Jan 9, 2025 – Jane Raymond

Posted on by admin in Side Shoots (Passed)

Jan 9, 2025

Go Native! Incorporating Native Plants into Your Landscape

Presented by Jane Raymond, UNH Extension Master Gardener

Starts at 7:00 pm
Amherst Town Library
14 Main Street
Amherst, NH

Learn what native plants are and why they are important to add to your landscapes. Photos of native plants appropriate for various growing conditions will be shown as well as photos of native garden examples. Attendees will learn where to buy natives and how to use them successfully in their new and existing gardens. Ideas for creating a container native garden will be discussed. The instructor hopes to inspire the attendees to make small changes in their gardens with native plants.

Jane became a Master Gardener in the spring of 2022 after retiring from forty-five years of teaching high school biology and chemistry. She was born in New Hampshire and at her family farm in Ashland, they raised Morgan horses and Hereford cattle in addition to growing hay and vegetables. Jane was a farmer at a very young age, training animals, and helping with farm work. These early experiences fostered a love of plants and animals and led to an undergraduate degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in biology.

Jane is a dedicated teacher. She taught many levels of high school students and also taught adults as an adjunct at the UNH School for Lifelong Learning. She is a member of the Goffstown Conservation Commission. Gardening and forestry take a prominent role in her life as she manages a 100-acre wood lot and tends her home vegetable and flower gardens.

When Jane and her husband James moved to Goffstown in 1982, they acquired a five-acre property that had been neglected. In the past 40 years, they have cleaned and improved the property, growing vegetables and flowers. The garden is designated as a Pollinator Habitat and their yard is registered with the National Wildlife Federation as Certified Wildlife Habitat.

The public is welcome. All must register through the library

Jan 9, 2025 – All About Houseplants

Posted on by admin in Programs (Passed)

Jan 9, 2025

All About Houseplants

Presented by Charlie Nardozzi

Do you love your houseplants? Is your home lush with plants, a natural haven of sorts, with plants flourishing under your green thumb?  Or do you struggle to keep anything alive, mourning the loss of another once beautiful, but now dead plant? Either way, you’ll want to join us for this enlightening presentation! 

The popularity of caring for houseplants continues to grow around the country. But so does the frustration with getting them to flower and look good year-round. In this talk, Charlie will discuss the light, water, temperature, and humidity needs of various houseplants. He will also talk about different houseplants for different spaces in your home, how to care for them, problem solving, and how to get flowering houseplants to re-bloom. There will be time for you to ask him your specific houseplant questions and — BONUS! — Charlie invites you to bring in a sample of your houseplants that might have insect or disease problems. 

Charlie Nardozzi is a Regional Emmy® award winning, nationally recognized garden writer, speaker, and radio and television personality. For more than 30 years he has brought expert gardening information to home gardeners through radio, television, talks, tours, online, and in print. Charlie delights in making gardening information simple, easy, fun and accessible to everyone. He is the author of seven gardening books, has three radio shows in New England, and a TV gardening segment in Vermont. He speaks around the country at flower shows, to Master Gardener groups and garden clubs on a variety of gardening topics. Charlie also leads international garden tours around the world. 

Nov 14, 2024 – Ayn Whytemare 

Posted on by admin in Side Shoots (Passed)

Nov 14, 2024

Organic Gardening Basics

Presented by Ayn Whytemare

Have you heard about the benefits but are unsure how Organic gardening is done? 

Learn the basics, which techniques may be right for you, and what constitutes good soil. Find out why it’s much more than simply not using pesticides. Handout included.

Ayn B. Whytemare is the owner and founder of Found Well Farm. Previously she owned and operated Ecological Landscape Gardening, which emphasized using native plants, organic fertilizers, and person-based, rather than machine-based, maintenance. Her other experience working in the plant trades (florist, nursery, and garden centers) and as a consultant on forest pollution led to a desire to find more native plants for use in wild and home landscapes for restoration and enhancement.

The first crop of trees was established in 2003, at which time an old well was found in the middle of the planting field. Auspiciously the endeavor was named “Found Well Farm.” In 2006 Found Well Farm was one of the first recipients of the New Hampshire Agricultural Innovations Grant for business start-up purposes. Ayn speaks to gardening and farming groups state-wide and continues to expand and explore directions for the nursery.

Since 2010 she has been an adjunct instructor of Plant Biology. Environmental Science, Ecology and Sustainable Agriculture at New Hampshire Technical Institute. She is also a member of Pembroke’s Conservation Commission and Historical Society.

Ayn received her B.A. from Barnard College of Columbia University in 1988 with a major in Environmental Science and an M.S. from University of Washington in Forest Ecology in 1994.

