The Austin Pond Society held its final meeting of the year on November 18 in the form of a Christmas Party which was attended by around 45 members and guests. The entire evening was devoted to eating, mixing and mingling, Blue Santa and a presentation of checks to four different organizations. This was a marked change from previous parties when we have had some other entertainment in the form of contests, music, dancing and other such fun and games. As far as the food, what better way to celebrate Christmas in Texas than Rudy’s Barbecue with all of the fixin’s including pumpkin and apple pies. This was all delicious and very much enjoyed by the members.
The Austin Pond Society made four donations to charitable causes this year. They included Austin Pets Alive, KLRU for Central Texas Gardener, McBee Elementary School and Overton Elementary School for their programs of Hands on Gardening.
Amanda Williams from Austin Pets Alive attended to receive the check.
Formal and properHow they really feel about the party
This year, as they have done for the past couple of years, Santa and Mrs Klaus attended in full costume along with a couple of helpers. They mixed and mingled and enjoyed the food and the company and made a presentation outlining what it is that Blue Santa brings to 4500 families in Austin that otherwise would be lacking gifts and food at Christmas. As per previous years, the APS members had brought in a whole tables worth of presents for the kids. One of the high points of the evening was when one of our Sponsors, Matt Boring of Texas Ponds and Water Features and two of his people, one dressed as a giant frog, brought in two large sacks of toys to add to the collection. A very nice gesture from Matt and thank you.
The evening closed with a small bit of business and discussion. We are still lacking a nominee for the position of Pond Tour Director which is a bit of a worry. We still have a some time but if any of you are interested, please contact our President, Barb Lenhardt at president@austinpondsociety.org
Hope to see you all next year at out first meeting which will be held at the usual place, Zilker Botanical Gardens on Monday, January 20, 2020. The Speaker will be from Travis County Master Gardeners and the subject will be Drip Irrigation. By the way, I can’t believe that we are looking at 2020 already. It seems like something out of a science fiction movie…
Thank you to everyone that makes Austin Pond Society such a great group to work with and for being such a fun bunch of crazy fish and pond enthusiasts. Welcome to the start of a brand new year…
Under the Revised ByLaws, the Board is made up of three Officers, President, Secretary and Treasurer.
The revised ByLaws allow for up to six Directors with the Board having the ability to decide on an annual basis, which Directors to appoint for the upcoming year. The positions selected for 2020 are as follows: Membership, Programs and Special Events, Public Relations, Pond Tour Director, Historian/Photographer/AKCA Rep and Director at Large.
There are currently five Volunteer positions, Hospitality, Webmaster, Librarian, AAGC and AKCA. These are all appointed positions and are non voting. Neither are they required to attend the Board Meetings although they and any registered Member may do so. Note: Board Meetings are held the second Monday of the Month at Zilker Gardens Meeting Room. Any registered Member or non member can attend.
OFFICERS
President – Barb Lenhardt
Barbara Lenhardt is our President for the second year in a row
VOLUNTEERS. These are appointed positions and do not have a vote or need to attend Board Meetings
Hospitality – Ted Paone
Ted is switching roles to become the Hospitality person who is the most popular person in the club as they provide us with the delicious food every month.
This was the last of the instruction meetings that the Austin Pond Society held for this year 2019. There is one more meeting in November but it is devoted entirely to our end of year celebrations and Christmas Party.
There were around 35 members and guests that attended and they were welcomed to a dinner of Fried Chicken with the Members providing all of the fixins and deserts. This was held at the usual place, Austin Botanical Gardens Clubhouse.
The Speaker for the evening was Deena Spelman, owner of Bastrop Botanical Gardens which is located at 316 Old 71, Cedar Creek, Texas.. She gave a very interesting lecture on Culinary Herbs and plants and provided hands on or rather nose on as she passed around samples of the herbs and plants she was discussing. Hers was a very enjoyable presentation and was warmly applauded by the Members.
