2026

2025 East Central District Welcome Letter

Dear Officers, Committee Chairpersons, Club Presidents and Members,

Thank you for the opportunity to serve the district during our 2025 - 2027 term. We look forward to welcoming all to our meetings. We wish to develop camaraderie to further the success of ECD. A Flower Show for America’s 250th Celebration will be scheduled in September 2026. Let’s all participate with designs and/or horticulture, and educational displays and attend the show to support everyone’s contributions. We will have a speaker at the Annual Business and Awards Luncheon Meeting.

National Garden Clubs (NGC) www.gardenclub.org

The mission includes: fostering a love of gardening, floral design, and civic and environmental responsibility. NGC Schools are an opportunity for education and certification for Flower Shows, Gardening, Environment and Landscape Design.

NGC President; Donna Donnelly, ddonnelly@gardenclub.org

Theme:  PLANT AMERICA For the next 100 years

Project: 2026: Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday by Planting Red, White, and Blue

Central Region (CR) of National Garden Clubs ngccentralregion.com

The National Garden Clubs are divided into eight regions. The Central Region includes the following States: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin. States alternate to host the Central Region Convention.

Central Region Director: Rene Lynch, reneclynch @aol.com

Theme: PLANT AMERICA: Progress is Possible

Project: Show Me Your Progress! Whatever That May Be

Pollinator Friendly Gardens and Native Landscapes to preserve our natural ecosystems.

Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri https://www.fgcmo.orgThe Federated Garden Clubs of Missouri (FGCM) was officially organized on March 30, 1933 and became a member of National Garden Clubs,

President Tanya Stanley’s Theme is Plant America: Nature’s Beauty in our Backyards.

Project: Restoring and Reconstructing Natural Habitat. This project encourage our members across the State and the public to develop more awareness of the importance of building biodiversity to protect our wildlife, birds, insects and pollinators. Our environment is in a crisis. Let’s all work towards restoring and reconstructing our natural habitat by educating ourselves, our members and the public about this important issue. We hope clubs will. plant pollinator and bird gardens and restore biodiversity throughout Missouri. Clubs who most closely follow the theme will be eligible for recognition and a monetary award.

East Central District (ECD) https://sites.google.com/site/fgcmeastcentral/

Director Gloria Whyte’s Theme: Plant America: Make Your Yard a Haven for Wildlife 

Specifically, we will follow the theme of Doug Tallamy’s book, Nature’s Best Hope. Project: Develop Conservation Corridors in our Yards to attract pollinators, birds, and small animals, i.e. snakes, frogs, and toads, etc. Share plants preferably native with friends and neighbors to make the corridors larger.

Each of the eighteen clubs in ECD is a unique body of members dedicated to the precepts mentioned above. Each club determines how best to fulfill the vision of the NGC and the FGCM. The ECD has an elected Executive Board, Standing Chairpersons and Zone Directors in place to help each club fulfill their goals. Dues are collected to help manage projects and programs. A portion of those dues are shared with the ECD, FGCM and the NGC. Clubs donate time, talent and money to many organizations, charities, and select programs that work to beautify, maintain, and improve our communities. All members of ECD enjoy garden club meetings, field trips, garden tours, holding and attending flower shows. The NGC provides flower show, gardening, landscape design, and environmental schools. There are opportunities for college level scholarships, children's programs, awards, citations, honors, and much more. An important aspect of the Garden Clubs is the camaraderie, friendships, and mutual interests that are developed by members of every club.

Welcome to the FGCM ECD District and hope you will join us in making our world a better, safer, place for all mankind, animals, and plant life. I look forward to an invitation to attend one of your meetings to get to know you and explore your ideas or concerns.

Gloria Whyte

ECD Director

eastcentralregiondirector@gmail.com

ECD Report

2/10/ 2026

Welcome Aboard Meeting, Moolah Temple – March 3, 2026, 9;30 am – Elected and Appointed Officers: 10:15 Board of Directors, Club Presidents, and interested members.

Possible discussion for club presidents: run a meeting by following by-laws, update by-laws, important dates, attract new members, public speaking, etc.

Ideas for Fundraiser(s) for ECD sponsored State Convention, April 2029.

Flower Show Chair:  Madelyn Hucker. Meeting hosted by Jackie Reynolds to discuss the schedule.

