Highlands Biological Foundation

Botanical Garden Committee Meeting – January 6, 2016, 4:30 p.m.

Attending: Linda Barlow, Dollie Swanson, Hillrie Quin, Sonya Carpenter, Lydia Macauley

By telephone: Liz Sargent, Glenda Zahner, Helen Regnery

Liz called the meeting to order at 4:30

Subcommittee Reports

Maintenance: Linda reported that the tree removal was complete, all went well. Nelson McKinney will be considered again for future tree work. Seven to nine stewartia have been planted. Most of the material for the Coker railing system is here. We just need the pipe fittings. The old board walk has four sections that have sunk during the recent rains and need to be raised. The prefab gutter for the rain barrels has been a problem, but Mike and Russell are now trained and can finish the project. They may need a new gutter section. The coordination between HBS and the greenway group has gone very well. Everyone seems pleased with the completed new section.

Garden App: Hillrie reported that the pictures are still not complete on the mobile app but they continue to be added. One problem they are having is that the TIFF files have to be converted to JPEGs. Madeline has reformatted the rest of the Spring Book.

Volunteer: We decided that the Volunteer program will have an event in late April (possibly to coincide with Earth Day). We are looking for a detailed volunteer opportunity to publicize. Depending on how early spring arrives, we may be able to plant the fern garden. Another opportunity may be working on the Coker Rhododendron Trail railing.

Design: Liz reported on the Fern Garden. Tom Goforth and Russell are using a base map developed from a survey made for the Pollinator Garden project. The design calls for 28 species of ferns. They will be arranged to reflect light, soil moisture, and soil acidity conditions and microclimate. Next we need to choose appropriate companion flowering plants to include in the design. Planting is planned for April or May, depending on the weather. Russell has been removing one of the aggressive species of grass that is growing in a prime fern location in preparation. Otherwise space for flowering plants will be somewhat limited. He is waiting to see what companion plants come up in the Spring before considering spraying, or anticipating how much space we will actually have. Liz will forward a list of possible flowering companion plants to the committee for their review. We will need to look for sources to purchase or for donations. We discussed fern education opportunities. Plants will be in groups of 5-7 and will be labeled as planted.

HBF Director’s Report

Wildflower Wimsey: Will be held on May 6-7, 2016. (This is the same day as the Kentucky Derby.) Wes Burling game has provided us with an example of a successful grant application to the NC Native Plant Society (see Attachment I). Larry Mellichamp is the chair. Typical grant are for $2-3,000. Wes told Sonya about some interesting nurseries that may have azaleas and ferns of interest: Larson Lambert – Hendersonville, Linda Ammons – Balsam Grove Nursery. Linda mentioned Lazy K nursery in Pine Mountain Ga. had 3 gallon native azaleas for about $25.

2016 Catalog The staff is preparing the catalog now. How much input would committee members like to have as to the types of workshops which have been held for the garden on the third Tuesday of June – September? Garden tours have been held every Monday by the horticultural staff. Russell wants to change one of the tour topics—using natives in your garden--to one about invasives. Russell and Jim are members of the Collaborative for Non-Native Invasive Plant Management (CNIPM) and Russell would like to spread the word about how important it is to control invasives.

Budget: Sonya provided a budget update. Tree removal was a little over budget, but is not a problem since some of this money had been dedicated but not spent in last year’s budget.

Respectfully submitted,

Hillrie Quin

HBF Botanical Garden Committee Meeting Minutes, January 6, 2016 1