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Lockerly Newsletter September 2017
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From the Director
WOW!!! What a summer!!!! Over the course of this summer, Lockerly has approved a new strategic plan, achieved Level II ArbNet Accreditation, completed some much needed renovations in Rose Hill and planned the tremendous return of Lockerly Under the Stars. All of these accomplishments are the direct result of the dedication and support of our Board, staff, volunteers and members. THANK YOU ALL!!!!
Looking towards fall, things are only getting better!! Family Fun Day is coming on October 14 as well as Scarecrows during the month of October.
In November, you will received a year end appeal that will outline exciting new programs and opportunities coming to Lockerly in 2018 and how you can participate and help. I think you'll be pleased with what the future holds!
In December, we will once again be graced by the decorative talents of our Garden Clubs who will beautifully decorate Rose Hill with southern grace and charm for the holidays. Be sure to join us for the Holiday Reception on December 8!
Each and every day I am impressed, over and over again, by the tremendous support that you show Lockerly. With your support, we are poised to take on tremendous goals and reach tremendous heights.
Thank you!!!
Warm regards,
Jennifer Pollard
Executive Director
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Thank you to our members!
Members who joined for the first time or renewed memberships during August include:
Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Brown
Mrs. Carol Cardoso
Mrs. Nan Carpenter
Dr. Audrey Crumbley
Mrs. Flossie Dodge
Ms. Kathleen Douglas
Mr. and Mrs. Gaither Dunn
Mr. and Mrs. William Eilers
Mrs. Helen Fetrow
Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Foster
Dr. Joy Godin
Ms. Lynn Graham
Mr. and Mrs. Ron Hess
Mr. Stephens Howard
Mr. and Mrs. William Jarriel
Mrs. Juanita Murray
Mr. and Mrs. Lance Pailer
Drs. Anthony and Noris Price
Mr. Stephen Stewart
Mr. and Mrs. Melvin Usery
Mrs. Jane Vedder
Do you need to join or renew? Click
HERE to donate today!!
Lockerly is a member of the American Public Gardens Association which means a Lockerly membership entitles YOU to discounts at other public gardens, including FREE admission to the Atlanta Botanical Garden if you live more than 90 miles away.Go to
http://www.ahs.org/gardening-programs/rap/find/statebystate to find a listing of participating gardens.
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- Congratulations to Greg Eilers and the education committee/staff of Lockerly! Their Gymnosperm/Angiosperm ID education activity has been selected to be included as an education resource on ArbNet. ArbNet facilitates the sharing of knowledge, experience, and other resources to help arboreta meet their institutional goals. Way to go, team!!!
- We are running out of space on our fall schedule for filed trips; NOW is the time to schedule trips for all ages including church groups, schools, home-schools and garden clubs! We offer customized educational programs for all ages as well as for school groups focusing on horticulture, geology, life sciences and environmental studies in compliance with the Georgia Performance Standards.
Featured Group: Students from the Environmental Club (6-9 years old) of area home school groups come to Lockerly for eight weeks each year; four in the fall and four in the spring. The time they spend with Greg helps fulfill the biology section of their science requirements. On Tuesday, they were discovering early signs of fall and what they look like up close and personal under a microscope.
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We have had a tremendous response to the return of Lockerly Under the Stars and as of this morning, we are officially SOLD OUT!
Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you on Saturday!
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The Scarecrows are Coming! The Scarecrows are Coming!
Join us for our Second Annual Scarecrows in the Arboretum! The contest is open to everyone: Individuals, families, businesses, organizations, Scout Troops and school classes, grades,
- Scarecrows will be on exhibit throughout our 50 acres during the month of October.
- Visitors & Exhibitors may cast their votes (25ยข each) for "Best in Show".
- Entry forms are due by 4pm, September 18.
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Welcome New Staff Member, Neal Coffey!
We are so very proud to welcome Mr. Neal Coffey to the staff of Lockerly. Neal has accepted the position of Maintenance Director and we are thrilled to have him on board!
Neal is a Baldwin County native with over 30 years of experience at Robins Air Force Base. He has a broad range of skills in metal fabrication, general maintenance and repairs.
Welcome, Neal!!!
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Lockerly Receives Level II Accreditation
Reprinted from the Union-Recorder article on 9-4-17.
