education

The Andover Garden Club offers scholarships to attend any of the four Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts (GCFM) Schools: Gardening School, Flower Show School, Landscape Design School, and Environmental School.

• The GCFM Gardening School consists of a series of four courses. Once all course exams are passed, the student gains the designation of National Garden Club (NGC) Gardening Consultant.

• The GCFM Flower Show School is a comprehensive program that teaches all you need to know about judging, entering, competing, and chairing an NGC flower show.

• Students participating in the GCFM Landscape Design School acquire the tools for making their own gardens more beautiful and easier to maintain.

• The GCFM Environmental School sponsor a series of courses with classes that investigate, challenge and explore all aspects of the environment with a focus on the interrelationships of plants, animals, insects and people. The goal of these classes is to maintain and renew an energy efficient and sustainable environment.

learning from experts

Along with these formal GCFM courses, the Andover Garden Club members learn from expert speakers at their monthly general meetings. For instance, during the 2024-2025 season, Russell Bowers of Boston Ikebana demonstrated the technique of Ikebana floral arranging, Curt Rogers and Matthew Cranney from the Merrimack River Watershed Council discussed efforts to monitor and improve water quality of the Merrimack River, and Stacey Lee from Paeonia Design created beautiful floral arrangements using paeonies from her farm.