come grow with us
Founded in 1926, we are 100+ enthusiastic & creative members who support making McMinnville a more beautiful place to live.
Welcome to the McMinnville Garden Club
“I pledge to protect and conserve the natural resources of the planet Earth and promise to promote education, so we may become caretakers of our air, water, forests, land and wildlife.”
Our Mission: We envision a thriving community where every individual is passionate about gardening and has access to the knowledge, resources, and support needed to create beautiful, sustainable gardens.
Our goal is to inspire, educate, and empower garden enthusiasts of all ages and backgrounds. We achieve this through collaboration, sharing of ideas, and hands-on learning experiences.
Through engaging workshops, expert-led seminars, garden tours, and community events, we strive to cultivate an inclusive community of green thumbs who are committed to preserving nature’s beauty while promoting sustainable practices.
The McMinnville Garden Club's Annual Garden Tour and Faire
events
The Garden Tour is an opportunity to see behind the gates of five private gardens, soak up the beauty,
gather ideas for your own garden and get your gardening questions answered.
The Garden Faire showcases area vendors offering hanging baskets, herb and veggie starts, quality
perennials, garden art, and creative garden enhancements.
Create Life-Long Friends while Learning and Sharing!
activities
See Our Activities ScheduleArts and Crafts
Get together with other members and learn how to make holiday wreaths, concrete leaf molds, color pour garden pots and petrified wood mobiles, among other things.
There is always something new to learn and to make!
Club Meetings
Visit a monthly meeting and see what we’re about!
Many of us joined the Garden Club to meet other gardeners, learn from each other and discover the techniques, plants, and nurseries that are most suited to our Willamette Valley location.
We also host informational speakers at our monthly meetings and work together to improve our community.
Field Trips
Join us in our travels! Together, we visit specialty nurseries including Thyme Gardens and Dancing Oaks, treasure hunt for thrifty, unique items to take home to our gardens, and explore, explore, explore.
On the way: Lunch, of course!
Horticulture Scholarship Program
growing our future
We are all about the future of planet earth, and what better way is there to sow into the future than educating our future experts!
Every year, we offer scholarships to three local students pursuing higher education in the fields of horticulture, forestry, botany and environmental studies.
Scholarships are made possible through public donations and Garden Tour proceeds.
community projects & services
Enhancing the Livability of Our Community
Serenity Garden
At the Willamette Valley Medical Center – Enhance the well-being of the community, patients, their families, friends.
Third Street Cleanup
Spiff-up the scenic 3rd Street Downtown district prior to Linfield Universities’ Parents Day
West End Planting Care
Help maintain the plantings at West End of town.
The proceeds from our Garden Tour & Faire are reinvested within our community providing college scholarships, informational programs and garden art/horticultural community projects.
We have funded public benches, hanging baskets, lamp posts, Yamhill County Historical Museum projects, the plantings at the West End of town, Third Street plantings, a Blue Star marker commemorating veterans at Evergreen Aviation Museum and given multiple college scholarships to Yamhill County students studying horticulture.
In addition we do community service projects such as maintaining both the Post Office and West End plantings, as well as the Public Library’s indoor plants, support the Community Garden’s Children’s area and do an annual spring cleanup of Third Street.
get involved
activity & event committees
There are currently twenty-four active committees that manage all McMinnville Garden Club operations. These range from Garden Tour and Garden Faire Coordinators to Parliamentarian, Serenity Garden and Horticulture Chairs.
We would love to have YOUR contribution. So, what are your skills? What would you like to learn? What would you like to teach us?
home garden awards
Yard of the Month
explore the Yard of the MonthThe Yard of the Month Committee works from April to September to select recipients for the yard of the month award.
Winners are presented with a certificate and have their garden featured in the McMinnville News-Register.
McMinnville holiday parade
Rakettes
explore the RakettesThe Garden Club’s famous Rakettes march in full gardener regalia at the yearly McMinnville Holiday Parade, held the day after Thanksgiving to kick off the holiday season.
find your place
explore service opportunities
explore service opportunitiesThere are limitless opportunities to learn, contribute, and enjoy the camaraderie only available in the garden.
