EIPS Newsletter
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In This Issue:
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June 2007 |
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Thursday, June 14, 2007
Dorothy will be serving sandwiches and drink Topic: Open discussion Directions: I 380 to Urbana on to Vinton to Main Street to stop lights on 218—Take a left to First Street right 5th Street and go 1 1/2 miles turning into 59th Street From 30 take 218 to Vinton past elevator over bridge and take a left on 5th Street Directions provided by the Hostess Saturday, June 23, 2007
Pre-Pond Tour Join us for a fun and enjoyable time getting a sneak preview of the ponds on the 2007 Pond Tour Different ways to drive to the Mildens: Mt Vernon Ave to 34th St SE Go North to Lamplite Ln SE Bever Ave to 34th St SE Go North to Lampltie Lane SE Cottage Grove to 34th St SE Go South to Lamplite Directions provided by the Host | |
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May 10th Meeting The meeting was held in the home of Carol and Dennis Sindelar of Cedar Rapids. What a beautiful evening (finally) to sit outside and enjoy the meeting. Co-president, Gary Hunerdosse, called the meeting together and began by letting new members Harvey & Sharon Petrie introduce and tell a little about themselves. They have had ponds for several years. New members, Deb and Joe Holtzman also said they have had ponds for many years, but are in the process of rebuilding bigger and better and are hoping to one day even enclose theirs in a 3 season room. Minutes were ok’d as printed. There was no treasurer’s report given. Jo Hunerdosse brought up for discussion whether we wanted to actually put the treasurer’s report in detail in the minutes of each newsletter and thus out on the internet. Which, we have not done in the past. While some members felt the numbers were always available for public access just by asking, others felt they needed to be formally written in the minutes each time. After some discussion, it was decided to include the numbers in the minutes in the future. In old/new business, Gary told the group that Carol Sindelar and he will be guest on the talk show ”What’s Happening”. A day time talk show on WMT 600, they will have a chance to talk about the club and our upcoming Expo and Pond Tour for a whole hour on Thursday May 17 th. I, Jackie Allsup, for the final time, asked people to sign up to volunteer and reminded them to hang posters and by all means, plan to attend! Monica Morley talked about the upcoming Pond Tour. We have 9 ponds lined up already. This year’s tour is July 8th and is Committee chaired instead of one single person overseeing it all. If you have any questions, please contact Monica Morley or Jim Milden, however. Jim Milden will host the prepond tour during his June 23rd meeting, which starts at 2:00. There will be a plant sale again this year. So, start saving your extra plants for the tour sale. Monica passed around a volunteer sheet for the tour so members could be thinking about that also. You can volunteer for a half or whole day again this year. Jo presented a magazine and talked briefly about the new 2007 water plant releases. She passed it around for people to take a look at. One of the new plants was a Red Bog Lily.(Burgundy leaves and pretty pink flowers. ) It was mentioned that Josh Spece carried this variety and that his open house was the upcoming weekend. Gary encouraged members to go and use their new membership cards to get a 10% discount. I took a few minutes to talk to the club about the Kohaku (red and white koi) contest. Not really a contest at all, but at last year’s Expo 6 of us all purchased Kohakus from Kloubec’s. The experiment was for everyone to take their fish home and a year later we would come back and compare fish growth and color. 2 of the fish had passed during the year, one fish owner did not respond, and we showed pictures and discussed the environmental differences of the remaining 3. No real conclusions were discussed, but it was fun to compare growth at least. Larry Tharp reminded club members that he again has the “Once a Year” plant fertilizer tabs for sale. They are 25 cents apiece. Gary had Carol Sindelar talk to the club about their pond. She spoke about its care and wonderful variety of plants. They have 8 huge original koi, several home raised koi, and one huge albino catfish for population control. (Gee, I wonder who may have eaten their Kohaku??) Their ponds are beautiful, water is crystal clear, and habitants seem healthy and happy. A plant exchange was the featured entertainment of the meeting. Everyone that had plants told the group what they brought to share and any one that wanted to got to take home something. Numerous door prizes were drawn for with lots of lucky winners. Respectfully submitted…………..Jackie Allsup
