What We Do

The North Country Garden Club is committed to the art and science of gardening, conservation of natural resources and horticulture throughout our community. Our members are dedicated to the well-being of the gardens and green spaces that surround them and to the environment as a whole. While we participate in many kinds of activities, the four areas described below provide an overview of our club’s endeavors and interests.

Horticulture
Nurturing the knowledge and love of gardening is foundation of the Horticulture Committee.  Through workshops, lectures and monthly distribution of gardening tips and trends, members learn how to propagate and grow all types of plants from vegetables and perennials to annuals and house plants.  We participate in flower shows with plant specimens from our gardens.  Prize-winning or not, in gardening, we learn as much from our successes as we do from our failures.

Conservation
The purpose of the Conservation Committee is to keep the membership well informed on current conservation issues, to promote respect for natural resources and responsibility for the environment; to identify and carry out conservation work; to provide environmental programs for the membership and the general public; and where appropriate, to work with other conservation agencies and organizations whose programs complement those of the NCGC. 

We encourage all our members, as well as the public, to take The Healthy Yard Pledge: “I pledge to take care of my yard without synthetic pesticides, weed killers, or chemical fertilizers, except on rare occasions, to resolve an infestation or to improve habitat for native plants and wildlife. I also pledge not to flush pharmaceutical drugs or household chemicals down drains and toilets.” 

Floral Design
The education of Floral Design enables our members to discover the beauty and artistry of a very creative discipline. Through workshops and demonstrations, members learn the principles and elements of flower arranging from basic designs to complex mass designs.  The culmination of these efforts is often exhibited in flower shows that meet the requirements of the Garden Club of America, our parent organization. By setting standards of excellence, flower shows broaden our members’ knowledge of flower arrangement, horticulture and conservation.  In addition, they allow us to share the beauty of a show with fellow club members and the public.

Photography
The mission of the Photography Committee is to promote the knowledge and love of the natural landscape through photography. With the goal of making photography approachable to all the members, from novices to experts, instruction is given on iPhone photography as well as digital single-lens reflex photography.  Through lectures, workshops and field trips, members of the committee learn about composition, lighting and editing.

Garden History and Design
The design of gardens and the role they play in our lives has changed throughout history. The mission of the Garden History & Design Committee is to demonstrate that garden history is an integral part of the cultural and social life of the communities where these gardens exist. On the north shore of Long Island, we are fortunate to be surrounded by spectacular gardens.  The committee works closely with the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Gardens (AAG) to document public and private gardens in our area and, to date, the committee has documented 28 gardens. This research is now a part of AAG’s collection, a significant source of information about the evolution of American private and public gardens and landscapes.  Many of the documented gardens are featured in Gardens of Long Island’s North Shore, which the committee created in celebration of the club’s centennial.