Club Welcomes New Members, Presents Program on Healthy Lawns & Gardens

During the 2021-2022 club year, the Andover Garden Club welcomed two new members: Allison Anderson and Marilyn Blumsack. The club encourages people to join, and membership cochairs Cathy Starr (cstarr12@comcast.net, 978-475-8473) and Donna Rudolph (dlabsuper49@aol.com, 978-475-7165) are happy to share information on how to do so.

Check Out the Club While Learning About Healthy Lawn Care

An opportunity to check out the club is coming up on Tuesday, October 4, when well-known gardener and lecturer Betty Sanders will present “Healthy Lawns and Alternatives.” Sanders, a Lifetime Master Gardener with the Massachusetts Master Gardener Association and a nationally accredited Master Flower Show Judge, has studied gardening at the Arnold Arboretum, the New York Botanical Garden, and the New England Wildflower Society.

Sanders has lectured at the New England Spring Flower Show, the Boston Flower & Garden Show, the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, the Boston Public Library, Tower Hill Botanical Garden, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and hundreds of garden clubs, civic organizations, and corporations. She earned a degree in Chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Her website, Betty on Gardening, may be found at https://www.bettyongardening.com/.

About the Lawn-Care Program

Sander’s gardening and science background forms the basis for her lectures. Her take on healthy lawns is based on the scientific principles that underlay claims of both the so-called traditional lawn-care companies and their organic competitors. She will explain which claims are driven by marketing and which are simply wishful thinking. She describes her gardening approach as “about 95 percent organic,” with the last five percent being a thoughtful recognition that on occasion inorganic solutions are appropriate and can be implemented without harming the environment.

Logistics

The lecture is open to the public and will be held at South Church, 41 Central Street, Andover, at 11:00 AM; a $10 donation is requested of nonmembers. Club members will gather at 10:00 AM for a welcome-back brunch and brief business meeting before the program.

About the Andover Garden Club

Founded in 1927, the Andover Garden Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that encourages the study and practice of horticulture, landscape design, and floral design; aids in the beautification of the town of Andover; and helps protect and conserve natural resources. A member of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, Inc., and National Garden Clubs, Inc., the club provides both financial and hands-on support to a variety of municipal, educational, and environmental organizations throughout the region.