News

Operation Wildflower Workshop Thursday, March 25, 2010 9:00 AM 3:00 PM Holly House Registration and Continental Breakfast 9:00 AM: Bring your own lunch and mug! 'Nurture Our World For a Beautiful Tomorrow' is President Warshauer’s theme. She has chosen 'Help Save Our Native Swamp Pink for the Children of the World' as her project. Her goal is to establish a Swamp Pink Colony in the Rutgers' Garden! This is a 'Grand and Glorious' project, which will mark the 10th anniversary of our projects under five presidents in cooperation with the Rutgers Gardens.  Let us all support her in this noble task! CLICK HERE  for additional information and registration form. (MS Word doc - opens in new window)

NATIONAL GARDEN WEEK JUNE 6-12, 2010 National Garden Week has been designated by the National Garden Clubs, Inc. and President Renee Blaschke has two key projects which are excellent and timely-the “Glory Days” Daffodil Project and “Beautify Blight”. CLICK HERE to learn more (PDF) (If you are unable to open the PDF, click here to go to download a free Adobe Reader from the Adobe website.)

Blue Star’s 65th Anniversary and Dedication of a Blue Star Memorial Marker The Blue Star Drive concept was announced as a joint program between Garden Club of New Jersey and the New Jersey State Highway Department (now Department of Transportation or DOT) during the summer of 1944. The plan sought to protect and beautify the countryside for the return of the men and women from New Jersey who defended the safety of this nation.  To celebrate this successful project, which began 65 years ago and has since spread across the nation, a commemoration of this anniversary took place on November 6, 2009, at the NJ Veterans Memorial Home in Vineland, NJ. It was most fitting to pay tribute and honor our veterans with a beautiful memorial. The dedication of a Blue Star Memorial Marker, framed by 3 raised gardens, paved walkways and generous, large-scale landscaping, highlighted the commemoration. Click here to read more.

GCNJ is Celebrating 65 Years   of the Blue Star Memorial along the nation’s Highways and By-Ways and at Memorials    For Further Information, Click on the Web Sites Below: National Garden Club-Blue Star Memorials   U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration-Blue Star Memorial Highways

Our Environment: Community Connections by Ingrid Justick CLICK HERE to view this informative article

GCNJ FUNDRAISER and CLUB/YOUTH CONTEST An exclusive blend of Ice Follies and Sound Daffodils has been created for GCNJ!  40% of the purchase price will go to support our projects.  You can beautify your landscape and support our club at the same time! In addition, submit your planting information and enter your club or youth group for a monetary award! CLICK HERE  for further information on this project CLICK HERE  for further information on the contest CLICK HERE  to place an order on the Colorblend website (link opens in new window).

Golden Days - NGC President’s Project 2009-2011 The President’s Project, “Golden Days” will promote and encourage the plantings of daffodils (emphasis on remembering senior members who are in retirement centers, nursing facilities, downsized living facilities) and those who no longer can actively participate but have maintained membership or have long served their communities through their garden clubs (potted daffodils acceptable).  Additionally, clubs will be encouraged to develop mass plantings of daffodils at the above mentioned facilities, public buildings, Blue Star Memorial sites, etc. CLICK HERE for further information

Attention Club Presidents and Treasurers! Important new information and procedures regarding Membership Need your review… CLICK HERE to read the Summer 2009 Letter from Peggy Koehler, Membership Chairperson

Jeanette Johnson, Operation Wildflower Chairman, receives the prestigious Medal of The Garden Club of New Jersey from Onnolee Allieri, President GCNJ 2007-2009 at the Annual Meeting of GCNJ held June 4, 2009

Helen Sun of New Jersey is the Grand Prize winner from over 12000 entrants to the National Garden Club/ USDA Forest Service Smokey Bear/Woodsy Owl 2009 Poster Contest.   Other poster winners can be viewed on the NGC website by CLICKING HERE

The Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc. Presents A Standard Flower Show “The Finest View” February 18 -21, 2010 As part of The New Jersey Flower & Garden Show The NJ Convention & Expo Center Edison, New Jersey MacEvents – www.macevents.com  Show Dates and Times: February 18 1PM-9PM February 19 10AM-9PM February 20 10AM-9PM February 21 10AM-6PM CLICK HERE for further information (PDF) (If you are unable to open the PDF, click here to go to download a free Adobe Reader from the Adobe website.)

