CORRECTION!! THE SWAP HAS BEEN MOVED BACK 1 WEEK, TO SEPT 27TH!!

...which gives you more time to get ready!

Things are shaping up quite nicely; looks like a couple dozen folks from Facebook are coming and we're all potting things up.

I've got some catmint, 'Zagreb' coreopsis, black-eyed susan, potted up cuttings of 'Brazil' philodendron and Wandering Jews. I have some crotons and an orchid, and I'm even working on some terrariums.

And who knows what else I'll have by September 27th?

Note the new date -- and I hope to see you there!

Here's a look at the "Brazil" philodendron...

Are you coming to the fall swap, September 27th?

This Ganlin Pearl "GL" will be there.
And she might go home with you.....

The swap is less than a month away, and I'm starting to get excited!

I'm starting to divide plants to bring to the swap, but I already have a bunch of houseplants potted up, including a few pots of this tradescantia. It's a wonderful as a hanging basket on the porch during the summer. Cuttings root very easily, so I usually bring in a pot or two over the winter, and start taking cuttings when the seaosn looks the bleakest and you *need* to see things growing! By late spring, when it's safe to put things out-of-doors, I have a couple of really lush baskets to hang, really inexpensively!

I've decided I'll make my usual pulled pork to bring to the potluck, and probably some rhubarb crumble. I had a great harvest this spring, and still have a few bags chopped and ready to go.

Look forward to seeing you, September 27th!

More and more things in pots and ready to go for the swap. I have 3-4 posts of this catmint ("Dropmore", I think.) My cats are sad to see it go... but I'm sure you cats will love it!

Divided and potted up some red hot poker plant this weekend. It did so well this summer it completely overwhelmed my small front garden bed!

Also bringing this lovely NOID hosta. It's been pretty green in the shady spot it's lived in. But I have a feeling it's ready to bust out more gold, with just a little solar encouragement....

Picked up brats and metts for the potluck as well, and a big pork shoulder just waiting to be turned into pulled pork.

Hope to see you at the swap, September 27th!

I'm very excited about attending my first Plant Swap EVER!

I have some questions about how it's done.

Do we bring full sized plants and is everything sitting next to who brought the item, or is it like a thrift store sale where all the woman run toward the tables and the quickest person gets the best pics, he-he. Kidding of course. :)-

I have several plants I'd like to bring and some new garden items like garden welcome signs, Miracle Grow Feeders still in the package. I had a shed full of them!

Thanks for all your help.

Looking forward to this. Can't wait!

Katina

One more huge question, is this for the 2014 year? I'm so lost on here. Too much gardening, not enough organization. :)

Thanks and I pray I have not missed it.

Thanks for the prompt info.

Katina Woodruff

Yes, it is 2014, and no; you haven't missed it!

Good catch, Katina; I can't believe I didn't put the year in the copy!

It's coming up the weekend after next, and it looks like we'll have two dozen plus folks. (Mostly coming from the Facebook page.) It's an open swap in that you don't have to set up one-on-one trades, my hosta for your sedum. We put out all the stuff by category: sun, shade, houseplants, vines, groundcover, and miscellaneous. (And miscellaneous stuff is great!)

Some people bring full sized plants, some people bring rooted cuttings -- it kinda depends on what it is. The general rule of thumb on that is bring something you wouldn't be disappointed to take home.

We usually have plenty of time while we're setting up and we're eating lunch to look at all the plants and other items and decide what's interesting. what I love about swaps like this as opposed to plant sales is that you get a chance to talk to the people who know the plant best, and you get a better idea of how to treat the planbt.

We do the swap in rounds; first round, everybody gets to pick one item. Second round, everybody picks one item. Third round, everybody picks *two* items, fourth round, pick *three*, and so on. You can get as many items as you brought, so if you brought 10 plants, you get 10 things. Bring 30? Get 30?

It's a nice system in that everybody gets a chance at something they really want, without having to resort to sharp elbows. And unlike the spring swap, which can get pretty competitive with 100+ people, this is always reeeeeeally laid back. After the fifth round, we often don't even do formal rounds, people just sort of drift along!

It's a lot of fun, and there are always extra plants at the end. Hope to see you there, Katina!

Super!

Thanks so much!

One more question, I swear.

I pulled plants previously and they look rather sad since we get such cold weather here early. Should I pick large plants or divisions for the swap? I don't want to be the only one who brings "wimpy looking" or sad plants, ha-ha!

Also, pots, my amount of pots are sparse. I have pots but I don't want to get rid of them all for the swap. Can we bring plants in coffee can containers or I also use old 2 littler bottles cut down, with holes in the bottom to promote drainage as a way to recycle what we use in our home. Course, again, I don't want to seem "cheap."

Thanks so much and sorry I seemed frantic before, I was just hmm, frantic.

I also bake so I'm planning on bringing chocolate no bake cookies that are more like fudge, and new miracle grow feeder bottles with the garden hose attachment and some other goodie bags I made up. I was going to give them at Christmas to encourage family members to start a garden and decided against that because it will be snowing around that time.

Thanks and I can't wait to be there!!!

