I Am Not Happy

No.. I am not, and you will soon see why.

It is time, once again to register your Kroger Plus card with the Kroger Community Rewards Program.  You may remember that this needs to be done each year.  Kroger then apportions the funds they give to registered charities based upon the sales associated with your registered card. Once a year ABCS gets a check which is used to support the garden. We have used this program for many years to provide modest funds in support of the Butterfly Garden.

Unfortunately... Kroger has not made it so easy this year. The Butterfly Garden now has a new charity number (as do all others) and instead of just having the grocery clerk "swipe" your card and giving them the number... you MUST NOW DO THIS ON LINE.  If you have previously signed up on-line with Kroger to get their weekly email coupons, etc... the process is not bad at all. If not, you have to sign up for an on-line account first and then provide our number to make the link.  

If you try to do it at the store.. neither the checkout people or the customer service people have any clue what you are talking about.  (I know, I tried).  It now has to be done on line.

The trouble is worth it but is a bit of a hassle.  You do derive the additional benefit of getting weekly emails of Kroger specials and coupons, however...   So if you are willing.. 

Here's How:

1.  Go to This Link   which is  www.krogercommunityrewards.com
2.  Sign in if you already have an on-line account.. if not.. click on Sign Up Today in the "New Customer?" box and follow the steps to provide zip code, favorite store, email address etc..
3.  You will then get an email message and click on the link provided in it to finalize this process.
THEN...
4.  Click on "My Account" and use your email address and the password you provided in #2 to open up your account.


Somewhere in all this process you provide your Kroger Plus Card number. If you use you telephone number at Krogers instead of your card, you can call  1-866-221-4141 to get your card number


Then you can provide the Garden's New Kroger number which is  82607  and all is well.

Or... you can forget the whole deal and just find a way to support the garden

OK.. so I am unhappy with Kroger... but..  for those of you who may shop at Randalls (Safeway, Tom Thumb)  ABCS is still registered with their similar Good Neighbor program and it is only a one time signup at a store.  It automatically renews each year. Just provide their customer service desk with this number for our garden:   1969  and the garden does benefit even more than from Kroger.

A Garden Experience

Between Goshen and Elkhart Indiana is Linton's Garden.   This is quite an interesting place and is the largest garden supply and nursery place in Indiana and Michigan.  We stopped here several times.

 The link to their website is  HERE  And, oh yes, they also have one of the quilt squares. We still have one or two locations yet to visit. 

And here is the link to my other photos of this place RIGHT HERE

Third on Quilt Gardens

Although a couple of these pictures are also on my web album link described in yesterday's blog, our Master Gardner thought it would be good to post this additional information on the Quilt Gardens.  This is the "flower quilt square" at the Menino-Hof Community near Shipshewana, IN, just one of the many locations that feature a contribution to this county-wide project.

The number of flowers used to create one is quite amazing. The flowers for the projects come from the Elkhart County Convention and Visitors Bureau.  A location or business that wants to be a part is able to choose the kinds of flowers they want and they then determine the pattern and thus the number of each variety that is required.  They are then given the flowers and do their own thing.

In Houston, a flat of 18 flowers is typically about $25.00.  So for this one display alone the flower cost would be about $6,600.  There are 19 such displays around the county  =  $125,400 not counting advertising and handouts. This is the sixth season for the project among seven communities.

More Quilt Gardens

Today we visited the Indiana towns of Elkhart, Middlebury, and Shipshewana and photographed more of the "Flower Quilt Squares" described in the Aug 4 post on this blog where the details of each display are given in the links to the web site, etc.   I also enjoyed the very unique Amish "locals" throughout this area.

These young girls were removing dead leaves, sticks, etc.    You can see more of the pictures on my web album HERE   You will just have to ignore the first several shots of our RV rally at the Goshen Fair Grounds.

Quilt Gardens ??

We have been traveling and came upon a demo garden at the county fair grounds.  Potatoes planted in straw within a cylindrical wire  frame.   This looks like it is worth trying..

Also an interesting major garden event is going on in the little towns of Goshen County Indiana   … Various places create “quilt squares” by mass plantings of flowers.   Here is the one at the county fair grounds.  We will drive around and see more in the next few days.

"The Quilt Gardens... along the Heritage Trail joins quilting, gardening and art into a one-of-a-kind event. A colorful patchwork of quilt inspired gardens and quilt-themed murals linked by the roads that form the Heritage Trail.   More than a million vibrant blooms • 19 gigantic gardens and 20 hand-painted super-sized murals • 7 communities • May 30 - October 1"  Check out their nice website with more pictures and explanations HERE 

Every quilt garden and quilt mural has its own intricate pattern, many are original designs, and each has its own unique story.  Each of the seven unique communities that host quilt gardens & murals has its own special character and fun finds you’ll want to explore.

Download the 2013 Master Gardener Guidebook (free.. no info to provide) for detailed information about each garden. The download link is HERE

On The Road

We have been traveling so nothing posted for awhile.  Here are some nice flowers we found in Door County Wisconsin.