Red Bluff Garden Club Offers Tips for Winter Gardening

http://www.redbluffdailynews.com/news/ci_16928286

Columbia (S.C.) Garden Club Maintains Blue Star Memorials

News from Columbia (S.C.) Garden Club -- Maintaining Blue Star Memorials and contributing to care for "orphaned" markers

http://columbiagardenclub.com/community/%C2%A0blue-star-memorial-highway-marker.html

Kermit Garden Club dedicates Blue Star Memorial

See article--Kermit Garden Club in Odessa,Texas



http://www.oaoa.com/news/garden-57432-club-kermit.html

From HMBD.org -- America's First Garden Club

Article on America's First Garden Club Marker

Interesting article!

Boston Area Garden Club Hosts Marathon 'Wreath Week'

"If Santa Were A Gardener, This Is What His Workshop Would Look Like," from the Back Bay Patch.http://backbay.patch.com/articles/back-bay-garden-club-wreath-project-works-to-fill-more-than-400-wreath-orders#video-3733260

California Garden Clubs Replant National Forest Through Penny Pines Program

Penny Pines article


Through Penny Pines, a national program by National Garden Clubs Inc., California Garden Clubs, Inc. helped fund the replanting of 7,100 Western white pine trees over 40 acres on the Kern Valley Plateau. The planting area was situated in the Vista Fire area which burned 420 acres of national forest in 2007. 

Connecticut Garden Club Promotes Civic Beauty For The Holidays

Article from the Post-Chronicle:
http://www.ctpostchronicle.com/articles/2010/12/10/life/doc4d0273a15c263544635978.txt
Members of the Wallingford Garden Club of the Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut and National Garden Clubs Inc., held a holiday wreath-making workshop for volunteers.

Florida Garden Club Discovers, Restores Historic Blue Star Memorial

A piece of history in Pompano Beach, Fla.--a Blue Star Memorial Marker--was discovered and has been restored and rededicated by members of the Pompano Beach Garden Club of the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs and National Garden Clubs Inc.--just in time for the national observance of Pearl Harbor Day. http://pompanopelican.webs.com/apps/blog/show/5502602-chance-find-returns-blue-star-memorial-in-time-for-pearl-harbor-day

Florida Garden Clubs Offer Tips on Creating A Community Garden

Create social change and environmental awareness by organizing, restoring or revitalizing a community garden in your area with tips by The Florida Federation of Garden Clubs Inc. of National Garden Clubs Inc. http://www.ffgc.org/projects/community_gardens/index.html

Florida Garden Club Landscapes 50 Habitat for Humanity Homes

Members of The Garden Club of Lakeland, Inc. of the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. have provided landscaping for 50 Habitat for Humanity homes since July 2007. http://www.ffgc.org/projects/hab_humanity/lakeland.html

Garden Club in New Jersey Promotes Garden Therapy

http://longvalley.patch.com/articles/garden-club-therapy-committee-works-with-seniors


The Garden Club of Long Valley in Morris County N.J., of The Garden Club of New Jersey and National Garden Clubs Inc. works with seniors at a local center on a great garden therapy project. 

Ideas on Holiday Table Settings

Holiday Table Settings-National Capital Areas blog article

Check this out for great ideas for the holidays!

Rivanna, Albermarle and Charlottesville Garden Clubs Decorate Amtrak Station--story and video

garden-clubs-decorate-amtrak-station  Video and story from NBC29.com

It's all part of Historic Garden Week.

VA Garden Offers Garden Therapy

The Garden Club of Danville, Ill., of the Garden Clubs of Illinois, Inc., and part of National Garden Clubs Inc. has launched a healing garden at the Veterans Affairs Illiana Health Care System. http://commercial-news.com/local/x967713461/Garden-at-VA-offers-beauty-therapy/print

Three Rivers Garden Club Cultivates Young Minds

Three Rivers Garden Club of The Garden Club of Georgia, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. announces its partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Rome to install a vegetable and flower garden. http://www.3riversgardenclub.com/Civic_Involvement.php

Blue Star Memorial Marker Dedicated By Georgia Garden Club

A Blue Star Memorial marker has been placed by garden club members as part of the national National Garden Clubs Inc. Blue Star Memorial Program at the site of the Jones County Veterans Memorial at Jones County, Ga., in honor of our nation's veterans. http://www.jcnews.com/view/full_story/10177476/article-Celebration-for-local-veterans-set-Saturday-at-civic-center?instance=home_news_lead_story

California Garden Club Celebrates 'Memories And Mums"