Katina

Plants I have to bring are:

Stonecrop
Sedum: Autumn Joy
Daisy: 1 Hybrid variety, Orange/Brown, Red & Yellow they change colors
Hosta: Lg (Wu) variety
Hosta: Lime Green variety
Hosta: Green Variety
Hosta: Dark green and white stripped
Dianthus
Red Hot Poker
Liatris: Purple, Gay Feather
Succulent Ground Cover (For containers only) invasive
Celome Seeds: Invasive (but pretty!)
Apple Mint
Chocolate Mint
Garlic Chive
Butterfly Weed Orange
Swamp Milkweed: Pink
Some other Ohio Native Plants
Some rare plants.
House Plants

Great list!

Divisions are fine, Katina, and whatever form of packaging is convenient is fine as well. Cheap plastic growers pots, pop bottles, milk jugs/cartons -- whatever's at hand. (I've actually brought iris divisions in plastic grocery bags, but that assumes people are planting up their goodies pretty quickly!)

The chocolate cookies sound great. I'm picking up a pork shoulder and making the pulled pork this weekend, and there will be brats and metts as well. In fact -- the food is always a big part of the swap!

8 days to go -- looking forward to meeting you!

Shoot, I just stopped by to see if I had missed it already, only to find that I will miss it anyway -- I will be at work! I wanted some more of that pulled pork, soooo delicious.

Not to mention that I have a few excess plants for trading...including a couple of dwarf apple trees. Oh well.

My favorite 'Full Moon' coreopsis didn't make it through the winter so I would have loved to have that Zagreb. Alison, where is the facebook page? Is it just called Central Ohio Plant Swap?

Yep, that's it. I'm so sorry you won't be able to make it! The apple trees sound great. I'll bookmark this and try to remember the coreopsis for the summer.

I bought the pork shoulder last night and will cook it up later this week. Looks like it will be about 10# -- plenty for all!

Last night I brought in a lot of the houseplants I've got potted up. I'd hate to have gotten them this far, only to have them fall in a cold snap.

Saturday is the correct day, right? I had down the 26th. I'm dyslexic, and I have no idea why I had Friday down. I'm all ready though. Thanks so much. :) Katina

I made several goodie bags also.

Some of the plants I have prepared have more than 2 different types of plants in the pot. Some have shade and sun. Do we need to label each flower type. If so, that's ok. :) Thanks again.

Katina

I think that's probably a good idea, Katina. But labels don't have to be elaborate - I just use masking tape!

The pulled pork is marinating and I'll be making that and a raspberry icebox pie tomorrow.

Getting excited!

Masking tape is a great idea~ I never thought of that, ha-ha! Super!

Now, if I can talk my Elephant Grass into letting me divide it without breaking another shovel, I'll be set. :)-

I thought moving the ornamental grasses would be easier. Nope, still hard.

I can't wait to meet everyone, eat some delicious food and most importantly get a cool plant!

Thanks

My cat Charlie woke me up at 4:30 am to eat, anyone want a fat cat? LOL I'm ready to ship him somewhere.

We managed to get all 100 plants loaded in our small truck, the only problem is, whether or not they will be droopy and sad looking after they are un squished. I did water them all very well over the past three days.

I'm making labels now, didn't want them to wash off with watering.

I'm also stopping at a local grocery to pick up something for the potluck, no time to bake anything. :( Sorry. I plant better then I cook so I'm saving everyone from my cooking.

See you all there, I may have to sit with my heating pad, I also pulled out my back lifting the Elephant Grass clumps. I have at least five large clumps to offer. Just be sure where you are going to plant it, moving it can be hazardous to your health, he-he.

Can't wait to meet everyone. So excited! I better get off line so I can get something done.

Katina

Soooo much FUN!

Best EVENT I have ever attended, ever!

I'm doing a bit of research online to find out where to plant all the goodies I got! I found out that the Catalpa Tree is Native American tree and it grows to some 40 feet high, and almost as wide. I almost planted it in my front yard, which is very small.

Not sure if we have the room for it so if you missed out on this great find, let me know.

I'm also needing info on the other large tree that had the huge root ball covered in a white plastic bag. Who brought this beauty? I would like to find out the name so I know where to plant it.

So much fun.

Thanks again.

I'm going to plant the pink rose bush in front of our back deck so we can see it from a different part of the yard.

*Yawn* I

learned a lot today, the best part about being a gardener is meeting fellow gardeners. Everyone was so nice and the rounds were just awesome.

Thanks again for everything.

Katina

Alison and Terri and to the other woman I met, it was great meeting you and getting to know you outside of GardenWeb, a truly amazing website and garden community.

Katina -- thanks so much for coming! And contributing all the lovely plants, and gift bags - and enthusiasm! It was really great to meet you. I'll ask around about the unknown tree and see who brought it. Good find on the catalpa, it's a beautiful stately tree, and the flowers in the spring look like big bouquets of orchids. But you're right; it's a big 'un!

We had a really nice turnout; nearly 40 gardeners and well over 800 plants. There was so much food we had to add a third trestle table to accommodate it all. And the plants....! A lot of garden stalwarts you always need more of, some uncommon plants, and some I'd never heard of! ("Gollum" sedum? "Shrek Ears"?)

And such a wonderful group of people. Some folks I've known for years, and some I just met Saturday. Gardeners are such a fun and funny group of people to hang out with -- I didn't leave until nearly 4, just talking (and eating!)

So looking forward to the spring swap, and next year's fall swap!