New garden club forming in Logan County
Organizational meeting to be held Saturday afternoon

[March 17, 2016]   LINCOLN - This Saturday, anyone who is interested in gardening, whether they are seasoned gardeners or novice, are invited to attend an organizational meeting for a new club in Logan County. The meeting will be held March 19th at 2 p.m. at Wendy’s in Lincoln.

Recently Carol Mills and Kathy Vinyard sat down to talk about what they are hoping to accomplish. Both ladies say that this is not their club, they are merely the catalysts to open the dialogue and find out if a club is wanted.

Vinyard said that in her experiences with the From the Ground Up group and the Plant the Town Red project, she knows several people in the community enjoy gardening in some fashion. She said that she thought it would be good to form a club that brought these people together to share ideas and knowledge and build relationships. She noted that an added benefit of forming the club would be the building of the relationships because it is this type of socialization that can make Lincoln and Logan County attractive to others.

According to Mills, the idea came from Vinyard. Mills had been speaking on gardening at another club where Vinyard was in attendance. After the meeting, Vinyard called Mills and asked for a get together to talk about forming a new club.

Mills is a member of the Logan County Master Gardeners as well as the Herb Guild. She said as she spoke with Vinyard, one thing they agreed on right away was they wanted to put together a club that was not a “Service Club.”

Mills went on to explain that the Master Gardener Club has certain requirements. Club members are required to perform community service outside of any regular meetings. There is also a pre-requisite for training through the University of Illinois, which is not only costly but time-consuming. Mills noted those things are very worthwhile, but such requirements don’t always fit into the busy lifestyles of people today who have full-time jobs and families.

Asked about the membership structure of the new club, the women said that was for the group to decide. Going into Saturday’s meeting, the women are going to be open minded and are hopeful that the group will take the ball and run with it. Right now, they said they have no structure in mind. Vinyard said they would begin the meeting with a club that had no membership dues, no community service requirements, and no meeting location or structure. She is hopeful that those in attendance on Saturday will outline what they think is acceptable for the structure of the club.

Vinyard said decisions that can be made would regard membership dues, club officers, and what they want the meetings to contain. She said that there were many talented gardeners in the area. Meetings could be hosted by a different member each month who would talk about his or her gardening experience, bring a show and tell, or share their gardening tricks with others.

The group could also choose to do community projects from time to time if they wish, and they might want to have special guest speakers from time to time. The club members might also wish to host meetings in their gardens this summer, allowing them the opportunity to show off the glowing things in their life that are important to them.

Vinyard and Mills said that until they see the outcome of the Saturday meeting, everything is an open slate, and they are very hopeful that the folks who attend on Saturday will come ready to talk and share and develop a plan that suits them.

Another point Vinyard and Mills made was they didn’t want anyone to get stuck on the word “garden.” They are hoping for a diversity of interests from vegetable gardeners to flower gardeners, and those who have a love for indoor gardening and houseplants.

They said that they wanted to make sure everyone knows this is not a club for the city of Lincoln. Vinyard noted that she is involved with the city, but she is not just representing the city in forming this club. It is for everyone in Logan County, and all are invited to come and be a part of it.

Vinyard and Mills have done a lot of work thus far to get the word out. Last week flyers for the club were placed in the gift bags at the Russel Allen Garden Day in Lincoln. Flyers have also been placed in shopping bags in some local stores, and emails have been sent to people the ladies believe could be interested in the club.

Vinyard said she had also contacted the Lincoln Community High School FFA and invited Doctor Penny Wittler and her FFA students to become a part of the club as well. Vinyard noted that Wittler and some of her students have indicated they are interested.

For Vinyard and Mills both, having young people involved is very exciting. Both agreed that for any organization to be successful, there needs to be diversity in the membership. They want young and old alike to come together and develop lasting relationships through their love of gardening.

[Nila Smith]