Join Us!
leadership
executive committee
Elaine Pollak
President
Kay Fitkin
Vice President
Charlene Drake
Treasurer
Dian Berg
Secretary
Frequently asked questions
Here are some answers to questions you might have. Need more information?
Send us a note
What are some of the fun things to do with the McMinnville Garden Club?
There are monthly arts and crafts events, where up to 20 members meet at one of the organizers homes and make fun things. Some of the most recent projects have included, rock mosaics, holiday wreaths, bug hotels, and pumpkin arrangements.
We also have field trips to many places including, quilt exhibits, nurseries, home and garden shows, and participating in the McMinnville Holiday Parade as the Rakettes!
The clean ups around McMinnville are work, but they are fun also. We are a very active club!
How many members are there in the McMinnville Garden Club?
There are usually between 80 and 100 members and approximately 50 attend the monthly meetings. So we feel we have a strong, active club.
When and where does the McMinnville Garden Club meet?
We currently meet on the third Monday, September through June at the First Presbyterian Church in McMinnville, at 390 NE Second Street. We encourage members to attend starting at 9:30am for social time, then the meeting starts at 10:00am. Most months we have a speaker that starts at 11:00am until 12:00am.
What do you do at the meetings?
We have social time starting at 9:30am where members can get some coffee or tea and there is almost always treats the members have brought! The meeting starts at 10:00am and the officers and committee chairs give reports about activities, projects or other club business. We have a short break and most meetings we then have a speaker give a presentation from 11:00am until 12:00am. Our members bring plants or garden items to give away, so each person in attendance receives a ticket and there is a drawing at the end of the meeting and many members go home with something fun!
How much are the dues and where does the money go?
Dues are $25 per year. $7.50 of that goes to the District and State Federation of Garden Clubs, of which our club is a member. The rest of the money goes to paying the minimal costs of running the club (rent for meeting space, speaker fees, printing, committee expenses, etc.).
How does the McMinnville Garden Club raise funds for projects?
The club has two main fundraisers each year which give us the funds to do all the projects. They are the Garden Tour and the Garden Faire which are currently held the Sunday before Father’s Day in June.
The Garden Tour is four to five private gardens that the homeowners open up for us to sell tickets and give tours. The homeowners are there to answer questions, but the members are also there to assist the homeowners and the people attending the Tour.
The Garden Faire is held in downtown McMinnville and is a gathering of many vendors selling plants, garden art and other items. It is free to attend, but we receive money from the vendors for space fees.
How much does the McMinnville Garden Club give out in scholarships?
The Club awards three $1,000 scholarships to Yamhill County students who are attending colleges in Oregon and majoring in horticultural-related programs.
What kinds of projects does the McMinnville Garden Club do for the community?
Our current ongoing projects include:
Maintenance at the West Entrance and the Post Office consisting of cleaning and trimming, plantings and adding bark dust as necessary.
Care for the indoor plants at the McMinnville Public Library by watering and replacement as necessary.
Conduct an annual Spring Cleanup of Third Street including trimming the ivy and adding bark dust. This has been a long-term commitment for over 25 years.
Our newest project is the Serenity Garden at the Cancer Treatment Center behind Willamette Valley Medical Center. We provide hanging baskets by the Cancer Center and are making a beautiful and restful garden for patients and staff to enjoy.
Can I make a donation to the Serenity Garden Project?
Certainly!
If you would like to make your donation via credit/debit card, Donate Here
If you prefer using a check, it should be sent to:
McMinnville Garden Club Serenity Garden
PO Box 386
McMinnville, OR 97128You will receive a letter which can be used for your taxable dollars.
If you are a member of a service club that would be willing to have a presentation given at one of your meetings, please contact us below
Thank you for your support. We have a lot more we hope to achieve, as more funds become available.
Don’t forget to drive by the site to watch it develop!