Starts at 7:00 pm
Amherst Town Library
14 Main Street
Amherst, NH

The public is welcome. All must register through the library

Nov 7, 2024 – Fresh Holiday Floral Arrangements

Posted on by admin in Programs (Passed)

Nov 7, 2024

Fresh Holiday Floral Arrangements

Presented by Mary Beth Hayes

It’s never too early for a little bit of holiday spirit and some jolly good holiday cheer! Join the Amherst Garden Club for one of our most popular programs of the year, Fresh Holiday Floral Arrangements.

Floral designer Mary Beth Hayes will inspire you as she demonstrates a variety of seasonal and holiday arrangements. You will learn how to make four unique floral arrangements using the best materials that the fall season has to offer.

Mary Beth will discuss design principles and tips, as well as different foam-free mechanics for your holiday arrangements, and will also provide helpful sourcing information for supplies and flowers.

Finally, to ensure that you are filled with the holiday spirit and the excitement of the holidays to come, we will be raffling the four floral arrangements off as raffle prizes at the end of the meeting!! Raffle tickets will be on sale throughout the morning.

About Mary Beth Hayes — Mary Beth is an avid gardener and floral designer who began studying floral design to bring the beauty of the garden into her home. She has studied with the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and the Cass School of Floral Design in Watertown, MA, and with leading designers Francoise Weeks, Holly Chapple, and Hitomi Gilliam.

Mary Beth loves to share the techniques she’s learned so we can all “play with flowers” and create beautiful, natural flower arrangements and more. She has a home-based studio business, Semper Virens Flowers, providing weddings, events and workshops. Mary Beth lives in Chelmsford with her husband Dennis.

© Mary Beth Hayes

Oct 3, 2024 – Wild Mushrooms of Fall

Posted on by admin in Programs (Passed)

Oct 3, 2024

Wild Mushrooms of Fall

Presented by Stephanie Doyle

Do you love all things mushroom? Have you ever dreamed of foraging in a forest; living off wild mushrooms and the land? If yes, or even if you are just curious about mushrooms, then this presentation is for you!

Join us as Stephanie Doyle shares her love of mushrooms and discusses the rules of mycophagy.

Stephanie will show us how to develop the skills needed and learn the correct tools to identify mushrooms. She will teach which mushrooms are edible, or poisonous, and common to New England.

Stephanie is a New Hampshire native who went to school for Environmental Studies. While attending her undergraduate studies at the University of West Florida, Stephanie founded the UWF Mycology Club and hosted club meetings and walks. 

She moved back to New Hampshire after college and worked for the NH Mushroom Company in Tamworth growing mushrooms and coordinating events. She now works for a Maine mushroom company, Elevate Mushrooms, which specializes in Mushroom coffees, chai teas and tinctures.

Stephanie is also the founder and co-organizer of the Fantastic Forage Mushroom Festival that takes place in Laconia during the last weekend in September every year. Join them in 2025 for the 10th Annual Fantastic Forage Mushroom Festival.

Starts at 10:30 am
Messiah Lutheran Church
303 Route 101
Amherst, NH

Side Shoots Oct 2024

Posted on by admin in Side Shoots (Passed)

Oct 10, 2024

Returning North with the Spring: Retracing the Journey of Naturalist Edwin Way Teale

Presented by John Harris

In 1947, Edwin Way Teale  and his wife Nellie followed the progress of over four months journeying from the Everglades to the summit of Mount Washington. His best selling book, North with the Spring tells the story of this journey. 

This month’s speaker, John Harris, set out to retrace Teale’s route stopping at wild places along the way on the same calendar date Teale had visited.

Harris examined and compared changes in the flora, fauna, and lives of the folks along the route using Teale’s journals and photos. He documents the losses, details the transformations, and celebrates the fact that a remarkable number of East Coast refuges have grown wilder since Teale’s trip.

Harris is a recently retired faculty member In Environmental Science at Franklin Pierce University and holds a Ph.D in British and American Literature. He has organized and helped edit two regional anthologies: Where the Mountain Stands Alone and Beyond the Notches: Stories of North Country New Hampshire.

Starts at 7:00 pm
Amherst Town Library
14 Main Street
Amherst, NH

The public is welcome. All must register through the library

Sep 5, 2024 — Ayn Whytemare

Posted on by admin in Programs (Passed)

Sep 5, 2024

Climate Change - What’s all the fuss?

Presented by Ayn Whytemare

We’ll be kicking off another garden club season with a very enthusiastic speaker, Ayn Whytemare, owner of Found Well Farm in Pembroke, NH.

Her presentation will be “Climate Change! What is all the fuss?” If you don’t know what climate change is or how it’s caused, Ayn will explain in understandable language what is truth and what is fiction, based on the latest science.

Our world is changing before our eyes and much quicker than expected. This will be a good opportunity to ask questions.

Ayn previously owned and operated Ecological Landscape Gardening, which emphasized using native plants, organic fertilizers, and person-based, rather than machine-based, maintenance. Additional experiences in the plant trades (florist, nursery, and garden centers), and as a forest pollution consultant, led to a desire to find more native plants for use in wild and home landscapes for restoration and enhancement.

