FH Garden Club General Meeting
November 10, 2025
Call to order – 9:41 and Pledge of Allegiance
Welcome to our Guests and New Members!
Guests: Sue Pemberton, Roxanne Wooding, and Brenda Parrish.
New Members: Debby Lutz, Stacey Broderick, and Matt and Pat Kight.
Speaker: FH Head Groundskeeper: Will Caudle (See a summary of his presentation below.)
Business Reports:
October General Meeting Minutes approved. 1st Mary Harouni 2nd Ginger Thompson
October Treasure Report, balanced and approved.
Kathy Hallquist sent Carrie Miller a card, as she is healing from surgery. We were happy to see Carrie back with us at the meeting. 😊
New Business:
Fall Raffle Baskets: Thank you to Linda Gregg and Barb Foster for chairing this fundraiser, and to all of you who purchased tickets. $600 was raised for the scholarship fund! The winners of the baskets included one of our own members and three people from the community. What a wonderful way to promote FH Garden Club.
*Christmas Basket – Our own, Cheryl Furman
*Garden Basket – Chelsea
*Picnic Theme – Rice
*“Fall” in Love – Gayle
Painted Pots/Plants: Thank you Jan Reitzel and her many many helpers who made this endeavor and labor of love a huge success. The pots were sold at the recent Craft Fair on 11/8 and during our general meeting on 11/10. $564 was raised for the scholarship fund! A few pots remain and will be sold at the Broad Creak Rec. Ctr. Craft Fair on 12/5.
Harbour Club Open House: The Events Committee has invited all FH Clubs to decorate a Christmas Tree that will be showcased during the Holiday Season through the first of the year. The Garden Club will be decorating a tree, with a garden theme, and approval by members present, was given to Jan Reitzel to purchase themed ornaments from Amazon.
Members signed up to help decorate or to donate items to decorate the Harbour Club Tree. This will take place on the 8th or 9th of December. Barb Paulsen will contact members via email with specific details. If you were not present and want to help, please email Barb to get on the list. In leu of this we WILL NOT be decorating a tree at the Community Center.
Calendar Events:
Come help make our Famous Pinecone Bird Feeders!! Join us on Tuesday 12/9 at 12:45 in the Community Center to assemble pinecone bird feeders to be handed out during the FH Christmas Parade. Thank you to Carrie Miller for leading this outreach activity. We are using peanut butter, so wear an apron and if you can, bring a bag of pinecones (about fist size, so they fit in a small Ziploc bag), everything else is provided.
Harbour Club Open House: Friday December 12th from 6-9P.M.
FH Holiday Parade: Saturday, December 13th at 2:00P.M. Come join us, whether you want to walk or ride in a decorated golf cart! Wear Holiday colors and help us represent our Glorious Garden Club as we pass out the pinecone birdfeeders. We will meet at Red Sail Park at 1:30.
General Reminders:
No Meeting in December – join us for all the other exciting opportunities this month!
Next Meeting: Monday January 12, 2026; Speaker: Mark Ubanks, Craven Cooperative Ext. Horticulturalist
Door Prize Winners: Congratulations to Stacey Broderick and Matt Kight, both new members!
Meeting Adjourned: 11:03 Robin Gale 1st Judy DuPree 2nd
Minutes submitted by Secretary, Lori Walker, Nov. 10, 2025
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Presentation: Will Caudle FH Head Groundskeeper
Thank you to Will for sharing all the amazing things he and his crew are doing around the Harbour. He shared an extensive list of plants that he has found success with in the many beautiful beds around our community. It has been provided below as well as a summary of Will’s presentation. Kate Castle was unable to join us, as she recently had surgery. Please keep her in your thoughts as she continues to make a speedy recovery. 😊
Will works with a crew of eight team members, four fulltime and four parttime. Together they take care of over 200 acres in and around Fairfield Harbour. The following is a list of projects they have tackled during this past year.
- Addressed the landscaping by “top dressing” around the 9/11 Memorial to smooth out the dips and bumps to provide level ground for the community to enjoy the memorial.
- Added landscaping on the side of the Activity Center next to the POA office and on the sides of the old cart barn.
- New plantings to replace the trees that were removed from the gate entrance on Shoreline and upkeep of the annuals around the water fountains.
- Establishing a pine grove barrier on the outer edge of the golf course across from Falcon.
- General maintenance of swales and brush around the Harbour.
- Upkept of the bed that surrounds the FH sign on the corner of BroadCreek/55.
How does Will determine what kinds of plants to use when they are making new garden beds and/or updating existing ones? He shared that he most often makes purchases from Johnson Farm in Wallace, so he looks at what is available, are they compatible with our soil/environment, and takes price into consideration. Johnson Farms does offer retail business to the public, if you’d like to check out their website.
Will’s recommended list of plants that have done well for him in the Harbour:
Mexican Sunflower (Zinnia family) – very low maintenance
Speedwell (Veronica) – extremely drought tolerant, perennial, 2ft high, and bees love it
East Iron Plant – big leaf greenery, likes shade, medium rate of spread
Tractor Seat Plant- big leaf greenery, likes shade, moist soil, perennial, mostly low maintenance.
Yarrow (deer resistant) – perineal, tends to keep green fern look thru winter, drought tolerant, one/two feet tall.
Pink Milli Grass – ornamental, plant in Spring, likes sun, 3-4ft, (3 season) also comes in white called Cloud Nine.
Carex- likes shade 2ft H, 3-4ft W, no need to cut back, very low maintenance
Leather Leaf – likes sun, drought tolerant, low maintenance
Distylium – very low maintenance, likes sun, drought resistant.
Gardenias – can be finicky, grows vertical, stays green all year, and smells lovely
Will’s response to Member asked questions:
Plants you have noticed in the beds around the gates: Ornamental Mustard plants, Swiss Chard, and Snapdragons. (mostly deer resistant)
Culling of Deer happening now, female does only, by vetted bow hunters.
Beaver problems: Will and his team have been working to cover culverts with grates to keep the animals out of the drainage pipes.
Will and his team have been spreading DEER SCRAM, a granular deterrent for deer that can be spread around your plants that is made of mostly cloves and bonemeal. It can be purchased on Amazon, but in 25lb buckets.
There are still mulch, compost, and woodchips left over from the Spring Clean Up. If anyone would like some, call the POA office and tell them to put you on Will’s list for delivery.
There WILL NOT be a Fall Clean Up.
Thank you again to Will for sharing all the amazing work he and his crew do throughout the year to maintain the beauty of our community, and for his suggestions in making our own spaces flourish!