Every spring, the Brighton Garden Club partners with the Library to celebrate the re-opening of our Seed Library, and all things gardening. Ahead of this year’s event, I sat down on the Library’s bright green couches with Paul Battilana, a certified Master Gardener with the Garden Club. I wanted to ask him about the Club’s work in Brighton but also what it is about gardening that seems to bring people together.
“Everyone has something they can share,” Paul tells me. As a member of the Garden Club board he’s always encouraging people to share their knowledge and experience, regardless of where they’re at. Paul explained, “do you know the difference between a seasoned gardener and a new gardener? A seasoned gardener has killed more plants!” Sometimes gardening can be discouraging because there is so much trial and error – but when you have a group of people ready to encourage you and share their own knowledge, that builds a better garden and also a better community. He assured me, “there will always be people who know more – and that’s a good thing.”
Stop and Smell the Flowers: the Club has created spaces for everyone to enjoy! Visit the Rose Ellery Park on the west side of of Ontario Street, or the Pollinator Garden in Proctor Park, to see their handiwork and enjoy the benefits of living in a community that grows together.
The Garden Club is building our community around shared knowledge, and around shared vegetables! Lorraine Coulas is also a board member with the Club, and she explained that as motivations for gardening change, “an increasing number of people have been growing their own vegetables for wellness and economic reasons – and they’ve often shared their abundance with the food bank and added to the United Church’s produce table in the summer.” She described the practical connections that gardening builds, from members working on community projects to businesses that supply plants: “these have contributed to the well-being of our Municipality and helped establish networks that nourish our community.”
Paul and Lorraine have felt the benefit of shared knowledge and community connection that comes with belonging to the Brighton Garden Club, but they point out that it goes beyond their monthly meetings. The Club maintains several gardens in our community, that not only honour the beauty of our natural world but also give us all the chance to stop and enjoy these labours of love. As Lorraine explains “sharing the beauty of our flowers, grasses, shrubs and trees with neighbours and passers-by; creating habitats necessary for the survival of pollinators, including birds and small animals; eating food we have grown ourselves, and sharing it with others – these surely are sources of joy.”
Garden Club Quick Facts
- Established in 1925 (100+ years of Brighton gardeners!)
- Members and Visitors can attend their meetings
- Membership costs $20/year and gets you in to every meeting
- Visiting a meeting usually costs $5/meeting
- You can see the full schedule of 2026 events on their website
- The Garden Club will be on hand at this year’s Seed Exchange (March 21st at the Library) ready to chat about your gardening highs and lows