From listening to the Speaker, the Members then got down to the serious business of nominating and electing the Members of the Board that will operate next year. The final grouping is listed below with the position of Pond Tour Chairman still open. If anyone is interested in this position, please contact either the President at president@austinpondsociety.org Margaret at membership@austinpondsociety.org. This is a very important position as without the Tour Director, in all probability, the chances of there being a Pond Tour this year is greatly diminished.
The Officers for the upcoming year of 2020 are: President – Barbara Lenhardt Treasurer – Mike Peppers Secretary – Gwenn Goulet
The Board of Directors are: Programs and Special Events – BJ Jenkins Publicity – Nancy Hall Membership – Margaret Boeneke Historian/Photographer – Glen Hubenthal Member at Large – Cat Bilbrey Pond Tour Chairman – Open
The Non Voting Members are: Hospitality – Ted Paone Librarian – Max Rice Webmaster – Francis Allcorn AAGC Rep – Jullienne Smith AKCA Rep – Glen Hubenthal
Many thanks were given to the Officers that were stepping down including Julie who had been Secretary for 9 years although she is still involved as the AAGC Representative.
The rest of the meeting was taken up with items like a discussion on upcoming events followed by the drawing for the door prizes. The meeting was adjourned with Nancy offering some pond plants that she had brought in for the Members to share.
The next meeting is on November 17 and will be the final meeting of the year. It will be our Holiday Party. Members are encouraged to bring a gift for the needy kids in Austin that will be distributed by Blue Santa.
Mr and Mrs Blue Santa Klaus
The dinner will be supplied by APS. Members will not need to bring in any pot lucks or deserts. We thank all of you for being so generous this past year with your food contributions. Hope to see you there.
Once again, on the third Monday of the month, regular as clockwork, the Austin Pond Society held it’s monthly meeting at the usual place, Zilker Botanical Gardens Meeting room.
The meeting was attended by 40 members all of whom enjoyed Chinese from one of our Sponsors, Bamboo Bistro. The food was delicious made even more so for me that I am currently on a Chinese Food kick, eating it at home on a regular basis. Members brought in other foods including salads and deserts.
The evenings meeting comprised of two separate parts although they were intermingled together and happening at the same time. Indoors, there was the Annual Calendar Photo contest which always raises a lot of interest with the Members putting some pretty spectacular photos on display in the hope of having them placed in next years Calendar. Not only that, this year the winners were awarded cash prizes which by mutual agreement of the Board Members was not only reinstated but the actual prizes were increased with the winners in each bracket getting $50.00, second place $30.00 and third place $20.00. There are four separate brackets, fish, pond plants, pond creatures and ponds and/or water features.
There was also some time spent by the Nomination Committee on announcing the proposed upcoming Board Members at least to this point. The actual voting will occur at the next meeting in October but Margaret as head of this committee wanted to show the members what the line up currently looks like and to try to persuade the Members to volunteer for the remaining positions, the biggest of these in terms of importance being that of the Pond Tour Chairman. There is some discussion of splitting these duties and two people combining to fill this very important post without whom, there will be no Pond Tour. Cat Bilbrey has volunteered to be one of these people but we still need one more. We are still lacking a Hospitality person and Barb added that to her duties for this year but only out of necessity. There was also some time spent by the Nomination Committee on announcing the proposed upcoming Board Members at least to this point. The actual voting will occur at the next meeting in October but Margaret as head of this committee wanted to show the members what the line up currently looks like and to try to persuade the Members to volunteer for the remaining positions. Actually, it automatically makes whoever fills the role, the most popular person in the club.
The current proposed line up of current and new officers for 2020. Note that there are two positions, Tour Director (2) and Hospitality (1) that do not have names. The positions with the blue arrows are non voting positions on the Board and neither do they have to attend the Monthly Board Meeting.
