About Us

The Grants Pass Garden Club was founded by Mrs. Marguerite Riddle in 1926.  Others joined with her to plant trees and flowers in Grants Pass for the visitors and tourists traveling to the coast.

In 1976, as part of a Bicentennial effort sponsored by the Oregon State Federation of Garden Clubs to locate historical trees, a hard-shelled flowering almond was identified at 702 NE “A” Street.  This rare tree, now over 100 years old, is the sole evidence of what once was an extensive almond orchard.  A plaque commemorating that tree is still at that site.  Also, in 1970 an extensive garden was designed and planted in Riverside Park.  A plaque was placed there as a memorial garden for Mrs. Riddle.

There has long been an interest in wildflowers and in the 1930s, a club member, Mrs. Demaray, mounted a display of over 75 specimens of blooming wildflowers with assistance from local educator and botanist, Lincoln Savage.  Today, club members enjoy wildflower walks at the Table Rocks, Limpy Creek, Eight Dollar Mountain, and other sites known for their spring show of flowers.

To raise money for scholarships and civic beautification projects, the Grants Pass Garden Club has sold holiday arrangements in December and has an annual Spring Plant Sale.  The sales have included hand-crafted garden art by several local artists and Grants Pass Garden Club members including lovely plants propagated from members’ gardens.

Since the beginning, the Grants Pass Garden Club has welcomed new members who are interested in learning about gardening and sharing the love of gardening with others.  Garden tours, craft workshops, and informal get-togethers give life to the proverb “Friends are the flowers in the garden of life.”

On April 25, 2019, the Grants Pass Garden Club, Inc. was incorporated.  On July 22, 2019, the Grants Pass Garden Club, Inc. became a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. To obtain information you can reach us at grantspassgardenclub@gmail.com.  You can also visit us on Facebook: Grants Pass Garden Club.