Long Island Horticultural Society
September News & Notes
September 2025
President's Message...
Dear Fellow LIHort Members:
​
I”m so glad to be back in touch with all of you, and I’m very excited about all the plans we have for the upcoming season!
I hope every one of you has enjoyed a good summer, even though the weather was quite WIERD:
WILDLY INCONSISTENT and EXTREME, ROASTING (in July) and DELIGHTFUL (in August)!
My personal experience was that early spring was beautiful, with flowering shrubs and bulbs making a fine display.
However, I had planted many colorful annuals in pots, hanging planters and window boxes, and while they did well in June, the hot, humid days of July reduced them to a
droopy, sorry, gasping mess. I really feared that I would just have to do without my usual colorful display for the rest of the season.
I did give them lots of water and encouraging words though, and - lo and behold - the cool, sunny days of August brought a full revival. If this weather continues I should be able to enjoy my little patio haven through September and maybe into October. We’ll see.
My other challenge this summer was watching the progress of the Native Perennial/Pollinator Garden that I had planted last fall. Everything did grow, but to my horror they grew-and grew-and-grew! Some as tall as 6 feet, and all in a narrow, floppy border along my driveway. I bought tall stakes and tied them up, then did some research and learned that I can give them “The Chelsea Chop” early next summer to solve the problem. The good news is that the plants are strong and healthy and the flowers nicely colorful, so with some careful “tweaking” I should be on my way. It’s also true that they thrive on neglect, as promised. No enriching the soil, no feeding, just water and sun. My kind of plants!
Now on to the plans for the upcoming LIHort season:
We have an outstanding lineup of Guest Speakers, as well as some member Tutorials on topics of interest, such as the Master Gardeners Program.
Everyone seems to enjoy local Day Trips to interesting Gardens and Horticultural sites, and we have scheduled one a month for the rest of the season. We’ve already enjoyed a wonderful day at Oheka Castle, and will soon be going to Cold Spring Harbor Labs. Stay tuned for more opportunities!
We hope to continue offering one exceptional Overseas Trip each year. This fall the group will soon be leaving for Portugal, and we’ll look forward to hearing about their wonderful adventures!
Our Merchandise Committee is working hard on plans for new items using the beautiful Art Work and Photography by our talented members. You should have received notices about this, and please send in your submissions.
The Horticultural/Botanic Art Competition Committee has been working on a major revision and creative update of the Competition, which will begin in 2026. You will be hearing a lot more about that.
The exciting news is that we have started coordinating with Planting Fields Arboretum about planning, planting and maintaining a Monarch Butterfly Milkweed Garden, and those of you who volunteered to work on this project will soon be rolling up your sleeves!
There is a lot more coming soon, including displays by the History Committee, new venue ideas by the Publicity/Outreach Committee to attract new members, an interactive forum about “Truth vs. Myth” in Gardening”, and plans to have an ongoing “Ask the Experts” forum for your gardening queries.
Of course, we will continue to feature our traditional, popular activities - the Raffle Table, the Greenery Boutique, the Exhibition Table - and especially the Hospitality Table! Plus our Holiday Party, Summer Picnic, and Plant Sales, as well as other possible events as we think of them. Lot’s of good things happening!
I should point out that ALL of the plans and projects I’ve listed are possible ONLY because many of you have volunteered to help out with planning and carrying out the work involved. I believe we have more volunteers than ever, and it’s also my impression that the volunteers not only work hard, but have fun in the process! If you haven’t lent your hand in some way, please give it a try. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
See you on September 21st!
-Ronnie Branczio
September 21 Meeting
Speaker: Signe Nielsen
Topic: Little Island, NYC
For more information please visit the Meetings page
Doors open at 12:30pm
Place Horticultural Competition entries by 1pm.
​
1:30 - 2pm LIHS Business, Announcements​
​​Speaker starts at 2pm​​
​
Please consider donating
refreshments to the hospitality table.
Day Trips:
Cold Spring Harbor Labs
On Sunday Sept 28th from 11-12:30 LIHORT members will be touring Cold Spring Harbor Labatory, a 120-acre sprawling waterfront site. Beautifully landscaped with science inspired outdoor sculptures, indoor Chihuly sculpture and colorful buildings. In a 1 1/2-hour walking tour, we will learn about the historic and modern architecture, the Nobel legacy, and the advanced cancer, neuroscience, and plant research taking place right there each day. This tour has been organized by Toni Cabat, member of the day trip committee. The registration for 25 members was filled the day the tour was announced at our June meeting. There is a short waiting list in event of cancelations. Our day trips are annoucned at meetings and /or via eblast so please keep up with your email and attend meetings so you can register once announced since day trips are very popular. Many more day trips are planned for 2025-2026.
