The club schedules additional member workshops and events throughout the year beyond the meetings listed below.
Please check the Friday Frond newsletter for new information and program updates.
Please check the Friday Frond newsletter for new information and program updates.
September 2025
Beyond "No Mow" May
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Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Time: 9:30 a.m. Gather, 10:00 a.m. Meeting Location: St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, North Hall Details: Lawns have long been regarded as eco-villains, but a new generation of grasses and maintenance practices can produce a green lawn that is a contributor to biological diversity, resource sustainability, and carbon sequestration. These new lawns can contribute novel elements of beauty to the home landscape and require less mowing and fertilization. Over the past decade, horticulturist Tom Christopher has been working to return the American lawn to a more environmentally healthy condition. Mr. Christopher has been designing and maintaining gardens with an environmental emphasis for more than four decades. He is a graduate of the New York Botanical Garden School of Professional Horticulture, and the author of more than a dozen books, including Garden Revolution, the award-winning introduction to ecological gardening that he co-authored with Larry Weaner. Tom produces a weekly podcast and radio program, Growing Greener, that broadcasts on 20+ radio stations nationwide and downloads to 12,000 additional listeners every month. He gardens with his wife Suzanne (an environmental scientist at Wesleyan University) in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts where they make vintage hard cider every fall from heirloom apples. SWEEPSTAKES DIVISION I: HORTICULTURE Class 1: Dahlia Class 2: Zinnia Class 3: Herb (one stem) Class 4: Home grown fruit or vegetable (presented on a plate) Class 5: Favorite Native Plant from your garden (flower or branch cutting) DIVISION II: FLORAL DESIGN Class 1: Create a symmetrical design that provides contrast through varied textures. DIVISION III: PHOTOGRAPHY Class 1: Late Season Blooms 5x7 print. (RGC Coordinators will provide a mat.) |
October 2025
Great Trees and Shrubs for Sustainable Landscapes
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Date: Tuesday, October 28, 2025
Time: 9:30 a.m. Gather, 10:00 a.m. Meeting Location: Ridgefield Library Details: Karen Bussolini will provide a presentation that introduces an array of superior trees and shrubs that are either widely adaptable or adapted to difficult conditions such as shade, salt spray, deer browsing or wet soils, emphasizing eastern North American natives. Her identifying photos convey each plant’s character, beauty and wildlife value. Images from attainable sustainable landscapes show how to use them effectively – as groundcovers, colorful accents, specimens, screens, hedges, creators of shade and privacy, as erosion control, in rain gardens, in formal and informal styles and in all seasons. The presentation concludes with a discussion of tree and shrub care – pruning, protecting and celebrating. Ms. Bussolini is a nationally known garden photographer, writer and speaker and eco-friendly garden coach. Her art background and focus on environmental topics - ecological landscaping, native plants, biodiversity, xeriscaping, organic gardening, planting for wildlife, pollinators and other beneficial insects – inform every aspect of her work. Slide talks combine beautiful original images, environmental science, personal observations, hands-on experience and a touch of humor. Her email newsletter, Eco-Friendly News, Views, Clues and How-To’s won a GardenComm gold medal in 2020. Karen is photographer of The Homeowner’s Complete Tree and Shrub Handbook. She is currently Senior Horticultural Advisor at White Flower Farm in Connecticut. SWEEPSTAKES DIVISION I: HORTICULTURE Class 1: Foliage (one stem or branch in water) Class 2: Aster Class 3: Native Goldenrod Class 4: Favorite from your garden. DIVISION II: FLORAL DESIGN Class 1: Create a monochromatic design that evokes an autumnal mood or the Halloween spirit. DIVISION III: PHOTOGRAPHY Class 1: Leaves and Other Fall Indicators 5x7 print. (RGC Coordinators will provide a mat.) |
December 2025
Annual Wreath Making Workshop
