All LAVGC meetings, events and activities except allowed activities shown in the Calendar Events section to the left are CANCELLED until further notice following Alameda County Health Care Services guidance on Mar 12, 2020.

Allowed Calendar Events will follow ACHCS and CDC Guidance. Click to see ACHCS Guidance. Check with Activity Contacts for the status of other scheduled activities shown in the Calendar Events to the left.

Regular Monthly Meeting on Zoom
Thursday, June 10, 2021 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm on Zoom

Speaker: LAVGC member Dolores Bengston - "Change Over Time".

“Change Over Time” is the topic of the June meeting. Gardens often change over time to meet interests and needs. LAVGC member Dolores Bengtson will present a program based on her latest garden change, removing all the turf and many of the trees and plants in her back garden and introducing Mediterranean mounds. The change was to provide a garden more tuned into low water use while offering good habitat for creatures. The presentation will show steps in creating the mounds, installing irrigation, creating pathways as well as showing plants that thrive on drip and those that hold out for a more generous irrigation system.

Any questions about the meeting, please contact Barbara Stott.

We look forward to you joining us for our next Zoom meeting. We will be sending a notice prior to the meeting, but you also have the information in our recent newsletter.

If you cannot join the Zoom meeting, recordings of the monthly programs, speaker permitting, are available on this site thanks to the efforts of our Zoommasters: Grahamn Stott and Nile Runge and Web Master Len Smith.

LAVGC is inviting Members to our Monthly Meeting on Zoom

Topic: LAVGC Monthly Meeting
Time: Thursday, June 10, 2021, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Members only will receive an email close to the meeting with meeting join details.

Members can join the meeting starting at 6:45. When you join the meeting, you will be in the "waiting room" until the host lets you into the meeting. When you are let into the meeting, your microphone will be muted. Please use the "chat" feature if you want to ask a question.

See LAVGC Zoom Instructions for tips for those new to Zoom. See LAVGC Zoom Participation Tips for tips for participating in Zoom meetings.

Members having difficulty connecting to the meeting or have technical questions, please contact Zoommasters Nile Runge or Graham Stott. See the LAVGC Yearbook for their individual contact information.

If you have any trouble getting on the meeting as it starts, call Nile Runge, 925-443-2237 for help.

If you are not a member and would like to join Zoom meetings, please complete the New Member Application Form. Members receive the monthly newsletter, annual Yearbook, access to the Members Only section of this site and Zoom meeting details each month. If you are not a member and would like to attend a specific Zoom meeting, please contact Jeri Stark, President to request Zoom meeting details.

Visitors Are Welcome!

Please join us at the monthly meeting or contact us at the Membership link below. Please take a moment to fill out the Membership Application Form for Membership Year July, 2021 through June, 2022. New members joining after Jan. 31 of the Membership Year will owe one-half of the regular dues. New members joining at or after the April Spring Plant Sale will pay dues for the following Membership Year and be complimented for the remainder of the existing Membership Year (May/June).

For more information about membership or dues, please email Wanda Finn.

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We're off for the Summer - no July and August regular meetings. Our next regular meeting is scheduled for September 9, 2021. We will update you on meeting plans closer to the meeting time. If you have questions about any club activity, please contact the chairperson. Click Contacts in the menu above to see LAVGC activity chairs and contact information.

The board hasn’t met yet, but we anticipate being able to meet in person soon. We’ll discuss the options and may be able to offer a hybrid situation where some are in person and others are on Zoom. Stay Tuned for details on what the 2021-2022 year will look like. In the meantime, please send in your membership application. We want to see you all participate in our meetings and activities.

LAVGC Yearbook

Good news! We will publish a 2021-2022 Yearbook in September with all new and renewed members. Until then continue to use the LAVGC 2019-2020 Yearbook and the LAVGC Roster. A PDF of the LAVGC 2019-2020 Yearbook and a PDF of the LAVGC Roster are available to view and print in the Members Only section.

LAVGC Roster

Beginning October, 2020, we are providing a complete list of all current LAVGC members and their contact information. The Roster includes information for all members and includes membership changes, such as, addition of new members and changes to current member contact information, since the Yearbook was published. The Roster is in Yearbook format so it can be printed and inserted in your physical Yearbook. The Yearbook Addendum has been replaced by the LAVGC Roster.

Member Alert: if you have changes to your contact information, please email Molly Fisher. See the LAVGC Yearbook for Molly's additional contact information.

