Mary Jane Wilson
Cacti, succulents, fruit trees, vegetables, herbs, flowers—you name it, and someone in SaddleBrooke probably has experience growing what you are interested in. One of the newest SaddleBrooke Gardening Club (SBGC) members writes, “I’ve been a member of the new SaddleBrooke Gardening Club for only two months, and I’m hooked. The membership has been very helpful in several ways. The first meeting I attended was the “worm people” meeting. The ideas of the presenters were very helpful, but more importantly were the questions asked by the participants. I noted everyone has had different issues in their gardens here in Saddlebrook. Each one of us has had problems and successes, areas of experience, and different skill levels. I hope this club will continue to bring us together to discuss and trade knowledge as it applies to gardening here.”
Four subgroups offer like-minded members breakout meetings:
Vegetable and Herb subgroup members are planning offsite tours for April and early May: a guided tour of Mission Garden at the base of “A” Mountain and a visit to Sow Arizona, Kara Adam’s Tubac area garden, with a stop for lunch in Tubac, of course! Members, watch your emails for notices.
Flower and Rose subgroup members are planning home garden tours to coordinate with their spring blooms in April and May. Rumors are that there might be some garden parties as well!
Citrus and Fruit Tree subgroup members recently were invited to two citrus tasting events: one at Mission Garden, a heritage garden growing a variety of fruit trees on historic land, and the second at Rillito Nursery, a small nursery that sells a variety of citrus and other fruit trees. Members look forward to planning some backyard garden tours this spring.
Our Cactus and Succulents subgroup is searching for a new subgroup coordinator. See our website for information on this opportunity.
The SBGC website at sbgardeningclub.weebly.com continues to expand with great gardening information supplied by our members. Recent additions include several excellent links to expand and improve your citrus growing skills as well as additions to the Veggie/Herb section on soil testing and guidelines for timing your spring season planting. The Upcoming Events section is continually updated with new postings for plant sales, educational seminars, farmers markets, and garden tours all around Tucson. Member contributions make the SBGC website your “go-to” place for all things gardening in SaddleBrooke and the Tucson area. If you see a gardening event happening in the Tucson area that is not on the SBGC website, please send this information to SBGardeningClubAZ@gmail.com so we can add it to the website for the benefit of all our members.
More than 150 gardeners have joined the SBGC so far to learn from each other’s gardening experiences. Membership applications and information about the club and subgroups can be found at www.sbgardeningclub.weebly.com. Dues for a basic membership are $10 a year.