BGC Board Meeting via Zoom

Propagation: Tuesday, May 27th from 1:30 to 3:30 pm at Boxcar Flower Farm. Come tour an urban flower farm run by fellow BGC member Jane Hammond. You’ll see an explosion of flowers growing in the heart of Oakland. Meet at Boxcar Flower Farm at 1601 Wood St, Oakland, at the corner of 16th and Wood Streets to see what they are growing and to hear how they propagate cut flowers for the coming season.

More info about Boxcar Farms at their web site. www.boxcarflowerfarm.com

You can also order monthly flower bouquets from Boxcar. Artful Flowers, Urban Farmed in West Oakland.

All are welcome. Bring a hat. Please RSVP to Mollie Boero.

Join us on for a work party from 10am-10:30 (or maybe 11am) at the Berkeley Arts Magnet School (Lincoln Street side) . In January 2024, the BGC Civic Beautification Committee, in coordination with the BUSD planting coordinator, planted 4+ raised beds with plants for making dyes, plants for a ‘sensory’ garden and pollinator plants. We are now helping to maintain the beds with monthly work parties. No need to RSVP, it's informal. Just feel free to join us if you'd like.

Succulents: NOTE DATE CHANGE MAY15th! For our final meeting David suggested we just have fun. Bring any container of your choice, funky or not and fill it with succulents. Please remember to bring your gardening tools. We will meet as usual at David Boniske’s house in Albany at 10:00 am. Please RSVP to David.

Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Avenue, Albany.

12:00 to 12:30: Doors open for meeting setup and socializing.

12:30 to 1:30: Regular Business Meeting, Plant Notes, Drawing

1:30 to 2:00: Refreshments and socializing

2:00 to 3:00: Propagating from Soft-wood Cuttings- Suzanne LaFreniere

Display Table: Please bring in any beautiful flowers in your garden you'd like to show off. Non-flowering garden achievements are also welcome.

Garden Exchange Table: Please be sure to take any unsold items back home with you at the end of the meeting.

Masks at meetings are optional. However, now that cold and flu season is here, you may want to bring and wear a mask at our meetings.

Floriculture: We will be visiting the fabulous Oakland garden of landscaper Raul Zumba at 10:00AM on Saturday, May 17th

https://pacifichorticulture.org/articles/thegarden-of-raul-zumba/

Contact Eugenia Hirsch if interested in attending the tour.

Herbs & Spices: We will meet at a Japanese restaurant (to be decided). The luncheon is Tuesday May 13th, from 11:30 to 2 pm. RSVP to Mary Shisler if you're interested in joining the group.

2025 Art & Plant Street Sale 

Saturday, May 10, 2025 11:00 am-4:30 pm 

Lincoln Street at Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, CA 

In partnership with the Arts and Crafts Cooperative, Inc. (ACCI) 

Purchase flowering plants, veggies, CA Natives, house plants, succulents and more propagated by Berkeley Garden Club members and browse ACCI artworks

Find horticultural gifts for Mother’s Day

Discover lovely, water-wise plants that grow well in our East Bay microclimate

Bring your gardening questions for our experienced, local home gardeners

Proceeds fund BGC’s community outreach mission, including civic beautification, education and local conservation 

BGC Board Meeting via Zoom

Curious Flora Tour: We will have a tour of Curious Flora at 10 am on Saturday, May 3rd. Curious Flora is located at 740 Market Ave in Richmond, the site of the former Annie’s Annual. It should be a very interesting and informative tour. 

Floriculture: On Thursday, April 24th at 1:00 we will be touring the exquisite Atherton garden of Mara Melandry's sister, Suzanne. Contact Eugenia if you’re interested in joining us. 

Propagation: Tuesday, April 22nd from 1:30 to 3:30 pm at Tereza Flaxman’s home in Berkeley. Want to know more about begonias? Tereza is active in the Begonia Society of San Francisco and will lead a workshop on propagating all sorts of begonias from cuttings, rhizometers, canes, etc. Bring $6 cash per person to reimburse Tereza for supplies. If you have begonias to share, bring cuttings or the entire plant (which will get pieces trimmed from it) to the meeting. Tereza will also have some cuttings to share. You will leave the workshop with some begonias ready to grow at home. Bring sharp scissors or fine clippers, gloves and hat. The group is limited to 10 people. Please RSVP to Mollie Boero.

Join us on for a work party from 10am-10:30 (or maybe 11am) at the Berkeley Arts Magnet School (Lincoln Street side) . In January 2024, the BGC Civic Beautification Committee, in coordination with the BUSD planting coordinator, planted 4+ raised beds with plants for making dyes, plants for a ‘sensory’ garden and pollinator plants. We are now helping to maintain the beds with monthly work parties. No need to RSVP, it's informal. Just feel free to join us if you'd like.

Spring Tea and Bouquets to Art

Speaker from the deYoung Museum and Member’s Arrangements

12:00-12:30pm: Set up Tea and Displays

12:30-1:00: Tea Service and Socializing

1:00 -1:30pm: Business Meeting

2:00-3:00pm: Nancy Wright “Bouquets to Art” and Member Presentations

3:00-3:30pm: Clean Up

Herbs & Spices: We are meeting on April 8th from 11:30 to 2 pm at the home of Barbara Guletz in Albany. Please RSVP to Mary Shisler if you’d like to join the group.

BGC Board Meeting via Zoom

Floriculture: On Thursday, March 27th we will be meeting at 1:00 for a self-guided tour of the Hayward Japanese Garden. Attendance is free. Contact Eugenia if interested in attending. 

