Open to gardeners of all abilities, we are a small friendly garden club with members in Bricket Wood, Chiswell Green, Park Street, St Albans and other surrounding areas. Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just getting started, our club is the perfect place to learn, share and grow together!

Founded over 100 years ago, St Stephens Gardening Club has been bringing garden lovers together for decades. Our mission is simple: to share knowledge, inspire creativity and enjoy the beauty of nature. Gardening isn't just about plants - it's about people too!

Membership is open to all - you don’t have to live in St Stephens Parish to join.

To find out how to get involved, check out our Membership page here.

St Stephens Gardening Club (or the St Stephens Horticultural Society, as it was originally known), is over 100 years old. The first evidence of its existence is a poster advertising the 5th Annual Show to be held in The Park (now Park Street Recreational Ground) on 11 August 1927.

However, this was not the earliest record of horticultural shows in the Parish. A show was held in 1887 to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee, where 198 prizes were awarded. Entries were open to tradesmen, labourers and cottagers - nurserymen and professional gardeners were excluded. Show categories were not dissimilar to those of today, but with an added emphasis on wild flowers. 

When it came to flower arranging there were two categories – an arrangement of hot house or garden flowers for the centre of a dinner table, and an arrangement of flowers for the dinner table by domestic servants. How times change!

Regrettably, few records exist about the Society and its activities prior to and following the Second World War – if anyone can shine a light on this period, the club would be delighted to hear from you.

Leap forward to the mid-60s: Membership had dropped and it appears that all was not well in the club. A new committee was formed with one of the initiatives taken to bolster the club’s fortunes and attract new members being to open two Trading Huts - one in Park Street and the other in Bricket Wood (both now long succeeded by the club’s Drop Lane, Bricket Wood Hut). Later, in 2007, it was decided to rename the society to the more appropriate St Stephens Gardening Club.

Thanks to the support of our members and our dedicated volunteers, we still continue with the Annual Show started all those years ago and enjoy over 250 entries each year. It is no longer the grand event it was in prior years but we like to think that we put on a fine show in its new venue at Greenwood Park - and it's free! 

Today, the club remains fully active with membership growing year-on-year attracted by the club’s calendar of events, the lure of Trading Hut bargains and numerous other ventures, some of which
are open for non-members to enjoy also.

To find out how to get involved, check out our Membership page.

Although not a charity, St Stephens Gardening Club is what’s known as a not-for-profit organisation. And, as with any club or society, its fortunes are steered by a small, hands-on committee; organising events and ensuring that the club’s activities and offerings fully meet the needs and expectations of its members.

Supporting the committee is an equally important and much larger band of volunteers drawn from the membership’s ranks, contributing to the club’s success by assisting the committee in running the club’s various activities and projects.

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