August Newsletter - Art In The Garden V Tickets on Sale Now

Wally in charge, here. It's August 1st and Delores is on vacation again...can you believe it! This time, she took a trip to London, and its beautiful gardens and garden centers, and Paris with my sister. So, I'm writing the newsletter for August. I hope I don't get in trouble with my wife, but she'll see what I have to say when she returns this week...hopefully, she'll let me write another.

The good news for July, which was the hottest ever recorded and followed the hottest June ever, is that it's over! I recall saying in January and February, when it was so cold, that it wouldn't be long before we would be wishing for some cool weather. Well, at least the heat wasn't snow! Hopefully, you took Delores' advice in the July newsletter and watered, and watered and watered your plants, and keep doing the same in August and watch out for the lightning. It found us on Monday afternoon, July 26th, just after we closed, and knocked out our irrigation system, telephones and computers. So, if we were a bit slow to respond the remainder of the week, that's why. We were fully recovered by Friday afternoon.

TOMATOMANIA ENDS ON AUGUST 15

Bring in your largest tomato by August 15 and we'll measure it. The top three tomatoes with the largest circumference win. Gift certificates for adult winners and cash prizes for children. Tomato plants must have been purchased at Wingard's. We have alot of entries. For pictures of all the contestants, go to wingardsnursery.com and click on the "Photo Gallery," then scroll down to "Tomatomaina" and look at the photos...who knows maybe you or your child or grandchild will be there.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

ART IN THE GARDEN V

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8th, 7:00 p.m.

I asked Delores to be sure and go by the Abbey Road Studios and the Baker Street Apple Store while she is London. The rock n roll world changed in 1964, when The Beatles came to our country, in February. If your experience was like mine, you can probably recall seeing them on the Ed Sullivan Show, on February 9th, then again on the 16th and 23rd. I was 8 years old and before that listened to music by The Beach Boys ("Surfer Girl," "409," "Little Deuce Coupe" and others), Terry Stafford ("Suspicion"), Lloyd Price ("Personality") and other great songs. But The Beatles changed all that with 4 part harmonies, good looks, funny personalities and cool guitars and drums. Once I saw them, I envisioned myself as the next Ringo and put together a band with my like-minded friends, who played piano, badminton racquets and garbage cans, and we imitated The Beatles at my 9th birthday party, shortly thereafter, complete with Beatle wigs. That August, I saw "A Hard Day's Night," then, in September, when they came to the Gator Bowl, in Jacksonville, Florida, sponsored by WAPE, my aunt, who ran the Ticket Office, made sure that my 16 year-old cousin and I had front row, dead center seats. I still have the stub...it was $5.00 and the show included Jackie DeShannon ("Put A Little Love In Your Heart"), Bill Black Combo (Elvis' Bass Player), among others.

If you didn't have the opportunity to see the originals, we're proud to bring you the next best thing...THE RETURN. They're guaranteed to take you back to that magical February evening in 1964. They have toured the world and recorded in EMI's Abbey Road Studios, just like The Beatles. Perhaps you saw them on Good Morning America or on the Hard Rock Café anniversary tour, or with the South Carolina Philharmonic, at the Koger Center. Be sure to join us for this exciting evening, all to benefit our local Lexington Interfaith Community Services (www.licssc.org), located on Harmon Street, close to the Old Mill.

LICS, in its 31st year, is a non-denominational, non-profit, faith-based organization "to provide assistance for individuals and families who are emerging from hurting situations by providing for basic needs and by creating environments which allow people to make hopeful life changes." In 2009, LICS provided benefit to over 23,000 people in our community in the form of food, clothing or financial assistance. Considering the population of Lexington County is approximately 250,000, that's roughly one out of ten of our neighbors. LICS' funding comes from donations, local churches and fundraisers, like Art In The Garden. Having run a similar organization for our church in New Jersey, we know the need is great and your joining us for a great evening will help LICS continue to achieve its mission.

The event begins at 7:00 p.m., tickets are $35, tax-deductable and on sale now at Wingard's. Be sure to park at Pilgrim Lutheran Church and we'll have our shuttle buses bring you back and forth to Wingard's. If you've attended any of the previous four Art in the Garden events, you know what a fun evening it is. It normally sells out and tickets will not be sold the day of the show, so stop in today or call 803 359 9091, and purchase yours. Ticket price includes: a delicious dinner prepared by Dupre Catering; beverages from Sam's Fine Wines & Spirits; art from the works of leading Midland's artists; a silent auction; and a two hour concert by the world's greatest Beatles Tribute Band, The Return (www.thereturnonline.com), which begins at 8:00. Also, we are pleased to have Sharon R. Paeth with us to sign copies of her new book "Lexington." We're also delighted that our friend, Tony Clyburn, of B106.7, will emcee the evening once again. All proceeds from the evening benefit LICS. In addition to Wingard's and several of its suppliers, many local businesses and churches will also be sponsoring the evening. A full list will be in next month's newsletter and recognized the evening of the event.

COMING SOON

New 2010 Lake Murray Ornament

This year's ornament will focus on Lake Murray's significance as a bombing range during World War II, featuring the B25 Bomber, Bomb Island and Doolittle's Raiders. This will be the third in our exclusive series of ornaments focusing on the beauty, the culture and the history of Lake Murray. The 2008 inaugural ornament featured the Towers at the dam, and the 2009 ornament highlighted the flight of the purple martins. All three ornaments available beginning September 1

Hallopalooza II on Saturday, October 30...get your scarecrows ready!

Look for Fall Workshops to be announced in the September Newsletter and on-line at wingardsnursery.com

Don't forget to "deadhead" your crape myrtles and daylilies, and they'll rebloom for you this season. Deadhead your crape myrtles by cutting off the seed pods after the bloom, and your daylilies by pulling off the old blooms.

Also, our summer sale continues, so stop in for some bargains!

I hope this has been a great summer for you and your family, so far and you've been able to find some relief from this heat!

From Delores' Grandmother's Garden to Yours,

Wally Steinhauser