Fox honored with Oliver Award
By JOYCE F. NOWELL Echo Pilot By ROBERT KESSLER Penn State Cooperative Extension Franklin County office

Tom Fox receives the 2007 James P. Oliver Award from Greencastle-Antrim Chamber of Commerce director Bill Gour (left) and chamber board of directors president Paul Schemel.

An active member of business, church and community in Greencastle-Antrim was presented the 2007 James P. Oliver Outstanding Citizenship Award last week by the G-A Chamber of Commerce during its annual banquet at the Antrim House.

Longtime businessman and community volunteer Tom Fox was honored with the award presented annually since 1992 to a person who exemplifies the community spirit and dedication of the late James P. Oliver, demonstrates entrepreneurial qualities, is a service volunteer and a member of the business community for a minimum of five years.

"Community involvement has always been a priority for Tom Fox," said Bill Gour, chamber executive director in announcing the winner and noting a long list of activities and accomplishments.

"I accept this looking around this room, thinking that a piece of this should go to a lot of people in this room who have helped me and worked with me on things that I have done over the years," said a gracious Fox following the presentation.

"I appreciate this very, very much and I'll certainly take care of it."

Background

Born in Washington Township, Fox spent his childhood in State Line and is a graduate of Greencastle High School. A week after graduating he was employed, as a clerk, at the former Fairchild Aircraft in Hagerstown, Md. One year after marrying, Fox was drafted into the United States Army in 1943. He served in Germany and Belgium and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

After returning home he set out to realize his goal of being a business owner. In 1945, he and a friend, Elmer Small, purchased the Gulf Oil franchise at 43 South Washington St. They offered gasoline, lubrication and washing to area motorists. In 1947 an offer was made to become a sub-dealer for Roy Hoffman's Kaiser-Frazer Dealership of Waynesboro.

Two years later Arthur Strickler, owner of the Buick dealership on North Carlisle Street, asked him to become his partner. "Tom said it was like someone handing him a million dollars," related Gour. "So, it was that Strickler-Fox Buick was formed."

In 1955, Arthur Strickler retired and the dealership became known as Fox Buick. In 1958 a new showroom was constructed on the spot where Carl's Drug Store now stands. That same year, with the addition of the German Opel to the dealership's inventory, it became the first in Greencastle to sell imported cars. Twelve years later a fire destroyed the original dealership on North Carlisle, which provided the opportunity to construct a modern parts and service department on North Antrim Way. Fox retired from the automobile business in 1989, selling the Buick franchise to Kermit Hicks.

Business and beyond

Fox's involvement in economic development is also longstanding.

In 1955 he became president of the newly reorganized Greencastle Chamber of Commerce. He was a founding member and past president of the Greencastle-Antrim Area Development Corporation and of the Franklin County Area Development Corporation.

On Oct. 3, 1963 he and four friends, Ott Beckner, Wayne Nicarry, Lamar Miller and Horace McBeth, formed the East Greencastle Development association. Five years later they subdivided 3.33 acres of land west of I-81, which they donated to the Greencastle-Antrim Foundation. This donation made possible the construction of the Grove Medical Center.

Community service has also been a priority for Fox.

He has been an active member of Greencastle Rotary since 1951, serving as president in 1964-65. He currently serves on the Old Home Week Association Board of Directors and was the president of the 25th Triennial in 1974. He is a Life Post Member of the Harry D, Zeigler VFW Post 6319 and a member of the Greencastle Rescue Hose Company. He served on the Board of Directors of the former Citizens Bank of Southern PA from 1970-1996. He is a member of the Greencastle Evangelical Lutheran Church, where he has served in a number of capacities since 1943.

He and his wife Mary Elizabeth, who passed away in November, 2000, had two children, two grandchildren and one great granddaughter.

Membership in the chamber is not a prerequisite for the award. Nominations are solicited through the chamber's newsletter and the selection is made by a committee comprised of previous recipients, Gour and members of the board of directors.

COMING EVENTS

Oct. 2 through Nov. 13 - 7 to 9:30 p.m., Principles of Landscape Design Classes, Franklin County Master Gardners, Franklin County Human Service Building, Call 263-9226 for information.

Oct. 6 - 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., House Plants and Propagation, Franklin County Cooperative Extension, Franklin Farm Lane, Chambersburg.

Oct. 13 - 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Fall Bus Trip, Bartram's Gardens and Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania, Call 263-9226 for information.

Nov. 13 - 6 p.m., Commodity Queens Reception; 6:45 p.m., Farm-City Banquet, Kauffman Community Center. Call 263- 9226 for tickets.

Nov. 13 and 14 - 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., Composting Workshops and Frree Backyard Compost Bins, Franklin County Extension, Call 263-9226.

* * * * *

HOUSEPLANTS AND

PROPAGATION

If you grow a lot of houseplants or would like to and you would like to learn more about houseplants, you will want to attend the workshop of the Penn State Master Gardeners of Franklin County to be held Oct. 6 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. The workshop will focus on taking plant cuttings, bringing plants inside, getting ready for winter, diagnosing plant diseases on your plants and more. You will be able to bring a plant problem with you for help in diagnosing your problem.

