For the next two years, our Federation will have a Theme, but, no, we will not have a President’s Project. We’re all dizzy from pivoting, reacting to ash borers, and microbursts, and vaccines.
Granted, by the time you read this, the “rules” may have changed yet again. I feel as though I’m finally being freed from being grounded, and I don’t mean the gardening or electrical varieties.
We’ve been itching to get out of our houses as much as we’ve wanted to get into the garden. With Memorial Day past, even those of us in the northwest corner may plant.
The same is true for so many who aren’t members of garden clubs—yet. Some of them discovered their patios or front stoops or back yards last year thanks to the pandemic. Others moved here within the last twelve months. Throughout Social Media, they post gardening questions.
They, too, are experiencing a primal urge to plant. They have questions, and look to us, their neighbors, for answers.
We have an opportunity and an obligation to assist them.
These garden newbies are the future of our clubs and, Indeed, of our planet. As Doug Tallamy says, “Garden as if your life depends on it.”
Will they purchase invasives? In their ignorance, will they use herbicides and insecticides indiscriminately?
Our Theme for the next two years will be
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Be their guides. Think before you snap an answer. Use the life lesson our judges use. Make your first comment positive. Make constructive suggestions. Save the vinegar for the weeds edging the driveway.
In doing so, we may gain garden club members. Who knows? Perhaps some will trade tech skills for your propagation or pruning know-how.
We’ll need to grow our collective tech skills. Thanks to a handful of tech- savvies, we began to Zoom last year. We discovered it’s a good tool to add to our toolboxes. — However, that story is for another day.
June 6-12th is National Garden Week.
If your club has activities that week, please take photos and send them to Kelle Ruden, Social Media Chair, to post on FGCCT's FaceBook or Instagram pages, and to Shelley Hedberg to post on our website.
Again, I celebrate you and what you do, and encourage you to continue to learn and grow, and to share what you learn and grow.
I look forward to visiting your club, be it virtually or in person over the next two years
Please join me as The Federation thanks Joan Burgess (Litchfield Garden Club) profusely. She shepherded us through the last six years as Manager of the CFNews. We are very grateful for her calm expertise.
Please join me as The Federation welcomes Marty Sherman (Pomperaug Valley Garden Club) as the new Manager of the CFNews. Thank you, Marty.
Polly Brooks
President
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Virtually Speaking …
We members of clubs in The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut, Inc., are also members of New England Garden Clubs and National Garden Clubs. This year, National Garden Club’s Annual Meeting, held May 19-21, 2021, was virtual.
Incoming NGC President Mary Warshauer's acceptance speech during this event was recorded and is available for all of us to hear — a silver lining to the virtual world we have all had to learn to navigate.
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Check the Event Calendar for any Member Clubs, Affiliate Organizations *, State or National events.
*Affiliates may submit up to six events each calendar year.
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Your National Garden Week Toolkit
Let’s spread the word that “We Grow Gardens and Gardeners” by joining National Garden Club members across the country to celebrate National Garden Week, June 6-12, 2021. This week is an opportunity to encourage pride in your community, interest new members in your Club, and work with other groups to be part of those efforts.
Looking for an easy way to publicize your Club’s participation in the upcoming National Garden Week? Our publicity team is providing you with the following:
- NGC Poster which can be customized to list your Club’s name,
- NGC Proclamation that can be used by your local officials, and
- Press release template that you can download to use with your local papers to publicize your events.
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Keep Liking Us!
FGCCT is on Facebook and Instagram and we love to post your news and photos! Please send upcoming events, club happenings, civics projects, milestones, and hort tips. Please include photos and a brief write- up of the news your club would like to share. The best format for submissions is text in an email with jpeg photos attached. Make the photos active, showing members at work or showcasing beautiful gardens, flowers, and plants (please name the flower if it is a hort only photo). These social media platforms offer a fun way to learn and connect. Let’s follow each other! Send your submissions to social@ctgardenclubs.org
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Tours - Looking Ahead to 2022! |
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As we receive our vaccines, travel is opening up again! We can plan ahead and look forward to some fabulous trips with FGCCT. Our groups are small by design for enjoyment and safety. We welcome you back to our upcoming tours! The following tours are in the works and not yet priced.
