Aprons - denim shirts - tshirts - there are other ways to spend your money at Open Garden! We have some heirloom iris too. Of course, we would not turn down a donation either. We are doing some big-ticket items this year after building up a fund - new markers for the plots, a new Historic Rose Garden sign, a new structure - we are making some wonderful improvements. Very exciting. Rather expensive (and totally out of our non-profit funds)! Whether or not you can support us financially or with your time, we'd love to have you come and enjoy the roses. Anita

Thank you everyone that came to the party and made it so successful, we had a great time! I cannot wait to our next garden party. Thanks to all the generous gardeners that came and share the plants with us, M&J, thank you for all your great job bringing such a big amount of plants to us, you have no idea how happy you made us, I hope that one day we can contribute to your generosity. Thank you Kara for bringing all those plants with you! So many people that I have to thank... and it was great to meet you Laurie! I hope that you arrive home safe and all the other friends that were traveling long distance. Our Tampa friends especial thanks, Derek, Aaron and Barbie. Larry and Doug, big thanks for all the help in the swap, you guys were great!!! Bridget, it was nice to meet you and hubby and the other Sylvia too.:) All the guests rock! we just had a great party! I was waiting for the pictures that Cheryl took so you all can see them. Silvia Here is a link that might be useful: garden party

I would strongly advise a visit to Frog Pond Farm in Hunterdon County on June 2 and 3. Ruby and Martin are neighbors of mine and have a simply lovely garden and are wonderful people. Here's a funny OT story: When I first moved here, I had a dog who was depressed from being moved from a suburban to a rural setting, so I got him a friend. Well, the friend was just plain bad - she was a terrier mix who could worm her way through the smallest opening in the fence. The first time she ran away, she was brought home by the local police department, sitting proudly in the backseat of the police car. The second time she ran away, she ended up at the pound. I went down to pay her bail and was asked if I wanted to know where she was found. That didn't sound good, but I hesitantly said yes. Well, she been found at a neighbor's house. She'd got through their fence and into their yard. Their house had a cat door which this dog used to gain entry to the house. From there, she found the owners asleep in their bedroom, got in bed with them and began licking the husband's face. He pushed her away once, thinking it was his cat. But she persisted and the second time he reached out to give her a good shove and realized that the hair he felt was not his cat's hair. I guess he turned on the light and saw this dog sitting on his bed with a big smile on her face. They called the police who came and got her and took her to the pound. It was Martin's and Ruby's house the dog had entered. A few days after this episode, they were having an open garden so I stopped by to apologize for the dog's bad behavior. They were so kind and just laughed about it. Since that time, Ruby has been gracious in sharing her knowledge and some of her plants with me.

I gave my old washer to Goodwill, as well as the dryer. My new washer is more efficient than a front loader. I bought a brand new wringer washer three years ago. I hang my clothes totally and let the sun dry it. In winter, I use one of my vacant greenhouses to hang clothes. Believe it or not, I can have five loads washed and hung to dry in the time it took my old washer to do one load.......and they're cleaner. I compost all suitable material, recycle everything recylable and what little is left will usually fill one garbage bag a month. I grow most of my own fruits and vegetables and preserve them. Have my own flock of chickens and use their manure on my gardens. All my errands in town are done on one day, in one trip and I traded in my SUV three years ago for a 30 mpg car. I do use fabric shopping bags. We installed a ceramic-clad hot water heater and it only kicks on once a day on off-peak hours. We built a solarium where the old porch used to be to windbreak and get solar gain in winter. We replaced the hoggish electric resistance heaters for a gas fired boiler with zones, so we only heat the sections of the house we use and can keep the other areas cooler. I use blinds to all windows, shut at night and open in daytime for the solar gain. I even installed a pitcher pump in my kitchen so that large quantities of water can be pulled up without using the electric pump from our spring holding tank. I use a minimum of paper products and disposibles ie washable cloth napkins. I buy organic real 'soap' by the gallon and use it for all our soap needs from laundry to dispensers and everything in between. I do not subscribe to anything I can't get online and buy as much as possible in bulk. Yes, I patch and darn and sew much of my own items and I cook almost entirely from scratch. We butcher our own meat some years as well since my son has a farm. Put bluntly...........neither my husband nor I are consumers. We buy what we need and that's about it and I'd rather have a tooth pulled than shop for the fun of it. IOW we live plainly and love it.