Southern Butler County Garden Club

05/19/2026

In between our monthly meetings, our club enjoys some wonderful field trips together. Earlier this month , 12 members traveled to 3 Amish-owned greenhouses near Volant and New Wilmington, PA to get a head start on their spring planting. It was a fun-filled day of beautiful flowers, plant shopping, laughter, and friendship among gardeners! 🌺🌼🌸

05/18/2026

This ‘wild geranium’ is famous for its explosive, “catapulting” seeds. As its seed pods dry, the tension builds until they literally fling their seeds away from the parent plant to spread. 🌸

Geranium maculatum, pictured here, is an herbaceous perennial native to Pennsylvania, along with most of the eastern United States. Growing up to 18 inches tall, it adapts to a variety of conditions, though it prefers part shade with moist soil. In summer, after its seeds have ripened, it may die back, particularly if the soil dries out.*

“Wild geranium blooms over a period of about a month (sometimes longer in cooler weather) in late spring to early summer,” writes Susan Mahr for the University of Wisconsin-Madison,” with “[f]lower buds [] set the previous year, enclosed in the winter bud at the tips of the rhizomes.”** The flowers are pollinated by “[h]oneybees, bumblebees, many types of native solitary bees, and syrphid flies,” with ants and beetles also being occasional visitors.** According to Susan, “[u]nder good conditions leaves will remain green throughout the season, but the foliage may yellow or go summer dormant if the soil dries out.”*

Susan recommends that you incorporate Geranium maculatum into “shady borders, native plant gardens or open woodland gardens,” particularly in combination with associated native species.”**

Check out the Penn State Extension Rain Garden Plants fact sheet, cited below, to learn more about wild geranium!

Sources:
* “Wild Geranium, Geranium maculatum,” Susan Mahr, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin Horticulture, Division of Extension (accessed May 1, 2024) (https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/wild-geranium-geranium-maculatum/) -

“Rain Garden Plants: Wild Geranium,” Jodi Sulpizio (Master Watershed Steward Coordinator, York County), Penn State Extension (April 11, 2022) (https://extension.psu.edu/rain-garden-plants-wild-geranium).

05/17/2026

Enjoy this warmer Sunday!

05/16/2026

With warmer weather upon us, have you noticed the Blue Star Memorial markers along your travels? Yesterday, while driving from Philly to Butler County, I stopped at Sideling Hill on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and spotted this beautiful memorial. ( yes, that’s my granddaughter stopping to smell the many gorgeous rugosa roses planted around this particular marker.)

There are 87 Blue Star Memorial markers located throughout Pennsylvania at welcome centers, rest areas, national cemeteries, veterans facilities, and local civic parks honoring the men and women who have served and are serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. The National Garden Club, which manages this program, estimates there are nearly 3,000 markers across all 50 states!

The next time you come across one in your summer travels, take a moment to pause, reflect with gratitude and honor, and remember the brave men & women who have served and those who continue to serve our country. 🇺🇸
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05/15/2026

What memories do you have of lilacs? 💜🩷

05/13/2026

The weather is finally warming up to plant. Thinking of amending your soil 🤔. Ideally you should test your soil first to determine if you need to adjust pH or add specific nutrients. But the below chart might help👇.

The garden center sells a different bottle for every soil problem. Low nitrogen gets one formula. Low pH gets another. Poor drainage gets a bag of perlite.

Compost fixes all four — and you can make it for free.

A single layer spread on a bed each spring adds nitrogen as it breaks down, nudges pH toward balance over time, improves drainage in clay by feeding the organisms that loosen it, and addresses compaction biologically through the earthworms and fungi that build air channels as they work.

It's the only amendment that improves structure, nutrition, biology, and water retention at the same time.

The rest of the list matters when you need something specific — but compost is the foundation everything else builds on.

