October 13, 2009: Floral designer Marianne Raub demonstrated flower arranging while discussing the conditioning of flowers, design elements and the flower trade.
Following a career in ballet, Marianne studied at the Parsons School of Design and began flower arranging for Bloom in New York City. She and her husband opened
Helen Olivia in Old Town Alexandria and named it after their maternal grandmothers.
Helen Olivia's "signature" design is a tight, full arrangement of many types of flowers in a close range of color with a variety of textures. She groups flowers of the same type to give them more presence and interest.
Raub made two signature designs, one in purple tones in a clear glass cube vase and another in fall tones in oasis in a smaller glass cube vase. Raub starts with
Pittosporum tobira "Variegata" to make a base and provide the structure for the arrangement. She then places roses in groups of 3 or 5, followed by flowers of decreasing presence and strength, saving the most delicate for the end. She ends by wrapping the glass containers with a polyester ribbon in a complementary color to hide the stems or oasis and give the arrangement a finished look.
Raub said the signature design departs from the triangle design used in many flower arrangements by rounding off the points. She said another standard design for vertical arrangements was an "S" shape. Her third arrangement was a crescent shape, in a low rectangular ceramic vase.
Marie Hertzberg won the smaller fall color signature design. To a base of
pittosporum were added roses,
dahlias, brazilia berry,
fresia, and chrysanthemums. To take the arrangement "over the top," Raub added one Charlie Brown orchid.
November 10, 2009: Rebecca Stack from the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) spoke about the city's RiverSmart Homes program to lessen storm water runoff from residential properties. Residents make online applications to initiate a property audit to determine suitability for subsidized runoff abatement programs. The abatement programs include the following:
Following a career in ballet, Marianne studied at the Parsons School of Design and began flower arranging for Bloom in New York City. She and her husband opened Helen Olivia in Old Town Alexandria and named it after their maternal grandmothers.
Raub made two signature designs, one in purple tones in a clear glass cube vase and another in fall tones in oasis in a smaller glass cube vase. Raub starts with Pittosporum tobira "Variegata" to make a base and provide the structure for the arrangement. She then places roses in groups of 3 or 5, followed by flowers of decreasing presence and strength, saving the most delicate for the end. She ends by wrapping the glass containers with a polyester ribbon in a complementary color to hide the stems or oasis and give the arrangement a finished look.
Raub said the signature design departs from the triangle design used in many flower arrangements by rounding off the points. She said another standard design for vertical arrangements was an "S" shape. Her third arrangement was a crescent shape, in a low rectangular ceramic vase.
September 8, 2009. Horticulturist Sandra Flowers discussed her favorite annuals and perennials for beds and borders with suggestions for both sun and shade.
Donna Brandes shared a volunteer from her garden--what is it? She was thinking a cucumber but others thought a melon. They're close relatives. Both are from the family Cucurbitaceae which includes cucumbers, melons, squashes and gourds!
Unless otherwise indicated, the club meets at 7 p.m. at the Church of the Brethren on the corner of North Carolina Avenue and 4th Street SE. Please enter via the 4th Street side door.
For more pictures and information go here.
At the national convention in May, National Garden Clubs, Inc. awarded a Certificate of Achievement to Capitol Hill Garden Club for the development and installation of a Discovery Garden on the 4th Street side of the Peabody School grounds. Club member Mary Blakeslee led the project through all its phases, including obtaining a $25,000 grant from the Lowe's Foundation. Three other club members, many Peabody parents and other volunteers worked with Mary on this project.
Musa basjoo (the Japanese banana that is hardy to Maine) offsets the patio:
