Yeah!
I knew if I kept quiet, someone new would volunteer. Thanks a million and it is not too early at all to be planning it. I'd love to come. And if some people want to stay overnight, there's room at my house in Lexington, which is about 25 minutes from Newton.
Marie/Idabean

Me too, I'm in, and breathing a sigh of relief! Now I won't have to try to make the garden in my yard resemble the one in my head by September. And, I'm almost positive that I will NOT be traveling for work that weekend.

I think I have a place to stay in Wellseley, as long as I can invite my cousin to the gala events. That's not far, if I remember my MA geography correctly. I'm sure she'd love to go to the Arb or GITW, and maybe to the swap as well.

Yee Ha,
This sounds like such an amazing weekend I think the folks from the other NE states might want to hook up with us for at least some of the weekend. I will be staying with one of my daughters in the North End over night so there are still rooms available for weary travelers. kt

Good.... My corner of Newton is about 15 minutes from the closest corner of Wellesley. Very manageable. Looking forward to hearing from more folks.
ML

If something unexpected will not come up all of a sudden, I'm marking my calendar for that weekend.
Never been neither to AA nor to the GITW, I think I'll have a pretty intensive weekend.
Now only how to tell about all this to Mrs. George? :-))

George,
Have Mrs.George call Mr.Marie....at least they could commiserate
Marie

Marie, :-))
I may hold on that for a while.

Our forum friend ron48 recently sent me this photo/info and I thought this might help to entice others to join us for what I am sure will be a fabulous time.

I would definitely be interested in coming to the swap, and possibly the GITW event. I should be healed up from the accident by then and able to do a little digging and dividing. Count me in!!

Id like to come for a swap, and to meet some of you in person. I have lurked here for years and then recently (maybe 6 months ago), someone called upon all lurkers and I attempted to voice myself.

So thanks to Mayalena for the generous invitation..greg

I think Newton sounds great for the swap.I'm putting it on my calendar. Jardinista

Wonderful! Great to have lurkers, die-hards, novices (which I am, at only 4 years of gardening), etc. The more the merrier, and I hope we'll be able to draw in folks from further afield too.

Let's start working on timing. I would like to suggest that we do the plant swap at my house on Saturday, either before or after a GITW visit.

The Sunday plant sale is only open to Arnold Arboretum members, so if forum participants don't belong and don't want to join, they will probably skip Sunday.

So, Sat, 9/15.... This is the lineup at GITW. Individuals would obviously pick and choose....

10am Plant trees and shrubs like a Pro
11am Organic Lawn Care with Paul Tukey
12 Best Native Plants for Fall Color
1pm Native Bulbs with Laura Eisener
10 - 2 demos, plant sales and refreshments
Meet the artist who created the Art Goes Wild installation

We could try to set up a tour of GITW, if you like, perhaps at 9 or at 2 or 3? Tho they may be too swamped to offer tours, and paths are unmissable and plants are pretty well labeled.

So...would you like to swap before GITW or after? We could meet here early, drop off plants, carpool to GITW, and come back around 3 to swap? Or we could swap at 8 and then head off for the day? People would be most welcome to leave plants in a shady spot here til they are heading home.

If we swap first thing in the morning, we could do something else after GITW.... A couple of thoughts: the Mount Auburn Cemetery is open til 7pm thru Sept. Or we could go to Mass Hort's Elm Bank to see Adrian Bloom's newly installed border (going in Aug 3, they are looking for vols to help plant), along with the fabulous children's garden, the trial gardens, the Italianate garden, etc.

Dinner...any interest in dinner on Sat?

Sun -- plant sale is 9 - 12, tho perhaps 9-10 is limited to a higher level of membership? Plants are mostly woody, many propagated from their collection, some species, many cultivars that are available at "high end nurseries". I am attaching a link to last year's catalog. This year's cat will be mailed to members, along with sale info, in August. During the plant sale, they will offer tours of the Leventritt Garden, led by that garden's curator/director. It seems unlikely that they would arrange a special tour for us, but I can continue to work on that if there is interest. If it is utterly impossible, I could do a makeshift tour, as I do volunteer there, but with children, not adults. Lunch? Other?

Last 2 thoughts for now: I am out of town for August, and hope not to be online much. Could someone step in for me to continue to drum up interest, answer questions, plan whatever needs planning? 2nd thought: my gardens will be very weedy by then, and have lots of holes. Will you be forgiving and offer me lots of constructive criticism? Feeling a little shy and apologetic, but reminding myself that you are coming to swap plants and have fun, not on a garden tour....

Let me know what you think!
Best,
ML

Here is a link that might be useful: 2006 Arn Arb plant sale catalog

Any of those scenarios sounds good to me, thanks for thinking this through!

I might have trouble getting to Newton by 8, and would not want to hold up the group. If we met at GITW, people could arrive at whatever time they wanted to, but would have to leave plants in their cars - is the parking lot shaded by any chance? Maybe we could "swap some" in the morning and again after both GITW and Elm Bank or Mt Auburn - say around 4? Then we can help you weed before heading out to dinner at one of those great restaurants in the area ...

I've been to Elm Bank, but only in winter, for a workshop. I would love to see it and/or Mt Auburn in summer.

I think I'll join the Arb, it's $35 and includes lots of benefits besides the plant sale. From their site:

Members at the sustaining level ($100) will be admitted to the sales tent at 9AM; all other members may enter at 10 AM. Members of the Arboretum's living collections department will be on hand to answer plant-related questions, lead tours of the Leventritt Garden of Shrubs and Vines ...

Here is a link that might be useful: 2007 plant sale announcement

One more thing to consider: if we did a late afternoon visit to Elm Bank, Ming Tsai's Blue Ginger is very close by. We should make reservations ASAP if there is any interest. It is one of the Boston area's best restaurants -- very crowded, tho., and maybe too pricey? There are lots of good restaurants all around, certainly. Or maybe KT's daughter could recommend a place in the North End for Italian? Or....

WOW, Mayalena you sure do know how to plan a party, it seems to me the only thing you have neglected to look into are the goodie bags. I will be happy to bang the drum in August if I can we are in the thick of my MIL's expected passing so I might not be around for a while.

I'll also keep this )or a new thread on the subject, if the need for one arises) near the top of the list.

> I am out of town for August, and hope not to be online much.

Well, I certainly hope you're going somewhere wonderful. Someplace where there are no weeds, too.

Hello again.

Marie and I are just home from a long, fabulous day of garden visiting. I'll post pics tomorrow maybe?

So sorry to hear about your MIL, KT.

And, DtD, thanks for bumping this post occasionally. In August, we'll be visiting family in the midst of nothing but weeds -- beautiful, fabulous weeds. Maybe I'll bring some to the swap for the goody bags....

Shall we start the swap at 9am instead of 8, to give folks more time to wend their way to Newton? I'll send out directions to my house in Sept. Please do voice opinions about what we do when.

Best,
ML

I'm in! 9 is better than 8 for me. :)

Wonderful news, Greening. Looking forward to catching up.
ML

Dear Ladie and Gents (if any),
As I'm seriously planning to attend your outing, I'd like to offer to bring some hydrangeas from my collection to those who is interested.
I don't like to root cuttings at this time of the year since even if they roots they will be too fragile to go into ground and would need to be overwintered somehow.
Therefore, I'd rather try to groundlayer some of them and with some luck might have them ready for mid-September.
I just check today what might be a good subject for groundlayering and below is the list of POTENTIALY available candidates. Please 'order' within next 10 days and I'll see what I can do.
Note: names marked by *** are for z6b-7 only. Eventhough your best bet would be to grow them in a pots and overwinter in garage etc.

-Tokyo Delight,
-Grayswood,
-Midoriboshi-Temari,
-Miyama-yae-Murasaki,
-BlueBird,
-BlueBillow (100% buds hardy all over z6 and probably 5b with no protection),
-Lady in Red (same, but in acidic soil expect it in bloom to be Lady in Blue, relatively fast aging to LiR with great fall foliage),
-Preziosa,
-Nachtigale***,
-Teller Blue***,
-Hobelle***,
-Ayesha***,
-Schizophragma 'Moonlight'
and possibly 'Shamrock' (cold hardiness unknown).

I intentionaly didn't mention mopheads with different names as I don't want to spread undistinct Nikko-types more than they had been already spreaded.

ego, what a generous offer. Can you recommend your favorite for length of bloom and fall color? "Grayswood" looks very appealing to me.

In the house we bought this winter, there is an enormous white lacecap hydrangea (about 6' tall and at least 8' wide) that's been in lovely bloom for weeks now. Since it does so well there I thought I'd try to take cuttings... I may try to layer some stems now instead.

