Established in 1952 as a volunteer, non-profit organization, the DGC maintains the Abbot Public Library gardens and provides educational opportunities in gardening and support of our environment.
As part of the 2024 Marblehead Christmas Walk, local garden clubs are invited to decorate a space in Marblehead Arts Association’s historic home, the stately King Hooper Mansion. This year the overall decorating theme is ‘Seaside Holidays.’
Preparations started back in November with a shopping excursion to Jacobson Floral Supply in Boston to purchase the necessary materials, followed by a hands-on workshop to prepare and assemble the design elements. The DGC design team of Laurie Boggis and Ginny von Rueden created an elegant coastal décor using locally-sourced dried hydrangeas, seashells, driftwood pieces, and dried grasses. The design even includes a horseshoe crab discovered on a Salem Harbor beach!
Driftwood Garden Club members have transformed the first-floor dining room fireplace, mantel, and windows of the 1728 mansion. Guests are invited to view the mansion during an Open House on Thursday, December 5th from 4 to 7 PM, and also during the 53rd Annual Christmas Walk and Holiday Stroll on Saturday and Sunday December 7th and 8th. We hope you can join us.
Our November ’24 program was a narrated slide show of the Hudson Valley Garden Tour taken in the fall of 2023 by members of the Driftwood Garden Club. Thank you to our valued member and past-president, Ginny von Rueden, for creating and presenting the program. This was an opportunity for all of our members to share some of the glorious gardens and gilded-age mansions of the Hudson River Valley. Delicious appetizers and sweet treats were provided by our gracious hostesses for the evening.
The tour began with a gourmet lunch at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. After lunch was a tour of the grounds of the Vanderbilt Mansion, followed by a guided tour of Beatrix Farrand’s private garden. Beatrix was a woman trailblazer in gardening and landscape architecture in the first half of the 20th century and defined American taste in gardens.
Stonecrop Gardens in Cold Spring, NY, home of Frank Cabot and his wife Anne, was built in 1958 and opened to the public in 1992. It is alive with woodland plants and stunning flowers, and is renowned for its collection of alpine plants.
Boscobel House and Gardens in Garrison, NY, offers stunning views across the river to West Point Academy. During the American revolutionary era, it was home to both patriots and loyalists. Falling into disrepair during the 1950s, preservationists rebuilt and restored it to its original grandeur, including 68 acres of lush gardens and trails.
The stained-glass windows of Union Church of Pocantico Hills in Tarrytown, NY, were a favorite stop on the tour. The Rockefeller family commissioned the magnificent glass masterpieces in memory of family members. Nine windows were created by artist Marc Chagall. Union Church is especially meaningful to Ginny, as she and her husband, Rick, were married there!
The tour of Lyndhurst Mansion in Tarrytown included the opulent mansion and access to the spectacular grounds. The views of the Hudson River were gorgeous, despite the overcast day.
Even on a rainy day, the New York Botanical Garden is a magical place to visit. Members enjoyed touring the outside gardens as well as the Conservatory, containing plants from around the world.
The group then visited Kykuit Estates in Sleepy Hollow. The estate, with sweeping river views, was home to four generations of Rockefellers. The gardens, stone hardscape, sculptures, and outbuildings were spectacular, and our members said they would love to return some day.
The Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead not only offers educational meetings and maintains the gardens at Abbot Public Library and Marblehead Housing’s Farrell Court, we also take field trips!
Many DGC members recently enjoyed a guided walking tour of Garden in the Woods in Framingham. The 45-acre botanical garden, a member of the Native Plant Trust, was founded in 1931, and is the largest landscaped collection of wildflowers in New England. Their plantings include about 1,000 species including more than 200 rare and endangered native species.
Our volunteer guide was well versed in Garden in the Woods natural landscape of the pond, wetlands, rolling hills, and valleys. She pointed out interesting native trees and plants as we walked along the mile-long gravel loop. We were treated to fall foliage in its finest display of color.
