Highly regarded Connecticut horticulturist Lorraine Ballato attended this month’s Pleasantville Garden Club meeting to share her innovative garden advice and answer questions.

Ballato has been involved in horticulture for 20 years.

“Once I retired from my corporate job, I actually had time to delve into it,” Ballato said. “And the more I learned, the more it excited me. It’s just something I love. It’s joy, absolute joy.”

Ballato said she loves the appreciation she receives back when sharing her presentations and attending events to exchange her tips.

“I like sharing my ideas, and you see I get a lot of payback from it. As long as it’s a two-way street, it’s fine,” she said. “If they hated me, I wouldn’t do it,” she added with a laugh.

Over the span of her career, the biggest challenge for Ballato, she said, is time.

“I want to do too many things, but there’s never enough time to do them.”

Founded in March of 1975 as an offshoot of the Pleasantville Environmental Program that initiated the Pleasantville Recycling Program, the Pleasantville Garden Club brings in both experienced and new gardeners to the Presbyterian Church, where they “discuss innovations in horticulture, share gardening techniques and learn from amazing guest speakers.”

Meetings are held every first Thursday of the month, from October through June. In addition to these, the club provides a variety of activities ranging from tours and trips to nurseries and notable gardens, including fellow members’ gardens; educating people on the environment; or establishing and maintaining beautification projects throughout the Mount Pleasant community. The organization’s main goal is to “to promote the practice of healthy horticulture, civic beautification, environmental protection and friendship.”