Garden Club of America Grove, Humboldt Redwoods State Park

With the encouragement of the Save the Redwoods League of California, The Hillsborough Garden Club established a redwood grove within the Garden Club of America Grove inside Humboldt Redwoods State Park in order to commemorate the establishment of Arbor Day in 1872. The 1943 Founders Fund Award monies were matched by the State of California.

This expansion of land added to the GCA’s commitment to protect more priority lands surrounding the initial acreage incorporated in 1931 and formally dedicated in 1934. Since the tract adjoins the Morton Grove, the Hillsborough Garden Club wanted to honor J. Sterling Morton, the originator of Arbor Day, in the naming of this section. The Hillsborough Garden Club was pleased to contribute to the lengthening of the Avenue of the Giants and be a part of the GCA’s early commitment to the preservation of our national land treasures.

Deeply committed to the preservation of this majestic park, the Hillsborough Garden Club has continued to support the project annually as a memorial to its members. The Garden Club of America Grove now contains more than 5,100 acres and is the third largest dedicated grove in the entire State Park System.

But due to a fire in 2003, landslides in 2006 and devastating park budget cuts, access to the Garden Club of America Grove has been obstructed. In conjunction with the Save the Redwoods League, a Bridge the Gap fund raising campaign has been established to restore trails, bridges and build retaining walls in order to reopen the GCA Grove to the public