Pool Arbor

We all know that some shade by our outdoor pool can be desirable for our families on those hot summer days.

So we put our heads together to create the perfect spot under which you can dry off your kids, keep them out of the sun, or catch some shade while reading a book. We explored different options and decided on a combination of the right kind of vines and a sturdy supporting structure for our new addition, which will transform a hot and sunny space to a shady pool retreat.

Once the plan was laid out, Tyrell and John from our maintenance staff built this architecturally pleasing structure, which is also ideal to create an atmosphere of rich plant growth abundance. I had to get busy digging up potential grape vines for transplant before the first frost arrived. It was quite a challenge, as the roots grow vigorously underground and you might end up with a 50 feet root system. Well, they are in now with lots of peat moss, water, and love, hoping they will adapt quickly to their new environment.

Eventually once the vines begin to grow next spring, I will train them to weave themselves throughout the various parts of the structure. As for now, I cut them back to 3 feet and tied them to the posts to help hold them in place temporarily until they are well established.

Can't wait to pick the first grapes; they should be quite sweet absorbing all the sun while shading you.

Give your Strawberries a Straw Coat

If your winters a similar or even colder than ours here in Vermont it is time to mulch your strawberries. The plants are very susceptible to cold injury and can die if you don't provide adequate protection. You won't have a hard time remembering what to mulch them with. Several inches of straw will dress them appropriately for harsher climates.

Comes spring, remove the mulch from the strawberry plants when about 25 percent of the plant are producing new growth. New growth will be white or yellow in color.


Happy Gardening,

Claudia

About Tyler Place Maintenance

Dave Vanslette (or Nature Dave) tells us that the most frequent question he gets asked by far is about our off-season maintenance. With all the acreage (hundreds), guest accommodations (70), staff housing (19), public buildings of one sort or another (18), how do we keep up with the painting, repairs, refurbishment, roofs, septic and other ordinary maintenance? As homeowners, guests consider what one home property involves to maintain, multiply that 100 fold, and shake their heads. Additionally, guests who have returned for several summers are aware that not only is the TP meticulously maintained, but that every year they find many improvements and new “goodies”.

How is it done? Primarily the credit goes to “Archer” Dale and the crew of 15 year round maintenance staff – who cover an amazing amount of ground (much of it frozen) over the eight months between seasons. Recently Nature Dave’s son joined his father and uncle making a fourth generation of Vanslettes building our resort.

Next newsletter we’ll give you some specifics of “What’s New at the TP” for the summer of 2012, our 79^th season.

(So, who recognized Dale with the facial camouflage he always adds for the hunting season?)

Make Mulch with your Lawnmower

Don't know what to do with all the leaves in your yard? Why not bring all your efforts of raking to a good use making your own mulch.

A bed of autumn leaves can take a while to decompose. Before you  use them as mulch, shred them. Run your lawnmower over recently raked piles of leaves and spread the mulch in your garden. In spring, these shredded leaves can simply be turned under to become rich, organic matter in the soil.

Happy Gardening,
Claudia

How Hurricane Irene Welcomed Us to The Red Clover Inn

By Julie Tyler

Quint and I were so excited to move into the beautiful 1840's farmhouse next to The Red Clover Inn in Mendon, VT. Needless to say, that was an adventure in and of itself with an 8 year-old and 5 year-old.  Two days after we arrived on August 27, we purchased groceries and unloaded many of our belongings so as to be prepared for a “tropical depression” (according to weather reports.) Quintin went on his way Sunday morning to go back to Tyler Place.  Little did we know that he would be one of the last to leave the area.

The power went out around 2:00 pm and it continued to rain all day.  The kids and I listened to the radio for our news as it continued to report on the damages around us.  I realized that the situation was becoming serious.  That evening we went to bed in our new home by candlelight.  The next morning we ended up stuck at "the culvert" which was our road, broken in two, with a culvert down the middle.  We weren't going anywhere by car.

As we met our neighbors (what a way to meet them!), the news (and bottles of water) came in by bike and 4-wheelers of how badly the flood had damaged the area. The neighbors were teasing us about just moving in but we felt blessed that even with a flooded basement and a few leaks in the house, we were ok-- with Red Clover Inn’s restaurant right next to us! Quickly our neighborhood "mayors", as they were affectionately called, organized.  We had no power, but one of the houses in the neighborhood had a generator and we were finally able to charge our cell phones. Frankly, I was scared thinking I only had one bar left and no car charger (which I found in a purse after the storm).

