After a busy year of planning, planting and pruning, the Green Thumb Garden Club of Somers Point took a break from gardening to celebrate the season with their annual Holiday Party. Held on Wednesday, Dec. 3, at Gregory’s Restaurant and Bar in Somers Point, the group enjoyed an evening of delicious food and lively conversation. Of course, after chatting about family, the talk around the tables, as it often does, turned to gardening: thoughts on future projects, seed collecting, or canning and pickling their harvested crops. After dinner and dessert, members posed for their annual group picture and were all gifted vibrant red poinsettias for the holidays.
Established in 1952, the Green Thumb Garden Club has been committed to its mission of beautifying the community and encouraging the protection of trees, shrubs, birds, and natural resources. Members of the garden club volunteer throughout the year to contribute to the beautification of Somers Point.
Some of the projects are ongoing, such as changing the Four Corners containers, leading up to the Ocean City Bridge, for the season. Volunteers recently met to transition the containers from fall to winter. The group also plants and maintains the kitchen garden located at Somers Mansion. This year, the garden club was thrilled to receive new raised beds installed as part of an Eagle Scout project by Geoffrey Lovett with the help of his Boy Scout Troop 55. Volunteers from the garden club also plant native and host plants at the butterfly garden at John F. Kennedy Park and keep the beds around the Somers Point Library looking beautiful and fresh. They also sponsor a booth at Bayfest and, most recently, offered a presentation on how to save the bees.
In addition to completing work projects, the garden club conducts monthly meetings during most months of the year at the Somers Point Senior and Community Center. Master gardeners and novice gardeners come together and learn from each other. They often have a guest speaker on subjects such as propagation, native gardening, and conservation. The annual plant swap is always well-attended as a favorite end-of-the-season meeting. The annual picnic at John F. Kennedy Park is also a popular event. Officers of the club are planning day trips for the members and are looking forward to a possible trip in the spring to the art-filled gardens of Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton.
Despite the name, you are not required to have a green thumb or be a master gardener to join the club. The group is always happy to accept new members who will bring fresh ideas and would like to volunteer their time to the club. Both new and seasoned gardeners learn from each other and enjoy great camaraderie. After a break in January, the club plans to reconvene in February. If you would like more information about the Green Thumb Garden Club, you can contact the club president, Sally Pietrofitta, at (609) 927-4247 or email her at Sallycp@verizon.net.
Tammy Thornton lives with her husband, children, and crazy pets while enjoying a life of gardening, cooking, and going to the beach.
