Another University Club Luncheon

It seems that the University Club regularly

has luncheons with interesting speakers.

Hooray for me.

Today's luncheon featured Greg Speichert,

director of Hilltop Garden and Nature Center

at Indiana University Bloomington.

Mr. Speichert (pronounced Spike-ert)

is a nationally recognized expert in

water gardening, has written several gardening books

and has introduced several new plant varieties.

Don't you just love these beautiful arrangements

on the table?

Such lovely flowers.

And real they be.

Today's menu included a

bibb and watercress salad

with grapefruit and avocado,

served with a delightful lemon cumin dressing.

I have so got to figure out that recipe for the dressing.

I want that recipe.

I need that recipe.

The entree was

Fischer Farms sorghum glazed pork loin,

mashed parsnip potatoes

and sauteed green beans and cherry tomatoes.

Those desiring a vegetarian option received a

quesadilla with pepper jack cheese, sauteed onions

and peppers and topped with

tomato salsa and sour cream.

The desert was a strawberry mousse

layered with chocolate genoise.

Once again,

the food was superb

and the service excellent.

Then Greg Speichert presented his show on

Color in the Garden

(or how to do it right).

His suggestions were to follow the color of the seasons.

Plan for oranges, reds, yellows, browns and blacks in the fall.

Spring calls for pastels

while summer demands bright colors that can stand up

to the bright sun.

He asked us to remember the color wheel and how it works.

Colors opposite work,

as do adjoining colors.

And of course, green goes with everything.

Mr. Speichert also recommends going to the paint store

and picking up paint chips that coordinate

and then picking out plants with those colors.

He told of his revelation while a nurseryman and

that they are in essence outdoor decorators.

Apparently, the gardening industry grows plants

to last only 30 to 90 days at our homes.

"If they survive longer, 'we are gods.'

If not, toss the plant and get another."

Sounds like a marketing plan to me.

Placing an inexpensive garage sale-find mirror

in the garden can help to visually expand

the space.

Just don't be surprised if guests walk into it.

Here are some more tips for color in the garden:

dark purple is "the little black dress" for the garden;

the color of furnishings, hardscapes, foliage,

flowers, fruit and seeds

should be considered in the overall color scheme;

and

use a punch of bright color

at the end of a dark path

or dark color at the end of a bright path

to draw the eye down the path

and make the path look longer.

*

One of the sadder items we learned was that

Indiana University has gone from a staff

of 80 people to tend to the gardens and lawns

on the Bloomington campus to just 8 people.

How's that for budget cutting?

Despite all this,

IU is planning on participating in

Bloomington in Bloom,

our town's bid to win the

America in Bloom competition for our size city.

This was a wonderful, informative program.

*

And now we slide (or is that slid) to the left.

On the way home I stopped at my neighborhood

Kroger.

I found a small refrigerated case

holding small hamburger patties.

"Try a Slidder"

Or should I try a slider?

Slidder, slider, whatev.

It's all good.