Quintin, being the resourceful Vermonter he is ,was determined to find a way to us.  I knew that if anyone could get in, it would be him. On the following Tuesday Quintin came in by bike with a backpack on his back. My knight in shining armor! The power came back on too!  Ben and Char had made some friends at the culvert with one family in the neighborhood and we were so thankful!  The neighbors had figured out a way to hike "to the other side” of the trailhead, so it became possible to get the kids to school.  On Wednesday, Ben's first day of school, he hiked out with his Dad and the neighbors to a car caravan. What a way to go to school; we were so proud of him!

On that same day, Charlotte was playing with her new friend and broke her arm riding a tricycle. Just the thing you want to happen during an emergency, with helicopters flying overhead and no way of getting her to a doctor! I quickly turned to my neighbors for help; I was sure that she didn't have a broken arm, but thought maybe the chiropractor I had just met could come and take a look.  So he did, as he was leaving (we had decided a splint and ibuprofen would be all we could do for now) a gentleman walked into our living room with a backpack on.  He was fresh off of Route 4 and said, "Hi, I'm an orthopedic surgeon."  All I could think about was how lucky we were.  He examined Charlotte's arm and was 95% sure it was broken.  We immediately called his office and we made an appointment.

The next morning we were going to get a ride over Route 4 to Rutland.  As we climbed over the culvert, Charlotte and I were greeted by reporters from Vermont Life and The Boston Globe (apparently a 5-year-old breaking her arm during a disaster is a good human-interest piece).  We finally made it to Rutland down a dirt road that was once busy Route 4.  One can't properly explain how it looked. Huge sections were totally washed away. Charlotte's doctor visit went well, and she was to wear a splint for the next 6 weeks

Quintin came back in and got us on Friday, and we left by trail to go back to our cottage at Tyler Place. "The Path"turned out to be a beautiful walk through what was a horse farm in the mid 1800's. Journey's End Road linked to another gorgeous neighborhood called Helvi Hill. "The Path" after some work by many volunteers, was a delightful walk and covered by woodchips. Golf carts had been donated as well which made for an easy ride. The people were so kind to open up their land. It was really wonderful.  The kids became spoiled by the daily offerings of candy and drinks along the way and Charlotte figured out that her splint became a good place to stash her goodies. This was truly something we would always remember.  We spent the weekend in Highgate and returned with supplies in tow. We put our groceries in a rolling suitcase and we were off.  Charlotte's first day of kindergarten was the next Tuesday and she happily hiked through the woods with her broken arm and her big brother.  What a big first day of kindergarten for Charlotte!

The New York Times happened to be at the school that morning and the school held an assembly for what would be the first day for all 33 children that were affected by Irene.  At the end of the school day I waited for Charlotte on the path only to see her come out of the woods with the reporter and photographer from the New York Times!   According to the photographer, our daughter had told her the whole story and Charlotte was quoted in The New York Times on her first day of kindergarten.  That is definitely one for her memory book.

The power remained out for a couple of days and The Red Clover Inn donated all of it's perishables to the community. Route 4 became passable in a week and amazingly the road crews had Route 4 open within three weeks so that Red Clover Inn & Restaurant was fully open for foliage season traffic.

Thank you to all the people who helped us in our first couple of weeks in the neighborhood. For some reason, a disaster always seems to bring out the best in people and we couldn't be more thankful. We have finally been able to settle in. Quintin is here and we have worked through what has been a beautiful foliage season.  What a nice place to live; the community is just tops! We have made lasting friendships with our neighbors here in Mendon, and we certainly have a story we will we always remember in our move to the Red Clover Inn.

We would love for all of our Tyler Place friends to visit us at The Red Clover Inn & Restaurant.  Come share the beauty of this gorgeous area (and some fabulous dining!) There are a lot of great things to do around here and we will gladly make suggestions and help you plan.


 

Wintering Over Geraniums

Fall has arrived at the Tyler Place. As I am preparing the grounds for winter, I always have a hard time saying “good-bye”to all the annuals. They usually end up on one large compost pile, but there are a few I just have to rescue. There is no need to buy geraniums year after year in the spring, they can be overwintered quite easily, so you can keep your plants, in one form or another, year-round.

