 10am-4pm
​(NEW DATE)
Join us in historic Annapolis Royal as the community showcases some of its unique gardens and houses in a special Annapolis Royal House & Garden Tour on Saturday, July 12, 2014, 10am-4pm.
The event will include a visit to six private properties where residents have made use of unique designs and materials to create wonderful gardens and landscapes.  In addition, all of the featured properties are inviting guests to tour parts of their unique homes. The Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens will be a centerpiece of the tour, in prime rose season, with the Horticulturist on hand to provide a guided tour.
Please note that due to a wedding on their property, the Queen Anne Inn is not able to join us as a feature property on July 12, so there will be six wonderful properties instead of seven. Owners Kate & Laszlo have graciously made the offer that visitors are welcome to view their gardens on Sunday, July 13 on an informal basis. Another reason to stay in Annapolis Royal all weekend!
Please visit www.ExploreOurGardens.com for more!
And to make the weekend complete...
Add a great performance by "The Paul McKenna Band" at King's Theatre on Friday evening, a visit to the Farmers' Market on Saturday morning, stroll through the waterfront shopping district, hike along the French Basin Trail, and experience our attractions and museums. Then relax on Sunday with some Greenhouse-hopping in our wonderful Valley nurseries.
We hope that you will join us in Annapolis Royal July 11 & 12.
House & Garden Tour Tickets are $25.
(Historic Gardens members can buy at a reduced rate of $20).
Tickets for Wine & Roses are $15.
(Members and House & Garden Tour Participants $10)
Tickets may be purchased at the Historic Gardens, via our Online Store or by calling (902) 532-7018.
In order to get this message out quickly, I have dispensed with the usual photos and news. But I would like to include a Fan Foto to close, because our fans are so important - they keep us going in every way.
Fan Fotos...
After such a hot and humid day, this refreshing photo of the Courtyard Pond seemed like a great choice for this week's Fan Foto. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
Thanks to Lesley Crysler for sharing this photo with us.
If you have a photo or two of the Historic Gardens that you would be willing to share with our Bloom Report readers, please send them along to us by return email. 
And with that it is time to sign off.  Stay Dry, Stay Safe
Cheers!
Trish
The Gardens would not be here without lots of amazing community support.
Please consider a donation to the Historic Gardens.
    
Bonus Shot:
Perfect Perch!
This rust-breasted robin provided the perfect touch to Brad Hall's sculpture in the evening sun.
Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens Society
441 St. George Street, Annapolis Royal, NS   B0S 1A0
902-532-7018

2014 Gaggle of Gardeners Bus Tour

Hello everyone!

I am pleased to announce that the Dartmouth Garden Club will be hosting its "2nd Annual Gaggle of Gardeners" bus tour on Thursday, July 10th.  I will require confirmation of your registration and your payment no later than July 4th.  I will open up this invitation to other garden clubs and associations, as well as non-member gardeners.  We are renting a 56-seat bus, and I want to ensure that the bus is filled to capacity, if possible.  Please encourage your family, friends, neighbours, enemies, and children to join us because it's a fabulous, fun-filled day of shopping and eating!

 I will provide you with the itinerary for the day, as well as other important points for you to note:

8:45am

Meet at Mic Mac Mall parking lot.  If you are facing Target, look to the LEFT of the front doors and you will see the Markie Bus Tours bus parked there.

9:00am

Bus leaves Dartmouth and drives straight to Hillendale Perennials.

9:45am

Bus arrives at Hillendale Perennials and we shop.

10:15am

Bus leaves Hillendale Perennials and drives to Searle's Landscaping.

10:30am

Bus arrives at Searle's Landscaping and we shop.

11:15am

Bus leaves Searle's Landscaping and drives to Pheasant Gardens Daylilies.

11:45am

Bus arrives at Pheasant Gardens Daylilies and we shop.

12:30pm

Bus leaves Pheasant Gardens and drives to Masstown Market.

1:00pm

Bus arrives at Masstown Market and we eat and shop AND BUY STRAWBERRIES!

2:30pm

Bus leaves Masstown Market and drives to Lowland Gardens.

3:00pm

Bus arrives at Lowland Gardens and we shop.

4:00pm

Bus leaves Lowlands and drives to Woodlands and Meadows.

4:30pm

Bus arrives at Woodlands and Meadows and we shop.

