The Warrenton Garden Club

March 21, 2022

warrentongardenclub.org

The Warrenton Garden Club was founded in 1911 and became a founding member of the Garden Club of America (GCA), and in 1920, a founding member of the Garden Club of Virginia (GCV).

Community Involvement

The club was a recipient of Common Wealth Award funding in 2000 for its project to plant trees and shrubs at the Fauquier Outdoor Lab. The Fauquier County School facility includes a learning lab with meeting space and a small natural history collection; a pond; and nature trails.

In 2011, the club established a garden around the handicapped accessible playground at the Warrenton Aquatic and Recreational Facility. Members weed and deadhead during the summer and, twice a year (spring and fall), have all-hands-on-deck to ready the garden for summer and to put it to bed in the fall. The club recently rejuvenated the garden, and in support of the club’s efforts to make Fauquier County a member of “Bee City USA,” replaced plantings to create a pollinator friendly garden.

An initiative to establish a community farm was initiated by the Fauquier Community Action committee in 2009. The original plan for the Fauquier Education Farm was initiated by the Fauquier Community Action committee in 2009. By 2010, the Fauquier Education Farm was established to further develop a program of agricultural education and the growing of fresh produce for lower income residents. Today, the farm regularly donates over 100,000 pounds of produce per year to local area food banks. The WGC began a long-term association with the organization in 2014. Each spring, members seed hundreds of trays to go into their greenhouses. In summer, members volunteer in the garden and in the fall, the club supports the organization’s major fundraiser.

With its beginnings in the 1980s, the Clifton Institute has grown over the decades “to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards, to learn about the ecology of the northern Virginia Piedmont, and to conserve native biodiversity.” The WGC club provided funding for the Gina Farrar Native Plant Garden at the institute in memory of member Gina, who’s generous legacy to our club made this possible and the decision to recognize her life and commitment to conservation and education found unanimous support among club members. Gina received the GCV de Lacy Gray Memorial Medal for Conservation in 2012 for her outstanding effort to further knowledge and wise use of our natural resources.

The club holds a conservation forum each year that is open to the public. Recent topics have included uranium mining; American Bird Conservancy update by Dr. David Wiedenfeld; climate change presented by Kathleen Biggins, co-founder of the non-partisan, non-profit organization C-Change; and restoring insects presented by Doug Tallamy, professor in the University of Delaware Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology.

The club’s nominee, the Piedmont Environmental Council, received the Garden Club of Virginia Elizabeth Cabell Dugdale Award for Meritorious Achievement in Conservation in 2018.

Club Milestones

1997 – created a club newspaper, “The Weeder”

2000 – achieved 501(c)(3) status, clarifying the club’s position as non-profit organization

2008 – introduced a Junior membership category

Garden Club of Virginia

The Warrenton Garden Club is one of the smallest clubs in the Garden Club of Virginia and members actively participate in GCV events while serving on numerous GCV committees and the Board of Directors. Notably, Kim Nash served as President of the Garden Club of Virginia 2010-2012.

The club hosted a two-day Historic Garden Week tour every other year until 2019 when it formed a partnership with the Dolley Madison Garden Club. Currently, WGC hosts a one-day tour every other year with assistance from DMGC, with roles reversed the following year.

The club hosted the 2009 Garden Club of Virginia Board of Governors October 13-15, 2009, at North Wales estate in Warrenton. The weather presented a challenge when temperatures plummeted during the meeting. Undeterred, WGC club members furnished blankets and gloves (socks) for attendees to combat the chill.

WGC Presidents 1996-2020

1996-1998	Maria Tufts
1998-2000	Josine Hitchcock
2000-2002	Sally Hodgkin
2002-2004	Betty Lawrence
2004-2006	Sherry Twining
2006-2008	Kathi Lindquist
2008-2010	Penny Dart
2010-2012	Karla MacKimmie
2012-2014	Ingrid Lindsay
2014-2016	Ellen Soyars
2016-2018	Madeleine de Heller
2018-2020	Margrete Stevens