Our dinner at Tremezzo Wilmington was a truly enjoyable evening. Laughter, conversation and food made the time go by so quickly. Our new Board was sworn in - Debbie A as President, Laetitia W as Vice President, Jenni K as Treasurer, Andrea D as Recording Secretary, and Pam M as Corresponding Secretary. Members left with a sun or shade plant as a Thank You for all of the work everyone does to make this Club the fabulous Club that it is. Our 2025-2026 year closes.
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Summer Garden Tours
It's time for our Summer Garden Tours! What a great way to connect with Garden Club friends. There will be two tours this summer by Club members.
- Out first tour is with Luann. She'll be hosting us on Saturday July 11th. Our tour will start at 11:30 AM, followed by light snacks, and ending by about 1 PM. Please contact Luann if you intend to go so she can plan. Luann lives in a condo, and she'll be showing us how she has created a garden haven at her home.
- Our second tour is on Saturday, August 1st with Sara. Plan to be there at 3 PM. Our tour will include Sara's gardens of plants and vegetables, created in unique and strategic ways on her landscape. We might even get to see some wildlife living in her backyard pond.
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Literary Blooms at the Library
Our last floral design for the season was by Charlene, whose whimsical creation accompanied a children's book The Strangest Fish
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ACE - now the Civic Gardening Group
We'll be weeding and watering this summer. It's been hot and dry and it might not let up for a while. Our county is experiencing a severe drought, so keep everything well watered. We couldn't do the work we do without the hard work of all of our Club members. Your continued work is appreciated. Thanks to Ellie and Pam for serving as the heads of ACE. Welcome to Lisa and Marie as our new chairs.
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Plant Sale
Debbie and Tammy thanked the many Club members who volunteered their time to help the plants at the greenhouse. Diligence and hard work grew about 1000 plants from seed to full grown beauties that helped the Club generate its best Plant Sale income ever. We say goodbye to Debbie and Tammy as Plant Sale leads, and a big Hello to Krista and Deanna as our upcoming committee chairs. They know they have hard working club members to make this fundraiser go off so well.
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Garden Therapy
The Bayberry group will start planting the season's garden beds. Thanks to the dedication of this facility and the Club members who work there.
The Blaire House group is off for the Summer, but the residents will have their floral handiwork to remind them of visits from our dedicated Club members.
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Donations
We were able to see one of our charitable donations in action as Sara shared pictures of the gardens created at the High School. We wish the students lots of sunshine and a bountiful harvest.
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| | We enjoyed one last Dine Out at Brelundi before our summer break. Which meal of the day did you eat there? Thanks to Brelundi for supporting our fundraising, and thank you to the team that coordinated this income venture. | | | | Arbor Day, Community Education, Art in Bloom, By-Laws, Happy Travelers, Horticulture, Hospitality, November Fundraiser, Social Media Group, Sunshine, Winter Tree Walk, Wreath Fundraiser, the new Fundraiser Group, our photographers, publicity folks, historian, scholarships, newsletter, the yearbook and the website, and all of the committees listed above - Just look at the number of groups, teams, committees and individuals it takes to make this Club as awesome, productive, and community-minded as it is. A heartfelt Thank You to everyone for their good works. | |
Greenhouse News
The greenhouse is not in use during the summer. It becomes unbearably hot inside. However, things are happening at the greenhouse, just on the outside gardens.
- The Pumpkin Patch is growing in 2 locations. Scott has been tending the plants and recently reported a pumpkinling (what IS a baby pumpkin called?). There are pumpkin varieties ranging from hand sized to giant pumpkins being grown.
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A Pollinator Preservation Garden is being created in several beds adjacent to the greenhouses. This garden was inspired by Giancarla Kalpas' Sunny Meadow garden, and is growing some plants from there, It is also being created using recommended plants from Dr Gegear. His list supports at-risk bumblebees by offering straight species native plants that are specific to the bumblebees and how they access nectar, When completed, this garden will be identified by a beautiful hand made sign courtesy of Scott.
A new Club committee was formed this year that will coordinate work, education and Club happenings in the greenhouse.
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Club Members around Town
Susan worked with 2 Girl Scouts from Troop 82083 to create a Pollinator Preservation Garden at the Wynn School for their Silver Award. The garden is newly planted, but will soon be blooming as yet another stop on the Pollinator Pathway.
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What's the Buzz about Pollinator Preservation Gardens?
We've heard about the plight of the Monarch butterflies and of the Karner Blue butterfly, but have we heard about Bombus fervidus? Fervidus and other bumblebees are the insects really responsible for the majority of pollination that occurs with flowers, and like the Monarch and the Karner, Bombus fervidus and other bees are at-risk. Underplanting of native species, planting showy native cultivars, mosquito spraying, the overuse of pesticides and the quest for a clean yard are some of the actions that have led to decreased populations of insects, especially pollinators. You might have noticed that there aren't as many insects around. The insect population has been declining. A pollinator preservation garden is one step to bring back the bugs, if everyone does a little bit. Plant a straight species (not a nativar or cultivar) native plant. Leave some leaves (insects overwinter there, sometimes for more than 1 season). Stop spraying for bugs (the sprays don't differentiate between mosquitoes and other flying insects). If we all do a little bit to try to preserve our precious pollinators, we can create many pollinator preservation gardens.
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Before I Go...
I'd like to take this opportunity to say a personal Thank You for the great work we did together. It's been a pleasure being the President for the last 2 years. The Club has grown; we have 10 new members. We are continuing the goal of creating more native plant spaces around town. All of our other good works and civic programs continue to make a positive impact on our community. We've accomplished much, and we can accomplish more. New leadership will take the Club in new directions. See you around town.
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Board Meetings During the Summer
The Board will still meet over the next few months to prepare for the 2026-2027 year. Reach out to Debbie A and she'll help you out.
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Newsletter Submissions
Post committee updates on our Facebook member's page so we can pull content from there and images are easy to grab.
Submit all info/pictures for inclusion in future newsletters to tewksburygardenclub@gmail.com by the 27th each month.
Thanks for all you do, and for contributing to this publication!
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