To submit an event, send details to news@cthort.org . Please format your announcement to resemble the entries below. Thanks!
A big THANK YOU to the local clubs that support the Connecticut Horticultural Society. Visit their sites for more gardening adventures:
- Colchester Garden Club
- Connecticut Valley Garden Club
- Farmington Garden Club
- Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut
- Gardeners of Simsbury
- Garden Club of Madison
- New Britain Garden Club
- Suffield Garden Club
- The West Hartford Garden Club
Mon. Feb. 24, 11:30 a.m. – Simsbury Garden Club presents Invasive Species of the Area and Their Containment presented by a representative from the Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group at UConn. Location: Apple Barn, 60 Old Farms Road, West Simsbury. Guests welcome – $10 fee.
Tues. Feb 25, 7 p.m. – The Gardeners of Simsbury will host Trade Secrets: Plant Selection and Organic Lawn Care with Karla Dalley. Location: Simsbury Public Library, Large Meeting Room, 725 Hopmeadow St., Simsbury. Free to the public.
Weds. Feb 26, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. – Elizabeth Park Conservancy 2020 Garden Lecture Series: Marc Hachadourian shares practical advice about orchids/ natural biology along with tips and tricks on how to grow and bloom orchids. Marc’s new book is called Orchid Modern: Living and Designing with the World’s Most Elegant Houseplants. As Senior Curator of the Orchid Collection, Marc is the person behind the fabulous annual orchid show at NYBG, which runs this year from February 15 through April 19. Lecture, lunch and book signing takes place at the Pond House Cafe in Elizabeth Park. Tickets for the lecture, lunch and book signing are $45, and the book is $25. Both are available for purchase through the website: elizabethparkct.org.
Thurs. Mar. 5, noon – West Hartford Garden Club welcomes Evelyn Lee, owner/operator of Butternut Gardens in Southport. Evelyn will present The Cutting Garden – From Field to Vase Grow your Own Bouquets. Learn what, when and how to plant in small spaces to give yourself continuous homegrown bouquets and centerpieces. Brief business meeting followed by speaker. Location: St. John’s Episcopal Church, 679 Farmington Ave, West Hartford. Enter at RAMP DOOR at rear of building. Fee: $10 guest donation includes light lunch at noon. Reservations preferred – contact Susan at 860-305-6370 or reserve online. **Meeting is automatically cancelled when West Hartford Schools are closed due to bad weather.
Fri. Mar.6 to Fri. Mar, 13, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Elizabeth Park Conservancy Annual Spring Greenhouse Show, Tours and Sale. Visit elizabethparkct.org for events, dates and times. Plant sale on Saturday, March 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Cash or check only. Bring containers to carry away your plant purchase.
Sat. Mar. 7 – CT NOFA’s 38th Winter Conference OrganiConn 2020. Location: Wesleyan University in Middletown. Keynote speaker is Niaz Dorry of the National Family Farm Coalition & Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance. Details and registration at ctnofa.org.
Mon. Mar. 9, 12:30 p.m. – Farmington Garden Club presents Garden Revolution-How Our Landscapes can be a Source of Environmental Change by Thomas Christopher. Mr. Christopher trained as a horticulturalist at the New York Botanical Garden and has been designing, planting and maintaining gardens for more than 40 years. A former columnist for House & Garden and Horticulture Magazine, he is also author of a dozen books. Thomas Christopher is part of the popular Garden Rant team blog. Location: Farmington Main Library in Farmington. Fee: Guest-$5, members-free.
Weds. Mar. 11, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. – Elizabeth Park Conservancy 2020 Garden Lecture Series: Todd Forrest and Arthur Ross of the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) will discuss the ongoing transformation of NYBG. Over the past two decades, NYBG has restored approximately 150 acres of its 250-acre historic landscape while completely changing its gardening practices to balance beauty with environmental responsibility. Gain insight into how great gardening practices can help sustain nature. Lecture and lunch will take place at the Pond House Café in Elizabeth Park. Tickets are $45 and are available through the website: elizabethparkct.org.
