Weekly View » Irvington Garden Club

Wall Flowers at the Bona

Weekly View — Thu, 24 May 2018 05:10:33 +0000

IRVINGTON — Spring is finally here, and the gardens of Irvington are a riot of blooms, so the Bona is celebrating with a Wallflower exhibit. The exhibit will be on display through Aug. 29. The Bona Thompson Memorial Center is located at 5350 University Ave. in Irvington. Hours are Wednesdays 1-3 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays 1-4 p.m. The Bona will be closed on May 27 to observe Memorial Day.
Thanks to the Irvington Garden Club, there will be an exhibit of the tools of the gardeners’ trade on display. Also, on display are a dozen years’ worth of the Irvington Garden Tour posters along with the original artwork for several of those posters, as created by current Irvington artists.
The walls of the Lena Alice Pavey-Morrow Gallery showcase some of the Irvington Historical Society’s permanent art collection, plus pieces on loan from current Irvington artists, such as Rita Spalding, Laura Hildreth and Kathleen Biale. Works drawn from the Society’s permanent collection includes works by the Irvington artists such as Hilah Wheeler, Roger Frey, and Charles Townsend, as well as those by other Indiana artists Wilma Sonnefield and Bess Kern.
Hanging spectacularly over the exhibit is the Howe High School Violet Queen’s Cape. A version of this golden cape stenciled with violets along its 12-foot long train was worn by the Violet Queen as she acknowledged the student achievements for the year, between 1939 and 1963. The cape was brought out once again, in 1988, for the school’s 50th anniversary.
This year’s Irvington Garden Tour takes place on Sunday, June 25, from 1-5 pm. Tickets are available for sale at a number of Irvington locations.
The Bona will be open during the Garden Tour, Admission to the Bona is always free.

Gardens of Irvington on Display June 28

Weekly View — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 05:10:02 +0000

Now in the 15th year, the Irvington Garden Tour is going strong. This year, the tour will be held Sunday, June 28 from 1- 5 p.m. and feature 10 gardens. Tickets are $10 and proceeds of the tour support the Irvington Garden Club’s works to beautify the community through plantings, stewardship of the historic Kile Oak, and many other projects.
Advance tickets are available at Bookmamas (9 S. Johnson), Habig’s Garden Shop (11th and Arlington), and the Antique Mall of Irvington (corner of Ritter and East Washington St.). On the day of the tour, patrons can purchase tickets at the Benton House (312 S. Downey Ave.) and at the Irvington United Methodist Church (30 N. Audubon).
One of the secrets to the longevity of the Irvington Garden Tour is that there is great variety in the gardens themselves. This year’s tour highlights a “secret garden” created by owners who transformed an overgrown yard to a quiet retreat — a place to sustain the soul. Close by, there is a garden full of vegetables, fruit, and herbs artfully arranged — a place to sustain the body. Still another garden boasts a tulip tree descended from a tree planted by George Washington, a weeping willow given to the owner as a present on her 80th birthday a few years ago, and a favorite childhood picnic spot — a place to sustain the heart.
To capture all the beauty and uniqueness of the gardens, artists will be painting outside throughout the tour, and their work will be on display at the Bona Thompson Memorial Center afterwards.
One of the stops is the Bona Thompson Memorial Center, 5350 E. University. Admire the gardens outside, but go inside for the exhibit “Indiana Seasons” and a display of flower photos with their meanings. Also go around the corner for your free plant start at the Conservatory entrance. All the plants are donated by the Irvington Garden Club members and volunteers.
To cap off the day of walking through great gardens, visit the Irvington United Methodist Church, 30 N. Audubon, from 1-4 p.m. for their annual Strawberry Festival and Patriotic Concert. Enjoy strawberry shortcake with the “works” for only $4, and the kids will enjoy children’s activities. A free patriotic concert, featuring the choirs of Irvington United Methodist Church and Union Chapel United Methodist Church will begin at 4:30 p.m. in the sanctuary.

