创会与宗旨
1953 年由 J. W. Parkinson 夜间园艺课的几位学生发起,最初名为 Valley Garden Club,首任主席 Vera Lundahl 当年将聚会地点选在 Somenos 路的 St. Mary’s Anglican Church 堂。从创会起,俱乐部就定位为面向业余爱好者的兴趣团体,致力于推广园艺知识交流、参与花卉与园艺展览,以及开展一切有助于业余园艺爱好者享受园艺乐趣的活动。如今俱乐部是 BC 省园艺俱乐部理事会 BC Council of Garden Clubs 的会员单位。
月度例会与客座讲座
例会安排在每年 9 月至次年 6 月之间的每月第二个星期三,7 点开始,6:30 开门。2023 年 3 月起例会改到邓肯联合教堂堂 Duncan United Church Hall,地址 邓肯市,在此之前聚会地点是 Jubilee 街的 St. John’s Anglican Church 堂;COVID-19 疫情期间曾在线上 Zoom 进行。每场例会除了商务议程外,还包含客座讲座、茶歇交流、抽奖、室内花展评判和会员植物交换环节。客座讲者覆盖温哥华岛本土传粉昆虫、堆肥方法、杜鹃养护、本土蜂保护、果树修剪、植物繁殖、容器园艺、可食地景、本土植物入侵识别等本地园艺相关主题,讲者包括西海岸知名园艺专家与本地 Master Gardeners。
春花展、温室集市与室内花展
俱乐部一年中最重要的公开活动是每年 6 月举办的 Annual Flower Show and Tea,2026 年的春花展与茶会安排在 6 月 6 日(周六)中午到下午 3 点,地点 St. Peter’s Anglican Church 堂邓肯市;门票 5 加元,16 岁以下青少年免费,下午茶 5 加元。评委来自温哥华岛园艺评审小组 Vancouver Island Horticultural Judging Group,展品类别涵盖切花、装饰设计、盆栽、摄影等。从 1977 年起,俱乐部还在每次例会上增设 Parlour Show 室内花展,作为例会内的轻松竞赛,鼓励会员锻炼展示技能;每年还会举办种子竞赛。春季植物义卖 Spring Plant Sale 是俱乐部的主要募款活动,每年 4 月在超市停车场举办,所得用于会员巴士游、工作坊与客座讲座开支。
会员福利、社区参与与团队协作
俱乐部会员分为 10 个小组,每组设一名组长 Team Leader,每位会员每年只需承担连续两个月例会的茶水、布置与植物义卖桌轮值。会员费每年 20 加元,可邮寄支票到 PO Box 917, Duncan BC V9L 3Y2,或通过电子转账缴纳会员费,具体收款方式详见俱乐部主站。会员可参加年度巴士游、工作坊(果树修剪、日式花道、Hypertufa 盆器制作等)、开放花园参观、年度种子与盆栽交换,以及 BC Council of Garden Clubs 提供的会员优惠。俱乐部还在 1967 年起承担每年 9 月 Cowichan 农业展 Cowichan Exhibition 花卉部评委工作,至今是当地规模最大的业余花卉交流活动之一。
位置、邮址与申请方式
俱乐部活动集中在温哥华岛 Cowichan 谷地,以邓肯市 Duncan 为中心,服务范围覆盖周边 Chemainus、Lake Cowichan、Cobble Hill 等社区。通信地址 PO Box 917, Duncan, BC, V9L 3Y2。例会地点 Duncan United Church Hall 邓肯市。准会员可直接到例会现场,或发送电子邮件至 info@cowichanvalleygardenclub.com,会员表格可在俱乐部主站 PDF 区下载,新会员表格对应 Membership form 2025-26 版本,完成签署后随会员费一同交回即可。
Founding and Purpose
Cowichan Valley Garden Club was founded in 1953 under the name Valley Garden Club by a small group of keen students of Mr. J. W. Parkinson’s night-school gardening classes, with Vera Lundahl as the first president and St. Mary’s Anglican Church hall on Somenos Road as the inaugural meeting site. From its earliest years the club has focused on encouraging interest in gardening, sharing knowledge, participating in flower and garden exhibits, and supporting activities that advance amateur enjoyment of horticulture. The club is a member of the BC Council of Garden Clubs.
Monthly Meetings and Guest Speakers
General meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month, September through June, starting at 7:00 pm with doors opening at 6:30. Since March 2023 the venue has been Duncan United Church Hall at in Duncan; previously meetings were at St. John’s Anglican Church Hall on Jubilee Street, and during the COVID-19 pandemic the club met on Zoom. Each meeting combines a business session, a guest speaker, a tea break, a Parlour Show, a Plant Sale table, and a raffle. Recent guest speakers have covered Cowichan Valley pollinators, rhododendron care, native bees, permaculture, composting, fruit tree pruning, plant propagation, container gardening, edible landscaping, invasive plants on Vancouver Island, and the experience of growing tea locally.
Annual Flower Show, Plant Sale, and Parlour Show
The club’s signature public event is the Annual Flower Show and Tea, held in early June; the 2026 edition was scheduled for Saturday, June 6, noon to 3 pm, at St. Peter’s Anglican Church Hall Duncan, with $5 admission (free for under 16) and $5 afternoon tea. Entries are judged by the Vancouver Island Horticultural Judging Group across cut-flower, decorative, potted, and photography divisions. Since 1977 a Parlour Show has been staged at every monthly meeting as a light-hearted competition, with categories posted after each December meeting and aggregate prizes awarded in December. The Spring Plant Sale, held in supermarket parking lots, is the club’s main fundraiser and supports bus tours, workshops, and speaker honoraria.
Membership Benefits, Teams, and Community Involvement
Annual membership is $20 and the membership form for the 2025-26 season is available as a PDF on the club website. Members may pay by cheque mailed to PO Box 917, Duncan BC V9L 3Y2, or by e-transfer; details are on the club website. The membership is divided into 10 teams, each with a Team Leader, and each member rotates tea-and-setup duties for two consecutive meetings a year. Benefits include guest-speaker talks, hands-on workshops (pruning, hypertufa trough building, Japanese flower arranging, container planting), open-garden visits, an annual bus tour, seed and bulb exchanges, and the inter-club networking offered through the BC Council of Garden Clubs. Since 1967 the club has also organised the Flower Division of the annual Cowichan Exhibition each September.
Location, Mailing Address, and How to Join
The club serves gardeners across the Cowichan Valley region of Vancouver Island, with Duncan as its centre and members travelling in from Chemainus, Lake Cowichan, Cobble Hill, and surrounding communities. The mailing address is PO Box 917, Duncan, British Columbia, V9L 3Y2. Meetings take place at Duncan United Church Hall Duncan. Prospective members are welcome to attend a meeting in person, or to email info@cowichanvalleygardenclub.com with questions; the membership form PDF can be found on the site and signed copies are returned with dues at a meeting or by mail.
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