Upcoming Events List
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Civic Beautification Project
Plant and maintain the Butterfly Garden and the Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens.
9:00 - 10:00 Butterfly Garden
10:00-2:00 Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens: For those who would like to, please bring a picnic lunch & beverage for noontime. This is a great way to be with your fellow members and meet new garden friends.
FGCV Annual Meeting
“Gardening Fosters Connections”
Saint Albans Museum, 9 Church Street, St. Albans, Vermont
Register on the FGCV website: https://www.vermontfgcv.com . Registration forms also available at club meetings, and as printable attachment in BGC member emails, or by contacting Karen Villanti/ email: kvillanti@gmail.com.
Registration Fee: $45.00 covers registration fee, coffee/pastry on arrival, buffet luncheon, program which includes awards and guest speaker. Following the meeting, you will have the choice of visiting the Saint Albans Museum exhibits stamuseum.org or touring historic Taylor Park with curator Kelly Wakefield.
Deadline to register: May 29, 2026
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Recent Meteorological Trends in VT and Their Effects
In 2023, the US Dept of Agriculture (USDA) updated the Plant Hardiness Zones to reflect a 2.5 degree F. warmer 30 year average (1991-2020). The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map helps gardeners choose perennials best suited to their location. In addition to the warmer climate, VT has experienced unprecedented floods and droughts which greatly affect the state’s agriculture, including crop, hay and fruit yields and the production of maple syrup. A Meteorologist from NBC5 will outline these trends and provide a brief synopsis of the effects on Vermonters. This event is open to the public.
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
The World of Birds: Nature Finds a Way
There are over 10,000 species of birds in the world, each with their own incredible adaptations and ecological niches. Speaker Chip Darmstadt will take members on a visual tour of amazing creatures, from the exotic Sword-billed Hummingbird to Vermont’s state bird, the Hermit Thrush. You will explore how birds near and far adapt to their environments, navigate the challenge of migration and what you can do in your backyard to help our feathered friends. This event is open to the public.
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Artistic Landscaping and Garden Design
As an artist and horticulturist, Susie Lukens will discuss how she uses landscapes as living canvases, trees, shrubs, plants and natural elements as her subject matter and garden styles as her tools. Susie employs horticulture with artistic principles to create garden spaces as immersive works of art. Topics will include designing and creating four-season gardens, employing different garden styles, outdoor and indoor gardening, and pollinator gardens. This event is open to the public.
Annual Luncheon "Flowers for Birchwood"
Members convene for the annual BGC luncheon and contribute their creative talents to designing compact floral arrangements featuring vibrant flowers. These arrangements are subsequently delivered and displayed in Birchwood resident’s rooms and throughout the facility. Garden Club members provide the flowers used in the these arrangements through personal donations. This event is for members only.
Science and Art of Herbalism
Rosemary Gladstar is regarded as a prominent authority in American herbalism, recognized internationally for her knowledge and impact within the global herbalist community. With more than four decades of experience in studying, teaching, and writing about herbs, she has published eleven books. As an author and educator, she is often referred to as “the godmother of modern herbalism.” She will be addressing the Science & Art of Herbalism and introduce her new course of Conservation and Preservation. This event is open to the public.
Succulents & Cacti in the Home and Garden
Join Valerie Woodhouse as she delves into the fascinating world of succulents and cacti, from plant care and propagation to creative planters and combinations. Participants will receive information for growing and caring for succulents and cacti, a step-by-step propagation guide and a plant list of perennial succulents zoned for Vermont. Valerie, owner of Honey Field Farm, is a master in her field and has grown the nursery’s collection to over fifty varieties of succulents and cacti. This even is open to the public.
No Groan Gardening
No Grown Gardening. Does the thought of gardening make your muscles ache? Caleb Vallencourt, Personal Trainer, will provide practical tips to gardeners on the importance of stretching before gardening, using optimal body mechanics to minimize discomfort while gardening and incorporating post-gardening stretches too. Caleb will also demonstrate user-friendly exercise equipment such as foam rollers and resistance bands to achieve an overall positive gardening experience. This event is open to the public.
