Hey everyone!
Just doing my duty here, but as most of you know, we got a nice start on construction last week with all the unnecessary ficus moved out, the lines chalked, a few retaining walls built, and the pond started! This week the plan is to finish laying out the pond, finish laying out the retaining walls, and get the deck cleaned and stained. If we get to the point of bringing mulch in, that would be cool too, but no promises. On the topic of mulch, we have a HUGE pile of it behind the conservatory (50 yards actually). I was out today stacking the pile up a little bit and all I can say is get ready to run some wheelbarrows! We can use the garden's tractor to load them this year, which will be a time and back saver, but even so, this is no easy task.
I think we are ahead of schedule, which is awesome, so lets not back down now!
Git 'er done!
Joe
Monday, April 4, 2011
Marketing
So,
11 days! We will finish the A-frames this Wednesday night and work out placement during the officer/reg. mtgs. this week. I have another 50 fliers to put up around town and expect people in the club to offer to go to several different places to put them up for me since I'm only one person. Also, I will be handing everyone 10 postcards this Wednesday to mail home, give to friends, or put up wherever they think people would see them (dorm room door, local church, wherever) so everyone is involved in getting others to come to the show. I am working on a list of places to post to give people this Wednesday, feel free to shoot me ideas! today and tomorrow I am sending out news releases and such about the show to get some coverage...fingers crossed that someone ends up on TV or the radio! All of the postcards are officially (rubber banded) and mailed...wooooo! There's probably things I'm missing but that's all I can think of at the moment. Let the countdown begin!
Sarah :)
11 days! We will finish the A-frames this Wednesday night and work out placement during the officer/reg. mtgs. this week. I have another 50 fliers to put up around town and expect people in the club to offer to go to several different places to put them up for me since I'm only one person. Also, I will be handing everyone 10 postcards this Wednesday to mail home, give to friends, or put up wherever they think people would see them (dorm room door, local church, wherever) so everyone is involved in getting others to come to the show. I am working on a list of places to post to give people this Wednesday, feel free to shoot me ideas! today and tomorrow I am sending out news releases and such about the show to get some coverage...fingers crossed that someone ends up on TV or the radio! All of the postcards are officially (rubber banded) and mailed...wooooo! There's probably things I'm missing but that's all I can think of at the moment. Let the countdown begin!
Sarah :)
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Plant Pick-ups
So, we have nearly 400 different kinds of plants in the greenhouse now. That's a LOT of plants! But the good news is we have MORE to go! If you have an afternoon free in the next few weeks, we have nearly 20 different places to pick up plants form. Please let me know!
This club doesn't function without volunteers! Your time is needed and appreciated! Thanks!!
BL
Monday, March 14, 2011
Construction Update
Howdy ya'll,
Just doing my weekly duty here, but overall I would say we are doing well. LHGS set up today went very well in my humble opinion. Thanks to everyone who helped with that! We had some equipment issues at the farm, but I think all in all the situation was handled well. I owe an apology to everyone for a brain-fart that ended in an adirondack chair flying out of my truck on Farm Lane on the way to the Pavillion. The green chair sustained some injuries making it unsalable, but it should look nice in the office! I will try and bring some tools and get it back in a little better shape soon.
As far as tear down goes for the LHGS, the rack truck should be there (thanks Bob) by Sunday afternoon, so when the show is done, all hardscape materials need to be loaded on that truck, and someone will return it to the farm for Mitch and I to deal with on Monday or Tuesday. All of the plant material will need to be loaded in covered vehicles and moved back to the PSS greenhouses. The deck, chairs, benches, and heartwood table also need to make their way onto a truck heading to PSS. I will send everyone an email from the train to PLANET with any more details that we come up with.
For SS setup, I have it marked on my schedule, and will make some moves to get people and materials moving in the coming weeks, and for sure start work ASAP in the conservatory.
Marketing crew, please let me know if you need any assistance on the sign painting project!
Well, that is my longest post yet I think, so I will end there.
Have a great week and to everyone staying to help man the LHGS, THANK YOU!!
To the PLANET team, lets go for the gold!
Any questions, please do call me.
(231) 330-3880
Cheers!
Joe
Just doing my weekly duty here, but overall I would say we are doing well. LHGS set up today went very well in my humble opinion. Thanks to everyone who helped with that! We had some equipment issues at the farm, but I think all in all the situation was handled well. I owe an apology to everyone for a brain-fart that ended in an adirondack chair flying out of my truck on Farm Lane on the way to the Pavillion. The green chair sustained some injuries making it unsalable, but it should look nice in the office! I will try and bring some tools and get it back in a little better shape soon.