This is a very easy way to keep your geraniums alive until spring, but they will need a light window spot.

• Prune the geraniums back to 1/2 to 1/3 of their original height, and then carefully dig up each plant.
• Place in a 6 to 8-inch  pot, or you can group them in a larger container.
• Water them in well.
• Geraniums prefer cool indoor temperatures with daytime temperatures near 65° F  and night temperatures around 55° F .
• Geraniums become tall and spindly when grown in warm, poorly lit areas. 
• During their stay indoors, water the plants only when the soil becomes dry.
• Occasionally pinch the geraniums to produce stocky, well- branched plants.

You can also store your geraniums in the basement, just make sure it doesn't get below freezing temperatures.

• Pot  your geraniums and allow the soil to dry out.
• Cut the plants back by about half.
• Top each plant with an overturned paper bag.
• Spray your the root areas slightly with water every few weeks.
• Plants kept in containers over the winter are typically larger than most geraniums sold in the spring. This allows you to have a head start on growth and blooms for next year's garden.

Happy Gardening,
Claudia

The Making of the Pirate Pontoon Cruise

By JD (Jes Dean)

Pirates have been a fascination with children and adults alike for many generations. There is something about uniforms, peg legs, eye patches and treasure chests full of precious jewels. Although the theme isn't so glamorous in real life, I think it's safe to say that the innocence of children-at-play lends an excitement and interest in the Pirate culture.

So, how did The Tyler Place Sunday night Pirate Pontoon Cruise tradition come about?

As the co-directors of the Clubhouse in 2006, Jess Lynes and I were looking to spice up the children's schedule with some new activities that would be appealing to the Sr. Midgets and Juniors. It was apparent that Pirates were popular as we saw a lot of action on the Pirate Ship in the front yard of the Clubhouse. The original idea came to me when we were out on a kayak on break and another staff member came by and soaked us with Super Soakers. It was an epiphany and that evening, Jess and I sat down to plan out the logistics. We had some Phil Collins blaring in the background and we knew we were onto something big.

JD (Jes Dean) as Schmeid in 2006.

Jess Lynes as Schmitty in 2006.

After speaking with the Waterfront staff who were very supportive of the idea and putting in an order of Pirate wear, eye patches and tattoos for the campers, the Pirate Pontoon Cruise was born. However, it was nothing like the event you see today. In its early versions, the Pirates consisted of Jess and I dressing up and chasing the pontoon boats around in kayaks. Now, there were many problems with this situation. First, I was not a major fan of kayaking due to a traumatic 16hr sea kayak back in 2004 and am no pro at paddling, steering or other random maneuvers. Not to mention that we had to carry the "booty" and water guns with an extra supply in the single man kayaks with us. Also, not being very sneaky, it was apparent that the guests recognized us within seconds of our arrival. Another "great" idea we had was bringing grapes on the boats that the kids could use as "deterrents" from having the Pirates come close. After a very nice memo from the Waterfront staff who spent hours cleaning up smashed grapes, that fad ended.

There had to be a better way, we thought, so after some brainstorming we gave another call down to the Waterfront to inquire about shuttling us out to the island during the campers’ dinner and bringing us back at the end of group. They agreed and at that moment, a Star was born. Our Waterfront drivers got right into the theme, piloting the pontoons around the island playing East Coast music from Nova Scotia, and maneuvered the pontoons as close to the Island as possible for maximum exposure.

Jess and I spent the rest of the Sunday evenings that summer shuttling down to the lake on our bikes with opaque garbage bags full of costumes, booty, water guns and swords. We shared many sunsets in those days and enjoyed captivating our campers with some friendly Pirate-battling as Schmitty and Schmeid, the original Bandstand Island Pirates. It was also very common for us to arrive back at the Clubhouse and have the children yell “We know you’re the pirates!!” which we didn’t confirm or deny.

As the years have passed by, many other fortunate TP staff have had the opportunity to play this important role as a Bandstand Pirate and have made some wonderful memories on that island. It is my hope that the Pirate Pontoon Cruise remains a staple at The Tyler Place for years to come, and when the day comes that a new activity replaces it, I will think back to the early days and let out my best "arrrrrrggghhhhh Matey".

2011 Pirates