Saturday's Greens Farms Garden Club Sale to Focus on Bird-Friendly Plants

If you're planning on going to Saturday's Greens Farms Garden Club plant sale, get there early.  

Jane Guenther, the club's spokesperson, said the best plant selections would be available in the morning. During the 29 years that club has been conducting the annual plant sale, Guenther has seen people hover around the Sherman Green gazebo, waiting for the sale's 9 a.m. start time so they can snatch up some plants.  

This year's sale focuses on bird-friendly plants, Guenther said -- "plants that are attractive to birds." This means the inventory will include perennials like black-eyed Susans and coreopsis and annuals such as sunflowers.  

Customers will also find bird-related items, like birdfeeders, birdhouses, and birdbaths for sale on Saturday.  

Additionally, the Greens Farms Garden Club will sell unusual perennials, like geum (or "Flames of Passion," Guenther said) and tiarella Brandywine foamflowers. There will also be "fancy succulents," which Guenther said are all the rage right now.  

The funds raised will go toward several projects. The Greens Farms Garden Club plants and maintains the Victorian Garden across from Old Town Hall in Fairfield, Guenther said, so some funds go toward that civic beautification.  

The club also supports philanthropic efforts and donates to organizations like the Connecticut Audubon Society and the Aspetuck Land Trust.  

Members also contribute to garden therapy programs and work with agencies like Emerge Connecticut.  

"It all goes to good things," Guenther said. "This is the only fundraiser we do all year."  

The sale will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 18 at the Sherman Green Gazebo in Fairfield. The club draws members from Fairfield, Westport, Easton, and Weston, Guenther said, and many of the plants and flowers are taken from members' gardens.