As far as tear down goes for the LHGS, the rack truck should be there (thanks Bob) by Sunday afternoon, so when the show is done, all hardscape materials need to be loaded on that truck, and someone will return it to the farm for Mitch and I to deal with on Monday or Tuesday. All of the plant material will need to be loaded in covered vehicles and moved back to the PSS greenhouses. The deck, chairs, benches, and heartwood table also need to make their way onto a truck heading to PSS. I will send everyone an email from the train to PLANET with any more details that we come up with.
For SS setup, I have it marked on my schedule, and will make some moves to get people and materials moving in the coming weeks, and for sure start work ASAP in the conservatory.
Marketing crew, please let me know if you need any assistance on the sign painting project!
Well, that is my longest post yet I think, so I will end there.
Have a great week and to everyone staying to help man the LHGS, THANK YOU!!
To the PLANET team, lets go for the gold!
Any questions, please do call me.
(231) 330-3880
Cheers!
Joe
Monday, March 7, 2011
Updates During Spring Break!
Hey everyone!
Hope you are enjoying your time off just as much as I am! I know I kicked things off right, going to bed by 9 pm on Friday night after a few tasty beverages, waking up at 7 am to drink a pot of coffee and watch fishing shows all morning, followed by a most wonderful basketball game in the afternoon.
Anyways, time to get to business I suppose.
The plans for after spring break are as follows:
MARKETING:
Please work with Jackie and Bridget to give a "How-to" sheet for those working to home and garden show, or something of an instructional nature anyways. Basically, I want people to know what it is they are exactly supposed to do. I will make sure to give Jackie hard copies of our current plant lists (not for people to take with them). Jackie already has an FAQ, but you may want to update or change it. Make sure we have a poster of some sort there too. Also, please check in with Sara to see how our facebook page is coming along.
In regards to the facebook page, if we do have a computer at the home and garden show, who's will it be???
We will need to have our t-shirts picked up on the Monday or Tuesday or our return to be distributed at our meeting on Tuesday night. Jackie and Sarah, please see Meghan to get the customary candy for the Slick Shirts folks.
When we return from PLANET, please pick a meeting where the A-frames are painted by your crew.
Can we also get an update on how you are coming with media connections at the next officer meeting after PLANET?
This committee has a lot of responsibility on their hands, and are doing an excellent job thus far!
Also, remind me about signage at our next officer meeting as well (In regards to annuals, perennials, sun, shade, etc).
CHILDRENS:
Christina recently sent me an email with the minutes of her last group meeting. It looks like they are right on track with things, having people getting times scheduled (don't forget to check with HOGS, let me know if you need contact info) to play with kids, assigning people to pick up food items and activities and such, all while being budget minded. I believe they are having another meeting sometime after break. Hopefully, updates can be posted here instead of in email. Other than that, this committee is on top of things.
GROWING:
Way to go everyone! Thus far, there have been very few casualties, and everything is looking great!
I know some of the stuff is getting big and harder to keep up on, but hey, that's why there's an entire committee to share the burden, right? Of course, there's always the problem with things getting watered too much as well, and yes this is always an issue, and one of the toughest ones to solve. It is very difficult to teach people to only water what needs watering, and get them to do it on a consistent basis.
I hope you enjoyed my email tonight, stating that you are currently caring for over 4300 plants, with many more to come!
These next few weeks will be the most trying for this committee as the temperature gets warmer, the sun comes out a bit more, and the days are longer, things tend to also dry out more.
To note: I will be ordering more pots and carrying trays on Wednesday. I have been told we still have a lot of hanging baskets left, so I will not be ordering any. We need to make sure we put our ivy geraniums in hanging baskets soon, and try to find the poles that go in our greenhouse for them. We may also have to hang some in the hall.
Don't forget to start checking stuff in the hoophouse as well.
Also, I am assuming we will be getting things like jack in the pulpits and trilliums donated this years (assuming from Ottawa-Kent nursery). Those need to go in the cooler until about two weeks before the show.
With the last pick up that we got before break that we put in the hoophouse, I went and trimmed everything but the Russian sage (ran out of daylight), and will finish that up after break. Hopefully everything hand;es the cold well.
Also, on the Tuesday before we leave for PLANET, we should probably pot up the kale, begonias, and most of everything else we have in plug trays.