Historic Preservation Planting & Planning GCNJ can set an example for historic authenticity ~Our goal is to~ “Nurture Our World for a Beautiful Tomorrow” Why preserve sites with historic significance? ~protect our natural & cultural resources ~preserve & conserve buildings & landscapes ~enhance the enjoyment & understanding of our heritage ~recycle, reduce & reuse existing spaces & resources Has your club identified a natural area that needs preserving? Has your club recently worked on a site of historic importance? Has your club identified significant trees or gardens that need protection? Has your club identified a local historic site that needs landscape counseling?  If you answered “Yes” to any of these questions, CLICK HERE for further instructions and information

The Garden Club of New Jersey Presents LANDSCAPE DESIGN SCHOOL - COURSE II, SERIES XVI April 13, 14 & 16, 2010 Just in time to get the spring gardening season off to a good start… Course II continues with the study of the landscape design process, early history in America, plant material and community issues. Nancy Schmaltz, Chair nan234@gmail.com CLICK HERE  for Information & Registration Form (Printable page)  CLICK HERE for Curriculum (MS Word doc - opens in new window)

The Garden Club of New Jersey Presents FLOWER SHOW SCHOOL-COURSE I TUESDAY, MAY 25 & WEDNESDAY, MAY 26, 2010 EXAM-MAY 28, 2010 Click here for further information and registration form (MS Word doc)

The Garden Club of New Jersey Presents "LET'S CELEBRATE" THE CALL TO THE 85th ANNUAL MEETING THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 2010 REGISTRATION: 8:00 AM BRIDGEWATER MARRIOTT HOTEL 700 COMMONS WAY BRIDGEWATER, NEW JERSEY 08807 CLICK HERE for information CLICK HERE for registration form (MS Word - opens in new window) CLICK HERE for directions (MS Word - opens in new window)

~Check Back for Additonal Information ~

Plant It Pink for Susan G. Komen for the Cure® National Garden Clubs Inc. and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the largest breast cancer organization, announce Plant It Pink, a multi-faceted initiative designed to support Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s mission to save lives and end breast cancer forever.  Every donor to Plant It Pink receives a complimentary packet of pink dianthus seeds donated by W. Atlee Burpee & Co.  Each seed packet features a $5 coupon toward any $30 Internet purchase. The seed packet is mailed in a unique Plant It Pink card specially designed and donated by St. Louis artist Linda Solovic. One-hundred percent of all monies received will be forwarded to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. CLICK HERE for further information

CLICK HERE for a complete schedule of Garden Series Classes offered by Rutgers Gardens.

GCNJ Insignia Jewelry ~All items are Sterling Silver~ The Past President’s Pin, Life Member’s Wreath and GCNJ Violet Earrings are available to order using the order form below. The Past President’s Pin and the Life Member’s Wreath can be welded together to form the Garden Club of NJ’s logo (as shown above).  A bale is attached to the back so a silver chain can be used and the ensemble can be worn as a necklace.  Alice Jarvis will take your items to the jeweler that manufactures our jewelry for this service.  Please contact her for a current price. CLICK HERE for order form and further information

From the Awards Committee Don’t forget the following 2009/2010 Award deadlines: Yearbooks—November 1 NGC- November 15 Publicity Press Books- January 25 GCNJ & American Horticulture Society Perennial Awards- February 15 GCNJ Youth Awards to State Youth Chairman (see separate Youth Announcements on this page)-February 15 The Awards Book and forms are now available on the GCNJ website  Forms page.   For more information contact Ruth Paul, Awards Chairman Awards must be returned to the Awards Chairman in March, the year after receipt.  Please contact Ruth Paul  for proper packaging and return instructions.

HELP        MEMBERSHIP       BLOOM !  National Garden Clubs, Inc. is continuing its Membership Contest with a fabulous new award, and a new deadline:  June 1, 2009 to March 31, 2010.  Make your membership bloom so that this time New Jersey will win the honor of naming this spectacular new Daylily!  This magnificent new cultivar of Daylily is being grown solely for this contest.  The State with the greatest percentage increase in membership will win the opportunity of having it named in their honor! CLICK HERE  for further information

NURTURE OUR WORLD FOR A BEAUTIFUL TOMORROW Train-A-Teacher  to Teach-A-Child Education is our best defense Educating our youth to love and respect our environment creates stewards of our environment and to the earth. Through the program “TAT” Train-A-Teacher to Teach-A-Child we support accredited environmental studies, so New Jersey teachers have the best skills and tools to educate New Jersey school children about our environment. CLICK HERE to learn more and to support this program

