Martha Stewart Reveals Snub from Local Garden Club that Hurt Her Feelings

Martha Stewart, the legendary home and garden guru, recently opened up about a surprising snub that left her feeling hurt. Despite her well-documented green thumb, Stewart revealed during an NPR interview that she wasn’t invited to join her local garden club in Maine for over 20 years. Yes, you heard that right—Martha Stewart, of all people, wasn’t deemed garden-club-worthy.

"I had to work to get into a garden club," Stewart said, adding that she was never invited despite hosting garden tours at her Maine estate. She said, "It kind of hurt my feelings that I wasn't considered one of the girls." Clearly, even icons aren't immune to social snubs.

Stewart finally received an invitation after the club asked for a tour of her garden. According to her, it might not have been intimidation but rather assumptions about her schedule. "Maybe Martha doesn't have time to be a member," she speculated. But honestly, considering her gardening prowess, you'd think she'd get a VIP pass.

During the interview, Stewart dismissed the idea that gardening clubs should be competitive. "You don't have to show off your plants," she said, though she did admit she’d likely win "lots of blue ribbons" for her plants if she entered them in shows. She joked that while she doesn’t participate in competitions due to time constraints, she does love attending shows to see others’ work.

For those battling pesky squirrels in their gardens, Stewart had a simple solution: "Get a dog. They chase the squirrels away from everything. It's so funny." Practical and entertaining—classic Martha.

This wasn’t Stewart’s first brush with garden club drama. In her Netflix documentary last year, she recounted being snubbed by the Greenwich Garden Club in Connecticut back in the 1980s. The reason? Her partnership with Kmart, which the club deemed "downscale." Talk about elitism.

Stewart also shared her love for her Maine home, Skylands, a serene retreat she purchased in 1997 after her divorce. The estate has doubled in size over the years, and Stewart spends her summers there indulging in hiking, shopping, and—of course—gardening.

Despite the snubs, Stewart remains a gardening icon with multiple homes—including an Upper East Side apartment and a residence in Katonah, north of New York City. If anyone deserves to be "one of the girls," it’s Martha Stewart.