President’s Message – Winter 2023
by Greg Merlin
It’s that time of year when all the seed and plant catalogues start arriving in the mail and we begin to dream of spring. Looking at all those beautiful glossy photographs and thinking how great that plant and that plant and that one will look in the garden. We pore over the pages thinking yes, no, yes, if we really need/want more seeds and plants that we have put on our list and inevitably go for the lot. Then we remember all the seeds we still have from last year and the year before that, and think do I really need these? Of course we do! And so it goes, the merry life of a gardener. Now, just to find the time to get the seeds started. There is something that makes you feel so good when you get those seeds planted and the first few emerge from the soil. We nurture them and keep them watered and watch as they grow and grow. We keep imagining how it’s all going to look in the garden this summer. As we wait for the first day of spring, we anticipate the day when we can put all these little beauties out in the garden.
Recently I rewired my plant lights to use LED tubes instead of fluorescent tubes. I needed to replace 2 of the ballasts in the old light fixtures so it was not a tough choice to make. Making the change was not that hard. The difference in light levels is like night and day. The LED’s are so much brighter and the plants have responded for the good already. I have plant cuttings saved from last summer and they were without light for three weeks. I did lose about one third of the plants but I still have plenty left for the garden. It will be interesting to see if there will be a difference in the overall growth of my seedlings this year. I’ll let you know when the time comes.
On a side note, as a club, we run on volunteers. We need you, our members, to pitch in, lend a hand, or generally help out to make our great club shine. We are in need of someone to lead our newsletter, The Greenleaf. You will have support to assist you and those who will be working with you. If you have any questions please reach out to me. president@oshawagardenclub.ca
Greg Merlin