Thurs. Mar. 12, noon – Litchfield Garden Club hosts the program Working Dogs for Conservation (WD4C) to be presented by Megan Parker, co-Founder and Director of research for WD4C, the world’s leading conservation detection dog organization. WD4C dogs can detect weeds before they break the surface, animals that live below ground, and aquatic organisms invisible to the human eye. The four WD4C co-founders were the first to train dogs to detect wide-ranging carnivores non-invasively, to uncover illegal snares in Africa, and to find invasive plants, insects, and fish. Location: The event is free and open to the public and will take place at the Litchfield Community Center. Refreshments will be served.
Sat. Mar. 21, noon to 5:00 p.m. & Sun. Mar. 22, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Nutmeg State Orchid Society Show & Sale will offer beautiful orchids from all over the world. Location: West Hartford Meeting & Conference Center. Parking will be validated for adjacent lot only. For more info, visit www.nutmegorchids.org or email myhalik@comcast.net. Admission is $10 with children 12 and under free. ATTENTION PHOTO BUFFS: On Sunday March 22nd the orchid show will be open from 8 to 9:45 am for photographers only!!! Tripods will be allowed during this time. All tripods must be removed at 9:45 am. $10 per person
Sat. Mar. 21, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. – 27th Annual Connecticut Master Gardener Association (CMGA) Symposium. Guest speakers include: Margaret Roach, Dan Benarcik, Tovah Martin, Lorraine Ballato, Irene Brady Barber, Gregory Bugbee and Nancy DuBrule-Clemente. Registration starts January 2020. Admission: $65 for CMGA members and guests; $95 for non-members and walk-ins. Location: Connecticut College, New London, Conn. For more information, go to https://ctmga.org/2020-symposium-information.
Thurs. Mar. 26, 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. – The Hartford Wellesley Club welcomes Arleyn A. Levee, Hon. ASLA (Wellesley Class of 1962) who will present The Olmsted Design Legacy: Rediscovering its Creators. Buffet lunch and lecture at Pond House Cafe in Elizabeth Park. Fee: $40/person. Register by 3/10/2020 at https://hartford.alum.wellesley.edu/
Sat. April 4 noon to 5:00 p.m.,. & Sun. April 5, 10:oo a.m. to 4:00 p.m – Connecticut Orchid Society holds its annual orchid show and sale. Location: Bristol Senior Community Center in Bristol. There will be blooming orchid displays and several vendors offering orchid plants, potting supplies, and orchid books for purchase. Repotting workshops and orchid growing lectures will be conducted on each day. Fee: Admission is $5.00, children under 12 get in free. For more info, contact Cheryl Mizak at president@ctorchids.org, visit www.ctorchids.org or find them on Facebook.
Weds. April 15, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. – Elizabeth Park Conservancy 2020 Garden Lecture Series: Thomas Christopher discusses his latest book Nature into Art: The Gardens of Wave Hill. Thomas Christopher is a graduate of the New York Botanical Garden School of Professional Horticulture and has been designing and maintaining gardens for more than four decades. He is the author of more than a dozen books about gardening and also produces a weekly podcast, “Growing Greener.” His weekly column, “Be A Better Gardener,” circulates to more than 25 regional publications in southern and central New England with a total readership of 250,000. Lecture and lunch will take place at the Pond House Café in Elizabeth Park. Tickets are $45 and are available through the website: elizabethparkct.org.
Fri. June 12 to Thurs. June 18 – Explore the extraordinary gardens of Normandy with fellow garden lovers and friends of Hollister House Garden. Marie-Elisabeth Offierski – a widely recognized tour organizer who curates trips for sophisticated gardeners – designed this tour especially for Hollister House Garden. The adventure begins in Paris with a visit to Chateau du Champs de Bataille, Le Jardin Plume, Le Vasterival, Chateau de Brecy, Chateau de Nacqueville, and Haras d’ Heroussard along with other private gardens that are seldom open to the public. Each stop will be guided by garden owners and head gardeners all while enjoying this special part of the world. Accommodations have been arranged at two charming country hotels, Château de Canisy and Manoir des Inpressionnistes. A special private tour of D-Day sites has also been planned. The complete itinerary, important information and a registration form can be found at https://hollisterhousegarden.org/events/the-gardens-of-normandy/. Reservations and deposits must be received by February 28, 2020. Visit www.hollisterhousegarden.org or call the garden office at 860-868-2200 with questions or requests for additional information.