THE HISTORY OF THE CONEJO VALLEY GARDEN CLUB

1960

On November 13, 1960 seven women from the Conejo Valley went to Ojai and met with the Ojai Valley Garden Club to find out how to start a garden club in the Conejo Valley. Their purpose was to save the Oak trees along Ventura Blvd (now Thousand Oaks Blvd.), 64 of which were marked for immediate removal.

By December 1960, local citizens had won a 45 day stay of the removal of any more trees, 24 of which had already been cut down. The club had been instrumental in working with community leaders to get the stay.

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  1961

  
  By February 1961 dues were set, a by-law committee was formed, and policies were set forth as:
  
  1. This association shall be non-commercial & non-sectarian
  
  2. It shall not endorse any commercial enterprise or candidate
  
  3. The name of the association or the names of any members in their official capacity shall not be used in any connection with a commercial concern or with any partisan interest, or for any other purpose than the regular work of the association.
  
  4. The by-laws were adopted on April 26, 1961.

  From 1961-1973 approximately 165 trees were planted at schools and parks in the Conejo by CVGC.

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  1963 to 1977 Local Garden Tours

  Home garden tours began in 1963 and continued through 1977 except for 1974-75. The gardens belonged to local community members willing to share their gardens, as well as Conejo Valley Garden Club members. Cutting Day was a community event most often held at the Janss Mall where garden club members brought cuttings from their yard and offered these free to the public.

   

  1968 The Beginning of the Annual Flower Show

  Conejo Valley Garden Club has held annual Flower Shows since May 1968 and currently holds a plant sale yearly, with plants donated by club members.

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  1970's and Beyond

  
  
  
  
   

  In 1970 Conejo Valley Garden Club was instrumental in the passage of City Ordinance #137-NS which regulates the care and removal of native oak trees. One of the clubs projects in 1972 was to assist the children at the Acacia School to create a 30min 16mm sound & color film exposing the plight of the native Coast Live Oaks and Valley Oaks, and how, with local support the community could protect them from extinction. Since 1979 Conejo Valley Garden Club has been involved with the seniors in our community, taking flowers every two weeks for the front desk at Fitzgerald House, (now Senior Concerns), and providing planting workshops 4 times a year for the clients, with members of the club donating plant and flower cuttings from their yards. The 1980's and 1990's, continued to be a growth period for the club, adding new members, and continuing to work on behalf of the local community to keep the Conejo Valley green and environmentally sound.

  
   
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  Blue Star Memorial - Honoring Those Who Have Served

   

  The Blue & Gold Star Memorials Program honors all men and women that serve in the United States Armed Services. This program began with the planting of 8,000 Dogwood trees by the New Jersey Council of Garden Clubs in 1944 as a living memorial to veterans of World War II. In 1945, the National Council of State Garden Clubs adopted this program and began a Blue Star Highway system that covers thousands of miles across the Continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii. A large metal Blue Star Memorial Highway Marker was placed at appropriate locations along the way.
  
  
  On May 7, 1998 a Blue Star Memorial Marker honoring the men and women in our Armed Forces was placed in Conejo Creek Park by the Channel Islands District of California Garden Clubs, Inc. of whom Canejo Valley Gardening Club is part of.

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  Annual Tea In The Garden

   

  Conejo Valley Garden Club has held an annual “Tea in the Garden” on the Saturday before Mother’s Day every year since 1999.

  
  
  
  
  
   

  1966-1967 The Club Yearbook Is Introduced