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 Sunshine Garden Club:

Meetings, News & Events

Sent 2024-11-11:  Sunshine Garden Club Time Change - 

Sunshine Garden Club Time Change

 

November 12th 

Retzlaff Hall

5:15pm - 6:30pm Guest Speaker

 

Topic:  Soil Rejuvenation and Amendments

 

Can you give new life to old potting soil. Absolutely!  What about clay garden soil, Yes.

 

Do you have container pots filled with old soil with or without plants?

 

Do you toss the dried up dirt and replace with big box bags of potting mix? What if you need a small amount such as a handful or quart? What if you have lots of containers? Those bags of commercial potting mix can really add up in cost.

 

Let’s breathe new life into that old soil. That just makes sense (cents)!  Reusing old potted mix is more satisfying, sustainable, and environmentally friendly.

 

Let’s revitalize that old soil! Are you ready to dig in? Join us for our November get together featuring Michael Navarro.

 

4:45 pm. Plantings/cuttings are available for a small donation.  Snapdragon vine, salvia, basil, porterweed, milkweed, canna starts, crown of thorns, sweet potato vine.  If you have extras in your garden feel free to bring.

Donations will be put towards edging for gardens.

 

See you this Tuesday.

- Susanne Ulrich

Facebook 2024-09-24: Garden Club Tour - 

The Garden group is making plans to visit Wild August Gardens in November or December. Stay tuned.

- Susanne Ulrich

Sent 2024-02-18: Garden tour - 

Thank you all for joining us at Salinas Family Farm in Lyford on Tuesday.  It was a beautiful day and very informative for vegetable and fruits. Cruz Salinas shared some of his experiences and garden secrets with us.  One I can share is: he has good luck planting celery with tomatoes.  In the valley we have a problem with white fly.  This has proven to help with his crop. Some went home with celery, tomatoes, strawberries, cabbage, purple sweet potato and oranges. They have a Facebook page and will announce "U Pick" for their produce when available.     - Garden Club, Susanne and Debbie

Sent 2024-02-18: Garden Club Speaker: Pictures - 

If you remember this announcement (see below) or even if you don't, the Sunshine Garden Club welcomed speaker Dr. Julie Mustard on Jan 9. The day started with a tour of Texas Avenue at the Butterfly Garden.  She pointed out what pollinators were present and how to attract more. Very Informative.

See her BIO (below in original announcement) and pictures of the participants intensely listening to Julie below.

Also Beth Parrish (Website Mgr) wanted me to remind you that she also posts our Garden Club News, Pictures etc on the Website HERE. If you haven't visited those pages recently or never, please take a peek.

- Susanne and Deb

Sent 2024-02-08: Salinas Family Farm Tour - 

Sunshine Garden Club Tour

 

Final details on our February Garden Tour in place of a regular garden meeting.

 

  • Date:  February 13th, Tuesday

  • Speaker:  Cruz Salinas, Agricultural Specialist

  • Where:  Salinas Family Farm, 7233 Simon Gomez Road, Lyford, Texas.

  • Time:  Meet by the library at 2:00pm. Let me know if you want to carpool.  

 

The tour will start about 2:30pm.  We will have to limit to 20 people.  A signup sheet will be in the library.  If more than 20 we can schedule another tour, so put your name down and we can keep you informed.

 

Cruz will be showing us his vegetable garden, fruit and citrus set up.  He has strawberries planted and in the future you can schedule a "U Pick Day".  Will discuss his raised beds, drip systems and custom made planting tunnels.  

- Susanne Ulrich

 

Sent 2024-01-06: Garden Club Speaker Tuesday afternoon - 

Sunshine Garden Get Together this Tuesday, January 9th.  Speaker Dr. Julie Mustard will start our day at 3:30 with a tour of Texas Avenue at Butterfly Garden.  She will point out what pollinators are present and how to attract more.  (Bad weather cancels).

 

Next at 4:30 in Retzlaff Hall, Julie will give a presentation of pollinator insects and is open to all our questions.  