A local treasure has reached a new milestone as Lockerly Arboretum officials formally announced Thursday that the arboretum received Level 2 of ArbNet accreditation.
With its new status, Lockerly is now one of only five arboreta in the state to have reached such a height. Employees, board members, community stakeholders, as well as elected officials, Georgia 145th District Rep. Rick Williams and Baldwin County Commissioner Tommy French, came together Thursday afternoon on the arboretum grounds to celebrate the achievement.
"An organization like this goes through phases and changes and different types of events," said Rodger Flotta, president of Lockerly's board of trustees, in his welcome to guests. "Frankly this is a true milestone. This is the stamp of approval if you will that the ArbNet [accreditation] came about. It happened very quickly, but has taken several years to get there."
The ArbNet accreditation program is administered through the Morton Arboretum located in Lisle, Ill. and has four levels of accreditation. The criteria to reach the second level includes showing documentation of more than 100 labeled species of trees or woody shrubs, submitting a database of those catalogued plants, describing the level of volunteer support, as well as describing the organization's education program in great detail. Lockerly officials elected to submit to the accreditation process earlier this year while developing a strategic plan. Executive director Jennifer Pollard said Thursday that both the strategic planning and accrediting processes made Lockerly take a hard look at itself to determine its direction for the future.
Pollard also said that nonprofit organizations undergo much scrutiny from donors and stakeholders who had given their time and money. She said this new level of accreditation is one way those groups can know their resources are going to a worthy cause when they give to Lockerly.
"Accreditation sets industry standards to help address an organization's level of performance in specific areas," the executive director said. "It's not about what an organization is capable of doing, it's about what an organization actually is doing. Accreditation says that this organization is getting it done and doing it right. And here at Lockerly, we're getting it done and we're doing it right."
Pollard added that while ArbNet officials were reviewing Lockerly's application they asked permission to add one of the local organization's education activities to their education resource library which makes it available to arboreta all around the world.
Lockerly's newly-accredited status places it on the Morton Register of Arboreta which features arboreta over the entire globe. Pollard thanked board members Barbie Colvin and Dr. Harriet Whipple for their involvement in getting the local arboretum its Level 2 status, but said the nonprofit has an even loftier goal for the future.
"While Level 2 accreditation is an excellent start, there is still much work to be done," Pollard said. "Reaching Level 2 accreditation is not an end result for Lockerly. Indeed it is only the beginning. Our board has committed to work towards Level 3 accreditation over the next three years as well as pursuing other nonprofit-specific accreditations. In closing, I hope you will leave today with a renewed enthusiasm for these 50 acres and our majestic garden of trees. We are so proud to have reached this level, and I look forward to the next time we have this gathering so that I can announce Level 3."
There are four levels of ArbNet accreditation, and the question was asked what it would take for Lockerly to advance to the third one. Colvin answered saying there are 165 arboreta accredited by ArbNet and only 11 of them have reached Level 3 status. She said there must be 500 plant species catalogued on the grounds, the database of those species must be sharable for anyone to search, and the organization must work in a collaborative fashion with others on common goals among other requirements.
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It's All About Survival
By Deborah Foster
Just last week I came upon a rather ominous looking insect sitting at the base of an oak tree here at Lockerly Arboretum. While others might be startled by his size and features, I knew that he was a beneficial bug and wasn't alarmed. This grey, black and white beetle has two very large eyespots that are made up of tiny scales similar to the scales that make up the colorful patterns on a butterfly's wings. These spots may look like eyes, but they aren't actually eyes at all. They are false eyes designed to scare off predators. The actual eyes on this two inch beetle are very small and sit just behind the antennae.
The beetle I am referring to is an Eastern Eyed Click Beetle (Alanus oculatus) or Eyed Elater.
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| Eyed Elater |
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This beetle can be found from Canada to Florida and as far west as Texas. The click beetle family has over 800 species, but none are as ornate as the Eyed Elater. Click beetles get their name from another fascinating defense mechanism. When a click beetle gets turned over onto its back, it has the ability to flex its back and pop or flip itself as much as 6 inches into the air. When it does, it makes a loud clicking sound. This acrobatic ability and clicking noise will often frighten predators or at least give the beetle time to get away.