There is no obligation to join a tour by putting yourself on the interest list, but you will receive the brochure first and be given an opportunity to sign up a few days before the general mailing goes out to all club members.
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Land Tour to Alaska: Register your interest in a 8-10 night tour from Fairbanks to Anchorage in late June, 2022. Highlights will include domed train car from Fairbanks to Denali, staying at a lodge in Kantisha, inside Denali National Park, for two nights, a day cruise of the Kenai peninsula, dog-sledding experience, and much more. Limited space.
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Maine: Late July, 2022. Experience Maine's summer garden tours and all the beauty Maine has to offer.
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Nova Scotia: Sept. 7-14, 2022. Please register your interest in this Nova Scotia & Prince Edward Island garden tour. Highlights will be Cabot Trail, Peggy's Cove Lighthouse, Halifax Public Garden, Hopewell Rocks, Tangled Garden, Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens and Prince Edward Island.
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South Africa: late October into early November. A bucket list tour of South Africa horticultural wonders timed at the peak of the spring season in South Africa. A three night safari will be part of this tour. Space will be limited.
I would love to hear from you! Please tell me where you would like to go and what you would like to do!
Perhaps you would like to have more input on our tours! Please join our Tours Committee by emailing tours@ctgardenclubs.org
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"Treasury Notes"
"Treasury Notes" is a new feature of CFNews — in each issue, FGCCT Treasurer Shirley Hall will cover a different financial topic of interest to clubs. This and other Financial and Tax questions can be viewed at the FGCCT Club Corner website page.
DONATIONS
Does your Garden Club receive tax-deductible donations? You should! One of the benefits of Federal recognition as an educational and charitable 501 (c)(3) organization is the opportunity to receive donations from individuals, corporations, and other organizations which can help finance the important work our clubs do. We are clubs of volunteers. While we generously donate our time and talents to our clubs, we shouldn’t expect our members to provide all the income needed to support our club programs. Where does your club’s income come from? Many are tempted to say donations, but that is most likely not accurate. For one thing, the dues your members pay may only be considered a donation to the extent such payment exceeds the monetary value of the benefits of membership.
When you sell plants and treasures at your May Plant Sale, those receipts are not donations. What you sell may have been donated, but the purchaser receives something in exchange for the money they pay to your club. That is considered a sale. Now if someone, club member or community member, writes a check to your club to support your plant sale but receives no goods, that is a true donation. Ah, see the difference?
How does your club handle donations? The IRS requires that non-profit organizations acknowledge any monetary donation of $250 or more with a written letter which may be used as a receipt for tax purposes. This letter must contain:
- A statement declaring the nonprofit’s tax exempt status as a 501 (C)(3) including your club’s Federal EIN#;
- The name and address of the donor;
- The date the gift was received and the amount;
- A statement that no goods or services were received in exchange for the gift.
Many organizations set a lower limit. For example, The Federation acknowledges any tax-deductible donation of $100 or more with a formal acknowledgement letter, but also acknowledges other donations, regardless of amount, with either a computer generated receipt or a hand-written note from the appropriate Committee Chair. Regardless of IRS requirements, your donation acknowledgements should also express sincere thanks and a mention of how the funds may be used. It’s a good opportunity to tell the donor some information about all the good work your club does in the community!
I welcome comments and questions about DONATIONS.
Shirley Hall, FGCCT Treasurer
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92nd Annual Meeting – April 14, 2021
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The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut, Inc. conducted our 92nd Annual Meeting by a Zoom webinar on April 14. Over 400 members of garden clubs and affiliate organizations from across the state tuned in the webinar, which began with a fascinating and extremely enjoyable presentation by Julie Moir Messervy, world renowned and award winning landscape designer and acclaimed author.
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Landscape Design School 2 ~ March 23-24, 2021 via Zoom |
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Following Environmental School and Sharon Bender’s lead, we offered Landscape Design School 2 via ZOOM with an amazing response! Seventy-seven Landscape Design Consultants and prospective consultants joined us from as far away as California. Yes, they had to rise before the chickens to join us for a 7:30 AM registration time! Eleven different states were represented! Although we missed the camaraderie of having our program at Jones Auditorium, we had the opportunity to offer LDS to far more than the 60 student maximum, as well as get to meet new friends from around the country.