The other part of the meeting was our Annual Swap and Sell where the Members bring in anything pond or garden related to swap or sell. This included plants and even a few fish although they usually have their own meeting earlier in the year entitled Plant Swap. There were not too many items on display although Darren had brought in a good supply of used pumps. BJ, as she usually does, brought in a whole bunch of different and unusual things which if nothing else, created some interest. The only large item equipment wise, was a Pond-O-Vac but it remained unsold at the end of the evening. This part of the meeting was not a qualified success and has not been for the past couple of years. I would not be a bit surprised if this is the last of the Annual Swap and Sell
The judging for the Picture contest took a bit longer than anticipated and because of the lack of interest in the Swap and Sell, resulted in the Members having to find items to talk about to fill in the time. It was a bit of a struggle but eventually, the winners were announced and received the applause and cash prizes to the delight of the Members.
The evening closed with the drawing of the door prizes with the usual catcalls and remarks of “fixed”, “draw again” as some popular member walked up to claim the prize.
The Swap and Sell part of the meeting
The business section of the Meeting
The next meeting will be October 21. The Speaker will be from Bastrop Gardens which is an all Natives Nursery. It will be about culinary plants that can be grown as companions to Pond and bog plants. Some of these plants are edible and the discussion will include this. Hope to see you there
The third Monday of the month saw us once again at Zilker Botanical Gardens Clubhouse for our usual Austin Pond Society Meeting. This was attended by exactly 40 members a couple of whom were brand new. Welcome to you from this friendly group of “Ponders”.
As usual, the first thing we did at 6:30 pm was to feed the inner man (or woman). Barb, our President had stopped by HEB to pick up ham sandwiches and the members brought in the side dishes and deserts. Someone, had brought in a bowl of curried rice with hard boiled eggs and it was delicious adding some spice to the otherwise dour and uninteresting taste of the ham sandwiches, at least in my mind. Of all of the things that we sample, those sandwiches are far back on my list of favorite foods. Just my 5 cents worth…
Click on a picture to enlarge it and then use the side arrows to move to the next.
The meeting started at 7:00 pm with Barb going round the room and the new members were given the opportunity to be introduced and say hello and a little bit about themselves. It is always fun to hear why they are interested in ponds and ponding.
There was quite a bit of business which included the upcoming elections of Officers. Barb mentioned that there are a few vacancies including Hospitality, Librarian and Pond Tour Director that need to be filled for next years Board plus the Board Selection Committee that is headed by Margaret Boeneke, (Membership) is needing two additional members. Officially, all positions are open but generally speaking, the members are content with the current Board Members and do not replace them if they plan on continuing in their positions. All of the positions are important but by far and away, one of the most important of all is the Pond Tour Director without whom, there is not a Tour. As with most organizations of this kind, we have trouble finding volunteers to act on the different committees and even on the Board itself.
On a separate note, Julienne Smith, our longtime Secretary of 8 years, announced that she is not going to run again and will join the members as one of them. We thank Julie for her long service and due diligence in keeping us all in order. She will be missed on the Board. Add that position to those that are open.
Ted Paone receiving his award as the Koi Person of the Year with Glen Hubenthal and Barb Lenhardt, President.
Other business included the presentation of the Koi Person of the Year Award to Ted Paone for his contributions as Director on the past two Pond Tours. Later in the evening, Ted gave a quick outline of drip watering which he has in his yard.
Video by Sam and BJ Jenkins
The highlight of the evening was a presentation by BJ and Sam Jenkins entitled Ponds 101. It was a video that Sam had put together of them building the two ponds and bog at their home in Bastrop. Sam narrated the video and it was set to music and was very nicely done lasting about 20 minutes or so, Following the video, BJ took over answering the questions put to them by the membership. All in all, a very successful presentation.
Business Section Video
The meeting ended with the usual drawing for the door prizes and announcements of upcoming events. including the Photo Contest which is scheduled for the next meeting, September 16 along with a scaled down version of the Swap and Sell Meet. There are also a couple of Members Only events on the Calendar. Check the website and the Stream for further details.
The Austin Pond Society held it monthly meeting this past Monday, July 15 at the usual place, Zilker Botanical Gardens which was attended by 38 guests and Board Members. The evening meal comprised of Pizza and all of the fixin’s supplied by the Members. There was enough food to feed a small army but to do them justice, the Membership really worked hard to make a dent in it. Thank you Members for supplying the finishing touch.
