4th Annual Hummingbird Festival Sept.19th, 2015 in Diamondhead, Mississippi

Just a quick reminder!

Click image above to view larger image.

The Hummingbirds Have Arrived in Gulf Hills and Ocean Springs, Mississippi

In mid-August the humming birds arrived once more in the Gulf Hills Garden Club area!  What a joy to watch them darting and tumbling through our late summer gardens!  If you love "hummers" as much as we do you can do a number of things to attract them to your garden and make their fast lives a little less hectic.  I have put in a number of links that will take you to fact-filled sites about hummingbirds, so please use them.

 

  

As gardeners we can plant many different plants in our gardens that will appeal not only to our own visual senses and also fulfill the needs of the hummingbird.  Here are two different websites with helpful lists of hummingbird friendly flowers  The Best 18 Plant Families for Natural Nectar and Planting a Hummingbird Garden

Keep in mind that hummingbirds also need a good supply of clean fresh water. it can be anything from a sprinkler for them to fly through to a very shallow bird bath.   Here is a very good article on providing water for hummingbirds.  Providing Water for Hummingbird

 

Hanging hummingbird feeders are the most common way for us to provide food for these high powered birds.  Here is a link to information about humming bird feeding.  

Debbie's Tips for Attracting and Feeding Hummingbirds

It has been noticed that some humming birds are staying along the gulf Coast during the winter months.  Winter hummingbirds in the Gulf   Please help "Make a Home for Hummingbirds" along with the National Wildlife Federation.

Here's a fact-filled PDF article that you may download about the Ruby-throated hummingbird

Remember that hummingbirds can be one of the most delightful ornaments that we can have in our modern gardens.  Take a few minutes out of your life to enjoy the birds and the flowers.  

I'd like to thanks photographer Larry Keller for allowing us the use of his spectacular hummingbird photos on our gulf Hills Garden Club blog.  Clicking on the Hummingbird pictures above will take you to full size images of each photograph. If you click HERE you can enjoy his full gallery of amazing wildlife photography.

Gulf Hills Garden Club Yearbook Signing and Gardener of the Year Award

On August 20, 2015 we had evening to recognize our first ever, "Gardener of the Year" and distribute the 2015-16 Yearbook.

Sue Manley and husband Bob

 The 2015 "Gardener of the Year".  {Sue Manley with her husband Bob.}  Sue was selected because she has exemplified the purpose of Gulf Hills Garden Club to educate, stimulate the interest and love of gardening, encourage civic beautification and to protect native flora.  Congratulations!!

The 2015-16 Garden Club Yearbook was distributed to the members.  Everyone praised our new edition with the colorful images of Gulf Hills flowers and the beautiful cover.   If you were unable to attend Thursday, please contact Mary Ann to receive your copy.  The yearbooks will also be available at the first meeting in September.

We were honored to have a former member Marge D. join us for the evening.  Several of the husbands attended as well.  Rhonda, GCM Spanish Trails District Director, came and shared some of the coming events of The Garden Clubs of Mississippi, Inc.  One very important event is the 100th Birthday Bash in October, more information will be available at the club meeting.

Thank yous to our hostess, Jeanette, and to the club members who provided all the delicious culinary delights. 

The Gulf Hills Garden Club and Miss Lena Horne Present... Magnolia macrophylla

I remember, a very long time ago, seeing the movie "Cabin in the Sky, 1943".  In one of the scenes Lena Horne came out of her house and picked a giant magnolia off a tree and it was so big that she was able to wear it as a hat. I laughed and said to myself what a joke, whoever saw a magnolia that big.

Lena Horne, Cabin in the Sky, 1943

Well, a while back a friend of the GHGC was out and about town here in the Ocean Springs area and came across a fairly scarce and totally wonderful plant find. He discovered a Magnolia macrophylla,or Bigleaf Magnolia, in bloom. It was right along the road in a persons yard. What a treat to find one in the area. He took an image for us to post, and here it is!

 

Magnolia macrophylla

 What a stunning thing to see. Since then I have been informed that there is one at the Walter Anderson Museum here in downtown Ocean Springs.

This Mid-size deciduous tree reaches a height of approximately 40 to 60 feet. Bigleaf magnolias have huge leaves that are 12 to 36 inches long. The flowers are creamy ivory white and can be up to a foot across. Blooms are in summer and have a pleasant fragrance.  This tree can be grown in full sun or part shade. Preferring well-drained sand or loam and slightly alkaline to acidic soil. Hardy in USDA zones 5B-8.


For more information on the Magnolia macrophylla or Bigleaf Magnolia check out;

Missouri Botanical Garden.org  Plant Finder

University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture, Food and Environment

U.S. Forestry Service, FactSheet, PDF to Download

Gulf Hills Garden Club Annual Year Book Signing and Cover Art

Just a quick reminder that very soon, the date has not been set as of this post, The Gulf Hills Garden Club will be having it's annual Year Book signing! Here is a preview of what this years cover will look like.
This year the cover is a full wrap around with the design going from the front to the back cover. This years cover image is by local artist Michael W. Moses. Artist Mary Ann Westfall provided a number of delightful photo watercolors to really dress up the interior. Both artists are currant members of our garden club. We would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work on getting the Year Book together and finished. The actual date of the signing will be posted here as soon as available.