Applause!: June 19-26

Weekly View — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 05:08:48 +0000

• Lawrence hosts Friday at the Fort every other Friday from 5-9 p.m. at the Lawrence Civic Plaza, 9230 Memorial Park Dr. The next one is June 19 and features music by the Midwest Originals, plus games, a beer tent, food trucks, and an opportunity to get to know your Lawrence neighbors. Admission is free.
• If you are in the market for a pet, check out this weekend’s Indy Mega Adoption event June 20-21 from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Many rescue organizations, Indianapolis Care and Control, and other groups will be out with dogs and cats looking for fur-ever homes. The event is at the South Pavilion. Same day adoptions will be $30. Admission is free, although parking at the fairgrounds will be $5. Visit indymegaadoptionevent.org for more information.
• Little Maddox Blue Rader is only a year old and has been fighting a battle all his life against Billary Atresia, a rare disease of the bile ducts, which has created liver problems and other complications. He is going to need a transplant, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. There’s going to be a rummage sale June 27 at the Hornet Park Community Center (5245 Hornet Ave.) in Beech Grove to support the Children’s Organ Transplant Association from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Let’s help out Maddox and other kids facing transplants!
• The Benton House Home Tour is September 20, and organizers are looking for Irvington homes to be on the tour. Irvington’s architecture is diverse — from bungalows to enormous Victorians — and the residents are pretty great, too. If you’d like to be part of the tour, call 357-0918 to find out more.
• The “finale” of the Irvington Folk Festival is coming up June 20, with lots of activities for the whole family, music, food trucks, an alternative gift fair, and children’s festival. Come on out to Ellenberger Park (5301 E. St. Clair) for a great time!
• Speaking of Ellenberger Park, a big thanks needs to go out to the hard-working members of the Irvington Garden Club who put on a fantastic farmer’s market June 14. Despite the heat and humidity, there was a tremendous turnout, with many new vendors. The next market is July 12 from noon-3 p.m.
• The next Green Hour will feature Jesse Kharbanda, Executive Director for the Hoosier Environmental Council talking about the last legislative session and its environmental agenda. The meeting will be held June 23 at 6 p.m. at Jockamo Upper Crust, 5646 E. Washington St. Admission to the talk is free.
• Entertainment on the Plaza continues June 19 with Cook & Belle at 7 p.m. The free concert takes place on the lawn of the Hancock County Courthouse and City Plaza in Greenfield. Bring a blanket and enjoy the music!
• Save the date for an interesting discussion on the “Makers Movement” with Ilana Preuss on July 15 from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at The Platform at City Market. RSVP via e-mail to Elle Roberts at droberts@lisc.org to reserve your seat.