Barb Lenhardt, our President opened the meeting following the meal and spent some time on the Business section of the meeting. One of the items discussed was of the large amount of funds in the bank account and what should we do about it. There were many suggestions and the Board will be working on the ideas in the future to spend down some of that surplus. Barb introduced our Speaker, our own Margaret Boeneke whose subject was “Tiny Ponds”. She had a very interesting slideshow and kept her audience involved.
Slide show of Margaret’s “Tiny Ponds”
Barb came back at the end with yet more business before closing out the meeting with the raffle.
This is the Business section of the meeting.
The next meeting is on August 19 and the Speakers will be BJ and Sam Jenkins talking about “Ponds 101” and their experiences and what they found out about building a pond when they built there’s a few years ago. Hope to see you there.
This meeting was dedicated to a review of the recent Pond Tour held on June 1-2, 2019 where some of the owners that came to the meeting were presented with a plaque comprising of a picture of their pond that they had on display. Not all of the owners were available but those that were, graciously discussed their impressions that they had of the Tour with their ideas and recommendations for the future tours.
They and the other Members were treated to a quick meal of Chile and Chips plus the members brought in lots of desserts and salads to complement the meal. Following this brief repast, Barb Lenhardt, our President got the ball rolling as she had the Owners introduce themselves along with a new Member. She was followed by Ted Paone, this years Pond Tour Director who discussed the many aspects that it took to put on a tour of this size. He took the time to thank all of the many Volunteers and Committee Members without whom, none of this would have been possible and the Members gave him a big round of applause for all of his efforts. He did mention that in order to stay a happily married man, this was his very last time as Director and we thanked him for his efforts along with those of the many Committee Members and Volunteers that helped to make this a big success. So, if anyone out there wants to volunteer as next years Pond Tour Director, please contact our President at president@austinpondsociety.org
Barb’s Intro to the Pond Tour Meeting
He then led everyone through the slide show that Glen had put together with each owner that was present taking the opportunity to lead us through the various aspects of their particular set up whether it was a pond or a stream or a combination of both.
I started to film these interactions but quickly realized that I could not film the screen and the person who was talking both at the same time and gave up on the idea. Glen sent me a copy of his slideshow for me to post. I did a little work on editing and added music. Enjoy
The Austin Pond Society annual Pond Tour 2019. Pictures are by Glen Hubenthal with additional video work by Francis
With the end of the discussions, the evening came to a close.
The next meeting will be held on July 15th at the same place, Zilker Botanical Gardens and the subject matter will be “Building Your Own Pond”. Hope to see you there.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron nest with three babies.
The Austin Pond Society held their annual pond tour over the weekend of June 1-2 returning after missing out on having a tour last year, 2018. The size of the tour was also cut back to a more manageable number easily covered on each day, Saturday for the South Side of the Colorado River and Sunday for the north side.
The tour had a few of the spectacular favorites plus several new ponds which have never been on the tour before. All, regardless of the size, had something to offer in the way of beauty and in some cases, originality. One of the highlights included a nest of Yellow Crowned Night Herons complete with three babies that appeared to almost be ready to fly the roost. Ironic that one of the pond owners natural enemies could hold so much fascination when babies are involved.The night pond that has been on the tour several times before was just as spectacular as it has always been.
If you click on a picture, it will enlarge and you can use the side arrows to move along. Use the “escape” key to return to normal size.
Written 6/5/2019
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I have put together two slideshows which takes about twenty minutes to view but is well worth it as it shows the spectacular beauty of ponds of different sizes and types and all of the accompanying work that has gone into the landscaping and plants and flowers that make up the whole garden. One pond even had three live donkeys which attracted as much attention as the ponds for the younger members on the tour.
All in all, the tour was a resounding success and even though smaller than previous tours, has probably set a new standard in both number of ponds and quality.
