As we turn the calendar to 2024 I’m excited about the many opportunities that the Garden Club of Virginia is offering in the upcoming months. Our dedicated committee members have been busy! Lots of thought, talent and energy have gone into planning a year filled with initiatives that speak to GCV’s mission and vision.

Join us for Legislative Days, January 30-31, and participate in ensuring an environmentally sound Virginia - two days dedicated to advocacy and stewardship of our water and conservation of our land.

And, January and February are great months to focus on photography with workshops, a winter challenge and an evening zoomed into Cultivating Conversations as we learn how to “Unravel the Mystery of Entering a Photography Show.” In March, get ready to celebrate the vibrant hues of spring with Daffodil Day. Themed, “Dancing with Daffodils,” this delightful event provides a perfect venue to grow and show the beauty of our cheerful early blossoms.

Please don’t miss the invitations below from GCV member clubs! Spectacular speakers, book signings, and exclusive vendor shopping opportunities support worthy community projects and educational initiatives across Virginia. Plan a road trip with fellow club members and spark your imagination on how to create a new fundraising event to support your local projects!

Wishing you a wonderful 2024, and hoping to see you soon!

Warm regards,

Join us for GCV Legislative Day on Jan. 30 and 31, 2024, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Richmond, Va. Virginia Conservation Network organizes this event each year to ensure a strong conservation voice in early legislative sessions. Volunteer advocates are invited to join professional staff of network partners as we meet with state legislators and encourage them to support environmental policy advancements. All updates about this annual event will be posted to vcnva.org/lobby-day.  Read here for details and registration information. When registering with VCN, GCV members should choose the option to schedule their meetings independently and not have meetings scheduled by VCN as this allows individual meetings on GCV Conservation issues and avoids being lumped in with other conservation groups meeting with your respective delegate or senator. 

Dust off those dancing shoes, we’re going to waltz at Wesleyan, do-si-do with artistic design, polka with photography and do the hula with horticulture. We are “Dancing with Daffodils” on March 27, 2024, at Virginia Wesleyan University in Virginia Beach. Registration and information will be released on the GCV website on Jan. 15. Many volunteer opportunities are available; contact Debbie Bonnewell 757-870-8299 or dbonnewell@hotmail.com.

Gentiana saponaria—The Flower that Never Was

The January native plant is the soapwort, Gentiana saponaria, the most wide-ranging of Virginia’s native species whose petals fade from pink to blue to velvety violet. More than half of the dozen or so perennial gentian species that are native to Virginia feature flowers that never open. This phenomenon is surmised to be a pollination strategy, though it is not fully understood. A robust bumblebee can nudge the petals open at the top of the bud to struggle inside and a carpenter bee can nibble a hole at the bottom of the bud to purloin nectar without transferring any pollen. Both serve as examples of one of nature’s perfect workarounds as the holes also provide entry for beetles and other insects. Several species can no longer be found in many areas of the U.S. and most other species are classified as threatened.

Beginning in 2024 two fellowships will be granted - one to a graduate student and one to an undergraduate student.

This Fellowship was established in 2014 to support scholars conducting research in areas relating to the conservation of natural resources and/or environmental studies concerning flora, fauna or cultural practices within communities that directly impact the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Guidelines and Application form is available on the GCV website. GCV members are encouraged to share this information with potential applicants.

Above is Marlena Hamilton (Christopher Newport University), Conservation and Environmental Studies Fellow 2023, whose project is "Understanding Climate Risk to Red-back Salamanders Through Behavior, Physiology, and Geography.”

Please mark your calendars and be sure to join us for our fourth session, “Unraveling the Mystery of Entering a Photography Show.” Fellow GCV members will share helpful information clarifying types of photography, sizing of images and other considerations for entering a photography show. The session will be held Monday, Jan. 22 at 5 p.m., via Zoom. Cultivating Conversations is free, but registration is required. Register here.

For a list of all upcoming session dates, and past session recordings and reference material, please visit the Cultivating Conversations webpage.

Submissions for the 2025 HGW Guidebook cover property are due soon. If your club is working with an extraordinary property that you would like the HGW committee to consider as the cover property for 2025, please send a proposal to HGW Director Karen Ellsworth by Jan. 16, 2024. Learn more about the submission process.

Entries will be accepted beginning February 1st. Please send photos that are at least 1 mb to Georgiana Watt at georgianawatt@hotmail.com, one per email.

We hope that many of you will join us via Zoom on Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 4 p.m. for an extremely user-friendly Basic Composition Workshop. This is a free, entry-level course offered online on how to make compelling photographs for cell phone and camera users alike. Register Here.

Developed by the GCV Restoration Committee, this online publication is an informational link between the GCV and historic properties with gardens or landscapes that the GCV has helped to restore and with which we have ongoing relationships. Read the Winter 2024 Edition to learn about the GCV Restoration Workshop to be held Jan. 24, 2024, at the KVH, Point of Honor in Lynchburg, and the lovely Ginkgo biloba. 

Awards

Think About This

January is a great time to register for an in-person or virtual gardening class or botanical arts program. There are a number of programs being offered including: botanical illustration classes, planting for pollinators, native perennials, nature walks, caring for potted plants and more. Read a sample list of programs available throughout Virginia here.

The Garden Club of Norfolk Lifestyle Lecture Series is held every year to raise funds for community projects and is open to the public. Next year’s event will be held Feb. 20, 2024, at the Norfolk Yacht and Country Club, Norfolk. The featured speaker, Sandra Sigman, will discuss her new book French Blooms: Floral Arrangements Inspired by Paris and Beyond. Tickets are $60. The event includes refreshments, a raffle, and vendor shopping area.

The Garden Club of the Northern Neck invites you to leap into the garden on leap year day with garden podcaster and enthusiast Leslie Harris, a member of the Albemarle Garden Club.

For more information, please contact Vicki Levering at vickilevering@gmail.com.

Special Guest Speaker: Leslie Harris of Into the Garden with Leslie

Winchester-Clarke Garden Club and the Virginia Cooperative Extension present the award-winning movie, Hometown Habitat, Stories of Bringing Nature Home, on March 10, 2024, at 2 p.m. at the Stimpson Auditorium, Halpin-Harrison Hall, Shenandoah University, Winchester, Va. This event is open to the public and a donation of $10 is suggested. A panel discussion will follow the movie with local environmental leaders.  

Does your club have an upcoming event you'd like to share with other GCV members? Email Membership News Chairman Edie Hessberg with details.

Our Shop features fun and useful GCV and Member Club items. Add the GCV Maintenance Manual, produced by the GCV's Restoration Committee, to you gardening library. Shop Now.

Environmental Studies Fellowship Guidelines and Application Form.

Cultivating Conversations Website (upcoming programs, videos and resources from previous sessions)