Brenda just sent out an email to her committee, and I mentioned it in my email tonight, we have over 20 pickups coming in the next 6 weeks, plus a trip to Rakers.
CONSTRUCTION:
It is of vital importance that we get everything we need for the home and garden show there, before we leave for PLANET, so let's make sure that this gets coordinated somewhat in advance. Also, it is time to start making sure all of our stone, etc. is stacked and wrapped and ready to go. Please pick a time and day, and let's get a few of us out there to do this. Also, a meeting is needed to set up with Bill Chase as to how he wants us to handle moving things out an the new pad, he is pretty worried about things getting torn up and such. This needs to be a priority, and not put off until the day we are ready to go grab things.
We are able to start construction on March 30, so that week, we should start moving pallets into the head house and/or off to the side in the conservatory. Please take a representative of the Design team out to the hort farm to pick out what is needed if they cannot verbally tell you.
Finally, if it is still within your means, please have a plan for a bench ready and the necessary lumber for our PLANET construction team. It may be a good idea to coordinate with them the necessary tools.
A big thanks to this committee and its leadership for its superior organization and ability to do things quickly and efficiently.
DONATIONS/INVENTORY:
An email was just sent out, saying we have over 20 pick ups to go! And with the numbers I just punched out of our latest list, I am very much put at ease, per my semi-freak out at the last potting party.
I don't have much to say to this committee about things to do, but there are a few.
Most importantly, what is the status of our sod donation?
Really, that is about all.
DESIGN:
Please make sure that at least one of our designs is in color. Coordinate with construction on the stone you want brought in. Also, please let me know how much mulch we need, so I can make sure to have that delivered. It would be a good idea to over-estimate, just in case.
And with that, I am done typing for tonight, and will get back to you on Sunday.
Love, Peace, Chicken Grease!
Hope you are enjoying your time off just as much as I am! I know I kicked things off right, going to bed by 9 pm on Friday night after a few tasty beverages, waking up at 7 am to drink a pot of coffee and watch fishing shows all morning, followed by a most wonderful basketball game in the afternoon.
Anyways, time to get to business I suppose.
The plans for after spring break are as follows:
MARKETING:
Please work with Jackie and Bridget to give a "How-to" sheet for those working to home and garden show, or something of an instructional nature anyways. Basically, I want people to know what it is they are exactly supposed to do. I will make sure to give Jackie hard copies of our current plant lists (not for people to take with them). Jackie already has an FAQ, but you may want to update or change it. Make sure we have a poster of some sort there too. Also, please check in with Sara to see how our facebook page is coming along.
In regards to the facebook page, if we do have a computer at the home and garden show, who's will it be???
We will need to have our t-shirts picked up on the Monday or Tuesday or our return to be distributed at our meeting on Tuesday night. Jackie and Sarah, please see Meghan to get the customary candy for the Slick Shirts folks.
When we return from PLANET, please pick a meeting where the A-frames are painted by your crew.
Can we also get an update on how you are coming with media connections at the next officer meeting after PLANET?
This committee has a lot of responsibility on their hands, and are doing an excellent job thus far!
Also, remind me about signage at our next officer meeting as well (In regards to annuals, perennials, sun, shade, etc).
CHILDRENS:
Christina recently sent me an email with the minutes of her last group meeting. It looks like they are right on track with things, having people getting times scheduled (don't forget to check with HOGS, let me know if you need contact info) to play with kids, assigning people to pick up food items and activities and such, all while being budget minded. I believe they are having another meeting sometime after break. Hopefully, updates can be posted here instead of in email. Other than that, this committee is on top of things.
GROWING:
Way to go everyone! Thus far, there have been very few casualties, and everything is looking great!
I know some of the stuff is getting big and harder to keep up on, but hey, that's why there's an entire committee to share the burden, right? Of course, there's always the problem with things getting watered too much as well, and yes this is always an issue, and one of the toughest ones to solve. It is very difficult to teach people to only water what needs watering, and get them to do it on a consistent basis.
I hope you enjoyed my email tonight, stating that you are currently caring for over 4300 plants, with many more to come!
These next few weeks will be the most trying for this committee as the temperature gets warmer, the sun comes out a bit more, and the days are longer, things tend to also dry out more.
To note: I will be ordering more pots and carrying trays on Wednesday. I have been told we still have a lot of hanging baskets left, so I will not be ordering any. We need to make sure we put our ivy geraniums in hanging baskets soon, and try to find the poles that go in our greenhouse for them. We may also have to hang some in the hall.
