Learn how to grow, dry and prepare gourds for decorating when the Pocono Garden Club meets at 1 p.m. Nov. 8, at the Monroe County Conservation District, 8050 Running Valley Road, Bartonsville.

The program will be presented by local gourd expert Claudia Hill, whom you may have seen volunteering at Quiet Valley Living History Farm. She will discuss growing and drying gourds, so they can be turned into bowls, bird houses and other art works.

Next fall, she plans to return for a follow-up program on decorating the gourds you grow and dry next summer.

Also at the meeting, you can craft holiday cards and small decorations for distribution to children in hospitals or nursing home patients.

The meeting’s design entry is called “Thankful Table.” It would be a place setting for one using a place mat topped with a floral design, such as a small bouquet in a vase, beverage cup, dish, napkin and optional silverware. The table setting materials may be of porcelain, paper, plastic or glass.

The horticulture entry should be a bouquet of dried materials in a container of choice, or a selection from whatever is blooming in your garden assembled in a clear container.

The houseplant entry should be a variegated leaf or a cactus.

Light refreshments will be served. Bring an autumn or Thanksgiving treat to share!

For more information, contact club President Nell Cadue at poconogardenclub@gmail.com. Visit the Pocono Garden Club on Facebook.