“Apothecary Gardens” was the apt topic for our February 3rd meeting at Dr. Deirdre Hooper’s beautiful home.  Guest speaker and LSU Ag Agent Anna Timmerman provided the “sage” history of plants as medicine - the oldest healthcare known to man, and informed on healing herbs around the world and here in Louisiana.

On November 4th 2025, NOTG's first ever GCA-level show took place at Longue Vue Gardens!  Over 45 members, both Active and Affiliate, served on committees, with 16 members placing in Horticulture, 5 members won GCA awards with ribbons, and 22 members placed in their class.  What a fun and successful event!

NOTG’s Fall Floral Design Workshop on September 26th was led by Judges Clare Nelson and Kathy Raspberry at the home of Molly Baumer. This event was fully attended and a huge success!

The dynamic duo of Beth Favrot and Catherine Freeman did it again! This pair planned a Savannah Visiting Gardens trip that delighted the senses and sensibilities. With the help of former Savannah resident Sara Gaines and the tremendous hospitality of the Trustees Garden Club, Beth and Catherine put together a trip that introduced Town Gardeners to Savannah’s historic city center and included a day exploring nearby islands and the expansive Wormsloe Plantation on land first granted by the English king to protect Savannah from the threat of invading Spaniards from Florida in the south. Historic stops in town included the Andrew Lowe House, where the Girl Scouts in the group paid homage to founder Juliette Gordon Lowe. Everywhere we looked was another of Savannah’s lush, green squares, and the walkability of Savannah allowed us to stroll under the oaks to dinner or for quick shopping excursions between scheduled activities. Trustees Garden Club is looking for-ward to their centennial in 2026, and a visit to their projects in Forsyth Park and planned anniversary project had a few of us thinking of our own future here in New Orleans. Town Gardeners returned to New Orleans with visions of custom greenhouses and island living in their heads….and wondering where we will go next!

What better way to celebrate Louisiana Native Plant Month than in Carro Gardner’s beautiful native garden? Town Gardeners celebrated the neighborhood in April, enjoying our business meeting and program in Carro’s home and garden with Tammany Baumgarten (right) of the Louisiana Native Plant Society, Native Plant Initiative of Greater New Orleans, and BaumGardens. Tammany presented on the garden project she and Carro undertook together but also on the general benefits of native gardening and the opportunity to integrate native plants alongside longtime non-native favorites such as camellias. The Heart of the Park committee gave a hat luncheon fashion show extraordinaire, Jeanne Barousse introduced the elegant plan for tablescapes, and Caroline Reily invited members and guests to sign up for a millinery session to ensure a festive chapeau. After a discussion about the Heart of the Park luncheon, members voted to continue hosting the luncheon for the next two years. Lynn Box, Kristi French, Virginia Rowan, and Pierce Young, our Zone Flower show delegates and entrants, shared their plans and designs for the Flora & Eudora Zone IX Flower Show the following week. Members enjoyed lingering in Carro’s garden while walking across the street to the home of Beth Favrot, where a delicious lunch was presented by head hostess Catherine Freeman and her committee. New members  received their initial NOTG orientation.

The Garden Club of Jackson put on a beautiful Flora & Eudora Zone IX Meeting and Flower Show in April, weaving the words of author, photographer, and gardener Eudora Welty through every aspect. Educational speakers included Susan Haltom, who revived Miss Welty’s garden at her request and documented the process in One Writer’s Garden, a beautiful chronicle of a garden over the decades.Nicole Johnsey Burke, author of Kitchen Garden Revival and the new Leaves, Roots, and Fruits, shared the story of her Gardenary business and the elements of a successful kitchen garden. The final speaker of the meeting was Harvey Cotton, longtime leader of the Huntsville Botanical Garden, who spoke on native plants and planting for pollinators. During the meeting, participants enjoyed dinners in private homes, a reception in Eudora Welty’s garden, and tea at the Old Governor’s Mansion in Jackson. Garden tours before and after the meeting offered extra opportunities for exploring all the Hospitality State had to offer.The culminating event was a beautiful awards dinner planned and executed by our own Barbara Bush in her role as Zone Representative for Awards. The highlight of the night was the presentation of a GCA Zone Award in Garden History and Design to our own Flora French for her decades of work on this important aspect of GCA. Many thanks to Kristi French and Dr. Ronnie French, who conspired to have Flora in Jackson for the event while maintaining the secret of her special award!Floral Design AwardLynn Box created a beautiful table scape for a bride and groom in the Delta Wedding Class, winning a yellow ribbon and incorporating silver, china, furniture, and linens from Barbara Bush, Helen Butcher, Mary Hines, Tina Kern, Dee McCloskey, and Lynn’s own collection. Roses and hellebores took center stage in her lush, romantic arrangements.Horticulture AwardsKatie Rafferty and Kristi French did a wonderful job gathering cuttings for the show—many thanks to all who let the committee sneak into your gardens and take cuttings and to Kristi for acting as our horticulture delegate in Jackson, submitting specimen in the eight required classes.Kristi won a blue ribbon and the Novice Award in Horticulture for our favorite pitcher plant: Sarracenia leucophylla. Carro’s borage won a blue ribbon in an herb class. Cathy Pierson won a red ribbon for the beautiful New Dawn climbing rose she propagated. Dee’s bottlebrush took a blue ribbon and a good old loblolly pine won a red ribbon. Finally, Kristi made a beautiful arrangement for the challenge class. Each of the 21 clubs had to make a bouquet of cut specimens that would have been in gardens in the 20s, 30s, and 40s. Kristin won third place with a beautiful white and green arrangement presented in a julep cup. The bouquet included cuttings from the Reily garden on Prytania, Carro’s native garden, the French farm, and McCloskey farm—apologies to any gardens overlooked!Photography AwardVirginia entered a beautiful shot taken in the botanical garden for her Curtain of Green entry, winning a yellow ribbon and compliments from the judges! Botanical Arts AwardPierce…