What are Garden Clubs? And Why You Might Want to Join One . . .

What are Garden Clubs? And Why You Might Want to Join One . . .

By Michael Jenkins

We’ve talked a bit about garden clubs in this blog, chiefly recommending them as good sources of local garden information and new gardening friends. But what exactly is a garden club? Why should you join one, and how do you find one to join? Well, there’s a lot to say about gardening clubs and their members as well as about the role the play in their communities. Let’s take a look at garden clubs, the various types of garden clubs you might encounter, and what makes them so special.

The first rule for garden clubs is that there is no single type of garden club. While the phrase may call to mind images of women in wide-brimmed hats talking about roses, that’s only one kind of garden club out of many, many possibilities. The Garden Club of America, one of several nationwide organizations in the US devoted to garden clubs, makes this clear on their website: a garden club is “a network for education and friendship among people who enjoy gardening and nature.” That’s it, that’s the only real definition. Garden clubs can be devoted to roses, or exotics, or native flowers, or vegetable plots. They can run community gardens or focus on orchids. A garden club can have formal meetings in an outdoor garden setting or be a group of friends meeting for coffee to discuss their container plants. Whatever kind of gardening you have and whatever kind of gardener you are, there’s a garden club for you. And, of course, you can always start one of your own if you’d like.

That having been said, we also believe that garden clubs should work to spread the joy of gardening and help newcomers find their way. Local garden clubs often work closely with cooperative extension offices to do just that. Many garden clubs offer training courses, some of which are free to attending. These can be great ways to not only meet people who share our interest in gardening but learn more about a particular facet of the hobby that we find interesting. So, for the experienced gardeners among us, here’s a call to action: let’s get involved with a local garden club and make it a point to help those who are new to gardening. By helping folks get started, we’ll pave the way for the next generation or two of gardeners who are coming up behind us. Gardening is about helping things grow and thrive—and that includes people!

While we’re on the subject of helping others, let’s talk about volunteering. Not all garden clubs do volunteer work, and that’s OK.  If possible however garden clubs should consider how they can volunteer in the communities of which they’re a part. This can take many forms: helping out in a community garden or park space, doing some cleanup on a local beach or waterfront, picking up litter around town, or working with the local schools to teach kids about plants and gardening. Gardens are innately part of the natural world that we all share, and as gardeners we need to work to get involved to help preserve and enhance that natural wonder.

So, to sum up: garden clubs take many different forms and there’s a garden club out there that suites your needs. We encourage everyone to use garden clubs to meet other gardeners and spread the joy of gardening, and to help the communities of which we’re all part. At Gardzen we believe that gardening is for everyone, and that by getting together with other gardeners we can help share this wonderful hobby!


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