Don't forget to start checking stuff in the hoophouse as well.
Also, I am assuming we will be getting things like jack in the pulpits and trilliums donated this years (assuming from Ottawa-Kent nursery). Those need to go in the cooler until about two weeks before the show.
With the last pick up that we got before break that we put in the hoophouse, I went and trimmed everything but the Russian sage (ran out of daylight), and will finish that up after break. Hopefully everything hand;es the cold well.
Also, on the Tuesday before we leave for PLANET, we should probably pot up the kale, begonias, and most of everything else we have in plug trays.
Brenda just sent out an email to her committee, and I mentioned it in my email tonight, we have over 20 pickups coming in the next 6 weeks, plus a trip to Rakers.
CONSTRUCTION:
It is of vital importance that we get everything we need for the home and garden show there, before we leave for PLANET, so let's make sure that this gets coordinated somewhat in advance. Also, it is time to start making sure all of our stone, etc. is stacked and wrapped and ready to go. Please pick a time and day, and let's get a few of us out there to do this. Also, a meeting is needed to set up with Bill Chase as to how he wants us to handle moving things out an the new pad, he is pretty worried about things getting torn up and such. This needs to be a priority, and not put off until the day we are ready to go grab things.
We are able to start construction on March 30, so that week, we should start moving pallets into the head house and/or off to the side in the conservatory. Please take a representative of the Design team out to the hort farm to pick out what is needed if they cannot verbally tell you.
Finally, if it is still within your means, please have a plan for a bench ready and the necessary lumber for our PLANET construction team. It may be a good idea to coordinate with them the necessary tools.
A big thanks to this committee and its leadership for its superior organization and ability to do things quickly and efficiently.
DONATIONS/INVENTORY:
An email was just sent out, saying we have over 20 pick ups to go! And with the numbers I just punched out of our latest list, I am very much put at ease, per my semi-freak out at the last potting party.
I don't have much to say to this committee about things to do, but there are a few.
Most importantly, what is the status of our sod donation?
Really, that is about all.
DESIGN:
Please make sure that at least one of our designs is in color. Coordinate with construction on the stone you want brought in. Also, please let me know how much mulch we need, so I can make sure to have that delivered. It would be a good idea to over-estimate, just in case.
And with that, I am done typing for tonight, and will get back to you on Sunday.
Love, Peace, Chicken Grease!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Construction
Hey there!
As Mitch said, we got a good start last week. Tomorrow the plan is to put the finishing touches on the deck and heartwood table, as well as assemble the last 5 a-frames. All materials are in the greenhouse from my truck as of this afternoon, so we should be ready to rock and roll after the formalities at tomorrow's meeting. I will meet with Sarah about painting the a-frames, and will try and get a plan figured out for cleaning and clear coating/water sealing the deck to get rid of the foot prints ASAP. I believe thats all for now, lets keep up the good pace and make this the best show yet!
See ya'll tomorrow!
JS
As Mitch said, we got a good start last week. Tomorrow the plan is to put the finishing touches on the deck and heartwood table, as well as assemble the last 5 a-frames. All materials are in the greenhouse from my truck as of this afternoon, so we should be ready to rock and roll after the formalities at tomorrow's meeting. I will meet with Sarah about painting the a-frames, and will try and get a plan figured out for cleaning and clear coating/water sealing the deck to get rid of the foot prints ASAP. I believe thats all for now, lets keep up the good pace and make this the best show yet!
See ya'll tomorrow!
JS
Friday, February 18, 2011
What a tease!
Boy oh boy! Isn't this weather something? It almost makes you feel like the show is less than a month a way. Thankfully its 2 months away... 8 weeks to be exact.
So, most of you have not been too active on here, and I do not blame you, as there is nothing to remind you to be active... Well I suppose there is always your sense of responsibility as an officer or committee chair, but who am I kidding, I am hardly responsible enough to take care of my car keys and wallet, let alone trying to remember where I left the remote control.
A few things need to be addressed at this time to keep everyone in the loop, so here are the updates I have for all ya'll.