Applause!: Jan. 17-24

Weekly View — Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:08:25 +0000

• The Irvington Garden Club will meet at 6:30 p.m., on January 27, at the Irvington Presbyterian Church, 55 S. Johnson. Justin St. John of Maximum Grow Gardening will present a program on hydroponics (a method of growing plants using nutrient solutions in water). Located at 6117 East Washington Street, Maximum Grow Gardening, sells hydroponic systems, lighting, controllers and supplies. Guests are welcome to attend.
• All Indianapolis Public Library locations will be closed on Jan. 20 in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, except the InfoZone, located within The Children’s Museum at 3000 N. Meridian St., which will be open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• For the fourth year, a blood drive held in memory of fallen IMPD Officer David Moore is scheduled for Jan. 24 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at The Platform (west wing of the City Market), 202 East Market St. The public is encouraged to volunteer blood donations at the event which is held in conjunction with the Indiana Blood Center. Donors must be 17 years old (16 with parental consent) and weigh at least 110 pounds. Donors who are unable to attend the City Market blood drive are encouraged to donate at any of Indiana Blood Center’s nine locations throughout the state. Please visit www.indianablood.org for more information.
• The Metropolitan School District of Warren Township Board of Education will host a Legislative Forum on Jan. 25 beginning at 9:00 a.m. at the Warren Education and Community Center at 975 N. Post Rd. This forum is open to the public and the Warren Board of Education strongly encourages staff members, parents, students, and community patrons to attend and share your ideas and concerns with our state legislators.
• Garfield Park is opening a new exhibition, “Family: Past and Present” by Southport Artistry, Jan. 18 at the Art Center. The opening reception is Jan. 18 from 5-7 p.m. The exhibit runs until Feb. 22 and will be open during regular GPAC hours. Call 327-7135 or visit www.gpacarts.org for more information.
• A big thank you needs to go out to all the people who volunteered to brave the cold to remove graffiti from the vandalized signal boxes in Irvington. The boxes on Brookville Rd. and Arlington were vandalized in the middle of the night; Rita Spalding took a photo of the damage done to hers and posted it on Facebook. Within hours, she received hundreds of e-mails and pledges to help clean it up. Fortunately, hers was restored, but one on Brookville Rd. was very badly damaged.
If anything, the experience brought home the fact that the east side wants public art, and is willing to fight for it. Foundation East, the organizers of the signal box art, have done an amazing job bringing artists, the arts, and the community together.
• It was good to see neighbors helping neighbors in the aftermath of Snowpalooza 2014. Block by block, people pitched in to clear sidewalks and get cars unstuck. In Irvington Terrace, one good neighbor rented a Bob Cat and dug his neighbors out.

The Annual “I Hate Weeds” Column

Ethel Winslow — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 05:09:10 +0000

In agriculture the Thistle is the recognized sign of untidiness and neglect, being found not so much in barren ground, as in good ground not properly cared for. It has always been a plant of ill repute among us; Shakespeare classes ‘rough Thistles’ with ‘hateful Docks,’ and further back in the history of our race we read of the Thistle representing part of the primeval curse on the earth in general, and on man in particular, for – ‘Thorns also and Thistles shall it bring forth to thee.’ — A Modern Herbal, Mrs. M. Grieve

Last year was the Year of the Thistles. No matter how much I pulled, chopped, dug, or crushed, the blankety-blank thistles would not die. In fact, for every one I killed, ten came to the funeral. Even the drought didn’t kill them. We tried mulching but the beasts laughed at our attempts to smother them. I hate thistles — they have an attitude.
This year in the vegetable garden, we have weed barrier fabric down, which has cut down on weeds in general, but those little cracks and spaces have filled with a variety of weeds: nutsedge, ground ivy, curly dock, chickweed . . . and some thistles. Not as many as last year, to be sure, but still some.
Corn gluten weed suppressant is a natural alternative to chemical herbicides, but it can’t be used if you are planting seeds. It prevents weed seeds from germinating, but it does nothing for weeds that come up from creeping root systems. It doesn’t seem to work on thistles that I’ve noticed. Only a sharp hoe and gloved hand yanking them out by the roots seems to do the trick.
The Irvington Garden Tour was an abject lesson in weed-free living and fabulous landscaping choices. The eight gardens full of healthy hostas and vibrant verbena, whimsical fairy set-ups and innovative fountains made me envious and depressed in equal measures. I came home and gazed at my pathetic attempts to make the world a more beautiful place, then went inside and curled up on the couch in defeat.
At FoodCon over at the Harrison on July 5, Shawndra Miller, who is a wonderful writer on all things natural and peaceful, had a booth where she made a “weed salad” with foraged greens and berries. It looked tasty and fresh, and I recognized many of the weeds in the bowl as plants growing in my garden. Perhaps, I thought, I’m looking at this the wrong way. Perhaps I’ll make a salad of the lamb’s quarter and whatnot that keeps coming back, and throw in a few volunteer mulberries that have managed to come up in the fence. A little nice organic olive oil, a little this and that, and I could have a nice little crunchy meal. Perhaps I could make friends with the weeds, er, undocumented and unauthorized greens.
And then I saw a baby thistle poking through the dirt among the beets, and I thought better of biting into that bristly plant, even though I’m sure it would be good for me. While I may nibble on some other stuff from the garden, I draw the line in the dirt at thistles.