Activities
2025-26 Member Challenge
This year the Conservation Award will be given to the GCES member who has the most badges based on their participation in our monthly activities. Badges will be similar to Girl Scout badges and can be attached to your GCES apron. Each month the Conservation Committee will announce the activity for the following month.
October 15—Plant a native plant
November 19—Fall clean up—Don’t do it! Leave garden debris and leaves where they are until spring
December 14— Use local materials for sustainable holiday decorations. Think shells, pinecones, etc
January 21—Watch the documentary “Hometown Habitat, Stories of Bringing Nature Home” starring Dr. Doug Tallamy
February 18—Start seeds for a vegetable or herb garden
April 15—Add compost, manure or other organic matter to your garden to reduce fertilizer use
May 1—Devote 1 square yard of your garden or planter or raised bed to attracting butterflies or bees
Our goal is to encourage more members to consider and engage in conservation practices and activities in their own garden and yard.
GCES Conservation Award
The Suzanne Savedge Wescoat Conservation award was established by the GCES Executive Board in 2008 and named in honor of its first recipient. The award recognizes a member who has been an exemplary advocate for conservation and has rendered outstanding service in disseminating knowledge of the Eastern Shore’s natural resources and their wise use. Recipients are selected by the Board when warranted and include:
Suzanne Wescoat
2008
Robin Rinaca
2010
Suzanne Tankard
2021
Mina Turner
2025
The GCV Common Wealth Award
In May, 2022, The Garden Club of the Eastern Shore was awarded grant funds in the amount of $8,900 for the Beautification and Conservation of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence Campus, 12 Hartman Avenue, Onancock, Virginia. The funds were used to enhance the grounds and ensure the project’s success and proper ongoing maintenance.
The Common Wealth Award was established in May 1979 to provide annual grants to the community projects of the Garden Club of Virginia’s member clubs which include the Garden Club of the Eastern Shore. Eligible projects must be in the areas of conservation, beautification, horticulture, preservation or education. The two-word name Common Wealth was chosen to describe the “wealth” that is “common” to all Virginians. Past Garden Club of the Eastern Shore Common Wealth winners include the Port Isobel Project, 1990, the Public Library Landscape Project, 1995, and the Community Garden Cape Charles Central Park, 2022.
This undertaking for the Eastern Shore of Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence Campus was a collaborative effort including several other Eastern Shore garden Clubs , (Debedeavon, Ye Accawmacke and Chincoteague), and many other community organizations. The ultimate plan is to provide landscaping and a children’s play area creating a ‘soft landing’ for families in crisis.
Past Projects
2024 Member Challenge
The “Plant a Pollinator Container” was introduced to the GCES in January 2024 as a way to encourage members to consider pollinators in their own garden. All members could participate in this project by planting a container at their home using plants that attract pollinators including at least one Eastern Shore native plant. The Committee judged these containers in June from photographs. The judging was based on design, selection of plants, color harmony and overall appearance. The winner, who received the Conservation Award in 2024, was member Susan Price.
Earth Day Event
in Exmore
In April, 2024, the Conservation and Restoration Committee hosted a Garden Club of the Eastern Shore booth at the Earth Day event at Exmore Town Park. Club members gave away bare root apple trees and small butterfly bush plants and talked about pollinators and their importance. This was the first year for this event. There was also a drawing for two tickets to the Eastern Shore Tour during Historic Garden Week.
Camp
Scholarship
The Garden Club of the Eastern Shore awards a $500 Camp Scholarship each year to an Eastern Shore student. The award is now extended to an Eastern Shore student attending either The Nature Conservancy Camp or Chesapeake Bay Field School. The Committee works with camp administration each year to identify a deserving recipient.
The 2024 scholarship recipient was Tessa, who attended “Aspiring Coastal Explorer Camp,” a "hands-on, feet wet" learning experience with traditional camp activities.