Everyone was thrilled with the testing process and passed with flying colors! Students entered a portal through a link sent by email to receive their exam and had the traditional two hours to complete it. Thanks to incredible technology, the results were available within moments. Being able to print out the exam with the correct answers was a fabulous way to reinforce the learning that had taken place.
The process would not have been successful without our team of proctors and remarkable presenters. Leslie Martino, Margery Winters, Heather Heimarck, Nancy DuBrule-Clemente, Barbara Schaedler and Peter Picone all went above and beyond to create presentations that conveyed the curriculum material in understandable and practical ways.
Now I have the pleasure of introducing the new Landscape Design School Chair. Sue Kelley will be leading LDS next March. She is an LDS consultant and helped as a proctor this year and in 2019. We hope to be back at Jones Auditorium in 2022 and I will continue to be part of the LDS team.
— Karin C. Ohr Pyskaty, First Vice President, FGCCT
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Gardening School Course 3, Series 8 ~ April 28-29, 2021 via Zoom |
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Gardening School Course 3 was held via Zoom on April 28-29, 2021. We had some wonderful instructors and participants. Judy Preston carried gardening to new levels, and Leslie Martino encouraged the participants to explore the ways that containers can fill all of those spaces with color, shape, and form.
We had one bump in the road, which Renee Marsh stepped in to fill so beautifully. Every class was well presented.
There were 34 participants: 17 students, 12 refreshing, and 5 attendees.
Thanks to all who helped make this school successful. Shelley Hedberg and Lesley Orlowski are extraordinary.
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Adam Wheeler’s presentation included the following fun fact:
Dichogamy The condition in which the male and female reproductive organs of a flower mature at different times, thereby ensuring that self-fertilization does not occur, but cross-pollination will. In Salvias the stamens ripen before the pistils, which is known as protandry.
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Connecticut Life Memberships |
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A wonderful way to recognize an individual's accomplishments and dedication to your club is to honor them with a Connecticut Life Membership in The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut. This prestigious honor is often presented at a special celebration, such as your club’s annual luncheon. The application can be found on the website under “Membership” or feel free to contact me.
Nan Merolla, FGCCT Second Vice President/Membership Chair
Phone: 203-216-0884.
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Youth Activities
New England Garden Clubs, Inc., awarded Savanna Alleyne First Place in her age group (third grade) for the poem she entered in National Garden Clubs, Inc., 2019-2020 Poetry Contest. She was sponsored by the North Haven Garden Club. Her award-winning poem was printed on the back cover of the FGCCT Awards Booklet last October, and is reprinted below.
[At right, Savanna Alleyne receives her $25 prize for her award-winning poem "The Flower Garden," reprinted below.
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The Flower Garden
In the garden there are daisies, roses and sunflowers
You can see butterflies gazing up in the sky and taking nectar from the flowers
Spiders making spider webs and eating insects that they catch
Ladybugs sitting on flowers in her red and black
Crickets singing and talking
Caterpillars on the leaf eating, waiting to become a chrysalis
Stomp, stomp, as the humans come into the garden
We all scatter away when we see big, giant feet
We are scared, we run and hide
The humans are trying to be helpful
They give us water and make us look neat and pretty
Soon there is silence and no more humans
In the garden, my flower garden, there are daisies, roses and sunflowers
The garden is alive in all her beauty
Shades of purple, orange, white, red, pink and yellow
What an adventure
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The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut, Inc., submitted poems and sculpture for the 2020-2021 contest. Again, the North Haven Garden Club sponsored winners! We’ll showcase this past year’s winners in the August/September CFNews.
The theme for the 2021-2022 Poetry Contest is “Sing with the Songbirds—Exploring the Glory of Nature.”
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Polly Brooks’ theme for the next two years, “We Grow Gardens and Gardeners” could not be more appropriate. By working with our youth, we teach them to appreciate our natural world and our environmental responsibilities. Use the springtime to create new school pollinator gardens, and plant home and community gardens. Let young people help raise vegetables to donate to food banks. Give them the rules and themes of next year’s poetry contest, Woodsy Owl and Smokey Bear contests and/or help them create a sculpture from recycled, reused and reduced materials. They have the entire summer to work for the betterment of our world and to express their creativity through the various national contests. Let’s see what they can do—and make sure to take lots of photos for your youth reports for next year!