 

Everyone is welcome, cookies and bars will be provided.  A good will donation will be collected for UTRGV to purchase a few pollinator plants for their gardens.

 

See you Tuesday, Susanne and Deb

Sent 2023-12-11: Garden Club Get-Together - 

Garden Club Get-Together 

Save the date: Tuesday, December 12th

Retzlaff Hall at 6:30 - 7:30

 

We will have an open discussion about weeding, plants, projects and possible tours. If you have an item to share or extra plants or clippings, please bring them. We can learn from each other and all are welcome.  See you Tuesday. - Susanne Ulrich

Sent 2023-11-14: Garden Club Tonight (2023-11-14) - 

Garden Club Speaker Tonight

Retzlaff Hall at 6:30-7:30

 

Container Gardening and Display by, Rosie Garza Martinez, Master Gardener. One of her displays will be the door prize. All are welcome. - Susanne Ulrich

Sent 2023-04-04: Garden Club Plant Sale - Thank You - 

A huge thank you to all who donated and visited the Garden Club plant sale today. It was a tremendous success. Everyone has been so generous. Thank you Robin and Dave for all your hard work, donated plants, and decorations. Couldn't have done it without you. Good luck planting and enjoy.
Thank you all again, - Susanne

Sent 2023-03-26: GARDEN Club: Garden Cleanup - 

If you can make it, the Garden Club and resident volunteers are needed for garden cleanup on Tuesday, March 28th. Meet at the office garden at 10am. We always appreciate the help. We will focus on office garden and plants by the gazebo. Rain cancels. Thank you all so much. - Susanne

Event 2023-03-13: Combined Mtg w/Sunshsine Garden Club and B&N Club - 

The Sunshine Garden Club and the Birding & Nature Club will be having a 'combined' meeting on March 13, 2023 from 5 pm to 8:30 pm. There will be a guest speaker talking on the topic of 'Butterflies'.

- Susanne Ulrich & Tom Stone

Sent 2023-03-09: Reminder of Butterfly Speaker - 

Reminder of Birding and Nature & Garden Club Speaker Monday

 

The Garden and Birding and Nature Clubs will be joining together for a March speaker on "Attracting Butterflies-All Year Long".

 

Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist, author, blogger, photographer and much more, will share colorful butterfly photo's and how to bring beautiful butterflies to your landscape.

 

Date: March 13th

Time: 6:00pm. *Note earlier than usual.

Place: Retzlaff Hall

If you want, a good will donation will be collected to continue Anita's research.

Birding and Nature will hold monthly meeting after Anita's presentation.

- Susanne Ulrich & Tom Stone

​​

Sent 2023-02-22: Garden & Birding and Nature - 

The Garden & Birding and Nature Clubs will be joining together for a March speaker on "Attracting Butterflies-All Year Long".

Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist, author, blogger, photographer and much more, will share colorful butterfly photo's and how to bring beautiful butterflies to your landscape.

Date: March 13th
Time: 6:00pm. *Note earlier than usual.
Place: Retzlaff Hall

If you want, a good will donation will be collected to continue Anita's research.

Thank you, Susanne and Tom

Sent 2023-02-13: No Garden Club Meeting - 

Just a reminder there will be No regular meeting on Tuesday, February 14th. Instead we are doing a tour on Friday, February 17th. See signup sheet in library.
- Thank you, Susanne

Newsletter 2023-02: Sunshine Garden Club - 

There will be no meeting on February 14th, Valentine's Day, instead we will tour a local  native plant park on February 17th. See details and signup in the library.

 

Thank you to the community for your help, interest and donations to the Sunshine Gardens.

- Susanne Ulrich for the entire Garden Club

Sent 2023-01-24: Garden Club Pics - 

I'm finally getting a little more free time to work on the Web site. Today I was able to add a 'few' of the pics I have of the wonderful work the Garden Club and all of their helpers are doing this season at the 'butterfly garden' on TX Ave. I'll keep adding them as I come across more in my files. Please send me additional pics as you guys work on various areas around the community.

 

And thank you all so much for helping make Sunshine a beautiful place to live.

