The Grass River GC Collaborates to Create Native Plant Habitats
Educational Heritage Garden, Delray Beach Historical Society

The creation of an Educational Heritage Garden at the Delray Beach Historical Society composed completely of Florida native plants began in 2017 as a collaboration between the historical society and The Grass River Garden Club. The garden was born out of a desire to teach the importance of using native plants in gardens and a concern for dwindling green space in Delray Beach due to increased development. Today, the Educational Heritage Garden is a place to not only experience peace and tranquility, but to learn about local history through nature in the form of an outdoor classroom.

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Celebrating Olmsted’s 200th Anniversary
Rochester GC Wrangles Weeds in an Olmsted-designed Park

On a sunny day in October, sixteen Rochester Garden Club members gathered at the Olmsted-designed Highland Park in Rochester, New York, to participate in a Weed Wrangle®. Before the “wrangling” began, Mark Quinn, Highland Park’s horticulture director, Susan Maney, Highland Park, and Milli Picclone, Highland Conservancy, explained how to identify and dig up swallow wort, one of the invasive plants threatening the park. In spring 2022, RGC members will return to the park to plant a selection of native plants.

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Restoring a Garden Along the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail
Akron Garden Club Honors Past GCA President

A new native plant garden has recently opened along the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail. The garden in Cascade Locks Park honors the late Christine and Robert Freitag. Christine Freitag, who passed away in 2018, was president of The Garden Club of America (1993-95) and served as GCA conservation chair. This new Ohio native garden is a collaborative effort between the Akron Garden Club, Summit Metro Parks, and Cascade Locks Park Association. It restores a site along the Towpath Trail where invasive plants had choked out native plants.

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2021 GCA Conservation Study Conference
Saving Salmon

Wild salmon loom large in the Pacific Northwest as a bellwether species for the ecological and economic health of the region as well as for the traditional culture and identity of north west indigenous peoples. On November 17, The Garden Club of America's 2021 Conservation Study Conference took a look at how people in the salmon space are making a difference. From habitat to harvest to home-cooked filets, the possibility exists to give life to preservation practices and a mindful approach to the fish on our plates.

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Working to Identify Potential New Natives
Rumson GC Creates a Climate Change Experiment

After the town of Rumson, New Jersey was hit hard by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, Rumson Garden Club members began to ask what native plants might survive the increased temperatures and fiercer storms brought on by climate change and what plants native to southern regions might become the area’s new native species. The club applied for and received a $500 grant from The Garden Club of America’s Partners for Plants program to plant southern native species to determine what plants might survive.

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Crowdfunding for Connecticut Parks
Connecticut Valley Garden Club Unites Hartford Parks

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a Connecticut Valley Garden Club (CVGC) member took her grandchildren to some of Hartford’s many parks. The parks were filled with people of all ages who saw the parks as a safe place to be. It was clear that with an increase in park visitation, a higher level of maintenance was required. She also noted that many of the parks needed some improvements. Realizing that city government alone could not possibly provide the extra funds needed for the parks, she wondered if those who used the parks would be willing to participate in a crowdfunding project to create an awareness of park needs and raise funds for the parks.

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Maintaining a Significant Ancient Site in Wisconsin
Town and Country Garden Club Continues Support of Sheboygan Indian Mound Park

Town and Country Garden Club (TCGC), Sheboygan, Wisconsin, is very proud of their ongoing affiliation with Sheboygan Indian Mound Park, a fifteen-acre public park established in 1966, which preserves ancient Native American burial mounds. This year, as in every year, the club conducted a spring member workday to clear trails, tackle invasive plant species, and clean the sacred mounds.

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