— Dottie Fox, Youth Activities Chair
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FGCCT Nominating Committee |
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We’re excited to announce that a Nominating Committee has been formed to begin the process of filling several vacant positions on the FGCCT Board. The committee is comprised of club members from across the state, many of whom have been involved with The Federation for years and bring a wealth of experience and knowledge.
- Arlene Field, Chair (Long Hill Garden Club)
- Donna Nowak (Evergreen Country Gardeners)
- Trish Manfredi (Evergreen Country Gardeners)
- Karen Geisler (Duck River Garden Club of Old Lyme)
- Lesley Orlowski (Guilford Garden Club)
- Pat Dray (Garden Club of Orange)
We’re currently seeking qualified people for several exciting positions to help The Federation move forward. Two of the open positions are Assistant Treasurer and Scholarship Chair. To accelerate the brand awareness for all the great work The Federation is doing, we’re looking for a Public Relations Chair. Lastly, with Nan Merolla moving into the role of Second Vice President, we’re seeking a Meetings Chair to organize and oversee our Annual and Awards Meetings. If any of these positions sound interesting, the Committee would like to hear from you.
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Sunflowers
By Renee Marsh
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When you hear "sunflower" what comes to mind? The giant annual sunflower, Helianthus annuus, of course! Oh what charms - poets have swooned, Van Gogh fell hard! A flower that launched a thousand t-shirts and no one even thinks about the fact that it is a powerhouse provider of seed and oil. Wow, what more can I say? Well … nothing. It does not need more press. Instead I am going to explore its overlooked cousins, the other 150 plants in the sunflower genus. That genus would be Helianthus (Greek helios meaning sun, anthos meaning flower) which is mostly perennial and native to North and Central America. The genus is in the daisy family, Asteraceae, one of the largest plant families.
Helianthus are late-season bloomers coming in at the end of summer and into the fall. The plants are multi-branched with daisy-like (of course) yellow and gold flowers that vary slightly from species to species. Yes, the flowers are smaller than their show-offy cousin but they are profuse and long-lasting. The dark green leaves can be heart-shaped or lance-shaped, making an attractive backdrop for earlier summer-blooming flowers. When in bloom, sunflowers pair well with most of the late-season flowers like goldenrod and asters and purple-flowered fall plants like coneflowers and Joe-Pye weed. They also dance well with late-season, red-tinged switch grasses like Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah' or ‘Prairie Fire’. Height varies greatly by species, some reach only two to three feet tall and others top ten feet.
Perennial sunflowers make great cut flowers. For arranging I find them more versatile than the heavy, clunky giant sunflowers. Of course you will have to beat the bees and butterflies off of them! According to Doug Tallamy, Helianthus is a keystone genus for pollinators including our specialized bees.
Helianthus are relatively low maintenance. They bloom best in full sun. Less than five hours of sun will lead to floppiness. Nothing sadder than a floppy sunflower… While fairly tolerant of most soil types and pH, soil with lots of organic matter is preferred. Be careful not to overfeed though as that will again cause them to flop about. They need well-drained soil and are most happy with even moisture but some species will tolerate drought once established. Relatively pest-free, they are prone to powdery mildew so plenty of air circulation is in order. Most Helianthus are clump-forming, spreading about three to four feet wide. HOWEVER, some have rambunctious rhizomes and can become aggressive in the garden. It varies by species and cultivar so caution – or lots of room – is in order. The following is a short list of options.
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Helianthus salicifolius, known as willowleaf sunflower, has narrow, willow-like leaves and is low maintenance but a traveler. There are, however, some more restrained cultivars for those who want order. ‘First Light’ grows into a manageable three feet tall clump of fuzzy, linear leaves. It is blanketed in flowers in the late summer and into the fall when most other Helianthus are past. ‘Autumn Gold’ is even more petite, growing two feet tall and wide with bright golden yellow flowers.
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Helianthus 'Lemon Queen' is a tall girl that reaches six to eight feet tall and four to six feet wide. It is hard to miss especially when covered with intense, light yellow two to three inch flowers from July to September. She is the recipient of the British Award of Garden Merit.