Landscape Design for Pollinators
Jane Sorensen is the River Farm co-owner, Northeast Pollinator Plants owner, Northeast Wild Seed Collectors, coordinator, and retired landscape architect and UVM Adjunct. As we domesticate the landscape, it is up to us domesticators to create habitat for pollinators in our own landscapes. Learn about what makes a good pollinator habitat and the various forms they can take, from meadows to formal gardens. Jane will share her extensive list of habitat plants and suggest where you can find seeds, plants and more information to empower you to enhance your pollinator landscape. Jane is enthusiastic about pollinator habitat enhancement and loves any opportunity to spread the word. This event is open to members only.
Club Meeting: “Creating Biodiverse Gardens and Landscapes”
Denise is a Certified UVM Extension Master Gardener since 2011; she studied beekeeping and became certified as a Natural Beekeeper in Vermont learning about the needs and care of honeybees. After reading about the decline of native bumblebees in Vermont, she gave up her honeybee hives, began studying, and planting more native flowers, shrubs, and trees to help increase biodiversity and habitat on her property. As the co-chair of The Hyde Park Energy and Conservation Committee, she partnered with her municipality and Bee the Change to create pollinator habitat and replace lawns in her town of Hyde Park. She partnered with Pollinator Pathways of Lamoille County in 2022 and began co-creating educational events and projects for the county-wide organization’s membership and partner, the Lamoille County Conservation District. She enjoys meeting new biodiverse animals, insects, plants, and people that cohabitate in Vermont’s beautiful natural landscapes to the UK and Europe.
Club Meeting: Speaker Henry Homeyer
Henry Homeyer is garden writer who has written for newspapers around New England weekly for over 25 years, and is the author of 4 gardening books including “The Vermont Gardeners Companion” (Globe Pequot Press). He has worked as a garden designer and installer, and his own garden in Cornish Flat, NH has over 100 types of trees and shrubs and that he has planted in his 55 years of gardening there. He has tried just about every perennial that is hardy in his Zone 4 garden.
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Civic Beautification Project
Plant and maintain the Butterfly Garden and the Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens
9:00 - 10:00 Butterfly Garden
10:00-2:00 Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens: For those who would like to, please bring a picnic lunch & beverage for noontime. This is a great way to be with your fellow members and meet new garden friends.
*Every Wednesday 10:00 - 2:00 gardening help is welcomed.
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Civic Beautification Project
Plant and maintain the Butterfly Garden and the Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens
9:00 - 10:00 Butterfly Garden
10:00-2:00 Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens: For those who would like to, please bring a picnic lunch & beverage for noontime. This is a great way to be with your fellow members and meet new garden friends.
*Every Wednesday 10:00 - 2:00 gardening help is welcomed.
Special Club Meeting
Charlie Nardozzi is a Regional Emmy® award winning, nationally recognized garden writer, speaker, radio, and television personality. He has worked for more than 30 years
bringing expert gardening information to home gardeners through radio, television, talks, tours, on-line, and the printed page. Charlie delights in making gardening information
simple, easy, fun and accessible to everyone. He’s the author of 7 gardening books, has radio and TV shows in Vermont, speaks at venues around North America and reads
garden tourCreating Biodiverse Gardens and Landscapes.
Story Walk at the Garden Park
The Story Walk will be at the Tree House through September.
BGC Summer Tour #3
Open to BGC Members Only
Bring a folding chair and lunch to enjoy in the gardens.
Garden Therapy Project Hope Lodge
A home away from home for cancer patients, Hope Lodge has been a BGC project since 1990. BGC members plant and care for the meditation garden and other gardens, window boxes and planters on the site to bring some colorful cheer?
Your help would be very welcomed!
Civic Beautification Project
Plant and maintain the Butterfly Garden and the Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens.
9:00 - 10:00 Butterfly Garden
10:00-2:00 Grandma and Grandpa’s Gardens: For those who would like to, please bring a picnic lunch & beverage for noontime. This is a great way to be with your fellow members and meet new garden friends.
*Every Wednesday 10:00 - 2:00 gardening help is welcomed.
BGC Summer Tour #2
Open to BGC Members Only
Bring a folding chair and lunch to enjoy in the gardens.