Trip to Sisters of St. Joseph, Brentwood
Tuesday, October 14th, 11AM - 12:30PM
Sisters of St. Joseph, a 169-year-old Catholic order of nuns with large acres of land in Brentwood, have preserved in an ecological effort, in conjunction with Peconic Land Trust, 28 acres to organic agricultural production and additional acreages to sustainable development.
​
On the 28 acres they have many organic small farmers such as Thera Family, Red Fox Farm, Napolitano Farm, as well as Long Island Native Plant Initiative, STRONG, People's Food Forest and Harvest Food Bank among others. There are Farm Stands on site as well as a native plant sale.
In addition, the Sustainable development includes a large solar energy site, sustainable landscaping, woodland preservation and waste management.
​
This is a walking tour for 20 members, on either paved or hard pack dirt. There will be a golf cart to accommodate a few members with limited mobility. There are a couple of places we can pause and rest during the tour, some with a few benches but not enough for all people at each stop. Sturdy shoes are required.
Parking is available, and we will send a link to a google pin to show where the best group parking is, which is also the tour meeting place. There is also access to restrooms in a few locations, including the main building and the Garden Ministry, so those needing a bathroom at the beginning or last third of the walk can be accommodated.
​
There will be a $5 donation, cash only, to be given to the Trip Coordinator, Toni Cabat, at the Sept. 21 LIHort Meeting. Registration can begin online for members only by emailing lihorticulturalsociety@gmail.comwith your name, email and phone number; please indicate if you need mobility assistance. First come, first serve since spots are limited. Confirmation of your email will be sent - if you don't receive confirmation, please re-send your registration information. FINAL Confirmation will be provided when your donation of $5 is made at the September 21 Meeting. More details and driving directions will be provided upon payment.
From the editor....
On A very hot August day I went on the Hampton Jittney Bus trip to Little Island. It is built on the site of the former Pier 54 in New York City and was financed by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg. The park features a distinctive design with 132 "tulip" shaped concrete structures supporting the park above the Hudson River. I loved the planting design focusing on textures within the unique landscape. They did a wonderful job of landscape design and working with the different levels of the little park. Working with mostly native plants they still had a design idea to feature textures. The selection of plants perfectly contrasts with all that concrete and each other. It is a vibrant landscape with fantastic views of the cityscape beyond.
-Ann Wetzel
Please click on the slideshow to open up larger photos.
Sow, What's New?
It's time to direct sow your cool season veggies for fall harvest: Lettuce, arugula radishes, Tatsoi, peas, cabbages, carrots.
​
Now is also the time to plan ahead and plant out flowers such as Sweet Peas, Snapdragons, and Calendula
Also Check out the Gardener Calendar​ September is a busy time for gardeners! ​
Ronnie's Recap
COMMON SENSE ROSE SELECTION
AND CARE FOR THE ORGANIC GARDENER
Presented by VINCENT SIMEONE
​
Many of us grow roses - or try to - and thus encounter many problems, challenges, and (hopefully) delights. For this reason, one of the most requested Speaker Topics from LIHS members has been the subject of Rose Selection and Care.
How fortunate we were to have PFA Director Vinnie Simeone as our speaker on June 22 - at peak rose season no less - to provide us with a wealth of valuable information and advice, and to answer our many questions!
We learned about recent developments in rose breeding and cultivation, which actually eliminate or reduce many of the serious insect and disease problems which were previously unavoidable. Through a beautiful slide presentation we were introduced to the best varieties within each rose category, and Vinnie followed up with a detailed and invaluable discussion of the best methods for planting and caring for these plants, as well as recommending effective products for organic rose care.
The lengthy Q & A was especially valuable as audience members had their numerous questions answered fully and precisely. I was disappointed to have Vinnie confirm that miniature roses are very hard to winter over and should be considered as annuals! I suspected that but had hoped I was just doing something wrong! Oh well, always best to know the facts.
Thanks, Vinnie, for a wonderfully informative and entertaining presentation.
Fantastic Fall Color w/ Small Shrubs
Itea virginica 'Henry's Garnet' It is an attractive, deciduous to semi-evergreen shrub with showy fragrant flowers and great fall leaf color, showing the fall colors up to the beginning of winter, can even hold its leaves through a mild winter. Prefers full sun to partial shade, but it can also grow in shade. It does well in moist, slightly acidic humusy soils, but tolerates a wide range of soil conditions and pHs. Best flowering occurs with 4 hours of sun per day.... Continue Reading here
June Horticultural Competition
Click on gallery to view slideshow
Back In June Angela D' Aleo opened her garden to LIHS members. Her garden is a wonderful example of a mature garden. The Rhodies were just going out of flower while the spectacular Rose garden was coming into it glory.
