The Virginia Tech Horticulture Club continues one of its long-standing traditions.
The club has held its annual Valentine’s Day Rose Sale for at least a quarter of a century. It gives the students a chance to show their passion for floral design while helping to brighten the spirits of fellow Hokies.
Money raised from the sale helps with club activities, which this year included a group trip to Asheville, North Carolina, spring banquet, scholarships, and a donation to the National Collegiate Landscape Competition team.
“Looking back at the long-standing traditions the club has, I am grateful for the memories I have had during these traditions and hope they continue into the future,” said club president Hannah Burton, a junior majoring in environmental horticulture and international trade and development. “We would not be around as long as we have without the strong role our members and values have on our organization.”The rose sale is just one of the many activities the club has held in its more than 100-year history.
The club was started in 1922 as the VPI Horticultural Society, when Virginia Tech was known as Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute. According to The 1922 Bugle, the first club had 37 members and six honorary members.
In 1942, two decades after its founding, the Virginia Tech yearbook, The Bugle, described the club as “one of the more active curricular organizations on campus.” That year, club members held an annual horticultural show in the student activities building, a tradition that lasted for more than a decade.
Some of the club’s events and fundraisers have been centered around activities on campus. In 1966, students held a chrysanthemum sale for homecoming. That tradition continued for more than a quarter century.
In 1970, members created corsages for homecoming. That same year they spread Christmas cheer by decorating the library for the holiday.
The club held its first-ever Horticulture Club Exchange in 1982, inviting clubs from Pennsylvania State University and the University of Kentucky to take part.
In 1988, the club held a plant sale. The spring plant sale, now in conjunction with the Hahn Horticulture Garden, is a tradition that still continues. This year’s sale is April 20th through 22nd at the garden.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to lead a student organization with such a long history at Virginia Tech,” Burton said. “Leading a club for me is about potentially having an impact on someone’s career goals in horticulture. It truly is a privilege to be a part of such a great organization.”
Follow the Horticulture Club on Instagram @hortclubatvt.
