Three Cheers for the Belfast Garden Club

The beautiful gardens at the Belfast Free Library are maintained by the members of the Belfast Garden Club. They are also responsible for other gardens around town, including those at City Hall, the Post Office and the Belfast Museum. The presence of scaffolding that surrounded the library all winter and the necessity to place some of that structure in the middle of the gardens has added some challenges for the gardeners this year, but they, and the gardens, have rebounded beautifully.During three seasons of the year. entering the building each day, either through the front entrance or the back door, is a joyful experience. On Wednesday mornings, the group of workers are usually busy doing the things they do to make this all happen and I enjoy chatting with them for a minute before I go inside to get to my own work. I'm not a gardener, and haven't yet felt the pull to gardening that they obviously have, but I do appreciate the all-season beauty that club members make available to our visitors and the Belfast community , through their hard work and dedication. They not only maintain the gardens, they also raise funds to make them better and more beautiful each year.

Many club members are also making their own gardens available to visitors as part of Open Garden Days . Look for the schedule by the post office or pick one up at the library and check out some of these beautiful gardens. The dates run through September, so there are still plenty of fabulous gardens to see. While you are there, don't forget to put a little something in the donation box to ensure the clubs ability to continue this work in the future. For more information visit the Garden Club website.

The library has a large collection of gardening books for those inspired by the creations of local gardeners. Or, if you are interested in Belfast history, you might like to look at the Belfast Garden Club Records which are held in the Special Collections Department of the library. The collection includes minute books, scrapbooks and photographs dating from 1929 to 1982.

The photographs here were taken a couple of weeks ago, and already the garden has changed and filled out. There is always something new and colorful to look at, so be sure visit often to fully appreciate the magic that has been created here. And while you're in the neighborhood, you might as well come on inside and experience some library magic.