CAMDEN — On November 3 and 10, members of the Camden Garden Club gathered at the American Legion Hall to make bows and assemble the fresh balsam wreaths now lining Elm and Main Streets lampposts in Camden this holiday season.

Since the 1950s, the Club has provided holiday decorations for the town. The tradition of fresh balsam wreaths adorned with puffy red bows and lights began in 1971 and this year marks its 50th year.
 
The Club has purchased the fresh balsam fir wreaths from Evergreen Farms in Damariscotta for over seven years using funds raised during the Club’s Annual Garden Tour. Members attending the consecutive Wednesday work sessions contributed over 100 volunteer hours to handcraft red velvet bows and wire multiple strings of lights to the wreaths.

The Camden Public Works Department installed the wreaths on November 10, shortly after the Club assembled all 98 wreaths currently on display in downtown Camden.
 
Since 1915, the Club has provided thousands of blooming flower baskets and lighted, decorated wreaths that adorn the downtown lampposts seasonally, adding to the magic of Camden.  
 

The Camden Garden Club is a registered 501c(3) nonprofit and member of the Garden Club Federation of Maine and National Garden Clubs, Inc. with a mission to cultivate the art of gardening to its fullest sense, develop and preserve beauty in and around Camden, and promote civic improvements, education, and conservation of natural resources. For additional information visit camdengardenclub.org.