American Dahlia Society Spring Planning Meeting
March 27 - March 31, 2025 Albuquerque, New Mexico
Sue Isley
Thursday
In 2025, the American Dahlia Society held their Spring Planning Meeting here in Albuquerque and, it came as no surprise, that the New Mexico Dahlia Society hosted this meeting. Our president, Edith Iwan, worked tirelessly to ensure that this visit to our city, lasting from Thursday, March 27 through Monday, March 31, would be a memorable one for members of the ADS.
The “long weekend” began on Thursday with an informal dinner at the iconic Frontier Restaurant on Central Avenue.
Friday
On the following day, Friday, Edith escorted members of the ADS to the Albuquerque Garden Center, after which the group caravanned to another iconic restaurant, the Range Cafe on Rio Grande Blvd. Here, members of the NMDS joined members of the ADS to become better acquainted.
After a tasty southwest lunch, members of both the ADS and NMDS traveled to the Agri-Nature Center, where NMDS member Bill Shen described plans for growing dahlias at the center. The plan is for this to be an ongoing project, the progress of which will be followed and documented by NMDS members.
Next was a visit to Albuquerque’s famous Old Town to peruse the shops selling authentic New Mexican, Native American, and Mexican art and artifacts.
After departing Old Town, the group reconvened at the Albuquerque Garden Center for dinner (pizza, hosted by Dion’s), followed by a meeting of the ADS Board, which was open to all members of both societies.
Saturday
On Saturday morning, meetings resumed, followed by a delicious southwestern flavored lunch, catered by our own Debi Harrington and her able volunteer staff. Gracious thanks to Debi and her crew for all of their hard work in preparing this outstanding feast!
In addition to enjoying a wonderful lunch, members were encouraged to participate in a silent auction, as well as a live auction (led by ADS member Alli Richards). Not only did attendees have opportunities to obtain exceptional dahlias, but funds raised by these auctions benefited the NMDS.
Also, that afternoon, several members of the ADS gave presentations, including a well-attended talk on “Growing Dahlias in Semi-Arid Climates,” by Linda DeRooy Holmes-Cook
Sunday
Sunday’s events centered around a trip to our state capitol, Santa Fe. Events included visits to the New Mexico History Museum and ice cream treats at La Lecheria. On Monday, the final day of the ADS meeting, Bob and Theresa Schroeder gave a presentation on “Judging Dahlias – What Every Judge and Grow Should Know.”
We thank the American Dahlia Association and its members for choosing Albuquerque as their host city this year. We hope all who attended had an enjoyable and educational experience.