The Pine Plains Garden Club was founded in 1930 to encourage interest in home gardening and all aspects of town beautification. Ninety-three years later, it’s still going strong. The following is an edited excerpt from a 1953 article in The Pine Plains Register Herald describing the club’s early history. The excerpt and other details about local gardening can also be found at the Pine Plains Garden Club website.
During 1929, a yard and garden contest was sponsored by The Pine Plains Register-Herald as a prelude to an idea of Mrs. Eda Aroh’s that the formation of a garden club in Pine Plains could be of service to the community. Later, in the fall, a meeting was called by her – no one showed up! A second meeting was then planned and she managed to coerce a few neighbors to talk over the plans. The following spring, on March 8, 1930, the club organized with the following as members: Eda Aroh, Anna Haight, Bess Falls, Agnes Hedges, Ella Burch, Grace Ross, Georgina Clifford, Blanche Butterfield, Mabel Peck, Eva Edelman and Christine Wiltsie.
The club started with many activities, including another yard and garden contest, the purchase of a stereopticon (an early 3D type of slide projector), a lecture on “Beautifying the Home Ground,” a shrub and plant sale, the sale of subscriptions to Better Homes and Gardens magazine, and enlisting the Boy Scouts to clean up the dump, which was then located on the main highway west of Pine Plains. All this in less than two months. The dump proposition was worked on for several years. They finally had a privet hedge planted to hide it.
To give encouragement, two friends of Mrs. Aroh — Mrs. Jacob Strong and Mrs. Frank L. Asher of the Rhinebeck Garden Club — secured an invitation from the Astor Estate for a tour of the gardens on May 23. A sizeable group enjoyed it, including several guests, and all were later entertained by Mrs. Strong at her home with cooling refreshments.
Mrs. George C. Cow — then president of the Poughkeepsie Garden Club, who was always referred to as the “mother” of the Pine Plains club — came in June to give an inspiring talk, suggesting programs and activities. She also arranged a tour of two lovely gardens in Poughkeepsie — Clarence Lown’s famous rock garden, which was moved to College Hill Park after his death, and also Mr. Kenyon’s beautiful ravine garden. The Poughkeepsie club also extended an invitation to a meeting held at Vassar College to hear Ernest Wilson, who was the scientist who found and introduced the regal lily, and a tour was also taken of the college’s Shakespearean garden.
At regular meetings of the Pine Plains Garden Club, members took part in preparing and giving talks on such subjects as “Raising Perennials from Seed for Next Year’s Garden,” “Lilies for the Garden,” “The Fall Garden Campaign,” “What’s in a Bulb” and “Plant Potting Pointers.”
One of the main aims of the club was civic improvement. Parking of cars in front of Memorial Hall (now The Stissing Center) was done right up to the front wall. It was decided to sponsor the building of a curb and landscaping it. A few of the members graded, seeded, and planted evergreens after quite a number of loads of loam had been secured. The total cost amounted to close to $100. The planting was destroyed by the theater’s management when they added the large vestibule to the front of the building. The Masonic Hall committee had been asked to see that something be done to replace it. Persistent requests for the planting of highway trees along the mid-county highway, Pine Plains through Washington Hollow, did bring results from the state highway department.
In 1931, the club had 33 members. Some were considered associate members, as they were unable to join in the club’s activities but were in sympathy with the principles and so helped financially.
The club joined the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State in 1933. Some of the other community activities were landscaping around the Memorial Clock square, placing welcome signs at the four entrances to the village, planting at the old railroad station of shrubs and for several years keeping the grass mowed until it was purchased by a local resident. On two occasions, they sold Austrian pine trees for local gardens. Close to 100 were planted. Blueprints by Miss Theodosia Burr, a friend of the club and landscape architect, were presented for the suggested planting improvements around the Grange Hall and Odd Fellows Hall. These blueprints were presented to the organizations.
One evening each year for a number of seasons, men’s night programs were held with speakers, bringing topics especially of interest to men. Yearly flower shows were held. The first two were remembered for their “New York Flower Show Touch,” – real gardens being the center of the whole exhibit. Examples included real rock gardens, with pools and a moonlit garden. The club had a record of consistently taking part in the Dutchess County Fair flower shows from 1931 to date, with the exception of one year during World War II. They also had a part in the local Future Farmers of America shows since 1940.
Beginning in 1932 and every year up until the war years, Christmas lighting of homes had been encouraged. The club also assisted or had charge of holiday lighting at the town clock and, since 1935, shut-ins of the community were remembered with gifts at Christmas.
In 1939, they started a Junior Garden Club, but due to lack of leadership, it was discontinued in 1942. Mrs. Wiltsie and Mrs. Aroh had the thrilling experience of entering a picture window exhibit featuring Mrs. Wiltsie’s gladiolas at the World’s Fair in 1939, representing the club. Also in 1939, they had two antique shows for the raising of funds which proved most popular. In 1940, they started supporting bills against billboards through legislation.
As the United States entered World War II, the club contributed seeds for Britain, as well as contributing to the USO fund and Red Cross. It sent 42 boxes of food to Holland, Denmark and England, bought a war bond, and gave $1 and a card to each local serviceman at Christmas. Club members cooperated with the Grange on a Victory Garden Harvest Show, hosting the FFA group at a meeting to test samples of their soil. The home economics teacher spoke on food preservation of garden produce. A total of $479 was donated during the war years.
In 1945, the club landscaped the Legion Home, contributed to servicemen’s gifts, and started giving the $10 science prize to the graduating class. In 1946, they joined the Berkshire Garden Center. By 1947, they held the first yearly show in the school auditorium (at Seymour Smith) which provided spaciousness and airiness. They continued to participate in the FFA Agricultural Fair. Many of the members contributed arrangements to neighboring shows and several had taken judging courses. Among speakers heard at local meetings or by invitation to other clubs were Mrs. William Stickles, Mrs. Henry Staley, Montague Free, Mrs. John Lynch, Mrs. F. Palmer Hart, Mary Lamson, Mrs. Cochran Cole, James Leath, Mr. and Mrs. Thornton, Mrs. Walter Schreiber, Mrs. Dodson, Mrs. Stelle, Mrs. R. Bowerhan, Ralph Waterman, Patrick McKenna, Paul Winslow, Mrs. W.R. Wood, Mrs. E. Hewes, and many others.
In 1950, the garden club members had their first Easter plant sale, which netted the club its largest yearly income. They also had a very important event – 20 members visited and were entertained at the Natural History Museum in New York, where they viewed the Warburg Memorial Hall, which has a land description of the Pine Plains area – a large, permanent, beautiful and instructive exhibit that has brought much interest to the locality. In 1951, they had a Christmas show instead of the annual flower show.
Those serving as presidents of the club from 1930 through 1953 were: Mrs. Aroh, Mrs. Ralph Knickerbocker, Mrs. Ruth Moore, Miss Cora Pulver (six years), Mrs. A. Matragrano, Mrs. R. Palmatier, Mrs. Thomas LeBrun, Mrs. Theodore Coy, Mrs. W.W. Bostwick, Mrs. Bonisteel, Mrs. B.E. David, Mrs. Ralph Bowman, Mrs. O. Jauncey, and for 1953, Mrs. Albert Friedman.
Vicky LoBrutto is a member of the Pine Plains Garden Club and the town historian in Milan.