Many amateur gardeners who move to Colorado from the Midwest, the South, or the West or East Coast often find that growing flowers, plants and herbs, etc., is a big challenge in higher altitudes and a dry climate. A garden club can be the perfect body to learn how to manage those conditions.Priscilla DíLallo, also a Falcon transplant, started the Woodmen Hills Garden Club in 1999. She later met Lanai Farmer, who also led another local garden club. The two women decided to combine their clubs to form what is presently known as the Falcon Garden Club.The club meets monthly to learn and practice gardening techniques specific to the Colorado environment.†Lynda Keck, secretary, said the clubís primary focus is on high altitude gardening with tips and information about dealing with those challenges. She said the club includes people of various skills and experience levels, from beginners to master gardeners to a certified Colorado native plant gardener and a certified medical herbalist.The meetings are held at the High Prairie Library in Falcon. Many new members are transplants to the area. ìItís a challenge for people who have moved from other areas of the country where vegetation grows and thrives, and they come here and everything dies,î Keck said.Speakers are invited to the meetings to present information about a variety of topics related to gardening, she said. Upcoming presentations cover subjects such as how to use manure, bees, selecting low-water ornamental plants and the history and types of corn plants. Jax Hilaire, a certified Colorado Native Plant Naturalist gardener for 64 years and a member since 2003, will be giving a presentation on native plants in May.One of the events the club offers to the community is the annual plant sale; this year, the sale will take place June 4. Keck said the majority of the plants at the sale come from the members who propagate or take cuttings from their favorite plants or grow them from seeds. ìMy house is full of plants right now that Iím growing for the sale,î she said. There will also be various gardening supplies and other plants from wholesale gardeners in the area, she said.Proceeds from the plant sale go to different local organizations, such as the High Prairie Library and the Falcon Fire Protection District, Keck said. The rest goes into a fund for creating community gardens. She said the community garden outside the High Prairie Library has been planted and maintained by the club since 2010. The idea behind it is to demonstrate the kinds of plants and flowers that will grow in the area. The club would like to find another public location for a second community garden, Keck said.ìThe meetings are fun to go to; not only do we hear from knowledgeable speakers, but we also share resources with each other, like learning the best place to get alpaca manure, for example,î she said. ìThe main thing is this is an opportunity to enjoy time and expertise with other like-minded people.î They also swap seeds, plants, garden supplies and catalogs, Keck said.Scott Wilson, president, has been a member of the club since 2020. His biography states that he has been gardening for more than 30 years, and became a Colorado master gardener in 2004. Wilson has taught numerous gardening classes through the Colorado State University Gardening Extension, the Horticultural Arts Society of Colorado Springs and the Galileo Garden Project. He has a gardening channel on YouTube called, ìGardener Scott,î with hundreds of videos and thousands of followers.Theodore Hanchett, vice president and a member for more than 10 years, said he enjoys the challenges that horticulture presents in what he refers to as the ìhostile environmentî of Falcon.Keck said her grandmother, a self-taught gardener, experimented with propagating plants and even had a couple African violets named after her. ìAs a little girl, I wandered around my grandmaís garden and thought this must be what everyone does, plus it looked so easy to do; the first time I tried to garden as an adult, everything just died,î she said. ìIím so glad I met these people, because it has changed my gardening completely.îThe next meeting is March 19, at 10 a.m.; Kelly Grumman, co-owner of Prairie Storm Nursery LLC will be talking about selecting low-water ornamental plants.For more information about the club, visit https://falcongardenclub.org/ or find them on Facebook.
