To the Editor:

Do you have an interest in gardening, flower design, or making floral arrangements?  If your answer is yes, then the Guilderland Garden Club is for you.

The club, established in 1964, meets the second Monday of the month from March through November.  Meetings include either a presentation or field trip related to birds, gardening techniques, aromatherapy, or planning special events.  All meetings and field trips are open to the public. 

Since 1975, the Guilderland Garden Club and Guilderland Historical Society have been decorating the Mynderse-Frederick House on Route 146 in Guilderland Center for a holiday open house and greens show.  This has become an annual community event with decorations, wreaths, and most of the refreshments made by club members. A portion of the proceeds from this event is given to community groups or organizations. 

In the summer of 2009, the Garden Club with the help of the Guilderland Parks Department and a local master gardener, began developing a perennial garden at the Mynderse-Frederick House, consisting mainly of flowers from gardens of club members.  This ongoing project received a Landscape Design Award at the Fall 2013 District Meeting of the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State.

Members of the club have won awards at local, state and national flower shows, including the Capital District Flower and Garden Show, and have prepared arrangements for sale and exhibits at the New York State Museum New York in Bloom Show.  Some of the members hold the designation of Master Gardener and/or Flower Show Judge.

Through our affiliation with the National and Federated Garden Clubs, members are eligible to attend seminars and other training sessions to learn about flower design and judging flower shows.  All members of the Garden Club are also members of the Guilderland Historical Society. 

The next meeting of the Garden Club is May 12 at the Mynderse-Frederick House.  There will be a business meeting at 10 a.m. followed at 11 a.m. with a presentation on Birding in Your Backyard.  The presentation, by Denise Hackert-Stoner, co-owner of Naturelogues and a member of the Hudson-Mohawk Bird Club, will cover the basics of attracting birds, types of feed, feeders, water and shelter, and plantings that provide food and shelter.  Refreshments will be served following the presentation.

Come join us for all or part of the meeting.  Contact me, Merril-Lee Lenegar, at glenegar1@nycap.rr.com if you plan to come to the May meeting, and visit our website at www.guilderlandgardenclub.com to see pictures and find out more about the Guilderland Garden Club. 

Merril-Lee Lenegar, president
Guilderland Garden Club