DEADLINE dates for GCNJ Youth Contests All entries are to be mailed to the GCNJ Youth Chairman: Diana Kazazis 112 Effingham Place, Westfield, NJ 07090          Smoky Bear Woodsy Owl Poster Contest  December 1, 2009     NGC High School Essay Contest December 1, 2009     NGC Youth Poetry Contest December 1, 2009 For contest rules and further information, select Youth Contests from the NGC website: http://www.gardenclub.org/Youth.aspx

Aveda found that a majority of plastic bottle caps do not get recycled today. Often these caps end up as litter or trash, ending up in landfills and beaches or migrating into our rivers and oceans. Birds and other marine creatures mistake them for food with tragic results. The magnitude of this pollution problem is devastating to our oceans and wildlife. You can be part of the solution by joining Recycle Caps with Aveda. We are building a new recycling program for plastic bottle caps in which caps are collected at stores and schools and then sent by Aveda to our recycler where the material is recycled into new caps and containers. CLICK HERE to learn more

Come Join Us…as an Affiliate Member of The Garden Club of New Jersey, Inc.    CLICK HERE to learn more about our Affiliate Member program

ALERT! “What we call a preserved farm will change dramatically if a proposal to promote commercial solar and wind energy facilities on preserved farmland becomes law.  This legislation tries to satisfy one societal need – clean energy – by compromising another: preserved farmland.”  Michele S. Byers, Executive Director, New Jersey Conservation Foundation CLICK HERE to read full article

MONTH-TO-MONTH PERENNIAL AND SHRUB MAINTENANCE CHART FOR THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION "Peace of mind" is what gardeners say about this new "MONTH-TO-MONTH PERENNIAL AND SHRUB MAINTENANCE CHART FOR THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION".  A much-appreciated distillation of gardening timetables and information all in one place for gardeners in Zones 6a to 7b~~over 3,400 copies of this Chart have been sold in less than 4 months! This Month-To-Month Garden Chart  is useful for your educational classes and fundraisers. Buy at $8, (non-members $10)-it can be mailed less expensively on orders over ten (10) copies--e-mail GardenChart@aol.com for these special rates. Sell to non-members for whatever amount you decide and keep the difference for your Club. Give it as a present to new neighbors for housewarmings, and to friends and relatives for birthdays, and Holidays! CLICK HERE  for additional information and order form (MS Word doc - opens in new window)

RANDOM ACTS OF BEAUTY AWARDS ~A Community Project to Acknowledge Those Gardening and Landscaping Areas of Loveliness That Brighten Our World~ CLICK HERE for further information and sample forms (MS Word doc, opens in new window)

“Pass the Coffee Can” Feel an urge to respond when hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and tsunamis hit unsuspecting areas and leave devastation?  The National Garden Club along with our state organization has set 3 response vehicles to ‘regreen’ garden, parks and valued recreational lands lost to natural disasters.  The purpose is to restore and the funds pay for horticultural materials.  Now your garden club can be ready to respond with a “Pass the Coffee Can” campaign to collect change for these natural disasters.  At every club meeting, pass the can among your members and ask them to donate their change to help ‘regreen’ the gulf coast and other areas hit by devastation.  Your valuable change lessens the weight you carry but goes toward one of the following projects which your club can specify with your contribution: ---“Natural Disasters” is for landscapes needing ‘regreening’ within the United States of America and its territories. ---“Green the Gulf Coast” was developed in response to the disaster caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. ---“Natural Disasters International” is for those affected beyond our shores.     Mail Your Club Checks to GCNJ Contact:          Susan O’Donnell          209 Johnson Rd.              Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889-3311     908-534-6716

The Garden Club of New Jersey Teams Up with Habitat for Humanity! Our new State President, Mary Warshauer, has welcomed with open arms our growing relationship with New Jersey’s chapters of Habitat for Humanity.  The relationship officially began in 1999 when National Garden Clubs, Inc. announced its affiliation with HFH and we first reached out to New Jersey affiliates. Since then the relationship has grown and developed.    Garden Clubs have helped this worthy organization by providing landscaping for the newly built homes which Habitat volunteers have built.  It is our way of doing what we’re best at:  reaching out to those in our wider community, teaching about gardening and providing plants and expertise for those who otherwise could not afford them.  CONTINUED…   Send contributions to HFH Chair Elizabeth Lilliston to help those in need! CLICK HERE for further information CLICK HERE to find a local HFH chapter near you (MS Word doc - link opens in new window)