Our trip ended with a fabulous picnic lunch, and a little shopping in the largest retail native plant nursery in New England. A perfect autumn day!
The Driftwood Garden Club’s October 2024 educational meeting was presented by Gretel Anspach, a Lifetime Master Gardener and Member of the Massachusetts Master Gardener Association. Gretel, a repeat presenter for DGC, is a retired engineer who knows the science of good soil.
Members learned the importance of soil that holds the right amount of water and has the right available nutrients. We learned plants like ‘fluffy’ soil and the steps to remediate soil compaction.
Our lecture included some ‘mulch math’ to determine the quantity of material to cover the square footage in compost. And we also learned about the Nitrogen – Phosphorus – Potassium (always listed in that order) ratio to amend soil.
Most of all, Ms. Anspach recommends soil testing in several areas of your yard to accurately determine the soil composition. UMass Extension Testing Laboratory forms and instructions are available online at
We were reminded to leave plant and leaf matter in the garden beds to decompose over the winter for organic nutrients to enhance our soil. Your plants will thank you in the spring!
Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead members gathered recently at the lovely home of member Adrienne Sweetser and Rick Weed to kick off the 2024/2025 season. Our annual Fall Cocktail Party is always a popular event and enjoyed by members and their guests.
The food was both delicious and creative. We thank our hardworking hostesses for passing the many trays of hors d’oeuvres and desserts, and we thank our volunteer bartenders for keeping the libations flowing. We do love a good party!
Members, old and new, shared their successes and mishaps in their gardens over the summer, and discussed our ongoing civic projects at the newly renovated Abbot Public Library and Old Farrell Court gardens.
The Driftwood Garden Club looks forward to the fantastic educational program of speakers, hands-on workshops, and several field trips over the coming year. There will be something for everyone!
The newly renovated Abbot Public Library, 235 Pleasant Street in Marblehead, recently dedicated a bronze plaque to honor the Driftwood Garden Club’s many years of service in the gardens.
The plaque, located on the brick wall on the Maverick Street side, reads “with gratitude to the Driftwood Garden Club, established 1952, whose members have designed, planted and cared for the library’s gardens for many decades.”
Library Director Kimberly Grad welcomed us with refreshments in the bright Event Center meeting room. She thanked our members for their dedication, and she praised DGC member and landscape architect Kathy Bradford, of Bradford Design Associates, for her sustainable landscape design.
We followed Kim for a tour of the light and airy building and marveled at the flexible floor plan, self-checkout kiosk, and comfortable seating in fireplace room. While the building is still getting finishing touches, it will be a treasured resource for everyone in Marblehead to enjoy. We look forward to getting back to work in the gardens!
On a sunny June afternoon, members of the Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead gathered for their annual business meeting and traditional lobster roll luncheon.
President Joy Purdin reviewed the years activities and then members, old and new, voted on changes to our by-laws and then voted on the upcoming roster of officers and committee members. Our Treasurer Laurie Boggis announced the good news of the most successful plant sale ever.
Our historian Ginny von Rueden will spearhead a project to archive the history of the Driftwood Garden Club since its inception in 1952. Old newspaper articles, photos, and scrapbook pages will be scanned and uploaded to our website for all members to enjoy in the future.
In what has become a new tradition, the ‘Unsung Hero Award’ was bestowed on member Kathy Bradford of Bradford Design Associates for her tireless work planning the outdoor space of the (soon-to-be-completed) Abbot Public Library. Kathy has devoted countless hours working with library committees to choose an attractive and sustainable landscape. The Driftwood Garden Club is pleased to contribute funds to make Kathy’s design plan a reality for all to enjoy.
We look forward to our camaraderie and gardening over the summer months. May your gardens bloom!
The Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead recently held its 2024 plant sale. We are thrilled to report that this was our most successful sale to date! Proceeds from the sale will help fund landscaping at the newly renovated Abbot Public Library on Pleasant Street, as well as our civic gardening projects at Farrell Court in Marblehead.