May 26th Meeting The meeting was called to order by Co-President, Gary Hunerdosse, in the home of Kacy & Quinn Novak. Attendance: 22 members. Kacy spoke about their pond. They have had preformed ponds for many years. During their house renovation, they decided to put in a 48 ft pond. During the process they took out 14 walnut trees. The pond is lined with clay. Richard Miene did the tiling and landscaped the yard. The Novak’s have a total of 8 gardens, which include 2 butterfly gardens. The newest addition is a fountain they purchased this year at the Expo. Their pond is home to about 32 Koi. Old Business………. Pond Expo – Monica Morley passed out a financial report prepared by Jackie Allsup. Pam Moore noted several corrections/additions that were needed. Estimated attendance was 320. Pam felt that there was a low number of member volunteers. It was suggested that next year we work on increasing the involvement by members. Pond Tour Committee Report Monica shared a pamphlet that would be mailed to the pond owners in June. She also passed around sign-up sheets for pond sitters. Pond owners would be responsible for picking up and returning signs. Pond sitters would be responsible for picking up the money. Both would be available the day before at Jim & Rose Milden’s home. The plant sale will also be at the Milden’s. Plants may also be dropped off the day before the tour. Pat Beuter has the signs and pools. New Business……... * Gary Hunerdosse opened a discussion about alternating the Expo with the Central Iowa Water Garden Association. There is a feeling that the EIPS would not host the Expo next year. By alternating, Dave Bell thought we would be able to cover a wider geographical area. The majority of club members present favored the idea of alternating. It was suggested that Jackie Allsup contact Jamie Beyer about the interest of his club to host the Expo and possibly some of our members could meet with members of his club. Dick Isard suggested that instead of an Expo, we have several speakers come in for a day and speak to the club. Monica said that the Beems Auditorium was available at no cost and we could open it up to the public, but could not charge. This would be an opportunity to share with the community. Other observations regarding the Expo: $1.00 entrance discount with membership card. Several vendors reported a better business than last year. Faith Miene said several attendees were looking for water lilies and lotus. It was suggested that if anyone had extras, they should include them in the plant sale during the Pond Tour. Dave Bell suggested an exit poll be done to find out if the Expo met the expectations of the vendors. Also, in the future, finding out what communities the attendees are coming from might be useful information. Gary thanked the Pond Expo Committee. * Jim Milden suggested part of the proceeds from the pond tour be used to set up a scholarship at Kirkwood. It would be similar to a scholarship offered by the Master Gardeners: a $500/year awarded to a 2nd year student in golf course management course or park & natural resource program. The student would maintain a 3.0 grade and demonstrate financial need. EIPS should consider this for a long-term and a trust could be set up through Kirkwood. Kirkwood would administer and select the student. It was suggested that we present the scholarship to the student at a meeting. Kirkwood needs a commitment by the third week of June, so that it can be included in their publication. Jo Hunerdosse moved that the pond tour committee finalize the guidelines and present it at the next meeting for a vote. The motion was seconded and carried. * Monica asked if the club ever had a rain date for the pond tour. After some discussion, it was decided that it would be too hard to determine when to cancel. Also it was an imposition on the pond owners and sitters to have a rain date. * Gary H. suggested the club enter the Freedom Festival Parade on June 23 – 9am. The entrance fee is $10.00 and it would be good advertising. Dave Bell moved that we authorize spending $10 to get in the parade. Motion was seconded and carried. Following members have fish windsocks that could be used: Nolan, Helms, Thompson, Bell and Moore.. * Gary H. referred to a suggestion from last year regarding viewing ponds at night and offered the idea of a Progressive Dinner in the fall. We could visit 4 ponds. The ponds could be lit with pond lighting, torches, candles, etc. Discussion was tabled until next meeting. * It was suggested that Sharon Wiese, founder of the club, be made a honorary life-time member. A motion was made, seconded, and carried. * Tim Nolan suggested that a note from the President be included in the next newsletter informing members that they pay for a ticket to the pond tour. * Monica. announced that in appreciation of Sue Emerick, president of the Upper Midwest Koi Club in Minneapolis, speaking at the Expo at no charge, she will be donating a quilted wall hanging, made by Maria Hamilton, as a thank you from the Club. Also, Sue will be offering her CD for $20.00. Details will be in the June newsletter. Kacy is donating the CD she won at the Expo to the Club’s library. * Monica. announced a photo contest for late September. Categories: People in the Garden, Flowers in the Garden, Best Overall Garden View, Most Unusual, Garden