Community Garden Club: A Garden Party Celebrating 103 Years

After 103 years, it is no secret: The Community Garden Club of Marlin transcends mere gardening. This small group of women and one man in a tiny town in Central Texas is bold; it embodies a holistic approach towards cultivating a deep-rooted passion for plants, fostering a sense of community, promoting environmental stewardship, and encouraging artistic expression. In The Gift of Good Land (1981), Wendell Berry pointedly wrote, “A garden gives the body the dignity of working in its own support”.

The Marlin Community Garden Club (known as The Garden Club) was the first gardening club in the State of Texas. It was founded in 1923 by Ida Pauleen Linthicum, who was inspired to organize the club after reading about the Philadelphia Garden Club. The Garden Club’s banner can indubitably boast what no other garden club can, “The Oldest Garden Club in the State of Texas — Federated and operating continuously for 103 years!”

The Community Garden Club will host its Garden Party and Fundraising Event on May 30, 2026, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m., at the Historical Allen House, 305 Ward Street, Marlin, TX. With a unique program and a well-curated garden party spread offering a mix of savory bites, fresh produce, and sweet treats tailored to the season, the Garden Party provides a special setting for connecting, sharing stories, and laughing together. Its fundraiser display of unique creations, plants, garden novelties, jewelry, ceramics, home decor items, and more adds that extra delightful experience of going shopping amongst friends, longtime or newly made.

Gardening. Much is written about it nowadays, it seems, but Francis Bacon famously wrote “Of Gardens” (Essay 46, 1625), describing, “God Almighty first planted a garden. And indeed, it is the purest of human pleasures.”