THE GARDEN CLUB OF AVON  SCHEDULE FOR 2025 - 2026 

2025 - 2026 Meeting & Event Schedule

2025   

August 27 (Wednesday) The Cook’s Garden – Kevin West

Co-sponsored by GCA and Avon Free Public Library

6:30 p.m. - Avon Public Library 1st Floor Meeting Room

From the critically acclaimed author of Saving the Season comes an accessible, comprehensive, and inspiring guide to growing your own garden and incorporating homegrown produce into everyday cooking—no matter how much or how little space you have.

In The Cook’s Garden, West gives readers the tools and confidence they need to grow food for their own meals. From gardening basics and advice on harvesting, to delicious recipes showing how to make the best use of produce in any season—including primers on freezing surplus vegetables, making pantry staples such as canned tomatoes, and effectively using stored produce—this book promises to inspire anyone, even if their growing plot is as small as a window box in a city apartment. West’s erudite yet practical guide is interwoven with meditations on the beauty, poetry, and spirituality inherent in growing and preparing one’s own food.

September 15 (Monday) Container Design - Karla A. Dalley

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:30 a.m. Member meeting
12:00 p.m. Guests welcome for lunch and program

Container gardening dates back some 5,000 years and the fact that it is still being done today tells us that there’s something for almost everyone. Using live plants—and demonstrating the correct way to plant a container—Karla will show you that you really don’t have to have a garden to enjoy this trend.

She taught gardening at Capital Community College where she offered various one-hour courses on gardening, both at CCC’s Hartford campus and throughout the community. She currently lectures to many civic groups and organizations.  Karla writes garden columns for We-Ha Magazine, is a Book Reviewer for the Connecticut Horticulture Society, and is sole author of an organic gardening blog, “Gardendaze.”

Her backyard is certified as a Backyard Habitat by both the Connecticut Dept. of Environmental Protection (Certification #22) and the National Wildlife Federation (Certification # 34,999).  She has been a totally organic gardener since 1994.

September 27 (Saturday) West Avon Congregational Church Fair

10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

We will once again be participating in the West Avon Congregational Church Fair. This is a Saturday event. We will be giving away plants, seeds and gardening related information. Volunteers are needed. If you are interested in participating in this event, contact Jody Morgan, Committee Chairperson.

October 7 (Tuesday) Town Hall Clean-up

Avon Town Hall 10:00 a.m. 

Wear your gardening attire and bring your tools.  We will be putting the Town Hall gardens to bed.

October 20 (Monday) Houseplants and Their Personalities – Nancy Ballek MacKinnon    

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:30 a.m. Member Meeting
12:00 p.m. Guests welcome for lunch and program                                

Learn how to successfully grow and care for a wide variety of houseplants for sun to low light.  Plants will be offered for sale after the lecture.

Nancy Ballek Mackinnon is a partner in Ballek's Garden Center in East Haddam, Connecticut, located on a farm that has been in the family since 1662. Her first three college credits in horticulture were earned on a trip to Scandinavia in 1974, with her mother Anita, learning innovative methods at nurseries and municipal gardens. She received a degree in environmental horticulture and landscape design from the University of Connecticut graduating Summa Cum Laude in 1978, and joined Ballek's Garden Center soon after. The family's eclectic and wide-ranging horticultural interests are reflected in her selection of products for sale, everything from garden statuary to thousands of species of annuals and perennials. Nancy is the author of the "The Gardener's Book of Charts, Tables & Lists: A Complete Gardening Guide" created to make it easier for horticulturists to select the right plant for the right place.

November 17 (Monday) A Gardener’s Dream - Annual Tea and Auction

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

High Tea Fundraiser - Silent Auction, Raffle and Lunch

11:00 a.m. Members and Guests Arrive  

Everyone will pitch in once again to make this the biggest GCA event of the year. There’ll be a delightful luncheon, exciting silent auction and raffle items and lots of company to share the anticipation of winning a special find!

Auction items will run the gamut from attic treasures, hospitality baskets, gift cards from local merchants, garden themed items (can we ever have enough?), and beautiful hand made things to keep or gift - the holidays are right around the corner!

December 1 (Monday) Evergreens Workshop and Book Swap

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

9:30 a.m. Member Meeting followed by workshop

Enjoy being together for this long time Garden Club tradition.  Members will make wreaths and swags for town buildings. Please bring garden gloves, clippers, scissors and decorative garden greens such as holly, boxwood, pine and berries (no hemlock).

If you would like to participate in a Book Swap, bring a maximum of 5 books or magazines and find some new reads to take home with you.

Non-perishable food items and monetary donations are welcome for the Avon food bank.

December 4 (Thursday) - December 14 (Sunday) Festival of Trees         

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art 

600 Main Street, Hartford, CT 

Our Garden Club will resume participation in the festival this year. This was halted pre-Covid 19

December 11 (Thursday) Holiday Luncheon

Metro Bis Restaurant – The Ensign House

690 Hopmeadow Street, Simsbury, CT

11:30 a.m.

Gather with members to spread holiday cheer and good tidings with friends.           

2026

January 12 (Monday) History of Connecticut Forests - Elisabeth Ward, CAES

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:30 a.m. Member Meeting
12:00 p.m. Members Bag Lunch

1:00 p.m. Guests welcome for program. Coffee & dessert will be available.

Connecticut’s forests are changing in response to both natural forest development and novel stressors, such as pest, pathogen, and plant invasions. This talk will provide information about how Connecticut’s forest composition is changing, with a particular emphasis on the impacts of Emerald Ash Borer and Beech Leaf Disease.