With a name like Swamp Sunflower, it is hard for Helianthus angustifolius to compete, but it won’t be overlooked at six feet tall. The two inch yellow flowers have a reddish center disk and bloom from late September through October. Think about these against the clear blue skies of fall and paired with a panicle hydrangea that is fading to pink like Hydrangea paniculata ‘Quickfire’. As the name suggests, it is quite content in moist soils.
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And finally, for those who are more excited growing vegetables, there is Helianthus tuberosus also known as sunchoke or Jerusalem artichoke (not from there and not an artichoke). First cultivated by Native Americans, it is now the darling of survivalists who think it will get them through Armageddon. It might. H. tuberosus is notorious for growing with rampant abandon and being almost impossible to eradicate. I suspect it will outlast us humans. In the meantime, I will admire the sunny flowers and the swarms of pollinators they bring.
“Smile to the world and smile to the people you love, as a sunflower smiles at the sun.”– Remez Sasson
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Bee a Hero for Mother Nature: Pollinator Pathway
— by Faith Tyldsley. [Faith is a member of the Simsbury Garden Club. This article was written by Faith and originally published on March 27, 2021, by The Granby Drummer. It is reprinted here with the permission of The Granby Drummer.]
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, three-quarters of the world’s flowering plants and about 35 percent of the world’s food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce. Climate change, habitat loss, intensive farming, and pesticides are all major contributors to losses of both native insect pollinators and commercially managed honeybee colonies in the United States …
The Pollinator Pathway
Pollinator Pathway energy has been zipping through Connecticut over the past five years. In 2017, the town of Wilton, in Fairfield County, led the charge through the collaboration of several visionary women. Their efforts started a movement which has spread from town to town, with people from land trusts, garden clubs, conservation commissions and watershed associations working hand-in-hand with nature centers, municipalities, schools, scout troops and businesses.
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Newtown Conservation Commission introduces Native Plant Resource Guide |
— by Holly Kocet. [Holly is a member and past president of the Garden Club of Newtown. She is also president and founding member of Protect Our Pollinators, and current Newtown Conservation Commission chair.]
Newtown Conservation Commission, in association with Monroe Conservation, has prepared a Native Plant Resource Guide to strongly encourage developers, landscape architects, municipal workers, landscapers, and homeowners to use native plants that naturally occur in our area. The Guide also provides guidance on plants and their benefits, landscape uses, and local sources for native plants.
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"Club Corner" is a new feature of the CFNews designed to allow clubs or individual club members to showcase achievements and activities. It corresponds to a new menu option on the FGCCT website, where you can find Field Trips, the Speakers Directory, Tips for Clubs and coming soon, instructional articles (Zoom, Tax Tips, etc.), articles and photographs submitted by clubs (including from club newsletters or websites) and more. Visit often for the latest news from your fellow gardeners! |
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In Naugatuck, a Blue Star Memorial |
Through a program with the National Garden Clubs and with the Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut (FGCCT), the Naugatuck Garden Club presented a Blue Star Memorial to the Borough of Naugatuck to honor all those serving in the Armed Forces of the USA. Pictured (from left to right) are Gerry McCabe, President of the Naugatuck Garden Club, Arlene Field, Past President of the FGCCT, Patti Buchanan, President-elect of the Naugatuck Garden Club, Krista Swanson Fiorini, Blue Star Chair of the FGCCT, and Polly Brooks, President of the FGCCT. A cold, rainy and windy day did not stop a multitude of town residents and military dignitaries from attending a very moving ceremony hosted by John DeBisschop, Naugatuck Veterans Council Chairman, ending with the unveiling and presentation of the memorial to the people of Naugatuck.
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In Full Bloom: A New Garden Club Grows During The Pandemic
— by Trish Manfredi and Carole Fromer
Who would think that a new garden club could sprout during the pandemic? That's what happened in Glastonbury in 2020-2021!
For many years, there were six garden clubs in Glastonbury. Working together through the Glastonbury Council of Garden Clubs, they developed community activities, a Horticultural Specialty Show, decorating community buildings, and planting trees in town, among other projects. When declining numbers caused two clubs to disband, there were just four clubs.
