"Sowing the Seeds of Harmony through Nature"
Our annual PGC Holiday Banquet was held the year at Madeline's in Fogelsville. Everyone enjoyed a wonderful buffet dinner consisting appetizers, salad, 2 entrees, potatoes, vegetables and dessert. Beautiful holiday entertainment was provided by Bob (husband of Debbie Pinto) and Bobby. The evening continued with a gift raffle and the presentation of Laurel Awards.
Many thanks to Nancy Smith for providing the lovely centerpieces and arranging the event!
The November meeting featured a hands-on demonstration of wreath making presented by PGC Program Chair Nancy Smith.
Nancy gave sturdy metal wreath frames to all participants and provided instructions on how to weave evergreen branches through the holders to create a wreath. Members brought an abundance of material from their own gardens including pine branches, hydrangea blooms, and holly with berries as well as an assortment of ribbon for all to share. The wintery pine smell along with the friendship of others made this a wonderful pre-holiday workshop. Thank you Nancy!
At the business meeting, Patti Molitoris was presented with the 2025 District II/III Forget-Me-Not award by president Helen Papathanasiou and District II/III Director Claire Kukielka.
Our Hospitality Thanksgiving-themed table was provided by Claire Kukielka, Gail Micca (with her visiting mother, center) Judy Hoffman, Judy Huffand Deb Barhight (not shown), Thank you!
Thank you Wilma, Gina, Helen, Irene and Chloe on our Hospitality team for presenting a wonderful table of Halloween refreshments!
Deborah Pomroy conducted a demonstration on the topic of floral armatures.
An armature offers visual or physical support to a floral design. At the meeting we learned how different armatures are made and how they increase the interest in a floral design.
Deborah is on the creative management team at Seasons Garden Center in Washington Crossing, PA. She also designs large scale floral designs for weddings in the Philadelphia area for an event company called Fabufloras. Previously she was an adjunct professor teaching the Floral Design program for Mercer County Community College in NJ and owned a flower shop in Easton, PA for 17 years. She is a graduate of Delaware Valley University with a degree in Ornamental Horticulture. She resides in Yardley, PA.
Speaker Maryann DeSanto presented a power point program called "Creative Gift Ideas". She showed members and their guests unique ideas for gift giving, such as adding greens to holiday packaging along with creative ways to wrap gift cards and other gifts using the Principles of Design used in flower arranging.
Maryann DeSanto was the past President of Springfield Garden Club, and past District I Director. She was also a previous owner of a retail gift basket shop.
Our Hospitality members for the evening presented a beautiful Autumn table with delicious treats for all. Thank you to Karly, Lisa, Kirk, Sara and Anne!
Many delicious "patriotic" treats were offered to members and guests at the meeting.
Thank you to Nancy Smith, Chris Gallina, Donna Wagner and Millie Mosella for your generosity and creativity!
PGC members and guests enjoyed the presentation of a special speaker for the program on August 11th - renowned botanist and treasured PGC member Kirk Brown! Kirk led the group through "A Year in Color: New Thoughts For Gardening by the Month". He presented a calendar of colorful plants including new introductions that defy the odds of living and delivering and old favorites that need to be reconsidered because they have worked over many years. Attendees were shown how to add structure and masses of color to our gardens throughout the calendar year with brilliant perennials, shrubs and trees that have realistic maintenance requirements for our changing lifestyles.
Kirk is Past President of GardenComm: Garden Communicators International. He has served on volunteer committees for regional, state and national green industry associations. He speaks nationally on such wide-ranging horticultural topics as John Bartram, Frederick Law Olmsted, Henry Muhlenberg, Benjamin Franklin, Carl Linnaeus, Peter Kalm and himself. He lectures coast to coast/north to south on history, design, business management and human resource motivation topics.
For twenty years, he served as Business Manager and Designer for Joanne Kostecky Garden Design. In that position, his gardens won outstanding design awards from Perennial Plant Association, Association of Professional Landscape Designers, and Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association. He served as National Outreach Coordinator for Magnolia Plantation and Gardens: America’s Oldest Garden in Charleston SC. Most recently he has been a judge for America in Bloom. He lectures across ten states for National Garden Club Design, Environmental Studies, and Garden Schools.
Due to an unsettled weather forecast, PGC's annual Picnic and Plant Exchange was held indoors this year on July 15th. District II/III Director and past PGC president Claire Kukielka and her husband and member Bo were so very gracious to open their beautiful home to our membership and their families. It was a relaxing and enjoyable evening for all who attended.
At the event, GCFP District II/III 2024 awards were presented by past Awards Committee Chair Brenda Aubert and Karen Pimble, our new Awards Chair.
The winner of our annual Scholarship for 2025 was also announced and awarded to John Emanuel. Visit here for more details: Scholarships
The June meeting of the Parkland Garden Club featured guest speaker Terry Miller who presented a program on edible flowers. Terry guided the group through the delight of adding flowers to any menu to elevate the dining experience. Members and guests learned about the variety of flavors and uses of common blooms to add delectation to any culinary experience. Program Chair Nancy Smith provided lavender cookies and Terry brought samples of flowers and floral jams.
A new-member tea was presented by the hospitality team to welcome all our newest members to the Parkland Garden Club.
PGC members and guests enjoyed an educational and interesting program presented by Cari Peters on plant nutrition and soil testing at a recent meeting. Cari shared some of her vast knowledge on fertilizers formulas as well as samples developed by her family company Jack's Fertilizer.
In the business portion of the meeting new Recording Secretary Christine Gallina was sworn in by DIstrict II/III Director Claire Kukielka.
Also at the meeting the Cetronia student winners of the Smokey Bear and Woodsy Owl Youth Poster Contest were presented with their Garden Club Federation of PA awards.
Nancy Smith, the Program Chair of the Parkland Garden Club, presented a hands-on workshop in creating a fairy garden to members and guests at the April 14th meeting. Participants used their imagination to create a miniature world with pots and tiny accessories that they brought as well as colored stones provided by the club. The results were impressive! Everyone had a wonderful time at this workshop.
"Spring in my Steps" was presented by certified floral designer Patricia Reppert. PGC members and guests enjoyed her step-by-step demonstration in the creation of many Springtime floral arrangements with discussion of the flower types and techniques used to achieve the design.
Patricia found her passion in flowers and has been designing florals professionally since 2019. She obtained her Certified Floral Designer accreditation in 2021, through the American Institute of Floral Designers, and completed an apprenticeship with a highly acclaimed event florist in Philadelphia. She assists in our region’s exhibit to the Philadelphia Flower Show each year and had a featured design of her own in last year’s show. She is a freelance florist as well, and has been contracted to work on events and weddings in PA, NJ, DE, MD, VA, and DC. As a teaching assistant at Bucks County Community College's Floral Design Program she takes great pride and pleasure in sharing the joy of flowers with others through hosting design workshops and demonstrations.
Scott Piccotti from Dan's Camera City was the featured speaker at our monthly meeting on February 10th. Scott demonstrated how to take pictures in the garden no matter what kind of camera you're using, even your phone. His talk included information about camera settings and techniques, finding the best light, and composing your shot for great images. Scott was on hand while the winners of the PGC Photography Contest were named. Check here for our winners: Member News
The winner of the Trash to Treasure Contest was also announced this evening.