Statues, and Fish & Frogs. * Gary received an E-mail from Abby Robertson. She purchased a pond without instructions and is looking for some help. He will pass along the email addresses of the Pond Help Line: Joe Olsen, Sindelar’s, and Jackie Allsup. ………….Open Pond Discussion………… Monica asked how does a UV filter work? Kills all bacterial, including beneficial bacteria in a pond. Larry Thompson has had success, however, states that there is a balance that needs to be maintained. Also, it can be expensive. Several members felt that the koi preferred and thrived in cloudy water. The Hunerdosse’s used one last year just before the pond tour and found that it cleared the pond water in a short time. Monica also asked if anyone did a 20% water change. Both the Milden’s and Thompson’s do this on a regular basis. Larry suggested that you siphon out water into a 5 gallon bucket in order to keep track of the quantity. He also said that 10-15% would make a difference. Motion was made to adjourn, it was seconded and the meeting was adjourned at 6:50 pm. Prizes were not available. A special thanks to our hosts who provided a meal at the end of the meeting. Respectfully submitted by Maria Hamilton, co-editor | |
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submitted by Pam Moore No treasures report this month……... Any questions contact Pam Moore diverpug@yahoo.com or 319-362-3375 | |
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By Josh Spece ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ Occasionally, a new Hosta comes along and instantly causes a big stir among Hosta growers. Such is the case with Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’. ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ was almost discarded when it showed up as a mutation in a group of ‘Blue Cadet’ plants in a nursery in 1987. Luckily, the nursery owner gave it to his friends, Emile and Jane Deckert, who grew it in their garden for the next twelve years. Not being Hosta aficionados, the little plant was mostly neglected until one spring it really caught Emile’s eye. He thought the unfurling leaves looked like a mouse’s ear and so it was named. Still not aware of what a treasure they had, the Deckert’s decided to sell some divisions of ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ on E-Bay. Hosta collectors immediately took note and the plants sold for enormous prices. Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ has continued to quickly gain momentum and has been widely available since 2003. It has been awarded Hosta of the Year for 2008. Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ forms a small mound up to 16 inches across and 8 inches tall. The blue leaves are nearly perfectly round and have a thick, leathery substance. In summer, short scapes of lavender flowers form a neat bouquet above the plant. Whether you are a Hosta lover or not, ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ will steal your heart! | |
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Hospitality………………………..Elena Murillo
Community Service……………… open - no volunteers Recognition……………………….Gil Morley
Commercial Relations……………Bob & Stephanie Geers
Writing…………………………...Monica Morley/Maria Hamilton Publicity…………………………...Jackie Allsup
Water Garden Tour…………….. Jim & Rose Milden, Monica & Gil Morley, Jo and Gary Hunerdosse Programs………………………….open - no volunteers 2007 Pond Expo Committee Chairman—
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I LOVE A PARADE! Well at least for June 23 I do. That’s the day EIPS will have an entry in the Freedom Festival Parade to promote the Pond Tour. Our design is simple- decorate a generously offered pickup truck with pond related wind socks, flags and any other flying apparatus. We will include our banner and we have obtained the world famous Stephanie Geers fish costume and a willing volunteer to wear it. Anyone interested in taking part contact Gary or Jo. We will need a few walkers to pass out the pond tour information or a driver and I will walk (oops I think I just revealed the identity of the generous donor of the truck). A BIG THANK YOU!!! From the Presidents for all the hard work of the many volunteers of the Expo, it was great! Other items of business coming up: we plan to finalize arrangements for a scholarship at the June 14th meeting so we really need to have a good turn out for this meeting at Dorothy Helms in Vinton. Keep in mind the pre-pond tour meeting June 23 and be getting those plants ready for the Pond Tour Plant Sale! Plans are in the works for a members only Pond Tour this fall in the evening to enjoy the lights in and around some of our ponds. This will also involve food so stay tuned for details. Happy Ponding! Gary & Jo | |
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Get your camera out…... NEW contest in the works for September 22nd meeting at the Morley’s/Murillo home. The pictures will be an addition to the 2006 contest pictures. The public enjoys looking at the photo book at club events. Here are the categories People in the Garden
Enter one or all categories
