The Garden Club of America

What The Garden Club of America does

The Garden Club of America (GCA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization founded in 1913 and headquartered at 14 East 60th Street, New York. It operates as a federation of approximately 199 affiliated garden clubs serving over 18,000 individual members across the United States. The organization's stated purpose is to stimulate knowledge and love of gardening, share advantages of association through educational meetings and publications, and restore, improve, and protect the quality of the environment through programs in conservation and civic improvement.

GCA's core programmatic portfolio comprises 29 merit-based scholarships and fellowships spanning 12 areas of study (conservation, ecology, horticulture, pollinator research, garden history, and design), with $604,000 disbursed to 130 scholars in 2026. It also administers civic project grants ($264,550 to 104 projects in 2026) through programs such as Partners for Plants and the Founders Fund, organizes local, zone, and national flower shows, and publishes formal Position Papers across nine environmental issue areas including climate change, land conservation, water, and native plants. Supporting offerings include national medal awards (Achievement Medal, Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Medal, and others), the annual Plant of the Year recognition (since 1995), the GCA Collection housed at the Smithsonian's Archives of American Gardens, and the Great Oak Society legacy giving circle established in 2013.

The organization's revenue model relies on member contributions, donations, and planned giving arrangements. It maintains a lean staff (1-10 employees per firmographic data) and a small executive team led by COO Jennifer Barnette. GCA engages members and the public through its website (gcamerica.org), the Bulletin and Annual Report, Instagram (@gcAScholarships), flower shows, and university/botanic garden referral partnerships. No technology product is sold; the organization does not pursue AI capabilities and has no API, app, or proprietary software platform. Strategic partnerships extend its reach, including collaborations with the National Park Service, Botanic Gardens Conservation International-US, the Smithsonian Institution, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum.

Name

The Garden Club of America

Legal name

The Garden Club of America

Website

https://gcamerica.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1913

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Garden Club of America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1913 that federates 199 member garden clubs serving 18,000+ members across the United States. It administers merit-based scholarships, civic project grants, flower shows, and conservation advocacy programs in horticulture and environmental protection.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Horticulture Conservation Nonprofit Membership Organization

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Civic and Social Organizations (8134), Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Adult/Public Speaking Clubs & Community Organizations (EDAMAOAI)

Keywords

• Horticulture education
• Environmental conservation
• Merit scholarships
• Civic beautification
• Garden club membership

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Member Contributions and Donations: The GCA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies on member contributions, donations, and planned giving programs to fund operations, scholarships, civic projects, and conservation initiatives.
2. The Great Oak Society (Planned Giving): Legacy giving circle formed in 2013 (GCA's centennial year) that celebrates supporters who include GCA in their estate plans or other planned giving arrangements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Garden Club of America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization that connects 199 local garden clubs with 18,000+ members across the United States. It delivers 29 merit-based scholarships and fellowships in 12 areas of study, funds civic improvement and conservation projects, organizes flower shows, and publishes environmental position papers to advocate for land conservation and ecological protection.

Product overview

The Garden Club of America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization operating a network of 199 member clubs with over 18,000 members. Its core product portfolio consists of merit-based scholarships and fellowships across 12 environmental and horticultural disciplines, grant-funded civic projects, annual flower shows, and conservation advocacy programs backed by formal position papers. Supporting offerings include the Partners for Plants and Founders Fund grant programs, the Plant of the Year recognition, the Great Oak Society legacy giving circle, the Archives of American Gardens collections, and national medal awards honoring distinguished achievement in horticulture and conservation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GCA Scholarships and Fellowships A portfolio of 29 merit-based scholarships and fellowships spanning 12 areas of study that support undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students in horticulture, conservation, ecology, botany, landscape architecture, and related environmental fields.
• Civic Projects Grant funding and programmatic support for community improvement projects led by member garden clubs, including environmental restoration, native plant gardens, and public space enhancements. $264,550 was awarded to 104 civic projects in 2026.
• Flower Shows Competitions and exhibitions combining horticultural mastery, artistic vision, and craftsmanship, organized at the club, zone, and national levels, open to members and the public.
• Partners for Plants Grant Program Grant program funding native plant restoration and conservation projects by member garden clubs across the United States, including ongoing annual plantings such as the Sandy Hook Park habitat restoration funded since 2018.
• Founders Fund Grants Grant program supporting large-scale environmental and greening projects submitted by member clubs, with finalists selected annually for projects such as the Appalachian Spring Project in Charleston, WV.
• GCA Publications Annual reports, the GCA Scholars Report, Bulletins, and other publications documenting the organization's activities, scholarship recipients, and conservation impact.
• Collections and Archives Access to the organization's collections, including the GCA Collection housed at the Archives of American Gardens at the Smithsonian Institution, supporting research in garden history and design.

Quantifiable outcome

• $604,000 awarded to 130 scholars in 2026
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UniversitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA collaborates with universities to encourage advertisement of scholarships to their students and interns. Scholarship programs support undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students across diverse environmental disciplines.
• Arboreta and Botanic GardenscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA partners with arboreta and botanic gardens to promote scholarship opportunities and support conservation horticulture education. The Keller Scholarship specifically collaborates with Botanic Gardens Conservation International-US (BGCI-US).
• Botanic Gardens Conservation International-US (BGCI-US)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBGCI-US collaborates with GCA on the Keller Scholarship in Conservation Horticulture, connecting plant conservation information, best practices, and interests across North America and the global botanic garden community.
• Trout UnlimitedminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA scholar Jacklyn Alsbro participated in a natural-resource policy internship at Trout Unlimited as part of the Demmer Scholars Program at Michigan State University.
• Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA scholars conduct field research at this laboratory, studying plant-pollinator interactions and alpine ecosystem dynamics in Gothic, Colorado.
• University of Wisconsin-Madison ArboretumcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerExpert panel associated with UW-Madison Arboretum reviews applications and makes recommendations for the GCA Fellowship in Ecological Restoration.
• National Park ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA and NPS have a long history of collaborating on projects and legislation that strengthen the health, stewardship, and protection of National Parks.
• Smithsonian Institution Archives of American GardenscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCA supports the Archives of American Gardens through the Scholarship in Garden History and Design, with scholars providing collections management and outreach at the Smithsonian.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/gcascholarships
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gcamerica

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Garden Club of America