Unfortunately, of all the click beetles, only the Eyed Elater is a beneficial insect. The other beetles in this family are smaller, with no distinctive markings. They are usually brown or black and are only one half inch or less in size. The larvae of these other beetles live in the soil and feed on the roots and stems of legumes, turf grasses, corn, potatoes, tobacco, cereal and many ornamentals causing serious crop damage. Click beetle larvae are referred to as "wireworms" because of their long slender body and their hard outer covering.
Being a beneficial insect, the larvae of the Eyed Elater is a ferocious meat eater that feeds on other noxious wood boring beetle larvae that kill trees. They are yellowish brown with a flat, dark brown rectangular head. The Eyed Elater spends most of its life in the larval form consuming the larvae of bad bugs for 2 to 5 years. The adult beetle however, feeds only on nectar.
The click beetle's unusual clicking and flipping abilities makes it unique in the insect world, however, click beetles are not the only insects with specialized methods for survival.
Another beetle that is hard at work this time of year is the Twig Girdler. The adult is a long-horned beetle that ranges from 1/2 to 5/8 inch long. They are grayish brown with a wide ashy-gray stripe across the back of the beetle with antennae as long or longer than the body. The twig girdler targets a wide variety of hardwood trees, but prefers pecan, hickory and oak. The adults remove a strip of bark and wood all the way around small branches leaving only a thin portion of the wood in the center of the twig untouched. This causes the twig to die and break off easily or hang loosely on the tree. During this process, 3 to 8 eggs are laid beneath the bark of the girdled twig.
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Twig Girdler |
The twigs must be girdled because the larvae cannot survive inside a living branch. The eggs hatch in about 3 weeks and the small larvae overwinter in the dead twig. In the spring, the larvae begin to grow and pupation occurs in late summer. The new adults chew a circular hole in the bark of the twig and emerge between late August and October to start the entire process over again. During late summer and fall the presence of severed branches on the ground or hanging loosely in the trees is a good indicator of twig girdler activity.
Nature has thousands of complicated, but intriguing methods for protecting creatures great and small and each one is special in its own unique way. Come explore the nature trail at Lockerly and see what fascinating things you can find.
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FAMILY FUN DAY!
From 10am - 3pm on Saturday, October 14, Lockerly will once again host Family Fun Day. This event is FREE and open to all ages!
Activities for the day will include:
Hay Rides
Geo-caching
Fun with Microscopes
Guided Hikes
Animal Tracks
Painted Rocks
Historic toys, games and more!!!
You can also view and vote on your favorite Scarecrows in the Arboretum!
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Invest in Rose Hill's Heritage & Future NOW
Progress on our Invest in Rose Hill's Heritage & Future project continues. The c.1820 Recamier
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| Recamier settee |
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settee in the back parlor and the c. 1840-1860 Empire settee in the central hallway have been re-upholstered and look amazing!! Come visit for a closer look!
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Empire settee |
The Daniel Tucker Bedroom has also gotten a facelift in the past few weeks. Ray Wells has removed the wallpaper, repaired plaster on the walls and the cornice and repainted. Our next step is to give the floors a good, deep cleaning and install new window treatments before putting the furniture back.
Please join us in preserving Lockerly's beautiful 1852 treasure for future generations.
Donations may be made online or checks, made payable to Lockerly Arboretum & marked for Rose Hill's Heritage, may be sent to:
Lockerly Arboretum
P.O. Box 310
Millegeville, GA 31059
YOUR support is needed and appreciated!
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Did You Know???
Did you know that the first caretaker of Lockerly, for Mr. Grassmann was a gentleman by the name of Einar Greenwall? He and his family were in Pennsylvania, where he worked at the Dorrance Estate (the Campbell Soup family estate). His son Bruce recalls, "He was contacted by a lady in New York who was a member of a garden club. She had heard that Mr. Grassmann was looking for someone to take the position in Milledgeville and let my dad know. He contacted him and next thing you know we were moving from PA to GA. Best thing my folks ever did!".
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October 14: Family Fun Day October 1-31: Scarecrows in the Arboretum December 8: Rose Hill Holiday Reception December 9: Rose Hill Holiday Open House January 26-27: Lake Country Bridal Show |
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We appreciate our sponsors and supporters.
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Lockerly Arboretum 1534 Irwinton Road, Milledgeville, GA 478.452.2112
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