Members Only section

Check out the Members Only section. Click on the 'Members Only' menu selection on any page, enter the Id and password. The Members Only section contains the club Yearbook, speaker video links, club forms, newsletter archives, meeting minutes and more. Members may email Jeri Stark, President to obtain the Id and password.

Thanks, thanks and more thanks

Thanks to all who participate in the club workshops, work parties and providing meeting refreshments. > > More

Garden Club Want Ads **** Updated May, 2021 ****

...garden related wants, needs, offers, for sale

This column is for any garden related items that you have that you want to get rid of - either selling or giving away, just to get them out of your place and it's too long to wait for the Plant Sale. You can also list needs or even if you need help in the garden and wish to hire someone for a few hours a week. Or if you'd like to hire out to help someone in their garden a few hours a week. Let's share with other gardeners in the club!! Click to see Garden Club Want Ads.

Talks on Video

If you missed our meeting speakers' informative talk, you can see the video of the talk on the club website Members Only section. Most of our recent club meeting talks are on view there. Select videos are also available to the public. See LAVGC Speakers: past and future.

**See the new EGG Recipe book.**

Click Edible Gardening Group then look for the yellow Recipes section on the right. Thanks to Beth Clark for creating the recipe book and to many members for their contributions.

Tomato Tasting 2021

Our annual Tomato Tasting has been going strong for 23 years except for last year’s little hiccup. We plan on getting back together for some fun competition and good food to taste at this year's event. Dates and venue are not set in stone, but will probably be in August and at the Knot Barn on the grounds of Crosswinds Church in Livermore again. Raise some tasty tomatoes and dust off those tomato recipes and we will plan on seeing you later this summer. A notice will be sent out beforehand with details or call Michelle for information.

For more information, please contact Michelle Tallon, Tomato Tasting chair 2021. See the LAVGC Roster for additional contact information.

Garden Share 2021

Thank you to everyone who came out to make the Garden Share a success this year. And of course a great big round of applause to the home and garden owners who made this possible. Anne Vincent & Bruce Daggy showed us what wonderful work they have done with their crew in establishing a new garden at St. Clare's Church. Judy Matthew, Nancy Harrington and Michelle Suski wowed us with their ornamentals and vegetables, there was so much diversity and experimentation not to mention the riot of colors!

We had a beautiful day weather wise and this extended to the Garden Social at Michelle's after the Share. A big thank you to Michelle and her merry helpers of Vicki Cuniffe, Robyn Gade and Jeri Long who helped her set up. So many folks also helped by bringing sweet treats to share and we all enjoyed the opportunity to get together as a group for the first time since March 2020. It was great to see everyone! Thank you to everyone who contributed in one way or another.

The Garden Share participants also volunteered to offer plants for sale at their homes (via the honor system) so that gardeners could get some of the starts out of their yards that they have been nursing since last year. It also acted as a presale for the club's garden sale that will happen at a later date with plants and garden treasures. I'm happy to report that we made $700 for the club through this member only sale. Over all I would say that Garden Share was a wonderful success for 2021!

For more information, please contact Michelle Tallon Michelle Tallon, Garden Share cordinator 2021. See the LAVGC Roster for additional contact information.

P.S. Next year, 2022, we will be looking for homeowners in Livermore who will open up their gardens for all of us to share. Please consider showing your lovely garden!

California Native Plant Society - Santa Clara Valley Chapter presentations

LAVGC member Bill McCormack writes: I am sharing California Native Plant Society - Santa Clara Valley (CNPS-SCV) presentations on topics that have been popular in past LAVGC meetings (pollinators, native bees).

CNPS-SCV is a chapter of the California Native Plant Society. The CNPS-SCV meets Wednesdays at 7:30 pm. The meetings and the chapter Youtube channel are open to anyone (not just native plant society members). Past meetings have had attendees from all over the state and the Western US. .

Penny Pines for Gift Giving

With the National Forest offices closed, we are not able to get certificates for plantations quickly. However, if you wish to give a gift of a Penny Pines plantation to a loved one, you can complete the form found here Penny Pines form.

Mail the form to Jeri Stark with a check for $68, made out to LAVGC. Jeri will prepare a certificate for you to give to your recipient. Our forests need our help more than ever and this is a wonderful gift.

Please contact Jeri Stark, Penny Pines for her address or see the LAVGC Yearbook for Jeri's contact information.

Click Penny Pines to learn more about the activity.