At a Spring 2019 Council meeting, about club size, an Evergreen Garden Club representative wondered about joining Country Gardeners. The clubs were similar: evening meetings, long-time members who had held leadership positions several times over, plant sales, slow but steady growth of new younger members. Both clubs had about 25 members. Evergreen President Valerie Escalera, and Country Gardeners President Carole Fromer led their respective Executive Boards in weighing the pros and cons of combining the two clubs and presented the idea to their clubs. After much discussion, the clubs decided to move forward.
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Evergreen Country Gardeners Hard at Work in the Gardens... |
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Annual Spring Clean-Up of the Love Memorial Garden, 2277 Main Street in the center of town. In 1992, the garden was created in memory of Paul Love, who maintained public gardens around tow. The garden was redesigned and replanted in 2012. Club members weed, fertilize and deadhead weekly from mid-May through October. |
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Kathy Harris, (L) President, Evergreen Country Gardeners and new member Heather Hervieux, show off newly dug day lilies, among the 150 herbs, iris, Russian sage, and other perennials that 10 club members 'potted' up last week from a member's garden in Glastonbury for the club's Plant Sale May 8. (Photos: Trish Manfredi)
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... and at the Wadsworth Atheneum! |
Evergreen Country Gardeners Garden Club of Glastonbury was invited to participate in May Flowers at Hartford’s Wadsworth Atheneum by creating floral designs around the Fountain in Avery Court for a May weekend. A team led by Trish Manfredi developed arrangements in four colors: pinks, purples, greens and yellow/orange to contrast with the 9 foot marble statue in the center of the fountain. Challenged by the dry atmosphere of the museum, requiring long-lasting flowers plus restrictions to use only commercial plant material (to prevent bugs), and the need to create large designs, the team had less than four hours to work their magic.
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Pink Protea, carnations and peach hypericum berries accented by grapevine wreath swirls in a design by Donna Nowak and Kathy Harris. |
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Bells of Ireland, lime green carnations, mums and green hypericum berries were combined with fascinated pussy willow by Trish Manfredi. |
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Accented by purple wire swirls, liatris, burgundy hypericum berries, astromeria, carnations and ornamental cabbage, were combined by Alison Feaster assisted by Mary Ann Valk, into a tall design. |
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Stunning Birds of Paradise, football mums, pincushion protea, hypericum berries, astromeria in yellows and oranges were blended into a design by Trish Manfredi. |
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Kensington Garden Club "Chairs" A Mother's Day Sale |
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Kensington Garden Club members painted old chairs in bright spring colors, then paired them with floral arrangements for their May Mother's Day Plant Sale. |
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The creative and whimsical project was a great success, doubling the club's profits from the annual event. |
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In the ultimate "re-cycling," bicycles got into the act as well, sporting new coats of paint and floral designs. |
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A "Fanciful Farm" from the Daytime Gardeners of North Haven |
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Members of the Daytime Gardeners of North Haven displayed a Fanciful Farm for the Spring Fantasy Drive-Through event held May 1 at The Landings of North Haven. A large vegetable garden featured giant carrots and radishes with some bunnies digging down to grab a nibble. A giant caterpillar was creeping across the garden in search of food. Mr. Duck was pushing a wheelbarrow load of fancy eggs to the farm stand. The lady farmer was sitting with a mother carrot watching over the baby carrot and the farm stand, which was filled with whimsical fruits and vegetables. Three fanciful pastel trees were decorated with birdhouses and toile flowers. Community members drove through the exhibits with children to celebrate spring.
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Litchfield Garden Club Celebrates Earth Day |
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The Litchfield Garden Club’s (LGC) history with Earth Day began at its inception fifty-one years ago, with a celebration spearheaded by member Doris Hamlin, who was at the forefront of the conservation movement; the LGC planted a tree on North Street to commemorate that first Earth Day. The Treescape project continues and to date approximately 225 trees and shrubs have been planted in Litchfield. To celebrate Earth Day 2021, LGC Conservation Chair Grace Yagtug organized a tree-planting ceremony. Despite the April snow showers and freezing temperatures, members planted four symbolic crabapple trees at the Tapping Reeve Meadow in Litchfield. One tree honors Earth Day 2020, since the LGC’s planned activities were postponed due to pandemic restrictions. One tree honors Earth Day 2021. One tree is a memorial dedicated to LGC members lost over the past year and for those who suffered losses due to Covid. The fourth tree was planted in tribute to first responders who have served dutifully during the pandemic.
