The Garden Club of Manchester was organized in 1920, becoming the first garden club in Vermont.  The Club's purpose is to promote love for, interest in and knowledge of horiculture.  The Club currently has approximately 100 members actively engaged in conservation, beautification and education.

 

The Club has provided generous scholarships to Smokey House Center and the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps that benefit projects related to horticulture and the environment.  Additionally, there are scholarships awarded each year to graduating high school seniors pursuing an education in environmental studies, agribusiness, botany or any related course of study.

 

Civic beautification is one of our major endeavors.  The club designs, plants and maintains baskets, boxes and planters in Manchester and Dorset. We also design and maintain parts of the Manchester Town Green and we were instrumental in the replanting of the Dorset Town Office gardens.  Another project was the plantings at the Veterans Memorial in Danby, VT.  The Danby project was made possible by a grant from the National Garden Clubs Plant America project. 

 

Our members create weekly floral arrangements for the main hall of Yester House at the Southern Vermont Art Center and the Manchester Community Library.  All of these beautiful floral places are made possible through the creativity and hard work of our many dedicated members. 

 

This will be the 35th year that the Club will make and hang Christmas wreaths for various organizations in Manchester and Dorset.  

 

The Botany Trail at the So. Vermont Arts Center is maintained by Club members.  

 

The Manchester Garden Club is a member of the National Garden Clubs and the Federated Garden Clubs of Vermont