The 2023 Gorge Hall Mother’s Day Plant Sale will be from 11 AM to 2 PM on Sunday May 14. This has been a Whaletown Community Club (WCC) tradition for more than 30 years.
“It’s a community event. The pleasure of people seeing each other, talking to one another outside of the absolute necessity of needing something from a neighbour. This is an opportunity to see the gardening health of Cortes and the vibrancy of it by seeing what’s on the table. The vigor of the gardening culture has always been an integral part of Cortes,” explained Gabriel Dinim, President of the Whaletown Community Club.
“We don’t always go in other people’s gardens, but if you put a bunch of plants on the table you can even put your name by it – then everybody can see what a gardener you are! If you don’t put your name by it, it just provides more plants to sell for the WCC. We can always use a fundraiser.”
“Before Covid it was the crowds milling around looking at the plants. people come early before the sale opens up, bringing their plants. Carloads of shrubs and small trees, perennials and annuals. that activity is lovely.”
“I remember seeing 50, 60 people coming up and three or four tables loaded with plants and trees from nurseries. Rosemary Woodridge used to be very involved in it, and she’s a fearless woman who would get on the telephone called the nurseries and ask them to donate, and they would. Somebody would go to town, pick up a bunch of things that we did not grow on the island.”
“Then watching people just go from table to table deciding what they’re going to pick, discussing it with their friend or neighbor or parent. What about this? What about that? The activity is very pleasant. And if it’s a sunny day on top of that, then it’s the icing on the cake.”
CC: Is this the first Mother’s Day plant sale since Covid?
GD: “There was one last year, but it did not have quite the oomph as the pre covid sales had. I think that we still had a touch of PTSD around that issue. Fear of the crowd, which we are learning to overcome again.”
“if you wish to volunteer to put plants on the table, to get the tables out of the hall, have a good time and laugh, please come around 9:00 in the morning when we expect the donations to start. If you have extra, please bring it to the Gorge and we look forward to seeing you. It will be a lovely event.”
Top image credit: Annual Mother’s Day Plant sale poster – courtesy WCC
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