Dates: September 17 – 19, 2026 at the St. Charles Convention Center, 1 Convention Center Plaza, Saint Charles, MO 63303, I-70, Exit 229A.

Pre-Show Analysis Workshops: June 22, July 27, August 24, 2026.  2 designs/session, plus 30 minutes Horticulture to “pose” specimens. The workshops are not ECD sponsored.

Possible Title: Salute to America.

Novice Class: Vertical Design

Companion Class: Experienced Designer available for consultation Possible Design Multi-rhythmic. Horticulture: Display by Club or Individual; approximately 5 specimens of a single “plant stem in glass vase “in a pleasing arrangement.

Education: Club Competition, Topics Considered: Native Plants, Water Conservation, Tips from Native Peoples, Pollinator Gardens, Rain Gardens 

Environmental Report

Environmental School: Course 3, Air, afternoons by Zoom. Jan Conant is State Chair, Gloria Whyte, Co-Chair, Registrar

We have a new brochure. Please share information with your clubs. We want all clubs to have at least one member attend the school.

HORTICULTURE INFO (SLCGC 2-10-26)

Plants begin to stir underground in February

Take heart, plant lovers. Winter rest is almost over, spring renewal begins.

Do spent grounds from your morning cup of joe help your plants grow?

There is much on social media about benefit of using Spent Coffee Grounds (SCG) to boost plant growth, but research is unclear about the benefits, says University of Missouri Extension horticulturist Todd Higgins.

In fact, SCG can be bad for acid-loving plants such as blueberries and azaleas since it can raise soil pH. SCG also can release toxins that affect nearby plants, says Higgins.

Most plants thrive in slightly acidic to neutral pH soil, between 6.0 and 7.0 on a scale of 0-14, although the optimal range varies by species. Missouri soils tend to be naturally acidic, and large amounts of SCG can reduce the acidity of our soils over time.

However, without a soil test and knowing the pH of the soil, coffee grounds may do more harm than good for acid-loving plants. So, Higgins recommends a soil test before you apply SCG.

More value as compost   SCG add organic matter and has a favorable carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (24:1), making it ideal for composting.

Vermicomposting, or worm composting, is particularly effective in breaking down SCG, detoxifying the harmful chemicals (such as caffeine) and releasing nutrients. Mix this composted material with soils to improve tilth and organic matter content, says Higgins.

He urges caution when applying SCG directly to the soil. Apply a thin layer (1 inch or less) since a thicker layer can act as a crusting barrier that blocks water and air from reaching plant roots. Also, too much SCG can tie up nitrogen temporarily and suppress germination and growth.

Grounds and brew vary in acidity   Acidity of the brew and its grounds are different.

The coffee in your cup is moderately acidic, with a pH ranging from 4.7 to 5.3. Grounds are less acidic. The roasting process forms organic acids in the bean. These acids dissolve as water percolates through the grounds. The brewing process leaches many of the acidic compounds from the coffee grounds, leaving the SCG with a slightly basic pH between 7 and 8. The longer the grounds age, the higher the pH of the SCG .

Many factors influence the acidity of the brew and SCG:

• Country of origin of the beans, climate, growing altitude, farming practices and soil nutrients contribute to flavor and acidic content.

• Roasting and brewing temperature. Acids and sugars break down when raw coffee beans are exposed to heat. Generally, the lighter the roast, the brighter and more acidic the cup. Darker roasts have less acid.

• Cold brew vs. hot brew. SCG from cold-brewed coffee are less acidic than those from hot-brewed coffee. Also, finer ground coffee beans produce more acid because more surface area of the bean is exposed.

The bottom line is that while coffee is acidic, SCG are nearly neutral. SCG offer a variety of plant nutrients, although none in large amounts. The nitrogen content of SCG is just 2%, and adding it to garden soil directly from the coffee maker may tie up nitrogen in the soil as soil organisms work to decompose them.

Higgins says there are four key things to remember before you dump your grounds:

1. SCG is great for compost, not for direct soil application.

2. Avoid using SCG to acidify soil.

3. Use in moderation—too much can harm plants.

4. Have soil tested before applying any amendments.

A soil test is an inexpensive way to establish a benchmark of nutrient needs for accurate amending. See MU Extension’s Soil and Testing Laboratory website.

Your local MU Extension horticultural professional also can help develop a plan for the right nutrients in the right amount and at the right time for your soil.