5:00pm

Bus leaves Woodlands and Meadows and drives to Dartmouth.

6:00pm

Arrive at Mic Mac Mall (please ensure your ride is waiting for you).

1.      Markie Bus Tours has been hired to provide our transportation.

2.      I have asked for a friendly, patient bus driver who knows his way around Truro and the surrounding areas.  I don't need any more ulcers after last year's debacle.

3.      I encourage you to take a vacation day and join us.  Weekdays at these nurseries is much less chaotic than weekends, and you don't have to wait in long line-ups to pay for your purchases.

4.      Cost to register for the bus tour is $30.00 for Dartmouth Garden Club members, $40.00 for all others, and is payable upon registration.  If you are paying by cheque, please make the cheque payable to Dartmouth Horticultural Society.  Cash or cheque only.  No VISA.  You can give your cheque directly to me.  Our Club is subsidizing this trip in order that it is affordable to all our members, so please take advantage of this reduced cost (the cost of the bus rental is $1,500.00 plus taxes plus tip).  You can either mail your cheque or cash to me at 6 Aberdeen Court, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, B2X 1K4, or you can slip it in my mailbox (don't step on any cats or plants!).

5.      The cost of the tour does not include purchases made at any of the venues nor does it include lunch.

6.      Please bring the following items with you (just in case):  bottled water (there's a washroom on the bus), bug spray (if it's humid we'll probably encounter mosquitos), suntan lotion, wet wipes, light hooded jacket or hooded sweater (in the event of rain) or clear plastic rain poncho from the Dollar Store.  These items can be left on board the bus if you don't need them.

7.      We are going to try to stick to the agenda as closely as we can, so please try to be back at the bus at the required departure times.

8.      It might be a good idea to have some cash in your wallet.  Not all vendors take debit cards.

9.      The bus has a storage compartment underneath the body where we can store our plants and vegetables and baked goods and containers and trees and shrubs and mushroom compost boys.  They will be safe there.

10.   There will be a minimal amount of walking at the nurseries; however, we will be doing a lot of scurrying from place to place, so be sure to wear comfortable, non-skid walking shoes or sandals.

11.   Keep in mind that this is a long, busy day, so pace yourself and don't overdo it.  I have no intention of giving you mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

12.   Gaggles are fun.  Invite someone you normally shop with to join us.

13.   Please bring your camera so that you can take lots of photos of our Gaggle having fun.  I'll write an accompanying story and we'll put it in the Scotian Gardener, and make all the other clubs jealous!

14.   If you could stuff a couple of Sobeys bags in your purse, it would be appreciated.  We might need them for plants or pukers.

15.   There will be no refunds once you have paid your registration fee, so it might be a good idea to have a friend on standby to join the Gaggle in your place (just in case you get sick the day of the tour).

16.   The actual agenda might change slightly by the time we actually leave, depending upon the availability of staff at some of these nurseries in mid-week.

17.   Fingers crossed—if you are well-behaved, I might consider planning the next Gaggle trip to the South Shore for next year!

If you have questions or concerns, let me know.
Debbie

Deborah A. Symonds
dsymonds@hotmail.com

Spring Into Summer!!

It's gardening time!

Hi everyone!  Just a quick note to let you know the latest news and the upcoming events.  If you would like to invite our members to tour your garden at it's prime, please post the location, date and time on our Facebook group and email thepagc@gmail.com so I can add it to our site's Upcoming Events calendar.  If you hear of any other events happening over the summer, feel free to share on our Facebook group as well :)

We have a small group of people interested in helping to shape the program for next year.  If you would be willing to share topic ideas, make phone calls or send emails, please email thepagc@gmail.com to join this group.
Our plant sale was a huge success on Saturday!  Thanks to many very generous plant donations and dedicated volunteer work, we were able to raise nearly 5 times more than our recent perennial orders in under 2 hours!  Unbelievable!!
John and Donna Silver share their amazing property at 283 Brennan's Road (off Prospect Bay Road) Sunday, June 15 between 12pm and 4pm. The rhododendrons are coming into their own. Please remember to bring a food donation to support our local food bank. See you Sunday!
Each member has an NSAGC bare root hosta waiting for them at Bill Mercier's place at 16 Aaron Avenue, Shad Bay.  They need immediate pick up.  If you will not be picking one up, please email thepagc@gmail.com so we can rescue it.