Wow! What a wonderful, generous offer, George. The thread on hydrangeas has really piqued my interest and I have a spot that might really like one. But I need your advice: This spot is about 5' wide x 8' long, is nearly full sun (about 8 to 2pm), gets watered deeply 1x week. It's a slightly wild place, between a yew on the left and several blueberries on the right. Quite a bit of raspberry wine monarda is nearby. Behind is a falling down fence, and above is a tall mixed shrub border in my neighbor's yard. I am thinking of either a Grayswood, a Midoriboshi-Temari, or a Miyama-yae-Murasaki. Culturally, are any of these a good match?
Thanks TONS! I'll figure out what I have in early Sept, so stay tuned, so to speak.
O -- and PLEASE do encourage your fellow CTers to come -- for any and all of the weekend.
Best,
ML

C'm on George, isn't there anything for us zone 5 b'ers? Usually there's a couple of nights of 15 degrees here in Lexington, but should that deprive me of the honor of an EGO hydrangea? I do have a couple of oak leaved, but have no idea which ones. However they survived last year's open winter and early spring freeze. They came back fine.
Marie

Greening, either Grayswood or Tokyo Delight will provide long lasting (relatively long cause they are both lacecaps) blooms and fall show when flowers will age to red-burgundy.
Could you post picture of your 'inheritance'?

ML, I don't see neither of jap.types (MyM or MT or Shamrock) in that place as you described it. They are somewhat gentle (for the lack of better words), best viewed from the close proximity and have no fall interest whatsoever. Grayswood is one of the largest lacecaps (6x6') and TokyoD is of medium size (4x4'). With such amount of sun, LiR will produce a super show in a fall, though I'm not a big fun of its LiBlue stage in my acidic soil. Your choice. Maybe TD and LiR side-by-side in that 8' long strip?

Marie, BBillow and/or LiR would be your natural choice to give hydrangeas a try in z5.

ML, just to give you idea of how MT and MyM will look from the distance.
MyM

Close up

MT

Close up

Definitely not for the 'wild' area, IMO.

George,
Thanks for the realistic input! I agree -- they are too delicate for that spot. I would love to try either TD or LiR -- or both if you are able to root enough for everyone! Trying to not be greedy.........
Thanks again,
ML

BOOKS! Let's swap books too. Marie gave me a few that she no longer reads. I'll pass on some of those, along with a couple that I no longer read (Outside the Not So Big House by Julie Meserve is one). Please bring any you've outgrown!

I will email directions to my house when I am back in September.

Let's plan to swap at 9, and the day can unfold after that.

I'll provide coffee and cups, nametags and pens.

One favor: if you plan to bake a treat (certainly NOT necessary, but IF...), could you avoid all nuts and peanuts? (Including in ingredients -- like if you use chocolate chips, please choose Hershey's.) That way, my allergic daughter can join us....

Do we need to start an "exchange" thread for what we have and what we'd like? Or shall we do that here? Does it matter?

I think we're going to need at least 2 threads, including one for what people are bringing or looking for. If nobody objects, though, can we keep both on the 'discussion' side, and not bother with the 'exchange' side? There's really no advantage to using the exchanges for an event like this, it's meant for individuals to post plants they're going to share as individuals. Our posts about what we're planning to bring will be more of a discussion, like any other discussion, with the occasional summary that someone or another may spontaneously write up.

George, I'd love to try Ayesha, if you have any cuttings to spare. It might do well in a sunny protected corner I've got - can't pass up this opportunity to try it - it looks like such a fascinating plant.

Nan, you got an absolutely proper word, 'fascinating', for this plant.
I'll try my best to make it root for you.

So far in order:
Nan-Ayesha,
Carolyn-TD + LiR,
Marie- BBillow + LiR,
Greening- Grayswood (or TD)

Please don't be shy to ask for anything from the list above, but remember hydrangeas need around 40 days to root, so time is ticking out.

ego, in that case I would love 'Grayswood'. :-)

Ego,
What a generous offer I have delayed in responding because I can't make up my mind so I will list a few that I would be interested in and which ever one is easiest for you to propagate I would love. Would you be interested in anything I have how about a Schizophragma or climbing hydrangea? Please let me know and I will try and put a list together of what I have tonight.
midoriboshi-Temari
Preziosa
Hobelle
Thanks kt

Should we continue this thread with our specific needs/wants or start another. Although it is getting long, all the information is collecting here. OTOH, we could start another thread "Official Swap Site" (pleas, something better than that!) with date, address etc etc, and get to the plants by the second post, instead of scrolling down so much.
marie

I think the title of the new thread should make it clear that this is a New England gathering/swap not just Mass.

that sounds like one vote for a new thread, specifying its a new england swap, not just MA.
More voices?

Well if you are needing a move to second Katy's motion, then you have it. I am going to try hard to come to the swap also. It is a long haul from this neck of the woods, but I did it in one marathon day for the Boston Flower Show.
Deb

The deed is done.

From experience I'd say we'll have 2 threads going at least for a while. But if you'd like to refer to the new thread, here is the link.

On the other hand, don't blame me if this old thread stays on top!

Here is a link that might be useful: New England Fall Swap and Gathering