It takes a village to pull off a successful fundraiser. We are grateful to all our hardworking members, to the Marblehead Masonic Hall for hosting the event, and to Marblehead Gardens for the fabulous herbs and annuals. And hats off to Louise from Every Little Breeze Catering for feeding us so well after the sale ended.
We especially thank our gardening customers, both long-time friends and first-time buyers, who purchase the plants lovingly divided from local gardens. It is especially gratifying to see young children picking out Mother’s Day plants for their moms and grandmoms!
On Friday, April 26th, Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead members attended this year’s Art in Bloom event at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. DGC Designers Laurie Boggis and Ginny von Rueden participated in the event, once again creating a fabulous floral arrangement to complement a very large ink and color fresco named “Mahaprajapati with the Infant Buddha” dating to the Chinese Ming Dynasty, 1551.
The painting depicts a scene from the early life of Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha. The infant is being held up toward the seated Mahaprajapati, his aunt and foster mother after the death of his mother Queen Maya. His half-brother is held in the arms of a nurse at the left and other attendants around the group. The painting came from the wall of a temple.
In creating the gorgeous floral arrangement pictured above, the designers wanted to be respectful of what we see now (faded) but allude to the original glorious and luxurious colors of the painting.
The arrangement represents the circle of embracing women around the Queen and Buddha baby and shows the majesty of the Ming court.
The container represents the brilliance of the lavish golden hair and clothing ornaments. Gold implies power, wealth, happiness, and longevity. The shape of the container is a bag of gold tied with a cord which is the most significant gift one can give in China, representing good luck and prosperity.
Orchids and chrysanthemum are classical Chinese flowers. The mums here represent the white robes of the Mahaprajapati. The orchids, grevellia, and calla lilies bring out the colors of the rich robes of the court ladies. The curled aspidistra leaves repeat the folds of fabric and sleeves of the garments.
The carefully selected color of the roses reveal the faces of the human figures in the painting. Eucalyptus and hydrangea bring out the blue tones of the garments. The palms reflect the grandeur of the court and peace and eternal life symbolized by the Buddha.
The eleven human figures in the photo on the right were absolutely in awe of the talent of our two designers. Congratulations to you Laurie and Ginny for a job well done!
Now, of course there were many other impressive Art in Bloom entries to be seen that day. Use the arrows to view a few of our favorites – amazing!
The Driftwood Garden Club of Marblehead’s most recent meeting was all about getting ready for the Annual Plant Sale to be held at the Masonic Hall on Saturday, May 11, 2024. It is no small feat to organize a successful sale and many members on several committees were thanked for their contributions.
The Plant Sale on 5/11 is Driftwood’s sole fundraiser. As a club with civic responsibilities, the DGC supports and maintains the landscapes at the Abbot Public Library as well as Farrell Court in Marblehead. Renovations at the library at 235 Pleasant Street are on schedule to be completed in June.
The Driftwood Garden Club is proud to financially contribute to the landscape design, and we hope for a successful plant sale to raise funds to support this effort.
Kudos to Kathy Bradford of Bradford Design Associates for creating the fabulous landscape plan for the renovated library. According to Kathy, “The design responds to the building architecture and the desire for resiliency. We need gardens that can adjust to the effects of climate change. A resilient garden is a garden that will thrive in spite of changing weather patterns. Drought tolerant and native plants are used in many locations to reduce water consumption. Plants adjacent to the building are traditional and architectural in style and placement. The beds located away from the building are looser, more contemporary, more native, and designed to attract pollinators. Flowering shrubs, perennials, and spring bulbs are white, blue, and shades of lavender. The color scheme for the plants is complimentary and does not compete with the red brick of the building.”
The plant list contains diverse and low-maintenance plants in a timeless, elegant design for all to enjoy in the future.
Driftwood Garden Club 