Garden Club celebrates 80 years

PINE PLAINS — Did you know that Pine Plains’ town flower is the petunia? You might if you’re a member of the Pine Plains Garden Club, which celebrated 80 years in existence last weekend with a luncheon at the Mashomack Preserve Club.

Thirty-three people, including members and their guests, attended the event. There are currently 16 active members and seven associate members in the club. Joan Syler, who has been president for the past four years, said that at the peak of the club’s popularity there were as many as 50 in the club.

There aren’t many official garden clubs left in the county that are registered with the National Garden Clubs (Central Atlantic Region) and the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State, Syler explained, and the Pine Plains chapter prides itself in continuing the formality established during the 80 years of tradition in the town.

The luncheon’s program gave a little bit of history about the early years of the club, as discovered by Syler in old newspaper articles. It took a while for the club to generate interest — no one showed up for a meeting in the fall of 1929.

During World War II the Pine Plains Garden Club contributed seeds for Great Britain, donated to the United Service Organizations and Red Cross funds, and sent boxes of food to Holland, Denmark and England. Club members continue to send money and cards to the local servicemen at Christmas and work with the local Grange chapter.

These days the garden club still keeps busy. There are the town’s window boxes and flower barrels to plant and making sprays for Memorial Day celebrations in Pine Plains and Stanfordville, and during Christmas time, for local churches, Town Hall and the library. There’s also an annual plant sale and a flower show during the FFA’s fall festival.

At the luncheon two women were honored for their lasting contributions to the garden club: associate member Moretta Napoli and former member Vivian Smith. Both joined the garden club in the 1950s, making them the club’s most senior members.

“It’s quite an achievement,� said Syler about the club turning 80. “We just try to keep up tradition and do our part with civic plantings.