The April meeting will be held on Saturday, April 14 at 9:00 am. It will be held at Dom & Lydia D.'s pond located in Scottsdale. Dom and Lydia joined the GPPS in 1997 to get some ideas because they didn't know exactly what they wanted in a pond. What a great education they received! They learned about not making a pond too small or too big. They learned about depth and materials and maintenance. Then they started on a plan. After about 1 year of planning, Dom started breaking ground, only to be interrupted by a family member becoming seriously ill. The plans went on hold for nearly two years. Weeds grew 3 feet high inside the hole in the ground. In spite of what they learned about making a pond the right size, Dom found the project was too big to tackle alone. So he contracted his friend Dave to complete the dream pond. Dave did a great job and they are still friends! There are about 50 feet of ponds, interlocking streams and a waterfall and the pond holds about 5500 gallons. The construction is done in a concrete rock creation. Dom is landscaping and now they find that the pond is just the right size! 

Laurie R. demonstrated how to repot and divide aquatic plants at the February 2000 meeting and it was great! She has graciously agreed to help us again at this meeting. After seeing Laurie in action, everyone will be anxious to go home and get to work on their own plants! Be sure to bring any plants you don't know how to divide. Don't forget your lawn chairs and also any plants to share.
 
 

MARCH MEETING REVIEW

Our weather luck held out again! It rained early in the morning, but stopped about 6:00 am and was dry for the meeting. It was cool in the shade and when the clouds covered the sun, but it was a beautiful morning. We even had three Harris hawks circle overhead and a pair of kestrals feeding in a nearby tree! Larry and Shirley S. have a huge backyard ? we held our meeting in the grassy "north 40"! Larry is currently using about 2/3 of the original pond. Part of the reason for having the meeting at his house was to get some input on his green pond water! After the meeting was opened, Brad J. explained that Emily A., the newsletter editor, would like to compile a "Pond To Do List" for the Sonoran Desert area. Anyone with items for the list are asked to email or contact Emily. Brad also talked about the message board and answered questions regarding it. He gave a prize to Janet S. as a reward for having checked the message board the morning before the meeting. (It pays to use the message board!!!) It was announced that Harper's Nursery had invited us to participate in their Mesa Gardening Fair on April 7. Volunteers were asked to see Dianne after the meeting. The meeting was turned over to the host, Larry S., who gave us a history of his property and asked for help in identifying the vegetation. The meeting was then turned over to Shannon McMorran from Tetra Pond. She gave a demonstration and discussed fish food, talked about UV filters, answered questions from the members and handed out literature. The meeting ended and we had a good selection of plants to share.
 
 

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Philip & Sandy B. ? Phoenix

Terri Lester C. ? Glendale

William & Gail R. ? Scottsdale

David & Amy S. - Scottsdale
 
 

POND TOUR 2001 UPDATE

The pond tour will be in the Phoenix area with 6 ponds on the tour. It will be held from 8 am until 4 pm. Sincere thanks go to everyone that volunteered their pond. Tickets will be sold at the three Harper's Nurseries in Mesa, Scottsdale and Phoenix and at Baker Nursery also in Phoenix. A vote was taken at the March meeting to determine which of four organizations would receive a portion of the proceeds. The choices were: Arizona Science Center, Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Hassayampa Nature Conservancy and Liberty Wildlife. A discussion followed, then a hand vote and Boyce Thompson was chosen. If anyone has any suggestions or ideas for the upcoming tour, please be sure to contact Dianne.
 
 

LAST NEWSLETTER IF 2001 DUES NOT PAID

The next newsletter will only be mailed to members that are current on 2001 dues. We would hate to lose you, so if you have not paid your dues, please mail them to Ed T. or bring them to the April meeting. Remember that your dues entitle you to the monthly meetings, newsletters, admission to the pond tour and our famous plant swap!
 
 

TEMPE GARDEN CLUB TOUR ? SATURDAY, APRIL 21

One of our long-time members, Cathy W., has again organized the annual Garden Lovers Tour by the Tempe Garden Club. It will be on Saturday, April 21 from 8am to 3pm and tickets are $5.00 per person. There will be five gardens on the tour and they are all located between Elliot and Warner Roads and west of Rural. Tickets will be available on the day of the tour beginning at 7am at the Home Depot Garden Center at Warner and Kyrene Roads. Proceeds will be donated to the construction of a gazebo on the north shore of the Tempe Town Lake. Should be a beautiful day for a garden tour!!