She invites us to her Native Tree & Shrub Sale at Found Well Farm (439 Pembroke Street, Pembroke, NH) held September 14–15. Check the website for plant availability.

Ayn is very active in her town of Pembroke serving on the Conservation Commission as well as the Historical Society. She is an adjunct instructor of Plant Biology and Sustainable Agriculture at NH Technical Institute. She received her B.A. from Barnard College of Columbia University with a major in Environmental Science and an M.S. from the University of Washington in Forest Ecology.

Starts at 10:30 am
Messiah Lutheran Church
303 Route 101
Amherst, NH

Guests are warmly welcomed

Side Shoots Sep 2024

Posted on by admin in Side Shoots (Passed)

Sep 12, 2024

Roses are Red, Violets are pink, purple, yellow

Presented by Marie Nickerson

Growing violets is a passion for Marie. Greenery, light, and masses of cheery flowers in every color do much to raise the spirits. When winter arrives and her gardens have been put to bed, Marie turns inside to her collection of over 100 varieties of African Violets and continues to keep her hands in the dirt!

While she considers herself an amateur in this arena, come and discover just how much knowledge she has to share in her photo-filled presentation. Her presentation will help you understand how this houseplant has become a perennial favorite, over many years.

Marie Nickerson has been an active member of the Amherst Garden Club throughout the years. She has served as Vice President, has presented various programs, and has worked on the plant sale and civic gardens. Marie is a UNH Cooperative Master Gardener, a Natural Resource Steward, as well as a UNH Marine Docent. She also spent several summers on Appledore Island, employed by the Shoals Marine Lab, as Steward of Celia Thaxter’s Garden.

Marie is a native of New Hampshire and her earliest gardening memories are of her grandmother’s huge geranium planters. She loves how gardening connects her with nature and finds that gardening is good for the body and especially good for the soul.

Starts at 7:00 pm
Amherst Town Library
14 Main Street
Amherst, NH

The public is welcome. All must register through the library

Horticulture Hints

Posted on by admin in More

Horticulture Hints

Our monthly meetings generally include a speaker and a brief “Horticulture Hint” presentation, many with great handouts, which are available by clicking on the topic in the list below.

Horticulture Hint Handouts and Videos

Program Handouts, Recordings, etc.

50th Anniversary

Posted on by admin in More

50th Anniversary

Doug Tallamy Presentation

Douglas W. Tallamy, professor in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware where he has authored 104 research publications and has taught insect-related courses for 40 years, will be speaking on Nature’s Best Hope at Souhegan High School on October 23, 2021 at 7:00 PM.  The public is invited to this talk hosted by The Amherst Garden Club.

Chief among Professor Tallamy’s research goals has been to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities that are so necessary for the health of our planet. As the natural habitat of insects, plants, and animals has decreased dramatically over the years, these plant and animal communities are threatened with extinction. Using the knowledge he has gained from his research, Doug shows the ways people can contribute to the health of these communities by how they landscape and maintain their yards. He envisions how homeowners, by developing landscapes that enhance local ecosystems rather than degrade them, can create a 20-million-acre network of viable habitats that will provide vital corridors connecting the few natural areas that remain.

Doug’s book Bringing Nature Home was published by Timber Press in 2007 and was awarded the 2008 Silver Medal by the Garden Writers’ Association.  The Living Landscape, co-authored with Rick Darke, was published in 2014. Nature’s Best Hope, a New York Times Best Seller, was released in February 2020, and his latest book, The Nature of Oaks, was released by Timber press in March 2021.

Among his awards are the Garden Club of America Margaret Douglas Medal for Conservation and the Tom Dodd, Jr. Award of Excellence, the 2018 AHS B.Y. Morrison Communication Award and the 2019 Cynthia Westcott Scientific Writing Award.

Legacy Gift to the Town

The Amherst Garden Club is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the club’s founding in 1971. One of the ways we have commemorated the occasion is with a legacy gift to the Town of Amherst.

Our gift to the town is an inscribed natural granite bench and a pink dogwood (Cornus florida) tree at the intersection of Mack Hill, Dodge, and Jones Roads. This small historical park, the site of the Town’s first Meeting House, is along a popular walking route in the historic district, not far from the Town Green.

It is hoped by the club that the tree and the bench will be welcoming for pedestrians and will draw attention to the historically significant site.

Past and Present Presidents Reunion

In celebration of the clubs 50th anniversary, a gathering of past and present club presidents, along with some longtime members, was organized by Marti Warren and recorded on Zoom by M.J. Bachman and Joan O’Brien. Those who attended had a wonderful time laughing, re-connecting, and sharing memories from earlier years of the club. 

Click below to watch the one-minute highlights video.

AGC Straw Hat