Summer Picnic July 19, 2025
Photos © JoAnn Semeraro
Big Thank You to all the Picnic Committee Volunteers: Leonard Aberman and Patty Jarett, Andrea and Rob Gibson, Carlos and Kathryn Taborda, Frank and Wendy Lomuscio, Toni and Stuart Germain, Marty and Marcia Nyear, Maria and Jeff Hoffman, Christine Bochicchio, Karen Muller, Debi Goldfisher, Dale & Suzan Goldstein, Eileen Anders, Sharon Rubin, Courtney Quinn and JoAnn Semeraro
Please click on the slideshow to open up larger photos.
Photos © Kathryn Taborda
Donation Form
We have a new Donation Form here on the website. LIHS has big, exciting plans for the coming year, but don't have sufficient funds to carry them all out. We will be planning interesting fund-raising activities in the future, and member Donations are one way that members can help out as we expand and innovate.
With the new Donation Form you can make a donation to the LIHS Scholarship Fund, which funds our scholarship award given to a Long Island student studying horticulture or to the LIHS General Fund, which funds all the activities LIHS engages in including our interesting monthly speakers.
You can make a donation in honor of a friend or loved one in celebration or memorial.
Contributors will be acknowledged in the newsletter unless they decline via the form.
Please fill out your information and print out the form and either bring it with you to a meeting or mail it to our treasurer, Maria Hoffman.
This Month's Donor:
Andrea Gibson​
Happenings
Freeport Memorial Library Free Programs:
​
Fall Gardening on September 18, 2025 at 2:00 PM with Paul Levine
Putting Your Garden to Bed on October 1, 2025 at 7:00 PM with ReWild Long Island
Leave the Leaves on October 7, 2025 at 7:00 PM with Anthony Marinello
​
Registration required please call 516-379-3274 or register in person at the reference desk, or via email at cbisonette@freeportlibrary.info
Cook's Corner
Use all those delicious tomatoes in Ronnie Brancazio's Gazpacho!
Membership Form
Dues for membership are:
Single $35, Household: $45, Student $5
Please fill out the Membership Form here on the website, when renewing or joining. Just type your information into the form and print it out. Bring it with your dues to a meeting or mail it to the address on the bottom of the form.
Welcome New Members
Jess Schrier
Gloria Rothstein
Thank you to Maureen Wawrzonek for the Hospitality Table Centerpiece.
Donations to the Hospitality Table: Andrea Gibson, Debi Goldfisher, Christine Bochicchio, Wendy Lomuscio, JoAnn Semeraro, Marge Duryea, Sharon Rubin, Karen Mueller, Suzanne Giwoyna, Barbara Hanft, Patty Jarrett, Lynn Simmons, Toni & Stuart Germain, Laura Weill, Francine Reff, Judy Basse
​
Donations to the Raffle Table: David & Rosemarie Papayanopulos, Bina Chatterjee, JoAnn Semeraro, Christine Bochicchio, Karen Mueller, Priscilla Bauerschmidt, Coutney Quinn, Laura Weill, Toni & Stuart Germain, Leve Hajdu, Francine Reff, Pat Martin, Trish Cody
​
SOME “WISDOM” ON HOW TO GARDEN IN THE 80’s and 90’s
By Ronnie Brancazio
For some of us, this title refers to our AGE! For all of us, regardless of age, it can refer to the TEMPERATURE! Unfortunately, both just go in one direction these days, and that is UP!
In any case, it is essential to figure out how to find a balance between the WORK and the PLEASURE of gardening, and here are some rules that I’ve arrived at to help ME keep the balance:
1) SIT AND THINK! Each year is a new gardening experience, and we need to do some reassessing. Take stock of your current physical and mental state and life situation, and decide exactly how much time and physical effort you can reasonably devote to the garden. Remember to stick to it, even when the garden centers and catalogs advertisements say “Buy, Buy, Buy, Now”. Remember you need time and a place to plant it all...
Tips & Tricks
How to water your plants while your on vacation:
I personally faced this dilemma when I went on vacation in August. I was going to be gone for a week in the hottest month of the year. I didn't want to come home to a dead garden. I did a bit of research online and built a self watering system using 1 gallon water jugs and wicking cord.
The brand of wicking cord I purchased on Amazon is Orimerc. It had the best reviews and it was available in 100 ft lengths; I have a lot of plants. One thing I have to stress about this system is trial and error is a MUST. Do not set this up and just leave the next day. I spent a week perfecting the positioning of the jugs. Setting the jugs too high; over watered the plants, too low and they didn't get any water. I finally found the right heights to give the plants enough moisture. I did have my friend come and refill the jugs after 3 to 4 days. I was away for 7 days. The jugs were indeed empty on my return but Good News - Everything survived!
​
I packed up the jugs and the cord and now I have a self watering system for future vacations.
-Ann Wetzel
Chair provided a good height for the pots on the floor
I used multiple cords in each jug to water several plants at once
Chair provided a good height for the pots on the floor