As the kitchen remains the heart of every home, let’s travel back to 1640 Massachusetts and rediscover our first colonial garden to table. Valorie Johnson, a longtime Hunterdon County resident and amateur garden enthusiast, is pleased to share the knowledge gained through the Master Gardener program with other like-minded people. Val is also a lifelong amateur historian, a gardener always in pursuit of the personal angle…who were our forefathers and what were they thinking?

The Neshanic Garden Club has been thriving since 1929. It continues long-standing community projects such as maintaining the Neshanic Station House Garden, the Sensory Garden at Ann Van Middlesworth Park, running the Greens Workshop for thirty years, leading the Youth program to engage children at the public library and local YMCA for over twenty years, and designing and maintaining the Gazebo and Blue Star Gardens at the Hillsborough Municipal Building. Over the years, the club members have also organized flower shows to educate members and residents about plants. The most recent show was for the 90th anniversary of the club. This year, the Neshanic Garden Club is presenting an NGC Standard Flower Show in honor of the 250th anniversary of our country. The theme of the show is “Joyful Harvest”, and it is open to the public on Friday and Saturday September 11-12, 2026. Members of the club and public will be able to register to enter the show by contacting Diana Reinhardt at greinhardt9@gmail.com. Two divisions, Horticulture and Design are available. In Horticulture, there are three sections: herbs, container grown annuals, and vegetables. The two Design classes are pedestals and miniatures. To prepare for the show, new members have learned about miniature design, how vegetables are judged, floral design, and the importance of completing an entry card. Members have been encouraged to keep their plant tags and seed packets to correctly label horticulture entries. With many new members, presenting a Standard Flower Show is a significant undertaking, one that brings joy to the community.

Christopher stepped in for the scheduled Heather Natola Feinstein and presented interesting information about the natural history and care of owls, hawks, eagles, and other raptors. Chris grew up surrounded by raptors. His parents, Len and Diane Soucy, founded the Raptor Trust in the family backyard. The Raptor Trust provides for approximately 50% of all injured, sick, or orphaned wild birds which are admitted to their center. Chris has participated in wildlife conservation, raptor research, hawk banding and rehab since he was 4 years old. Chris holds a BA from Rutgers University and a master’s in education from Smith College in Massachusetts. He enjoys bicycling, music, hiking and spending time with his wife, Allison, and daughter, Leah.

At our September meeting Carol presented a workshop on the ancient Cherokee Art of Transferring the shape and dyes from flowers to a natural fabric. Carol has been teaching painting and drawing to children and adults for over 9 years and has attained a BFA in illustration and Graphics as well as a degree from F.I.T. in Textile Design. She has been a part time instructor at West Windsor Arts Council. Her designs have been showcased on Woman’s Day, Talbots, and other presentations. Carol will provide the materials needed for this project.

Getting our 2023-2024 off to an early start, Diana held a Line Mass Floral Design class at Station House. Diana has been teaching floral design since 1991. A club member since 1985, she has won several blue-ribbon awards and section awards at the local and state level for her designs.