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Annie Borzilleri, LGC President, addresses club members at the Tapping Reeve Meadow in Litchfield. |
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(L-R) Sara Gault, Annie, Julia Metcalf and Kate Jamison, Horticulture Chair, bundled up and ready to dig. |
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Grace Yagtug, Conservation Chair, planting one of the crabapple trees. |
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Donations by Garden Clubs to our Scholarship, Garden Therapy and World Gardening Funds |
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We thank the following Garden Clubs for their recent donations to the FGCCT Scholarship Fund.* For almost 40 years, the Federation has awarded scholarships to college and university students who major in Agronomy, Botany, City Planning, Conservation, Environmental Studies, Floriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Land Management, Landscape Design, Plant Pathology, or allied subjects. We welcome donations of any size. Our appeal is ongoing to give all of our clubs the opportunity to make a contribution in the amount of their choosing.
* Correction: Please note that the FGCCT Scholarships were inadvertently identified as National Garden Club (NGC) awards in the April/May CFNews. These scholarships are awarded annually by FGCCT and funded through donations from clubs and individuals.
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Scholarship Donations as of May 16, 2021 |
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Litchfield Garden Club in honor of Polly Brook’s Presidency
Long Hill Garden Club in honor of Arlene Field’s Presidency
Kensington Garden Club
Cheshire Garden Club
Greens Farms Garden Club
Garden Club of Old Greenwich
Glastonbury Garden Club
Morris Cove Garden Club
Wallingford Garden Club
Town & Country Garden Club
Riverside Garden Club
Garden Club of Madison
Trish Manfredi
Sabina Franco
Karin Pyskaty
Arlene Field
Gini Mita
Kelle Ruden
Amy Henderson
Marana Brooks
Donna Abbott
Anne Harrigan
Madeleine Hexter
Patricia Samek
Donna Doyle
Signian McGeary
Gary and Kathy Leeds
Kandra Houston
Leila Kayal
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$300
$400
$50
$50
$100
$300
$300
$50
$200
$250
$100
$1,000
$25
$15
$20
$100
$15
$25
$15
$25
$50
$25
$25
$100
$25
$100
$50
$25
$100
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Garden Therapy Donations as of May 16, 2021 |
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Kensington Garden Club
Cheshire Garden Club
Greens Farms Garden Club
Morris Cove Garden Club
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World Gardening Donations as of May 16, 2021 |
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Change in procedure for mailing donation checks: The position of Assistant Treasurer is currently vacant, therefor all checks for donations should be mailed directly to the FGCCT Treasurer for deposit, and, as always, made out to FGCCT with the appropriate Fund listed on the memo line.
The Treasurer will notify the appropriate Chair of all donations. Please note that due to the deadline for articles and information for the CFNews, some donations may not be received and deposited in time to be included in the bi-monthly donation acknowledgement, but will be included in the next issue of our newsletter.
Mail checks to
Shirley Hall, Treasurer
21 Tamarac Swamp Road
Wallingford, CT 06492
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Publications from National Garden Clubs, Inc.
and New England Garden Clubs, Inc.
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Tips to use online calendar and submitting a calendar event - click buttons below.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram
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URGENT NOTICE
ALL FGCCT CLUBS MUST FILE WITH THE IRS!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR CLUB PRESIDENTS AND TREASURERS
To maintain your garden club's Tax Exemption status, your club MUST file with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) EVERY YEAR. You must file a form 990, 990-EZ, or 990N (the e-postcard).
Clubs that fail to file an annual 990-series return or notice, for three consecutive years, will AUTOMATICALLY lose their tax-exempt status.
or Go To
www.irs.gov, then click link for "Charities & Non-Profits."
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Deadline to submit articles/photos, ads and calendar events for the August/September 2021 issue of The Connecticut Federation News is July 10, 2021. Please submit to:
ARTICLES/PHOTOS
Marty Sherman
ADVERTISING
Barbara Rombald
PO Box 854, Branford, CT 06405
203.488.5528
CALENDAR
Ellie Tessmer
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State, Regional &
National Events
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