August 2019 Meeting: Potluck and Garden Visit

This month Alex and Ashley Pfister hosted the club at their home outside Hollandale for our annual summer potluck.

Alex and Ashley have owned their farm since 1995, buying it at auction from Agnes Laverty, age 95, who lived there from the age of 10 with her youngest brother, Frank, until his death in 1995 at age 85. Their parents, Frances and Mae Laverty built it in 1910 after the original homestead burned down. 

Alex and Ashley used it for hunting and a weekend “getaway” for 20 years before renovating/adding-on and moving in full time in 2015. Geothermal heat/cool and solar panels were installed. The 80 tillable acres have been in CRP since 1998, planted in prairie with evergreens on the edges. 

In 2005 they started raised bed vegetable gardening, being committed to growing as much of their own food as possible. In 2017 they replaced the wooden raised beds with 12 galvanized steel stock tanks, adding 6 more this spring. 

Mae had three separate small perennial beds in front of the house that have been made into one large bed, keeping her plants right where they’ve always been.

It was a perfect summer evening and the gardens could not have been lovelier. Thank you to Alex and Ashley for their hospitality!

December 2018 Meeting: Annual Holiday Potluck

Our December meeting was the annual potluck Holiday Party at Stonefield Manor. Tables were decked out with beautiful poinsettias. The club provided two meats, punch, decaf coffee, and tableware, while club members brought their favorite holiday dish to share and a beverage if desired (guests welcome). A donation of checks to the Iowa County Food Pantry was collected as well.

Thanks to Glen Ridnour for once again organizing the party.

Happy holidays to all and best wishes for the new year!

August 2018 Meeting: Stewart Home Gardens and Potluck

In August Gayl and Roger Stewart hosted the Garden Club for a visit of their gardens and our annual late summer/fall potluck dinner. The gardens and grounds were lovely and, as always, the club members stepped up with delicious dishes.



Thank you to Gayl and Roger for their hospitality and thanks to all the club members for the wonderful food!

December 2017 Meeting: Annual Holiday Party

The Annual Uplands Garden Club Christmas party was held on Wed, December 6 starting with hors- d'oeuvres and social hour at 6pm. Our traditional potluck dinner followed at 6:30 with the club providing pork and beef as well as coffee, punch, paper plates and utensils, and members bringing a dish to pass (vegetable, hors d'oeuvre or dessert). Yum!

Our own storyteller and Garden Club member Jane Stenson once again delighted us with a tall tale, and we all rocked out on some Christmas carols accompanied on piano by Julie Weiskircher.

Though it seemed no one came through and wore a Christmas sweater despite the entreaty in the newsletter, Jane got into the spirit with her Christmas socks!

A huge thank you to the committee for their hard work putting together another great holiday party.

December 2016 Meeting - Annual Holiday Season Party

As per usual, the December meeting was reserved for the annual Holiday Season Party. It's always the best potluck ever with the club providing two meat dishes (ham and turkey) and club members bringing a side dish, appetizer or dessert.

The committee, led once again by Glen Ridnour, prepared the meat dishes, decorated the tables and provided the popper party favors...imported from England no less. And this year we had gold paper crowns too. A lucky person at each table got to take home the table centerpiece, a lovely Christmas cactus plant.

As always, scrumptious food and delightful company made for a great evening.

A big thank you to the committee!

August 2016 Meeting: Garden Visit, Home of Sharon Stauffer and Ben Russell, and Potluck Picnic

This year we combined our annual Potluck Picnic with a home garden visit. The picnic was held at Soldiers Memorial Park in Mineral Point. Sharon Stauffer and Ben Russell, who live across the street from the park, hosted the garden club for a tour of their home gardens prior to the picnic. 

Here are some images from our visit.

December 2015 Meeting - Annual Christmas Party

Our December meeting is always reserved for the annual Christmas Party. The club provides the meat course and members bring side dishes or desserts.

This year the table decorations were especially lovely and everyone had great fun with the party poppers that were found at each place setting.

As always, scrumptious food and delightful company.

August 2015: Picnic Meeting and Trip to Heritage Farm

Picnic at Soldiers Memorial Park

It was a great picnic at Soldier's Memorial Park in Mineral Point for our August meeting. Jenny McNeill has been working on developing diverse and colorful flower beds both along the creek and around the park entrance sign. We really enjoyed seeing what Jenny had done. Great food and lots of it.

Following our business meeting Marian Schmitz shared some fascinating and amazing history of

Soldier’s Memorial Park. Many were surprised with Marian’s park history, that there had been a lake in the park big enough for rowboats, swimming and a slide and that there once had been a dance pavilion that hosted big name bands. Marian brought in old pictures, letters, and

newspaper articles, and recounted some personal recollections about her involvement with the park.

Many thanks to Jenny for her work on the park gardens and to Marian for a delightful and informative look back at the history of Soldiers Memorial Park.

Day Trip to Heritage Farm

The 2015 annual Garden Club trip was to Heritage Farm outside of Decorah, Iowa on August 15th.

Heritage Farm is the headquarters of Seed Savers Exchange, whose mission is to conserve and promote America's culturally diverse but endangered garden and food crop heritage for future generations by collecting, growing, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants.

The farm is located six miles north of Decorah, Iowa. Nestled among sparkling streams, limestone bluffs, and century-old white pine woods, the 890-acre farm is a living museum of historic varieties. Thousands of heirlooms are grown in certified organic fields.

December 2014 Meeting: Annual Christmas Party

The Garden Club Christmas Party is always one of the social highlights of the year.

The club donated $175 to the SW Cap Food Pantry from member donations. 

Thank you to club members for your generosity!

As always, the pot-luck meal was terrific (garden club members are such good cooks!). 

The club provided ham, sherried beef, and mashed potatoes and members brought delectable dishes to share.

After dinner, we all enjoyed the White Elephant gift exchange. This year there were some nice gifts, like a basket snagged by Arnette...

and some pretty goofy ones, like the mohawk wig (hands-down, the hit of the evening)...

which (of course), was stolen by John.

August 2014 Meeting: Tour of Folklore Village Gardens

Folklore Village Farwell Hall entrance

The August Garden Club meeting was held at Folklore Village which is located in a lovely country setting six miles east of Dodgeville.

Folklore Village program director Meghan Dudle explained the many programs offered at Folklore Village and gave us a tour of the gardens and grounds.

Afterwards, the club enjoyed a potluck picnic on the grounds outside Farwell Hall.




Folklore Village offers an ongoing program of cultural, educational and participatory folklife activities, including dances, concerts, family events, cultural events, and exhibits. In the late 1960's Jane Farwell created Folklore Village, "the culmination of her ideas about festivals, folklore, dance, recreation, community, and the land." Jane also created the original gardens and an apple orchard which still exists. More recent additions include an extensive restored prairie with trails through it.

Program Director Meghan Dudle explains the many
programs offered at Folklore Village.

One of several large garden beds at Folklore Village

Jude's pie didn't last long!

Plox in bloom with one of the Folklore buildings in back