Pictures must be from your own home. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. Lot of prizes. Lots of fun. If you missed last year’s contest, here is your second chance. Size of picture
Monica | |
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Joe Hall has been a water gardener for 10 years. Joe has a railroad that he has incorporated into his water garden……..very cool. His favorite water plant are the water lilies. His pond has 4 goldfish with no names. Joe spends his ponding time corralling plants, chasing away ducks, and enjoying the entire water garden. Joe joined the club 2 years ago because he knew that he could get expert advise from the other members. The answer to the question “who has had the shortest meeting?” is Joe Hall. During the first 5 minutes of the meeting the loudest thunder roared from the sky and everyone scattered . It turned out to be one of the biggest hail storms we had. But quite a few members did get to enjoy seeing the pond with the railroad moving in and around the water. | |
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In The Country Garden & Gifts. E.I.P.S. members receive a 10% discount. Must show your current membership card at time of purchase. A BIG CONGRADULATIONS Goes out to long time member Edna Rife for receiving a Virtuoso Trophy from Kalina Melodies 14th Annual Piano Contest A BIG THANK YOU TO PRAIRIE CREEK NURSERY Members, Shirley and Kevin Bailey are donating wind socks to each of our ponds on the tour. What a great way to catch the eye of the public visiting the ponds. Stop in to see Shirley and Kevin at : Prairie Creek Nursery
Koi Looking For A Good Home Contact Kacy Novak
Kacy has many you can choose from. Honorary Member Sharon Weiss In recognition for being the founder of the Eastern Iowa Pond Society in 1996. Congraulations Sharon!!!!! | |
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June Birthdays Erma Thompson - June 24 If you would like your birthday printed in the newsletter, email us at mespringcove@aol.com or sign in with the Hospitality Committee: Elena Murillo or Gil Morley | |
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Shewww…I’m beat. What a busy weekend for club members. Our second attempt at hosting a trade show with speakers is complete. I’m sitting down today to summarize the event and give thanks. The Expo is 2 full days of volunteer work and so without YOU helping, it just couldn’t happen. It starts about 9:00 Friday morning. Greg Bickal had already set up 2 big water tanks and filled them so the water could be warming for vendors. Gary Hunerdosse, who barely left the building all weekend, was there to help open up. (You know, if I start listing all these people that were there to help I’ll miss someone, so I apologize now.) The Morley’s, Thompsons, Sindelars, Tharps, and numerous others all began to show up to help measure off areas, set up tables and chairs, and help vendors unpack and setup. Gary spent a lot of his day helping to put together the large gazebo that you saw there. That was no small feat. Others made signs, decorated tables, and generally helped where they could. By late afternoon, Prairie Creek had their pond display basically set up. (It’s always fun to watch them turn a cement floor into a working pond in a few hours.) Several vendors were there and the club tables were looking pretty snazzy. Harry had started the grill out back and the smell of roasting chicken and pork loin finally out-smelled ADM’s pungent aroma. Club members began to pour in bringing additional potluck food to share with workers and vendors alike. It is so appreciated by the vendors. Thank you everyone for bringing something. It was a great feed with lots of variety. It was about 9:00-10:00 before everyone got out of there that evening. Saturday morning found Gary, again the first one there, opening the doors for early risers and late vendors. Water hoses were running everywhere and trucks were still backing into the huge overhead doors. At 9:00 the doors were open to the public and business was pretty busy most of the morning hours. I certainly hope you got to listen to some of our great speakers. Jamie Beyer is always so energetic. He spoke twice during the day and pretty much stayed around all day to talk to people and meet members. Doug Dent with Ecological Labs talked on water quality. He’s such a great speaker also, using common metaphors to help us understand the more complicated chemistry that can make up our water quality. In a conversation I had with him later in the day, he spoke about how all the swimming pools in Europe were now going to using veggie filters to filter them instead of the standard chlorine chemicals. While much of his display did not arrive so that he had product to sale, he was still available all day to talk about all water issues you may have had. And, Sue Emerick. She drove 6 ½ hours, got caught in a traffic jam, from Minnesota, arrived just in time for her talk, gave over an hour talk on fish health, and promptly left to return to MN. Charged us not one dime! What a super person. Greg Bickal