Members of the Clear Lake Trowel & Trellis Garden Club of California Garden Clubs Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. hold annual fall chrysanthemum show on Nov. 12.
http://lakeconews.com/content/view/16771/919/

Cincinnati Garden Clubs Dedicate Blue Star Memorial Marker Nov. 7

The Cincinnati, Ohio-area garden clubs of The Garden Club of Ohio, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. will dedicate a Blue Star Memorial marker on November 7, 2010. http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20101105/NEWS01/11060315/Veteran-s-Day-pa

Sullivan Garden Club Dedicates Blue Star Memorial

The Sullivan Garden Club of the Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. will dedicate a Blue Star Memorial marker on Nov. 6. http://www.mysullivannews.com/2010/11/garden-club-will-dedicate-blue-star-memorial-nov-6/

'Golden Days' Marks Alta Vista Garden Club Project

The Alta Vista Garden Club of the Arizona Federation of Garden Clubs Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. planted 500 daffodil bulbs at Veterans Memorial Park in Prescott, Ariz. to honor past garden club members throughout the nation. http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=86969

Missouri Garden Club Dedicates 'Pink Garden' For Breast Cancer Awareness

Mountain View Garden Club of the Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. recently dedicated a "pink garden" for breast cancer awareness as part of NGC's garden therapy program. http://www.howellcountynews.com/Stories/news_20101103_072621_24752_.php

NGC Invites Lexington Children To Participate In Poster Contest

The Lexington Field and Garden Club of the Garden Federation of Massachusetts, Inc. is inviting children in first- through-fifth-grade to participate in National Garden Clubs' 2011 Smokey Bear and Woodsy Owl poster contest. http://www.wickedlocal.com/lexington/features/x2115298063/Lexington-children-invited-to-participate-in-poster-contest

Ellsworth Garden Club Wins New England Regional Award

The Ellsworth Garden Club of the Garden Club Federation of Maine recently received the Laura Wetmore Conservation Award for its efforts in environmental education and conservation for a hummingbird and butterfly planting project. http://fenceviewer.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50887:Ellsworth%20Garden%20Club%20Wins%20New%20England%20Regional%20Award&catid=967:feature&Itemid=78

Garden Therapy Project Plants It Pink at Health Care Center in O'Fallon, MO.

The Fleur de Lis Garden Society of the Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri and National Garden Clubs Inc. plant pink in honor of breast cancer awareness. http://suburbanjournals.stltoday.com/articles/2010/10/30/stcharles/news/1027stc-plant0.txt

Garden Club Members Stop To Smell The Roses

Members of the Sayville, N.Y. Garden Club of the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. participate in a variety of civic and environmental projects.
http://sayville.patch.com/articles/sayville-garden-club-members-stop-to-smell-the-roses

Ohio Garden Club Helps Seniors Enjoy Garden Therapy

Members of the Carrollton Garden Club of The Garden Club of Ohio, Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc. helped seniors at Carroll Golden Age Retreat with a garden therapy project. See
http://www.freepressstandard.com/Accent/02102810.htm

West Virginia Garden Club Holds Plant It Pink Garden Dedication

In recognition of October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, members of the Williamson Wildwood Garden Club of West Virginia Garden Club Inc. and National Garden Clubs Inc., dedicated a "Plant It Pink" garden on the grounds of the Mingo County Courthouse. http://www.williamsondailynews.com/view/full_story/9984478/article

Garden Club in Tennessee Touts Benefits of Garden Therapy

The Magnolia Garden Club, member of the Tennessee Federation of Garden Clubs, Inc. and National Garden Clubs, Inc., presented "Garden Therapy-How Seniors Benefit," which explored the many benefits of garden therapy for seniors, including physical activity, relaxation, skill and social development, psychological well-being, sensory stimulation and intellectual and personal growth.
http://www.clevelandbanner.com/view/full_story/9967112/article-Club-Notes--%E2%80%98Garden-Therapy%E2%80%99-was-topic-for-Magnolia-Garden-Club?instance=main_article

National Garden Clubs Plant It Pink For Breast Cancer Awareness

The Fleur de Lis Garden Society of St. Charles County and member of the Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri and National Garden Clubs Inc., dedicated a pink container garden at Progress West Health Care Center in O'Fallon, Mo., as part of NGC's "Plant It Pink" program that promotes breast cancer education and awareness.
NGC encourages garden clubs across the U.S. to implement Plant It Pink initiatives at hospitals, cancer centers, memorial gardens and more as part of its ongoing garden therapy program. See http://interact.stltoday.com/pr/business/PR10181001114610 for more information.