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Date: Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Time: 9:30 a.m. Gather, 10:00 a.m. Meeting Location: St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, North Hall Details: Please join our most festive event of the year as we create wreaths and celebrate the season. The Club will provide a variety of greenery and branches. Please bring ribbons, greens and embellishments to add to your project or to share. You may also wish to bring clippers, scissors, a hot glue gun, extension cord, and wreath wire. We will be ordering the same wreaths as in prior years. Pricing and ordering instructions will be provided in advance. We will be able to accommodate a limited number of guests. Please contact Nicole Walker if you would like to bring a friend or prospective member. |
December 2025
Holiday Party
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Date: Thursday, December 11, 2025
Time: 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. Location: Keeler Tavern Museum and History Center, Garden House Details: Ridgefield Garden Club's annual celebration of the holidays. Spouses and partners are most welcome to join. Details and invitation to follow. |
February 2026
Brighten Up Those Winter Blues:Great Plants for Winter Interest
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Date: Tuesday, February 24, 2026
Time: 1:00 p.m. Meeting Location: St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, North Hall Details: Who says the winter garden has to be filled with boring, drab colors? Join Adam Wheeler, Horticulture and Plant Development Manager at Broken Arrow Nursery for this fun-filled lecture that explores the diversity of plants available for adding color and interest to the garden during winter. General garden use including design considerations, cultural requirements, and other critical details will be showcased. Mr. Wheeler started work at Broken Arrow in 2004 after completing his BS degree in Urban Forestry and Landscape Horticulture at the University of Vermont. Adam manages plant propagation, container and field production and the acquisition and development of new plants. He is a past recipient of the Young Nursery Professional Award from the New England Nursery Association. He loves to share his passion for plants through photography and educational outreach. As a result, he lectures widely on a variety of subjects and is also an adjunct lecturer at Naugatuck Valley Community College and the Berkshire Botanical Garden. With his spare time, he enjoys cultivating his eclectic collection of rare and unusual plants, rock climbing and competitive giant pumpkin growing. SWEEPSTAKES: DIVISION I: HORTICULTURE Class 1: Forced Bulb Class 2: Forced Branch (one branch in water) Class 3: Houseplant DIVISION II: FLORAL DESIGN Class 1: Create a “Pot-et-Fleur”; This is a design that combines a rooted plant(s)and cut flower(s)/foliage. It employs the lasting quality of plants and the colorful impact of cut stems. DIVISION III: PHOTOGRAPHY Class 1: Signs of Spring 5x7 print. (RGC Coordinators will provide a mat.) |
March 2026
Annual Conservation Meeting, Open to the Public
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Date: TBD
Time: TBD Location: TBD Details: TBD |
April 2026
Floral Design Demonstration With Dijana Xocoy
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Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Time: 9:30 a.m. Gather, 10:00 a.m. Meeting Location: St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, North Hall Details: Dijana Xocoy (Toolbox Florals) offers sustainable, locally-sourced floral designs, serving Connecticut, New York City, and beyond. She also brings her beautifully restored vintage Chevy flower truck on the road for floral pop-ups and events. Additionally, Toolbox Florals hosts floral arrangement classes for clients, as well as private classes for friends and family events. SWEEPSTAKES: DIVISION I: HORTICULTURE Class 1: Flowering Branch Class 2: Tulip Class 3: Narcissus Class 4: Hellebore Class 5: A Favorite From Your Garden DIVISION II: FLORAL DESIGN Class 1: Create a miniature design that is no more than 5” in height and has one dominant element. DIVISION II: PHOTOGRAPHY Class 1: Evidence of H20 5x7 print. (RGC Coordinators will provide a mat.) |
May 2026
112th Annual Meeting & Awards Luncheon
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Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Time: 11:00 a.m. Location: Silver Spring Country Club Details: Celebrate a year of beautiful gardens and great accomplishments at our Annual Meeting and Luncheon.This is the one meeting of the year which is “members only”. We’ll celebrate our members’ hard work throughout the year. Outgoing and incoming board members are acknowledged, and the budget will be reviewed at this meeting. Please watch for an invitation by email with further details as the date approaches. THERE WILL BE NO SWEEPSTAKES AT THIS MEETING |