Come Grow With Us

Peter Kacalanos (August 2014)

Your Committee has been very active, with frequent meetings conducted by the committee Chairwoman, Toni Ceaser.

This new website will give all Queensview cooperators progress reports about how the committee is planning and accomplishing the beautification of the grounds around our buildings. The site can always be accessed on the Internet here at www.greensview.org  Cooperators who have no computers will have access to printed copies.

At the meetings, experienced gardener and original cooperator Suzanne Cherney stressed the importance of situating plants in the proper positions in the garden, based on their needs for sun, shade, water, soil type, etc. She and other Committee members have done extensive research to find the best cultivars (cultivated varieties) of each plant that will be added to the gardens. The Committee has chosen a wide variety of plants so that the gardens will be attractive in all seasons of the year. As donations become available, plants will be added to each area of the gardens over time.

Major efforts are being devoted to the large semi-circular area behind building 8. The curved side is bordered by benches, making it a popular seating area for relaxation. For many years it had only a plain lawn surrounded by annual plants that had to be dug out every autumn and purchased anew in spring. It’s being converted into a colorful garden featuring a wide variety of low-maintenance shrubs and perennials – plants that return to bloom year after year -- with a few annuals for instant gratification. They’re being positioned in groupings as they’d be found in nature, instead of in formal straight lines.

Plants in this flower bed will include several shrubs and small flowering trees, each chosen to provide additional interest. There will be some flowers even in winter, though most of the winter color will come from evergreens and from plants with variegated leaves or bright red stems. Eventually all parts of this garden will be covered with shrubs, perennials and ground-cover plants like ajuga and thyme. Just a few of these plants we’re purchasing will spread naturally to beautify larger areas. Until then, attractive natural mulch will cover bare patches, and will eventually biodegrade to provide more nutrition for the garden’s plants.