By Nancy Fosberg
News Clerk

There’s a new club in town.

It’s a place for Sedro-Woolley gardening enthusiasts to meet, learn and share common interests.

Sedro-Woolley Community Gardeners started meeting last November. That first meeting drew three or four people.

Since then, membership has grown to about 10 people including men, women and children, said club president Kim Woolsey.

Gerry Douglas, director of the Chuckanut District of the Washington State Federation of Garden Clubs, helped start the club, Woolsey said.

Douglas ran an ad testing the level of interest for a new gardening club in Sedro-Woolley. She then gave advice on how to start, run and govern a club.

Historically, Sedro-Woolley had a very active garden club, Douglas said, but it eventually disbanded as more women entered the workplace and no longer had the time or energy to garden.

“Times are changing and people are becoming more interested in gardening and the environment,” said Douglas in an e-mail. “This is especially true of the newly retired. What I hear from new members is, ‘When I was working I just didn’t have the time or energy to act on my interest in gardening. But now, I can learn about gardening and have some time to enjoy it.’”

At its March meeting, Sedro-Woolley Community Gardeners became official by setting their governing bylaws.

The Sedro-Woolley club will be part of the Chuckanut District of the Washington State Federation of Garden Clubs, a federation of clubs that offers resources, support, advice and activities that might not otherwise be available to member clubs.

Sedro-Woolley Community Gardeners is unique, Douglas said, because the club welcomes men and women, young and old, who want to contribute to the beautification of their community and develop friendships with others who share their interests.

The club worked on its first community beautification project in March when three club members donated their time and energy over two days to trim the roses at Riverfront Park.

Woolsey said the group hopes to do more work like this in the community, but has not decided on any future projects.
The group prefers hands-on learning, Douglas said.

“Business meetings are kept short so they can get right into the fun part,” Douglas said.

A typical meeting starts with a business session that lasts about half an hour, Woolsey said. Once club business is taken care of, members look forward to a program or project.

Hands-on activities at past meetings have included flower arranging and making wreaths from evergreen boughs. Creating hanging baskets and patio pots was planned for the April meeting, but was canceled due to inclement weather.

A meeting program could also include a guest speaking about topics like how to properly prune plants, veggie gardening or growing native plants.

Sedro-Woolley Community Gardeners meet from 2 to 4 p.m. the third Tuesday of each month from September through May at the Sedro-Woolley Senior Center. The group also will hold a picnic in June.

For more information about Sedro-Woolley Community Gardeners, call Woolsey at 360-941-4600.

Information on other area gardening-related clubs can be found at the Chuckanut District of the Washington State Federation of Garden Clubs Web site at gardencentral.org/wa/chuckanutdistrict.