Community Garden Club: A garden is a grand teacher
Rudyard Kipling wrote, “Gardens are not made by singing ‘Oh, how beautiful,’ and sitting in the shade.” Members of Marlin’s Community Garden Club know this well. Every gardener I’ve met has these qualities: curiosity, persistence, creativity, and passion. And every garden requires patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.
Marlin’s Community Garden Club (CGC), now over 101 years old, meets on the third Friday at 2:00 p.m. at the Senior Citizen Center. On February 16th, CGC welcomed new members, Nelda Brown, Leslie Little, and Samenthia Milnes.
Joining a garden club sometimes means being hesitant: “I don’t know how to garden,” and “What can I bring to the garden club?” As every member of this garden club will offer, “Once upon a time, each of us was a novice. Here is a space for those with common gardening interests to gather and share tips, ideas, and resources for projects. We make new friends, learn new gardening tips, and improve our own skills. Sometimes, we CGC gardeners are taught new garden layouts by a gardening guru or the safest way to landscape a yard to protect our homes from a wildfire by Texas Forest Rangers. Meetings are informative and fun! Too, a host of sweets, nuts, cheeses, fruits, and delicate sandwiches is a typical bill of fare! Best of all, CGC gardeners contribute to the beauty of our town.”
There are numerous reasons for joining the Community Garden Club. Plants and trees connect us to hope, anticipation, learning and nurturing. The act of nurturing a living thing and watching it grow can be a tremendous source of pride and fulfillment. Gardening takes patience. One spends a lot of time waiting for Spring to come, for the soil to warm, for the seeds to arrive, and for seedlings to sprout. “One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides.” W.E. Johns, Sunnyside Nursery.
Who has ever seen a beautiful garden and not experienced its instant appeal to the senses. The colours and immense diversity of design combinations, fragrance, flavours, sounds from birds and insects attracted to the plants and variety of textures form a cornucopia of delights.
There is a cascade of advantages in gardening, too, like lower blood pressure, heart rate and stress-related hormones. It combines physical activity with social interaction and exposure to nature and sunlight. Growers of vegetables and fruits appreciate their positive impact on the diet. Gardening is perhaps as effective a mental health tool as any other. “It boosts your self-esteem. It helps with depression and anxiety.” (WebMD) Not into going to a gym? Things like weeding, digging, and raking are a great exercise!
“A garden is a grand teacher.” (Gertrude Jekyll) Gardening with children gives youth an insight into where food comes from and how much energy it takes to grow it. It teaches them valuable life skills such as responsibility, problem solving, decision making, caring and team work.
What do you call a person who loves gardening? A plantsman.
And, what is the official collective noun for a group of gardeners? A sprinkle! A sprinkle?!
Community Garden Club members are Mary Adams, Nelda Brown, Cynthia Derry, Irv Harden, Sheila Lawson, Leslie Little, Maggie Majors, Samenthia Milnes, Beth Mullins, Bettye Trotter, Mary Wilson, and Mildred Wilson. Officers are President Susan Byrd, 1st Vice President and Historian Terri Glover, 2nd Vice President and Treasurer Letitia Estep, Recording Secretary Marjorie Fiola, Publicity Sarah Payne, and Parliamentarian Ramona Watson.
Look for a sprinkle of gardeners beautifying Falconer Park, Falls Community Health Clinic/Hospital Statue Garden, Falls County Courthouse Memorial Rose Garden (Triangle) and Bell Garden, and City Hall Shrubbery.
To anyone with a heart for gardening, contact Bettye Trotter at (254) 803-2829.