Louisiana Garden Club Federation Inc. Promotes Breast Cancer Awareness Through NGC National Program

Joining in the effort to increase breast cancer awareness, research and education, Louisiana Garden Club Federation Inc. has adopted National Garden Clubs' "Plant It Pink" Awards program. The NGC Plant It Pink program offers a "Pink Trowel" state award and a "Pink Glove" club award for participating garden clubs nationwide that initiate an outstanding Plant It Pink program at a health care facility. See http://www.louisianagardenclubs.org/projects/plant_it_pink.htm.

Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut Dedicate Children's Garden at New Connecticut Science Center

The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut, Inc. recently dedicated a children's interactive rooftop terrace garden in Hartford, Conn., that promotes lifelong learning and exploration. For more information, logon to http://www.ctgardenclubs.org/sciencecenter.html

Green Thumbs Head To Great Falls, MT

The Montana Federation of Garden Clubs recently hosted the 2010 National Garden Clubs' Fall Conference in Great Falls, MT. KFBB-TV, an affiliate of ABC-TV, featured the week-long event on a newscast:
http://www.kfbb.com/news/local/Green-Thumbs-To-Great-Falls-103889399.html

Blue Star Memorials Now On Facebook

The Blue Star Memorial project began in 1944 with the planting of 8,000 dogwood trees by the New Jersey Council of Garden Clubs as a living memorial to veterans of World War II. The following year, National Garden Clubs adopted and expanded the program by initiating the Blue Star Highway system, which involves placing permanent memorial markers along the nation’s highways. “The Blue Star Memorial program is our oldest and most revered program,” says Renee D. Blaschke, NGC president. “We are proud to play a visible role in honoring our nation’s servicemen and servicewomen.”

Since the program’s inception, more than 2,163 Blue Star Memorials have been erected across the United States. The large, handsome metal markers are placed in national cemeteries, parks, government facilities, veterans homes and hospitals, and along highways across the U.S.

To help NGC members keep up on Blue Star Memorial activities across the nation, NGC has
set up a special Facebook page named “Blue Star Memorial Project of National Garden Clubs.” On the page, you’ll find photos, discussions and links to news articles about new memorial markers, dedications, fundraisers and restoration efforts. You can also share your own Blue Star news and photos by posting to the site.

If you’re on Facebook already, simply search for the page by name and join in. You can also access the page at this URL: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Blue-Star-Memorial-Project-of-National-Garden-Clubs/311974175292?ref=ts.

Share Your Garden Club Photos Via Flickr

You’re invited to visit and enjoy NGC’s new public Flickr site (or “photostream”) at www.flickr.com/nationalgardenclubs. The recently launched site--designed to create and nurture a photo archive for garden club members nationwide--showcases award-winning gardens, floral arrangements, conventions, news and projects. Anyone can view the NGC site simply by going to the link listed; you do NOT need to be a Flickr member. Photos on the official NGC photostream are licensed appropriately through Creative Commons; this allows the images to be used for publicity purposes in the news media as well as by NGC-affiliated clubs.

In addition to the official NGC photostream, the Flickr site features several affiliated “groups.” The groups, which can be public or private, offer garden club “photobugs” an easily accessible channel for uploading, pooling, categorizing and displaying their own photos. A major goal of these group pools is to make a wide variety of images available to garden club members everywhere for use in local, state, regional and national newsletters, brochures and websites, as well as educational demonstrations and training. High quality photos from the groups may also be selected for inclusion in the main public NGC photostream site and digital archive.

Initial groups include:
www.flickr.com/groups/NGC_conventions/
www.flickr.com/groups/NGC_flowershows/
www.flickr.com/groups/NGC_projects/

Additional groups will be created as interest in garden club photo sharing grows. Group rules and licensing information are available on the group sign-up pages.

To join a group and contribute photos and comments to the group pool, you need to have both a Yahoo!® email account (Flickr is affiliated with Yahoo!) and a Flickr account. Both are free, quick and easy to set up, and accessible on the Flickr sign-up page at www.flickr.com.

For more information on photo sharing through Flickr, please contact Robin Pokorski, NGC Photo Archives Chair, at robinp@juno.com.

Anna-Jo Garden Club in Anna, Ill., honors service men and women with rededication of Blue Star Memorial

Thanks to the Gazette-Democrat of Union County, Ill., for this story of the rededication of the Blue Star Memorial by the Anna-Jo Garden Club.

http://annanews.com/articles/2010/09/02/news/doc4c7fe2f8d6e3e396261489.txt

Great Garden Club pix on Flickr

Check out National Garden Clubs' new Flickr page. There's great photos of flower shows, Blue Star Memorials, garden therapy, etc.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalgardenclubs/

Tampa area garden clubs gear up for fall/winter and new members

http://southtampa2.tbo.com/content/2010/sep/01/st-garden-clubs-prepare-for-busy-fall-winter-activ/

Martha Franck Fragrance Garden, Gov. Morehead School for the Blind,Raleigh, N.C.

