Bonsai
If you love bonsai plants, you might want to learn more about Bonsai Dayton. The group formed in the 1970s with a mission “to share information among members and the public and to bring a greater awareness of the art of bonsai,” said Bonsai Dayton vice president John Porterfield.
“Bonsai means ‘tree in a pot.’ So when nurturing a bonsai, you want to try to imitate a full-grown tree in a pot by pruning, pinching, fertilizing and watering,” he said.
Bonsais can live to be very old and they are not for the impatient, he said. The National Arboretum in Washington, D.C., has a 200-year-old bonsai that was given to the U.S. by the Japanese government in honor of our bicentennial.
Meeting info: Bonsai Dayton meets at 6:30 p.m. the third Wednesday of each month, September through June, at the Ohio State University Extension Building at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds, 1043 S. Main St. in Dayton.
Membership: Single membership to Bonsai Dayton is $25 and family membership is $30. It is open to all ages.
More information: Call (937) 325-9624 or e-mail bonsaidayton@gmail.com.
Hostas
Hostas are easy-to-grow, shade-tolerant perennials grown mainly for their beautiful foliage, according to the American Hosta Society. Hosta leaves come in a wide range of shapes, colors, sizes and textures, and they bear flowers.
Those interested in the common but lovely and hardy hosta may wish to explore the Hosta Society locally.
Meeting info: This group meets at Cox Arboretum, 6733 Springboro Pike, Miami Twp. The facility holds plant-care classes and hosts area plant groups.
Membership: Single membership is $7 and family membership is $10.
More information: Contact the group's president, Joan Stoppelman, at (937) 299-2367. Or contact Cox Arboretum at (937) 434-9005 or www.metroparks.org/Parks/CoxArboretum.
Orchids
The Miami Valley Orchid Society “exists to help its members grow, show and enjoy orchids,” according to its website. The Miami Valley Orchid Society is dedicated to the largest flowering plant family on earth — the orchid. Knowing which orchid you are trying to grow is your key to its requirements, according to the American Orchid Society.
Meeting info: Monthly meetings are the second Wednesday of each month at Cox Arboretum. The group's spring show is in February.
Membership: Individual membership is $15 per year and family membership is $20 per year.
More information: Visit www.miamivalleyorchidsociety .com , contact president Michelle Little at mlittle@daytonfreight .com, or call (937) 415-1736. Another great source for orchids and information is New Vision Orchids, central Indiana's orchid sales, distribution and resource organization that has regional and national trade shows, at www.newvisionorchids.com.
Water plants
Now in its 18th year, the non-profit Miami Valley Water Garden Society’s mission is “to promote the hobby of water gardening and outdoor fish keeping, and to educate others about the same,” according to its website.
In caring for water gardens, the goal is “to keep a balance between the fish and the plant life,” said the group’s treasurer, Patty Woodbury. “You create a healthy ecosystem, and it takes care of itself. For example, we have a 3,000-gallon pond, and all I do is deadhead the lilies once a week and fertilize the plants once a month. And there are no weeds to pull.”
Meeting info: Meetings are held monthly January through October. In even-numbered months, meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday at Cox Arboretum. In odd-numbered months, meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday at Wegerzyn Gardens.
Additional club activities are scheduled throughout the year and include educational presentations, pond tours, field trips, a picnic and a winter banquet.
The next meeting, 6:30 p.m. July 27, will be a field trip to Grandma’s Gardens and Landscape in Waynesville.
Tours of members’ ponds are held every year, but are only open to the public every other year. This year is a private tour and will be held July 30-31, said Woodbury. “So there’s still time to become a member and get in on the tour,” she said.
Membership: Annual membership is $20 per household per year and is open to all ages with an interest in water gardening.
More information: Call (937) 428-9564, email info@mvwgs.org or visit www.mvwgs.org .
One place to browse and purchase waterlilies, lotuses, and all things pond is Green Vista, 4034 Dayton-Springfield Road, off Interstate 70 near Springfield. For more information on Green Vista, call (888) 311-LILY (5459) or (937) 324-5039, visit www.greenvista.com or email gvistawg@gmail.com.
Other plant resources
The Friendly Gardeners of Yellow Springs is an informal plant club for folks who like a variety of plants or gardening in general. Affiliated with the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs, the group’s mission is “to stimulate the love and knowledge of gardening among amateurs and to aid in the protection of native plants and birds,” said president Dinah Anderson, who grows and sells dahlias. “So we have an ecological purpose.”
Meeting info: Friendly Gardeners meets at 1 p.m. the third Wednesday most months.
Membership: Dues are $10 a year. Membership is open to everyone.
More information: Call Anderson at (937) 767-7299.
Christine Klinger is a Dayton writer and photographer. She can be reached at christineklinger@ earthlink.net.
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