If you want to be happy for a week, get a wife.
If you want to be happy for a month, buy a pig.
If you want to be happy all your life, make a garden.
With those words from an old Chinese proverb, the St. Albert Garden Club announced its inaugural meeting 30 years ago in the St. Albert Gazette. That folksy, good-natured, humourous way of looking at gardening has been the mainstay of the club ever since.
Just who came up with the idea for a local garden club in the first place is unclear. It may have begun with the Hole family or it could have started with several rose-growing St. Albert folks who wanted a place to show their roses and have the best blooms judged.
"I remember it was an idea that was tossed around for a long time, recalled John Beedle, who has been in the club since its inception.
"There was talk of a rose-fanciers' club but strangely that still hasn't materialized. I believe the idea for the garden club might have started with Ted Hole and University of Alberta horticulturalist Ed Toop. I remember I was asked to attend as a horticulturalist from the City of St. Albert, not really as a gardener," Beedle said.
The actual first meeting was held in February, 1982 in the Akinsdale Clubhouse but garden club members kicked off their real anniversary celebrations last week by hosting the Alberta Horticultural Association conference with experts and speakers from throughout the province attending.
Tuesday, May 15 the club will host its 30th plant auction. It's scheduled to be held as part of the regular monthly meeting in the Sir George Simpson school lunchroom beginning at 7 p.m. This is the auction where club members bring in their perennials, seedlings and bedding plants for sale.
Growing memories
Beedle, Olga Matvichuk and Lucy Krisco, who are all long-time members of the club, met in the Gazette offices recently to reminisce about the history of the club.
"I joined because I liked gardening. I remember Ted and Lois Hole gave one of the first lectures. It was on starting seeds at home and that first talk is probably why I've stayed. There are always interesting presentations," Matvichuk said.
Surprisingly, though Beedle is a horticulturalist and is often consulted himself on gardening questions, he agreed with Matvichuk's reasons for staying with the club for three decades.
"I've probably listened to some of the talks four times or more but different people present them and we learn from each other," he said.
Lucy Krisco introduced the idea of touring fellow members' gardens soon after she joined the club in 1984. Those annual tours have become a matter of pride for the participants.
"It's a time to show off your flowers but we also learn by looking at other gardens," she said.
Over the years club members donated flowers and expertise and also labour at various locations throughout the city.
"Club members planted flowers at the Chateau Mission Court seniors centre and when the botanic park started we donated 50 peonies and planted them. That peony bed is still there and will be for another 100 years," said Beedle.
The power of flowers reaches its zenith in the club's calendar year at the annual Summer Splendour Garden Show at the end of August. The show is a competition where growers show their best flowers and vegetables and cooks exhibit their best preserves and pies. The competition has grown considerably over the years.
"The first year I believe we had one judge and six classes. Now we have five judges. Last year we had 600 entries with 40 or 50 people taking part," Beedle said.
But if there's one thing this club has grown more than anything else, it's friendships. The gardeners have competed against each other, they've attended meetings and travelled together to growing centres and gardens throughout the province.
They consult each other about gardening problems. When they had tomato blight they discussed solutions. They've worked together to pull weeds such as purple loosestrife from city waterways and parks.
"The camaraderie is the main thing," Beedle said. "We have like interests and we've shared knowledge. That's hard to beat."
For more information about the St. Albert and District Garden Club visit www.stalbertgardenclub.info