The Austin Pond Society held their May Meeting this past Monday which was attended by around 40 of its Members. This meeting was a combination of Speaker Presentation and as it is also the last meeting before the Tour, a lot of time was dedicated to wrapping up the final details which included handing out the packages to the Owners and Volunteers.
The Members were treated to fried chicken with the fixins brought in by the members as were the deserts. Incidentally, none of the chicken remained at the end of the meal.
Prior to the Speaker’s Presentation, Barb, our President, went around the room asking if we had any new members and for them to say a bit about themselves. As it happened, at least four of the people and maybe more, were not pond people but were there to listen to the Speaker, Katie Boyer who is the Monarch Conservation Coordinator for the Southeast Region of the US Fish and Wildlife Services. Monarchs, it appears, are a popular subject. Our meetings are open to all and we welcomed them with open arms.
Following Barbs introduction, Ted, our Pond Tour Director had some words of wisdom to impart about the upcoming Tour. At this point it was time for the Speaker and she kept us interested for the next hour talking about a subject which is obviously her passion. The video below is of her entire presentation.
Katie Boyer
After Katie had finished, we carried on with our normal business most of which was Pond Tour related. BJ made a brief presentation on when and how to fertilize water lilies which of course opened up a discussion on the subject. Ted had more to say about the upcoming Tour and presented the Owners and Volunteers that were in attendance with their packages.
The evening closed with the drawing for the raffle which is always a lot of fun. The next meeting will be June 17 and it will be dedicated to the Pond Owners who had put their ponds on the Tour each of whom will be given the opportunity to discuss their experiences.
The view out of the back window looking towards Zilker Park and the City of Austin.
With frightening regularity, the calendar once more moved to the third Monday of the month bringing with it, the Austin Pond Societies Monthly Meeting held as usual in the Zilker Botanical Gardens Clubhouse. This meeting was our Annual Plant Swap when our members bring in their surplus plants both of the garden and pond variety. The one stipulation is that if by chance, anything you bring in is not taken by another eager Ponder or Gardener, then it must return home with the original owner. That turned out not to be the case this time around as the offerings were pretty slim compared to previous plant swap meetings which is surprising considering that this was our best attended meeting of the year with about forty members showing up.
Along with the Swap and at the same time, Darren Bayhi was holding a re-potting seminar for anyone interested in “How to re-pot Lilies” which included both Tropical, Hardies and also Lotus.. As the swap was drawing to a close, more and more people stopped by Darren’s table to ask questions and watch his demonstration.
Prior to the swap, many members had volunteered to help set up the tables and kiddie pools used for this event. For this, they were given the opportunity of having first dibs at whatever took their fancy before the main body was let loose. With the small number of plants on offer, this was a good decision on their part.
Prior to the actual swap and following a meal of hot dogs with all of the fixin’s topped off by various deserts brought in by the members, Barb Lenhardt, President, had some business to offer which included a discussion by Ted Paone, who talked about the upcoming Tour with the membership. He outlined the Charities that will benefit which includes Central Texas Gardner on KLRU-TV, Austin Pets Alive, and Donor Choice, a charity which funds projects for teachers and students. Prior to his presentation, Ted was awarded the Koi Person of the Year Award voted on by the Members present for his efforts with the Pond Tours.
Ted was followed by Mike Peppers, our new Treasurer who outlined the budget for the Members along with many apologies for the lateness of the report. With the budget voted on and passed by the Membership and there not being anymore business, it was time to get on with the important event of the day which of course, was the Plant Swap.
Following the aforementioned reward for volunteering, they were allowed out the door first followed after a few minutes by the rest of the Members. The plants were taken in record time and the clean up started by those same volunteers who we thank for their efforts.
The next meeting will be on May 20th. The Speaker will be Katie Boyer of the US Fish and Wildlife and she will be talking about Monarch Butterflies. As these are another of Nature’s species that are in trouble due to man’s incompetence in managing the Planet, then it would be well worth our while to see what we can do to help save this species.
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