Mission Statement
Landscapers Garden Club aims to increase knowledge in landscape design through further studies and activities and to recognize good ecological and landscape design practices.
About our club
After joining Landscapers, one must complete a series of four courses offered by National Garden Clubs/Michigan Garden Clubs, Inc. in Landscape Design School and receive a Consultant’s Certificate. All programs and projects of the club, except for the annual Council Greens Sale, are focused on outdoor plants and landscaping. Many of this club’s members belong to more than one garden club or garden-related organization in the Kalamazoo area.
Meetings
1st Wednesday at 10 AM (April thru Nov)
Photo credit: Kathy Kienle
Photo credit: Kathy Kienle
Programs for 2026
April 1 Hidcote Manor Gardens, presentation by Kathy Kienle at the Council House
May 6 Nature’s Landscape, presentation by Jeanette Meyer at the Council House
June 3 Kellogg Manor Gardens, 3700 E Gull Lake Dr., Hickory Corners, MI
July 1 Tour Linda Whitlock’s gardens Portage, MI
Aug 5 Kzoo Garden Guru, Alysia Babcock, Grand Rapids, MI
Sept 2 Judging a Garden with Kalamazoo in Bloom, Monika Trahe, Bronson Park.
Oct 7 Green Sale Project Meeting at the Council House
Nov 4 Luncheon at Four Roses, 11:30 AM
Community Activities
- Blue Star Memorial, Portage Library Area
- Kalamazoo Air Zoo, Gold Star Memorial Garden
- “Chain Gang” Bike Memorial at Markin Glen County Park
Three of our members attended the Michigan Garden Clubs Annual Meeting in 2026. Photo credit: Kathy Kienle
Landscapers enjoy a day out exploring Kellogg Manor Gardens. Photo credit: Kathy Kienle
Fiscal Year: June 1 – May 31 | Organized: 1978 | Federated in 1978
Officers 2026-2027
- President: Kathy Kienle
- Vice President: Jeanette Meyer
- Secretary: Sherri Meachum
- Treasurer: Catherine ‘Cat’ Miller
- Council Director: Inge Mesik & Rosemary Wade
History
The Landscapers Garden Club had its beginning in the year 1973 when Helen Wiles, a member of the Kalamazoo Garden Club, decided that the Michigan Garden Clubs (former Federated Garden Clubs of Michigan) Landscape Design School be held in Kalamazoo. About ten Landscape Design Consultants completed these courses, which formed the nucleus of The Landscapers Garden Club. The club organized, federated, and became a member of the Kalamazoo Garden Council in 1978. A tree was planted in Council’s Memory Walk in 1993 to honor the memory of Helen, who was instrumental in the formation of The Landscapers Garden Club.
In years past, members judged some of the gardens in the Stuart Avenue Historical District and participated as judges in the Best Way Disposal Flower and Landscape Contest. Members also judged other clubs’ garden walks over the years. This ceased when MGC decided walks did not have to be judged. Before that, we did quite a lot of garden tour judging.
Landscapers actively exploring and evaluating gardens photo credit: Kathy Kienle
We established the Kalamazoo Garden Council-Kalamazoo Gazette Award, and from May to September, outstanding home and commercial gardens would be featured in the Kalamazoo Gazette. This project later became “Inspiring Gardens,” and the gardens were judged by various garden clubs within the Council. The Council received recognition for their efforts in promoting good environmental and landscaping practices in the greater Kalamazoo area.
The Landscapers Garden Club sponsors a biennial garden walk. We have held twelve tours, the last being in July of 2015. The profits from the garden tour provide funds to sponsor scholarships to a Michigan student enrolled in Landscape Design, Landscape Architecture, or related areas of study and to support our Blue Star Memorial located at the Veterans Park in Portage, Michigan.
Tours were suspended while we once again hosted the two-year, 4 Course Landscape Design School starting in October 2016 and ending in April of 2018. This was a huge undertaking but was very successful, graduating 45 students as landscape design consultants. Our instructors were a professor from MSU, a past professor at Lansing Community College and current owner of a landscape design company in Lansing, two professional landscape designers from a local company, and a horticulturalist who runs another local landscape company.
Photo credit: Kathy Kienle
