On Saturday, May 10, the North Stonington Garden Club (NSGC) will host its annual spring plant sale at the Rocky Hollow Recreation Area from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The sale will feature a variety of flowers, herbs, vegetable plants, and other decoratives from local greenhouses and the gardens of the nearly 50 members of the NSGC. Garden club secretary, Jean Ridall, explained how much work goes into the sale.
“To tell you the truth, it starts when the plant sale closes,” Ridall said. “We have a wind-up party, and then we talk about what we’re going to do the next year. And then it really gets going around the first of January. We start having frequent meetings and begin doing some serious planting. But people like Sue [Stephenson] who order the seeds have to start thinking about them pretty early.”
The garden club and the plant sale have become springtime fixtures in North Stonington, as the club was created in 1939 and was federated in 1940. The sale made its official debut in 1953 and has gradually expanded ever since. In the past few years one of the most popular items has been the heirloom tomatoes.
Heirloom tomatoes are plants that derive from seeds that have been passed down from generation to generation with origins throughout the world. Every year the NSGC purchases various heirloom tomato seeds and grows the plants from scratch, specifically for the plant sale. Some, but not all, of the unique and exotic offerings this year include the “Aussie Heirloom,” a big red beefsteak from Australia; the “Blondkopfchen” (little blond girl), which produces golden clusters of grape size tomatoes; “Box Car Willie,” an old New Jersey favorite, which is bright red and very juicy; “Isis Candy Cherry,” which has marbleized yellow and red skin with very sweet gold flesh; the “Japanese Black Trifele,” a purple/black salad tomato with great flavor; and the “Striped Cavern,” a hollow pepper-shaped tomato with red and orange striping that is perfect for stuffing.
The plant sale will also offer a number of locally grown annuals and perennials, which Ridall said are of the highest quality because of their local origins.
“Most of the plants we sell are dug from members’ gardens,” explained Ridall. “We had a digging party about a week ago and we dug up 150 plants just from one garden, and they’re wonderful plants. You know you’re getting things that are locally grown and are going to survive when you put them in the ground—they’re not grown in some other climate.”
Ridall added that all proceeds from the sale are invested back into the community through various projects. This year NSGC members plan to renovate a plot of undeveloped land just behind the village green in the center of town, transforming the neglected lot into a lush, natural area. Club members also anticipate doing some repair work on the Wheeler High greenhouse, which currently has thermostat problems.
The plant sale will also include a variety of garden-related rummage sale items, and sandwiches and baked goods from the North Stonington Congregational Church.