Growing:
Things are seeming to be going fine, plants are growing well, though occasionally there are issues of drought stress. Things that need to be watered daily, or close to, include the sweet potato vine, diascia, callibrachoa in 3-4" pots, and probably our petunias and impatiens as well. There are also plug trays D108 that need to be monitored daily. This Sunday, we will be bringing in around 200 shrubs to start forcing, and they will be placed in C105 on benches. All big pots (1 gallon or bigger) should be moved to the hallway from the greenhouses after the orchid show next weekend. One other thing to keep an eye on are the callibrichoa and petunias, as they were pretty cholorotic by the time of the show last year, thoughts led to they weren't getting the nutrients they needed for the fertilizer water. Also, there needs to be better communication between the grow team and inventory team, along with myself regarding pot sizes and prices, and this needs to be done before Wednesdays. I will discuss more in detail at our next officer meeting. Finally, please make sure that the hoop house and the plants we have in the hall outside the hoop house are being watered. While they are at low temps, on sunny days, they get pretty warm, and start to dry out.
Marketing:
All updates and immediate concerns were covered in the recent post.
Although, I would like the committee to work with Sara Marcucci to make sure photos are being taken at our spring show activities, including potting parties.
Design:
The conservatory design is essentially done on a computer, just needs a few more finishing touches and to be printed. The estimate fore sod is 1400 sq. ft. We will need a general estimate for mulch soon. Make sure to start looking at the plants we have in the houses to see what you want where, so we make sure to have that set aside for you! Also, Jackie talked with a local glass artist yesterday, who will be putting his work in our show, and giving us a 10% cut of his sales (while this is not our typical contract stipulation, we get additional advertising from him, and further beautification of the display).
Donations/Inventory:
I trust that everything is falling into place. I am highly anticipating the wave of plants soon to arrive! There will be another trip to Raker's next week. Please make sure to read in the grower's update.
Children's:
Nothing new happening here.
Construction:
This past week, the deck, potting bench, and A-Frames were built. Now we need to have stuff coated/painted. Please see the marketing team for painting of the A-Frames. I believe there are a few more frames to finish as well. Don't forget to start thinking about getting out the the hort farm to get the rest of the block stacked that needs to be, and meet with Bill when we want to move stuff.
Keep up the hard work, we are almost there!
MZ
So, most of you have not been too active on here, and I do not blame you, as there is nothing to remind you to be active... Well I suppose there is always your sense of responsibility as an officer or committee chair, but who am I kidding, I am hardly responsible enough to take care of my car keys and wallet, let alone trying to remember where I left the remote control.
A few things need to be addressed at this time to keep everyone in the loop, so here are the updates I have for all ya'll.
Growing:
Things are seeming to be going fine, plants are growing well, though occasionally there are issues of drought stress. Things that need to be watered daily, or close to, include the sweet potato vine, diascia, callibrachoa in 3-4" pots, and probably our petunias and impatiens as well. There are also plug trays D108 that need to be monitored daily. This Sunday, we will be bringing in around 200 shrubs to start forcing, and they will be placed in C105 on benches. All big pots (1 gallon or bigger) should be moved to the hallway from the greenhouses after the orchid show next weekend. One other thing to keep an eye on are the callibrichoa and petunias, as they were pretty cholorotic by the time of the show last year, thoughts led to they weren't getting the nutrients they needed for the fertilizer water. Also, there needs to be better communication between the grow team and inventory team, along with myself regarding pot sizes and prices, and this needs to be done before Wednesdays. I will discuss more in detail at our next officer meeting. Finally, please make sure that the hoop house and the plants we have in the hall outside the hoop house are being watered. While they are at low temps, on sunny days, they get pretty warm, and start to dry out.
Marketing:
All updates and immediate concerns were covered in the recent post.
Although, I would like the committee to work with Sara Marcucci to make sure photos are being taken at our spring show activities, including potting parties.
Design:
The conservatory design is essentially done on a computer, just needs a few more finishing touches and to be printed. The estimate fore sod is 1400 sq. ft. We will need a general estimate for mulch soon. Make sure to start looking at the plants we have in the houses to see what you want where, so we make sure to have that set aside for you! Also, Jackie talked with a local glass artist yesterday, who will be putting his work in our show, and giving us a 10% cut of his sales (while this is not our typical contract stipulation, we get additional advertising from him, and further beautification of the display).
Donations/Inventory:
I trust that everything is falling into place. I am highly anticipating the wave of plants soon to arrive! There will be another trip to Raker's next week. Please make sure to read in the grower's update.
Children's:
Nothing new happening here.
Construction:
This past week, the deck, potting bench, and A-Frames were built. Now we need to have stuff coated/painted. Please see the marketing team for painting of the A-Frames. I believe there are a few more frames to finish as well. Don't forget to start thinking about getting out the the hort farm to get the rest of the block stacked that needs to be, and meet with Bill when we want to move stuff.
Keep up the hard work, we are almost there!
MZ
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