Complete Story

Martha Franck Fragrance Garden, Gov. Morehead School for the Blind, Raleigh, N.C. Photo by Lori Walston, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Originally uploaded by National Garden Clubs

Native plant idea: Butterfly Weed

This attractive perennial also attracts hummingbirds... here's more

Butterfly Weed as a Great Perennial

Garden Clubs Dedicate Blue Star Memorials Nationwide

Dedicating and maintaining Blue Star Memorial Markers has been a major interest of National Garden Club members for decades.  Here is a news story highlighting a recent project in St. Charles, Missouri, sponsored by the First Capitol Garden Club.

(With thanks to the St. Louis Suburban Journals, stltoday.com)
 Blue Star Dedication in St. Charles

Cool Season Vegetable Gardening Can Cultivate More Green In Your Pocketbook This Fall While Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

National Garden Clubs Says Home Vegetable, Fruit and Herb Gardening
Makes Sense in Today’s World

ST. LOUIS – Late summer may sound like the wrong time to start or extend a home vegetable garden. However, for Americans concerned about rising food and fuel prices, produce safety and environmental issues, planting a fall or cool-season vegetable garden in the heat of summer makes a lot of sense.

In fact, Renee Blaschke, president of the not-for-profit National Garden Clubs Inc., which is the largest volunteer organization of its type in the world, says that the surge in home vegetable, herb and fruit gardening that emerged across the U.S. this spring and early summer shows no signs of abating.

“As noted in many news reports, American seed companies and garden centers have experienced a banner year for selling vegetable, fruit and herb seeds and starter plants,” Blaschke says. “People are widely concerned about combating rising food costs, avoiding contaminated produce and reducing their ‘carbon footprints’ by eating locally grown food that eliminates fuel consumption associated with shipping. In this environment, interest in home vegetable gardening has really ignited and should continue to grow.”

Blaschke notes that novice vegetable gardeners may not realize how easily the home-growing season can be extended several months by using the proper techniques and planning for local soil and climate conditions. To help gardeners attain success in growing their own produce, National Garden Clubs offers these tips:

Start small. If you’re just getting started as a gardener, remember that your vegetable patch should be small enough to plant and maintain easily.
Think outside the pot. Vegetable and herb gardens come in all shapes and sizes, from raised beds to containers of all varieties. Herbs can be grown in small portable containers and brought inside during the winter. Tomatoes can be grown in containers, traditional beds or even bales of hay dotted with soil-filled holes. Urban gardeners can plant on rooftops or window boxes. Home gardeners are often adaptable, creative folks who are only too happy to swap ideas with fellow growers.
Take advantage of online resources. Information on growing vegetables and cool-weather crops in various regions and zones is available through university extension programs and a variety of online gardening sites and blogs.
Don’t go it alone. With some 200,000 members and 6,300 member and affiliated clubs, National Garden Clubs Inc. offers support and resources, including local gardening courses that are open to the public for minimal fees. To locate a garden club in your area or to check course listings, visit the NGC Web site at www.gardenclub.org.

Garden Therapy Makes a Difference...Here's How One School Uses It, with the Help of Garden Club Members

Enjoying the beauty of a leisurely stroll in a garden on a spring day is something most people take for granted. But, as members of National Garden Clubs across the nation can attest, for many individuals, the sensory delights offered by a garden can add up to much more than a pleasant way to pass the time. In fact, the concept of “garden therapy” as a tool to improve the lives of people of all ages and abilities is gaining ever-wider acceptance. Nowhere is this more apparent than at a well-respected school for visually impaired children in Raleigh, N.C., according to Renee Blaschke, of Smithville, Texas, president of the 200,000-member National Garden Clubs Inc.



Read more
Garden Therapy Success

Congratulations to Award of Excellence Winners!

ST. LOUIS (May 26, 2010)—National Garden Clubs Inc. recently announced the winners of its highest honor: the national 2010 Award of Excellence competition. The winners, who were recognized at NGC’s annual convention May 16 in Atlanta, are: Sydney Eddison, a nationally known gardening expert, lecturer and author; Chris Pendleton, president and chief executive officer of the Edison & Ford Winter Estates; and Laura Turner Seydel, a national environmental activist and eco-living expert.





Read about them and their accomplishments here.

2010 Award of Excellence Winners Announced