 

The Garden Club Home Page is under the 'Amenities' Tab here:

https://www.sunshinecountryclub.com/garden-club

 

The Garden Club Pics Page (linked to from the Home Page) is here:

 https://www.sunshinecountryclub.com/garden-club-pics

 

Beth Parrish
SEPO Web site Admin
E-Mail: sunshinecountryclubweb@gmail.com
314-960-6710

Sent 2023-01-09: Garden Club - Reminder of Tuesday meeting - 

Reminder: Sunshine Garden Club Get Together

When: Tuesday, January 10, 2023
Where: Retzlaff Hall
Time: 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Topic of the evening: "My Favorite Native Plants"

Please join us along with Janet Schofield, Cameron County Master Gardener, providing an educational class on Native Plants. You may ask yourself, why native plants for my landscape?

Janet provides information on the benefits of planting native plants, which help under these conditions. Landscaping with native plants can save you money, time, water and resources. They have better resistance to our weather; require less maintenance and sometimes no fertilizer or pesticides needed.

All are welcome. Come February we will plan a trip to a park which features native plants.
- Susanne Ulrich

Sent 2022-12-20:  Garden Club: Tips (Before & After a Freeze) - 

It's disheartening, but we do have a need for the knowledge provided in this email. I want to thank one of our Sunshine neighbors, Debbie Gossman, for supplying me with two documents concerning Plants and Freezing: What to do 'before' and 'after' a freeze. They are on the Web site HERE where they can be both viewed or printed. The Garden Club Web page (under the Amenities Tab) is also in the process of being spruced up by Beth. So watch for more info and pics getting placed out there.

- Susanne Ulrich


Sent 2022-11-07: Reminder of the Sunshine Garden Club Get Together - 

Tuesday, November 8th, 
Library
Social at 6:15pm
Program starts at 6:30 - 7:30.
 
Come join us for lots of tips and tricks in relation to gardening.  We learn so much from each other. Thank you,
- Sue, Terry, Glenna, Susanne

Sent 2022-03-06: Reminder of Garden Club Tuesday, March 8 - 

Garden Club News

Welcome to all residents/renters to The Garden Club Event, Tuesday, March 8th at 6:30pm in Retzlaff Hall.
Topic of interest:  Best RGV Plants for your landscape.
Special guest speaker is a Master Gardener from Cameron County Extension Office, in San Benito.
 
Coffee, tea, bars and cookies will be available. See you Tuesday evening.     Thank you, Susanne

Sent 2022-02-06: REMINDER, Garden Club - 

Sunshine Garden Club  -  New Meeting Time: 6:30 - 7:30 pm.  -  February 8th in the library.
We will have a Social at 6:15 with treats and coffee.
Very interesting and informative topic for the night is "Cut Flower Arrangements" and tips of the trade by Terry DeBackere, florist.   *** Covid precautions will be in place. ***
Thank you, Sunshine Garden Club (by Susanne Ulrich)

Sent 2022-02-02: Garden Cleanup Day Postponed - 

​Monday, February 7th looks like rain and a high of 52.  I will search out a better day once our chances of frost will be gone.   Thank you all for offering to help.     Susanne Ulrich 

Newsletter 2022-02: 
New Meeting Time: 6:30 - 7:30 pm.   February 8th in the library.

Very interesting and informative topic for the night is "Cut Flower Arrangements" with our very own Terry DeBackere.

 

*Community volunteers needed.

I am planning a garden cleanup day on Monday, February 7th, meet at gazebo at 10:00am.  Inclement weather will cancel. Area's we will focus on is the plantings around the gazebo and the community office garden. Tasks will include, weeding, deadheading, planting seeds and rearranging of small plants. I have a few tools, but feel free to bring what you may have. Your help will be greatly appreciated.  Thank you.     Susanne Ulrich

Sent 2021-11-05: SUNSHINE GARDEN CLUB - 

If you like or find gardening interesting come join us Tuesday, Nov. 9th, 7:00pm in the library.  All residents/renters are invited. Topic of evening is container planting. Looking forward to fun, prizes and desserts.

Susanne Ulrich     Garden Club

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