Garden Club: March News

A Busy February—Last month was busy for the Gar-
den Club! Kaitei Hoffman, Vice President of the Niguel Botanical Preserve, gave a wonderful
overview of the beautiful Mediterranean gardens found in the preserve. Located just off Crown
Valley behind the YMCA, it’s defi-nitely worth a visit and stroll through the grounds which include
a labyrinth, gazebo, butterfly and rose gardens, a Girl Scout tree grove and Boy Scout trail.
Later in the month we hosted a Milkweed Workshop on the clubhouse patio, focused on cultivating the
Monarch but-terfly’s habitat in Niguel Shores. Open to all Niguel Shores residents, including
children and grandchildren, all participants were provided the supplies needed to pot and plant
milkweed seeds, with hands-on guidance by Garden Club
members. The result: more than 100 milkweed pots are now in homes throughout the community where
participants can watch them sprout, grow, and attract butterflies.
Coming Up in March—Orchids are the focus of our next meeting on Monday, March 9 at 11 a.m. in the
Clubhouse. Orchid expert Brenda Ward will share her knowledge on everything you need to know about
orchids. One the oldest and largest flowering plant families, orchids originated approximately 66
to 100 million years ago, with early cultivation of orchids in China and Japan dating back to at
least 500 B.C. With more than 25,000 recog-nized species, orchids adapt to almost any habi-tat
globally. Join us at the March meeting and start cultivating your own orchids!
Not a Garden Club member? Non-mem-bers are welcome to attend for a $5 guest fee. Want to become a
member? Sign-up forms are available in the Niguel Shores office, or email
mariettahannigan@yahoo.com.
—Judi Palladino