By Lisa Lonsdale

After our mild May weather, June 16th dawned hot and dry.  The Garden Club’s field trip that day was to one of North County’s premier plant nurseries, Waterwise Bontanicals, formerly known as Day Lily Hill Nursery.  Fifteen plant lovers travelled up I-15 a few miles to this nursery’s Old Hwy 395 location.  Wearing hats and slathered in sunscreen, the group was excited to hear a presentation offered by owner and all-around storyteller, Tom Jesch.

Tom is a plant aficionado and can speak on any subject relating to plants.  His obvious love of plants and his witty repartee kept the audience giggling and well entertained for an hour and a half.  He spoke to us about maintaining succulents and cactus, touching on a range of topics including pruning, watering, fertilizers and pest control, all the while relating funny stories about his plant encounters.  His presentation generated many questions from the group, but time constraints left us wanting even more information.  Tom recommended visiting the nursery’s very extensive website at Waterwisebotanicals.com, where one can find valuable information on all their plants, and learn about their monthly workshops and yearly gardening events.

After the presentation, some of the group sat at the shaded picnic tables to eat their bag lunches. Our organizing chairperson, Joy Meeker, provided sparkling water and desserts.  (Thanks so much, Joy, for arranging this delightful event!)

The morning ended with a walk around the nursery grounds, which features not only acres of plants for sale, but also fish and frog ponds and beautiful display gardens where one can see many of the hundreds of plants in mature settings.  With the assistance the nursery’s knowledgable staff, many of our group were able to find interesting new plants to add to their home gardens.

The Garden Club usually meets on the third Friday of the month, at 10:00 a.m.  Activities include tours, workshops and an annual Potluck Dinner.  For information about our club and future events, please contact Lisa at (760)749-8723.