JULY MESSAGE

Greetings Garden Friends,

We will be celebrating Independence Day, or, Fourth of July, which honors our nation's birth. According to Andrea Wulf, Author of Founding Gardeners, our Founding Fathers were more than statesman who believed in liberty for the nation they were creating.  Many were avid gardeners; George Washington had a zeal for trees and farming, John Adams was a hands-on New England Gardener, Thomas Jefferson combined the beauty of natural surroundings with garden plots, James Madison expressed a desire to protect the environment. They researched, planned, and planted gardens embracing native plants. Trips to the Virginia plantations of George Washington's Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, and James Madison's Montpelier continue to reveal those early visions to visitors, along with John Adam's small farm, Peace Field, in Quincy near Boston. We gardeners should embrace this great connection to such illustrious men.

We will be gathering at Pine Community Park, for our July meeting/picnic with a catered luncheon from John Marshall's. We are asking for a $5 donation to those attending to cover a meal that is worth far more.  I hope all of you are planning to participate in our annual auction that will include favorites lovingly started from seed. Let's have some fun at this good time fundraiser that benefits our club.  Finally, a field trip is planned for blueberry picking at Trax Farm on July 12th. Last year's bountiful harvest proved to be delectable to many.

"Tho an Old Man, I Am But a Young Gardener." - Thomas Jefferson

"Happy 4th of July,"

Julie, Your President