This Japanese Garden is the first garden of a Japanese design to be developed in California, and possibly in the entire Western United States, using the principles of traditional Japanese Garden art, combined with native stone and rock and California trees.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Gardens_(Hayward,_California)

The next meeting of the Native Plant Group will be on Zoom at 7 pm on Tuesday, March 25. Contact Martha Jackson.

Propagation: Tuesday, March 25th 1:30-3:30pm at the home of Allison Kidder, Berkeley. Allison will show us her California native garden and talk about propagating natives. She will share how to use a soil blocking tool to make soil blocks for planting seeds versus planting in six-packs. Try your hand with the soil blocker to plant some veggie or flower seeds. Bring a container or box in which to take your soil blocks home. Allison also has a collection of carnivorous plants! If you are growing for the plant sale, bring any rooted cuttings or divisions to pot up. Bring trowel, gloves, clippers and hat. We’ll supply soil and some seeds to plant in the soil blocks. If it’s raining we will reschedule. Limit of 15 people. Please RSVP to Mollie Boero.

Join us on for a work party from 10am-10:30 (or maybe 11am) at the Berkeley Arts Magnet School (Lincoln Street side) . In January 2024, the BGC Civic Beautification Committee, in coordination with the BUSD planting coordinator, planted 4+ raised beds with plants for making dyes, plants for a ‘sensory’ garden and pollinator plants. We are now helping to maintain the beds with monthly work parties. No need to RSVP, it's informal. Just feel free to join us if you'd like.

Succulents: At 10 am on Thursday, March 20th the Succulent Group will meet at the home of David Boniske in Albany. David will demonstrate how to propagate succulents and we will practice propagating some for you to bring home. Spring is the best time for propagating succulent plants. Our group is growing so David will require RSVPs so he will know how many chairs are needed. Because of the size of his backyard, we will limit our group to 12 people. Please RSVP to David if you’d like to attend. 

Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Avenue, Albany.

12:00 noon: Doors open SET UP ONLY

12:30-1:00pm Socializing, Exchange Table and Display Table

1:00-1:30pm: Regular Business Meeting, Plant Notes and Drawing

2:00-3:00pm: The Essential Herb Garden - Rose Lovall-Sale, Morningsun Herb Farm

Display Table: Please bring in any beautiful flowers in your garden you'd like to show off. Non-flowering garden achievements are also welcome.

Garden Exchange Table: Please be sure to take any unsold items back home with you at the end of the meeting.

Masks at meetings are optional. However, now that cold and flu season is here, you may want to bring and wear a mask at our meetings.

Herbs & Spices: We are meeting on March 11th from 11:30 to 2 pm at the home of Tanya Edgar in El Cerrito. Please RSVP to Mary Shisler if you’d like to join the group. Space is limited to 16 attendees. 

BGC Board Meeting via Zoom

Floriculture: Thursday February 27th. Tour of the Claremont Court neighborhood.

We’ll meet on the corner of Avalon and Claremont Blvd. at 10am—in front of St. Clement’s Episcopal church. We will walk through the neighborhood, check out the plantings and historic homes. We’ll also see the effect of Frederick Law Olmsted’s influence on this area from his visit to Berkeley in 1861. Contact Eugenia if you’re interested in going

Propagation: Tuesday, February 25th at the home of Dee Plunkett, Berkeley, from 1:30 to 3:30 pm. Who doesn’t have one of those grocery store orchids (Phalaenopis) languishing without blooms somewhere in their homes? We plan to repot and rehab our Phalaenopis orchids and share tips for making them bloom and thrive. Bring your Phalaenopis orchids in need of repotting plus gloves and trowel. We’ll supply bark and potting mix. I have a few Phalaenopis I can give to folks who want to learn about repotting but don’t have an orchid to replant. I have a few orchid-sized pots as well. If it’s raining we will reschedule. All are welcome. Please RSVP to Mollie Boero.  

Succulents: On Thursday February 20th the Succulent Group will meet at David Boniske's house, Albany, at 10:00am. We will prepare our succulent plants for the Plant sale in May. Bring your plants, pots and tools. David will provide soil and some succulents too. Please email Barbara O'Hay to let us know that you are coming. 

Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Avenue, Albany.

12:00 noon: Doors open for socializing, refreshments, Exchange Table and Display Table

1:00-1:30 pm: Regular Business Meeting, Plant Notes and Drawing

2:00 to 3:00 pm: “Propagating from Seed & Special Plants” – Renee Shephard, Renee’s Garden Seeds

3:00 to 3:30 pm: Cleanup

Display Table: Please bring in any beautiful flowers in your garden you'd like to show off. Non-flowering garden achievements are also welcome.

Garden Exchange Table: Please be sure to take any unsold items back home with you at the end of the meeting.

Masks at meetings are optional. However, now that cold and flu season is here, you may want to bring and wear a mask at our meetings.

Herbs & Spices: We will meet on February 11th at the home of Carol Buckles, Berkeley, from 11:30 to 2 PM. The theme for February is Old World family dishes. Basically, a dish your family made that came from country of origin (we are all immigrants) or a dish from one of the countries from which your family emigrated. Please let Mary Shisler know if you’d like to join the group.

CONSERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING

The Conservation Committee meeting will be held via Zoom at 1pm on Friday February 7th.

All are welcome. Please email Jane Freeman or Eileen Nottoli for the Zoom link. At the meeting we will determine the donations that the Club will make to local organizations.