gave his talk on DIY construction. He left everyone with that “I can do this” attitude. Again, no charge to the club. Jamie only charged us mileage and Doug only an overnight. Everywhere I go, I’m amazed at how kind and truly dedicated our experienced speakers are to the hobby. And speaking of giving, while many members helped to put this all together, I want to give special recognition to committee members that put in many behind the scene hours. I tried to delegate authority, so dishing out jobs to people meant many of them stepped right up to help do things. Tim Nolan, kind of stepped forward and put together the door prize games. While I saw him “out and about” a couple times, for the most part he was behind the duck pond all day. He did a great job calling in people and encouraging them to try their luck. If you thought our club table looked all professional and everything, well, that was mostly Monica’s hard work. She had nice membership tablets and pond tour handouts all made up. Nobody asked her to do all this, she just saw a need and went ahead and spent the many computer hours putting them together. Pam Moore and Jo Hunerdosse handled the money matters for us. Kacy Novak, while you may not have seen much of her all day, was working hard announcing all our speakers and welcoming all our guests to the Expo. Did I mention our president; Gary Hunerdosse was there dawn to dusk on both days? And again the Sindelars and Thompsons were in on all the early planning meetings, setup, and right through to tear down. Monica and Jim Milden were responsible for much of our advertising this year. Who else did I see pitching in to help: Geers, Wards, Gaddis, Mienes, ……….well lots of members brought food. I just can’t thank you all enough for the support and help putting this all together. I believe the plant vendors all felt good leaving. Again, this year we had 3 no-shows. 2 of these were fish dealers and one garden statue vendor. Some fish vendors said they didn’t sell as much, while others were elated. I saw lots of people going out the door with plants and a new fish to call their own. While other vendors weren’t selling anything I hope they are happy with the awareness they brought to the public about their business. So I’m calling it another huge success! It may not be a huge money maker for the club, but the awareness it gives the public about our club’s existence is beyond any single other thing we do. There is no other “club” that would even attempt to put on a whole trade show to just focus on their hobby. Not many would have the volunteers that could pull it off. EIPS can and did. I’m proud and thankful to all of you. Committee chair – Jackie Allsup Special Thanks to the following members for helping at the 2007 Expo Friday set-up Gil & Monica Morley*
Potluck Friday Dorthy Helms
Worked Saturday Pat Bueter
Clean up Saturday Harry & Jackie Allsup
* members also at the potluck | |
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Plant Sale at Milden’s.....10:00 to 12:30 and 12:30 to 4:00 Becki Lynch - 68 36th Ave SW.....10:00 to 12:30 Dennis & SJ Taylor - 331 Carnaby Dr NE.....10:00 to 12:30 Dick Isard - 2818 Southland St SW.....12:30 to 4:00 Eric Harbit - 1960 41st St, Marion.....10:00 to 12:30 and 12:30 to 4:00 Jon & Jennifer Lewis - 1028 Rolling Creek NE.....10:00 to 12:30 and 12:30 to 4:00
For the pond owners and pond sitters, afterwards enjoy dinner from BBQ This!!! The Club is purchasing the pulled pork and drink. Held at the Morley and Murillo home 6702 Spring Cove Ct NE. Come and have good food and talk about the days’ event. | |
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Call the following members for advice for all your questions. Fish health, construction of the pond, water garden plants. The list is long. Give them a try!! Contact: Joe Olsen
Dennis & Carol Sindelar
Jackie Allsup
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The Pond Tour Committee recommends a scholarship be established with proceeds from the pond tour each year. Club members will vote on this issue at the next meeting. Eastern Iowa Pond Society Scholarship Guidelines Amount: $500 per year Criteria: **Award to one student **Must be a second-year student in one of the following programs: Golf Course and Turfgrass Management, Landscape, Nursery and Garden Center Management, or Park and Natural Resources. **Must be resident of Iowa **Must have a minimum grade point average of 2.5. **Must include in summary how this scholarship will assist you in attaining your educational goals. | |
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Click links below: | |
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Joan Folkman & Paul Wise
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Eastern Iowa Pond Society Membership Application | |
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June 14
June 23
July 8
July 28
August 9
August 25
September 13
September 22
October 27
November 17
Agenda: Business Meeting: 30-40 minutes
All locations and topics are subject to change. Read your monthly newsletter for details and updates. | |
