Gardeners
The Gardeners of the Crooked Billet was
founded by
Mrs. Frank H. Mather in 1937. The object of this organization is
to promote interest in the art of gardening, to aid in the protection
of
native trees, plants and birds, and to encourage civic planting. Mr.
Frank
Mather was elected the first president, with four other men to follow
in
two-year terms as presidents: Nelson Hendricks, a borough councilman,
Edger
Lythgoe, Irvin Kepler, and C. Thomas Beach. After the Second World War
there
were no more men presidents. On March 11, 1937 the club was
affiliated
with the Garden Club Federation
of
Pennsylvania.
The first civic improvement project was the clean up of the Wunderle
tract, a weed grown piece of land located in Hatboro at the south end
of York Rd across from the Methodist Church. Pink petunias were
planted along with other flowers and shrubs. The project was so
successful and
the pink petunias were so beautiful and cheerful that the pink petunia
was
declared Hatboro's flower by Mrs.Mather. Later the field was
leveled
and paved for a parking lot for an Acme. At the time, Hatboro had
trash problems and in March 1938, after the Wunderlee tract cleanup
started,
the borough council increased its general rubbish collection from once
a year to once a month. Civic consciousness in the town was
sharpened.
Victory gardens were promoted in 1942 with about 100 new vegetable
gardens
planted in Hatboro and vicinity. After the war a generous gift of
seeds was sent to devastated Finland.
Another result of the clubs efforts was the appointment of a Shade Tree
Commission in the borough in 1944. On April 28, 1976 a
bicentennial commemorative shade tree was presented to Hatboro's Park
and Recreation Committee by the Gardeners at a ceremony in Eaton
Park. A tree, a
4 inch caliper Norway Maple, variety "Emerald Queen" was selected for
smog and pollution resistance as well as superior growth habits.
In 1981 the Gardeners of Crooked Billet took on a new challenge in
planting and maintaining the herb garden at Keith House located at
Graeme Park on County Line Rd. Becci, a member of the club at the
time considered the rejuvenation of the historical herb garden an
important task for the club. She thought it provided an education for
people today to learn about the herbs from yesterday. Currently, the
garden is still maintained by the Gardeners of Crooked Billet and holds
a variety of old fashioned herbs such as comfrey, horehound and lovage
just to name a few. In honor of Becci's dedication
and vision the Gardeners named the herb garden, "Becci's" Herb Garden.
For membership information contact Margie Szymanski at 215-675-1959
This page is dedicated to the
Citizens of
Hatboro, past, present, and future.
Copyright ©
1997-2007 Pitrone & Associates. All Rights Reserved.