The cost of the workshop is $5. To register, contact the Penn State Franklin County Extension office at (717) 263-9226.

FALL BUS TRIP

We still have a few openings left for our Oct. 13 bus trip to Philadelphia for the Bartram's Garden, a 45-acre site with botanical gardens, meadow, parkland and wetland areas and a tour of a historical house. We will then go to Morris Arboretum for lunch and then a tour of the gardens, which are considered the official arboretum of Pennsylvania and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Registration is $70 per person, which includes a buffet lunch, admission tickets, bus fare and all tips, and you can call (717) 263-9226 to register for the trip.

FALL MULCHING

As we enter the fall season, it is time to check the mulch around your plants. Is it the proper depth? Mulch should be about two to three inches deep around your plants. With the hot weather we had this summer; mulch could have broken down and might be too thin.

Mulch is very important to the health of our plants. It smothers weeds, especially the bark mulch or wood chips. Mulch also helps conserve moisture, which is especially important this year. Some mulches absorb all the moisture from a light rain so it doesn't get to the roots without a good soaking. That is one reason why you should water your plants less frequently and more deeply.

Mulches protect the roots of your plant from extremes in temperatures. A layer of mulch will help keep the soil cooler in the heat of summer, will hold the heat into the late fall and prevents the alternating freezing and thawing injury you can get in the winter

months. As the mulch decomposes, it adds organic matter to the soil, which improves its ability to hold moisture.

If you have

areas that have very little mulch covering the soil, you should add mulch this fall. There are still places you can get mulch and you can add it this fall so that is not one of those jobs you have to squeeze in with all of your yard work next spring.

Remember as you mulch to keep mulch away from the stem or trunk of woody ornamentals. Remember the image of mulching like a donut. You should have two to three inches of mulch over the root zone so no mounds of mulch please. Too much mulch can prevent food air exchange in the plant roots, which can cause problems for your plants.

PUMPKIN TIME

Fall is known for colored leaves but it is also a time for pumpkins. I came across some interesting facts about pumpkins, which you might enjoy. The largest pumpkin pie weighed in at 2,020 pounds, baked by the New Bremen Giant Pumpkin Growers in Ohio. The most lit pumpkins in one city were 30,128 pumpkins in Boston, Massachusetts. The record distance for propelling a pumpkin was 4,409 feet. The heaviest pumpkin weighed 1,502 pounds. I also found the world record for the longest gourd was 126 feet 6 inches.

The pumpkin is actually a squash and the orange object we carve and eat is considered to be a friend or the fruit of the plant, but most people consider pumpkins to be a vegetable.

If you go to a pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkin, be sure to look for a pumpkin that has uniform orange color and is free of any fresh injury. If you are going to decorate it, any shape will be okay. Some shapes may be more of a challenge than others to decorate. If you are going to carve one, look for a good sturdy stem to make a good handle for the lid. The pumpkin should have a good side to do your carving on. Never carry a pumpkin by the stem because it could break off and you lost your handle for the lid. If that happens or you see a great pumpkin but it doesn't have a stem, then carve your opening into the bottom of the pumpkin to take out the side and set the pumpkin over your light source to illuminate the carved face. Have fun in the pumpkin patch.

FALL PLANTING OF TREES

AND SHRUBS

Fall is a good time to plant trees and shrubs because you can see their fall foliage color. Plus trees and shrubs planted now will have all fall and next spring to get established before they have to endure hot weather.

Go to a local nursery in October and look at the various colors of leaves and berries on the plants there. No longer is everything green, but now you get a hint of what their fall color will be in your landscape. Some plants can have several seasons of interest with interesting bark, spring flowers, summer fruit and fall color on its leaves.

When you are buying a tree or shrubs, have a space in mind for it and then be sure the tree or shrub will not outgrow that space. Most plant tags will tell you the eventual size of the plant. If you are planting a tree and you have chosen a spot, stand there and look up. Are there any electrical wires or telephone wires that you need to be concerned about? We have all seen what happens to trees that grow into power lines and they have to be pruned to avoid the wires. Don't put in a tall tree when that can become a problem.

Once you have the tree selected and it is now in your yard, check to see where the root flare is on the trunk. In many cases it will be lower than the top of the soil in a container or root ball. The root flare is that area where the roots start. It should be level with the top of the ground. Measure from the top of the root flare to the bottom of the container or root ball and that is the depth of your hole. Dig the hole twice as wide as the present roots. Save the soil you remove and do not add fertilizer or any organic material to this soil that you will fill the hole with.

If you have a tree in a container, lay it down next to the hole you have dug. Tap the bottom of the container to loosen it and remove it carefully from the roots. Look at your root ball and if you see roots going in a circular direction, you should cut through the roots in two to three places. Circular roots can eventually kill a tree by girdling it. If you have a balled and burlap tree, remove the strings and wires from the root ball and remove some of the burlap. If it is plastic burlap, you need to remove all of the burlap. You can tell plastic by using a match. Real burlap will burn and make ash. Plastic will just melt.

Place the root ball in the hole and position the tree so it is straight. Add the soil you dug out and gently firm it around the roots as you go. Make a basin of soil around the tree when you get the hole filled. Water thoroughly after planting, then mulch around the tree.