For students who enjoy doing hands-on activities outdoors, learning about plants, and participating in a club with a laid-back environment, the Gardening Club is a perfect fit.

The Gardening Club is a student-run club at P-CEP that has existed for 15 years. The group plants and maintains a garden on the path between A pod and B pod outside of Plymouth High School. The club meets on Thursdays in Room 106B in Plymouth High School.

“We grow a bunch of different kinds of plants. [Currently] it’s more herbs and flowers from past years, but we fluctuate between years,” said Violeta Jorda-Talevich, Canton senior and president of the Gardening Club, mentioning plants like mint and chives that they have grown previously.

Jorda-Talevich has been the leader of Gardening Club for three years, although Jorda-Talevich often says it has only been two years due to the pandemic heavily affecting club participation.

The club did not meet during the lockdown while students attended school remotely. “We weren’t able to do anything,” said Libby Lechowicz, the supervisor for the Gardening Club.

While maintaining the garden itself is a high priority, the club also has a central goal of teaching others about gardening, whether that be the club members, community members, or even the supervisor herself. 

Another obstacle the Gardening Club must overcome each year is the lack of funding. 

“We don’t get money directly from the school,” said Jorda-Talevich.

To overcome this obstacle, the club holds fundraisers and bake sales throughout the year. The club also receives donations from its members.

Unlike some other clubs, there is no application deadline for joining the Gardening Club. 

“It doesn’t matter [when], [joining the club] can be [in] spring, winter; if you have friends that joined…we welcome you,” said Jorda-Talevich. 

Jorda-Talevich and the other members take pride in their garden. 

“I think it’s something that not everyone notices, but [the garden] adds to the scenery. [It] brings a little bit of joy to people that notice it,” Jorda-Talevich said.

The Plymouth-Canton community also grows closer due to the club. The gardening club connects a lot of people with similar interests and even people who don’t know much about gardening at all, Jorda-Talevich said. 

“It helps you grow, just like the plants,” said Jorda-Talevich. “Everyone grows together with knowledge and I love seeing that happen.”