Volume XX, Issue 8, October 2011

HERB GUILD THYMES

The Charlotte Herb Guild Newsletter

Next meeting:

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

****6:30 PM****

Annual Potluck Dinner 

Garden Council House

1820 East Seventh Street

Charlotte NC 28204

All members bring a dish to be shared by all.  

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September Minutes

Vice President Dana DeBellis called the meeting to order and thanked hostesses Jane Ireton, Jan Sundberg and Mary Beth Collins.  The group approved the minutes of the August meeting.

Dana thanked members for supporting the Yorkmont Farmers Market and noted that Treasurer Dixie Kelly indicated sales of $1,351.00.

According to Mary Ann Nagel, the Scottish festival at the Hezekiah Alexander House was fun and that proceeds from the Bag Pipe event will benefit the herb garden at the site.

Ann Baldwin noted that the Friendship Trays garden will be featured on the Dilworth Home Tour on September 16 and 17th as well as at a fundraiser on Saturday, October 1st. Volunteers worked at the garden from 5:30 to 7:30 on Thursday, September 15th.

Program Chair Theresa Travelute announced that the annual potluck will be on Tuesday, October 11th at 6:30PM at the Council House.  Mary Beth Collins will solicit volunteers to help set up the tables.  Members are encouraged to post their recipes aside their dishes at the potluck and also to email their recipes to Mary Beth Collins for inclusion in the next newsletter.

The November program will feature worm composting.  Those who would like to start worm composting need to let Theresa Travelute know in October so that she can get supplies, and they should save a 2-foot tall stack of black and white newsprint. Worms need to be composted in an area that remains between 55 to 75 degrees. Theresa reminded members that the business meeting is in January and the annual tea is in February.

Madge Eggena and Jane Abe presented an excellent program on infusing herbs for pleasure, nutritional, and medicinal purposes.  Some infusions are suitable for drinking, others for rubbing on the skin, some for inhalation, and others for bathing.

In addition to their informative handout, they recommended the following resources:

Healing Wise by Susan Weed
Nutritional Herbology by Mark Pederson
Mountain Rose Herbs (mountainroseherbs.com), a good online source of herbs

Members had the opportunity to taste a variety of infusions (lemon herbs, mints, and holy basil), and several lucky members got to take home the extra tussie mussies from the Farmers Market. The meeting was adjourned.
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Other Information of Note.

Herb guild members Madge Eggena and Sandie Fenton are featured on the programs of the Garden Club of NC and Wing Haven. Madge will present on October 13 in Statesville for the district meeting of the Garden Club of NC. Sandie will present on October 6 at Wing Haven. Thank you to these two herb experts for this outreach.

President Theresa Nardi submitted the following for the District 3 Fall NC Council of Garden Clubs Meeting Thursday, October 13, 2011.


"Membership in the Charlotte Herb Guild is at  33 members for the 2011/2012 year.  New marketing materials and our blog as well as personal contacts have been successful.

The Guild provided herb-filled teapots as centerpieces for the NC Council of Garden Clubs statewide meeting in Charlotte, NC on May 02, 2011. Tea with Queen Charlotte was the theme, and all 25 teapots were sold after the event.

On May 14, 2011, Guild members participated in a full day trip to the NC Arboretum in Asheville, NC.  After a guided tour of the Arboretum, the group enjoyed lunch on the Sunset Terrace of the Grove Park Inn. A good time was had by all.

The May 21, 2011 Matthews Farmers Market and the September 10, 2011 Yorkmont Farmers Market were excellent opportunities to raise funds and to educate the public about the many culinary and decorative uses of herbs.

The Guild provided refreshments and centerpieces for the September 28th Charlotte Council of Garden Clubs.

The Guild is reviewing options for another edition of the Cook Book.

The Guild is supporting, through hours donated,  Friendship Trays of Charlotte and The Hezekiah Alexander House Herb Garden at the Charlotte Museum of History.  We continue to support scholarships to the Davidson Horticultural Symposium.

So far this year, members have held an annual plant exchange and enjoyed presentations on herbal wines, landscaping with herbs, blending and brewing herbal teas, and creating a living herb wreath.  Hands-on activities have included making hypertufa pots, tussie mussies, hand towels with herbal themes, and herb-themed note cards.  We are looking forward to our potluck dinner, a silent auction, our annual tea, and learning about worm composting."