🌱 Ranked by what they actually do:

- Compost — does everything above. A yearly layer on the surface is enough for most beds

- Cover crops — the amendment that grows itself. Plant clover or vetch in fall, cut it down in spring before it seeds. The roots fix nitrogen and break compacted ground from below

- Leaf mold — decomposed leaves. Low in nutrients but holds moisture better than almost anything else. The fix for sandy soil that dries too fast between waterings

- Worm castings — concentrated biology, but only when fresh. Dried bagged castings lose most of their value on the shelf. A small handful per transplant hole goes a long way

- Aged manure — nitrogen-rich, but needs to sit for months before use. Herbivore sources only. Check where it came from — herbicide residues in horse manure can linger in soil for years

- Biochar — holds nutrients and water in sandy ground, but needs to soak in compost or worm-casting liquid before you apply it. Straight biochar ties up nitrogen in the soil for the first season

- Wood ash — raises pH and adds potassium. Use only if a soil test confirms your ground is too acidic, and keep it away from blueberries, azaleas, and rhododendrons

The soil doesn't need more products. It needs more biology 🌿

05/12/2026

Have you ever thought the importance of the trees in your yard to how it impacts nature around it? This might get you thinking 🤔.

The tree in your yard isn't just shade. It's the base of a food chain.

Nesting chickadees need a remarkable number of caterpillars to raise one clutch — far more than most people would guess. Native trees host those caterpillars. Most non-native ornamentals host very few. The difference between what you plant determines what can nest nearby.

🌿 Native trees ranked by how many caterpillar species they support:

- Oak — more caterpillar species than any other tree genus in North America. One mature oak supports more insect life than entire yards of non-native ornamentals

- Black cherry — the native cherry most people treat as a w**d tree. Its caterpillar load feeds more birds than most ornamental cherries planted in its place

- Willow — fast-growing, water-loving, and among the highest caterpillar hosts on the continent. Native willows outperform the common weeping willow hybrids by a wide margin

- Birch — white, river, and paper birch all rank in the top tier. The caterpillars feeding on birch foliage are primary food for warblers and chickadees during nesting season

- Poplar and cottonwood — the messy tree people complain about is one of the more important wildlife trees in the country. The cotton is a minor inconvenience. The ecological output is hard to replace

- Native maple — red maple and sugar maple, not the imported Norway maple that lines many suburban streets. Norway maple supports far fewer caterpillar species than its native counterparts

- Elm — American elm was the dominant street tree for good reason. Disease-resistant cultivars are returning and bringing the caterpillar community with them

- Hickory — slow-growing and long-lived. The nuts feed mammals. The foliage feeds caterpillars. The caterpillars feed birds. A complete food web in one tree

- Native pine — the evergreen people assume supports nothing because it doesn't flower. Pine-specialist caterpillars are important food for birds in winter and early spring when deciduous trees are bare

The tree you choose determines what can eat, nest, and raise young within reach of it 🌿

05/10/2026

🌸Happy Mother’s Day! 🌸
Wishing all the wonderful mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and nurturing hearts a beautiful day filled with love, joy, and blooming happiness! 💐

05/09/2026

Love how my blooming Catmint and emerging Beebalm are hiding some of my dying spring bulb foliage… how about in your garden?

05/08/2026

Best to do this at night when insects are inside and lethargic. Use a flashlight covered with red cellophane ( wasps can’t see it) to locate the hole to treat it before removing it. 🐝☠️

Hello. I’m the Yellowjacket Queen.
Yes, I’m starting a nest near your house. Right now, it’s tiny — and I’m alone.

This is the easiest time to remove me.

If left alone, my colony could grow to hundreds by summer.

We do hunt flies and pests… but near homes, we become dangerous.

What to do:
• Remove nests early in spring
• Act before workers appear
• Don’t wait until summer

Right now = easy.
Later = nightmare.

05/07/2026

🌿It’s a great weekend for plant shopping!🌿
Garden season is in full swing, and this weekend brings in not one, but TWO wonderful plant sales to explore!

Support local garden clubs, gather fresh ideas, and bring home a little inspiration for your yard and flower beds. Happy planting friends! 🌸