Mission:
Conservation Committee strives to make conservation tangible and relevant to fellow members through education programs, field trips, flower show exhibits, hands-on projects, and environmental chats.
The committee meets 3-4 times a year. Members recommend environmental speakers for one general meeting per year and oversee the club’s annual financial contributions to conservation organizations.
In addition, each year one or two of the chairs attend the GCA’s Zone II Rep Meetings and the National Affairs and Legislation (NAL) Conference in Washington, D.C.
Field Trips:
Over the past few years, members have visited:
• Bartlett Arboretum, Stamford, CT
• Cove Island Wildlife Preserve in Stamford, CT
• Native Plant Center at Westchester Community College, Purchase, NY
• Wildflower Island, Teatown Preserve, Ossining, NY
• Cabbage Hill Farm, Mount Kisco, NY
Environmental Chats:
These informal meetings held at members’ homes often feature a guest speaker. Among the most recent are:
• “Protecting CT’s Watershed and Long Island Sound” Holly Drinkuth, Director of Watershed & Outreach, The Nature
Conservancy, CT
• “Fall Plants to attract Polinators” Peter Cipriano, Copia’s Home & Garden Center, South Salem, NY
• “Invasive Plants in Our Backyard and Beyond” Keith Marshall, Director of Education, New Canaan Nature Center
• “Pesticide-Free New Canaan” Micaela Porta and Heather Lauver
• “Strolling Chat at Irwin Park Meadows” with master gardener David Winston
Community Programs:
At times, the committee organizes community forums and/or participates in community events concerning conservation.
Recent events included:
• We partnered with Planet New Canaan in 2018 to support the ban on plastic bag use in New Canaan.
• In spring 2019, The Garden Club sponsored a program that introduced confined goats to Irwin Park to eradicate the invasive species in a way that would be safe for the families and pets who visit the park.