Dr. Elisabeth Ward is a Scientist at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station that leads a research program focused on improving forest ecosystem health and resiliency. She received her BS in Biology from Brown University and her MS and PhD from The Forest School at the Yale School of the Environment. Her current research examines how changing conditions in Connecticut, such as tree mortality from invasive pests and pathogens, are shifting the structure and composition of forests as well as the ecosystem services they provide.

February 9 (Monday) Valentine Workshop and Around the World in 80 Gardens – Dr Richard W. Benfield

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:00 a.m. Member Meeting & Valentine Workshop 

12:00 p.m.   Light lunch provided for members only.

1:00 p.m. Guests welcome for Program. Coffee & dessert will be available.

Around the World in 80 gardens is the culmination of Richard’s career in tourism to the world’s great gardens. In this session, beginning in the lush gardens of the Pacific, through South America and Europe, to Southeast Asia and Australia, he will show garden enthusiasts and laymen alike the different and unique gardens and floral kingdoms of the world. He will take attendees through the three acres of gardens in Singapore airport, the arid gardens of Australia, the tropical gardens of the Seychelles (home of the love nut!) and Canary Islands, the beautiful English country gardens of his home country, and finish with unique and different gardens in the United States and Canada … in total 80 gardens in seven continents. In 2013 Richard wrote a best-selling book Garden Tourism which was followed by a second edition, New Directions in Garden Tourism in 2020. He is currently working on the nexus of Plants Predators and National Parks around the world.

Dr Richard W. Benfield is the former Chair and Professor of Geography at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, CT where he taught courses in Human Geography, Plants, Predators and Parks, Russia, The European Union and many of the courses in the department’s tourism track. He earned his doctorate and taught at the University of Oklahoma. He has also worked in marketing. His current research interests are in biogeography, particularly garden tourism, and the use of tourism as a conservation tool through the great botanic gardens of the world.

February 19 (Thursday) - February 22 (Sunday) A Storybook Garden         

Federated Garden Clubs of CT Annual Flower Show
Convention Center, Hartford CT
Discount tickets will be available 

The Garden Club of Avon will once again participate by doing touch up painting of the tables. Contact Norma Ingram if you would like to help. 

March 9 (Monday) The Evolution of Botanical Wallpaper Design in America, from Early Colonial Imports to the Art Deco Era and Beyond – Melanie Pellegrini

Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:30 a.m. Member Meeting
12:00 p.m. Guests welcome for lunch and program

Melanie will share a visual presentation on the evolution of botanical wallpaper design in America—from early colonial imports to the Art Deco era and beyond. Discover how Chinese and European influences shaped American wallpaper trends and how nature-inspired motifs have left a lasting imprint on interior design styles. Learn how these historic patterns reflected changing tastes, technologies, and cultural ideals across centuries.

Melanie Pellegrini is the founder of Pellegrini Design, a residential interior design studio based in Lincoln, MA. With over 18 years of experience, Melanie specializes in creating colorful interiors that thoughtfully blend historical architecture with modern comfort and style. Her work has been featured in Boston Globe Magazine and other regional publications. In addition to her residential design practice, she teaches interior architecture at the college level and is a frequent speaker on the history of design and decorative arts.

March 13 (Friday) – March 14 (Saturday) TABLESCAPES

Friday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.   Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. 

The North House, 1 Nod Road, Avon CT

The Garden Club will participate for the 6th time in the Avon Historical Society’s annual fundraiser, Tablescapes, by creating a new display table display.
We can also participate by donating Tag Sale items, which will be sold in the entryway. Let’s support our designer members by purchasing a ticket and voting for our table.

April 13 (Monday) Who Knew, Slime Molds and Lichens of Connecticut – 

Pamm Cooper
Church of St. Ann - Father Bennett Hall

11:30 a.m. Member Meeting
12:00 p.m. Guests welcome for lunch and program.

This highly visual presentation will introduce the surprisingly beautiful and interesting world of lichens and slime molds one may encounter almost anywhere outdoors in Connecticut.  Some are very unusual to bizarre and infrequently seen while others are common but often overlooked. The presentation contains images taken by the presenter, Pamm Cooper, who has had her photographs printed in many publications including books and magazines.

Pamm Cooper works at the University of Connecticut Home and Garden Education Center office offering advice on cultural and pest concerns for gardens, landscapes and natural habitats. She has teamed with Jane Seymour from the CT DEEP doing programs on using native and non-native plants in the residential landscape to support native pollinators, butterflies, and wildlife. She has worked for Dr. David Wagner collecting and rearing caterpillars for property bio-surveys on DEEP properties and has contributed to articles for Martha Stewart Living Magazine and Butterfly Gardener Magazine. She is also a nature photographer with photographs published in several books, magazines, and other publications.

May 11 (Monday)  The World of Peonies – Dan Furman, Cricket Hill Garden

Co-sponsored by GCA and Avon Free Public Library

7:00 p.m. - Avon Public Library 1st Floor Meeting Room

Dan Furman is co-owner of Cricket Hill Garden, a second generation-specialty nursery and forest farm, in Thomaston, CT. Since joining the business in 2010 he has worked to expand the peony production program at the nursery, as well as diversify the stock grown to include unusual landscape and forest edibles. 

May 19 (Tuesday) Town Hall Planting

Rain Date: May 20 (Wednesday)            

Avon Town Hall 10:00 a.m. 

This is our annual Town Hall beautification project.  We will be planting at the Town Hall Complex and Veteran’s Memorial just in time for Memorial Day. 

June TBD                  Annual Bus Trip

June TBD                  Annual Luncheon