The Fayette County Master Gardener Volunteers (FCMGV) have had another successful year, and due to the fantastic support of the community and their hard work, a record number of containers are beautifying the downtown.
The pots are designed by the FCMGVs in three styles. As more pots are sponsored, the goal is to group one of each style together. This makes a bigger impact than any one of the pots sitting alone. In 2019, the FCMGVs hope to expand the program to Market Street.
The Washington C.H. Service Department does a great job of watering the pots once a week. Master Gardeners, Don Creamer and Roger Griffitts, water a second time during the week. Their job is really to fertilize the containers and might be why residents would see them out there watering even if it is raining.
Any funds left over from designing, planting, maintaining and watering the containers goes to other beautification projects. Currently, the group plants and maintains “The Point” where Columbus Avenue and East Market Street come together and the Veteran’s Park downtown. The former fountain in the park is now a three-layered planting bed they affectionately refer to as “The Birthday Cake.”
This year the FCMGVs were able to experiment with new types of flowers in several of the pots. Watch for sunflowers and gaura next year. These plants were very popular with the pollinators.
The Ohio State University Extension (OSUE) Master Gardener Volunteer (MGV) Program is an educational program designed to meet the consumer horticulture needs of Ohio citizens. Its purpose is to train volunteers and utilize their expertise to teach people more about plants. MGVs provide technical assistance to their county extension office in order to deliver consumer horticulture activities and programs to the Fayette County gardening public.
The FCMGVs are a great group of community-minded people. There will be a new training class beginning in January of 2019. The trainees will receive 50 hours of classroom training and 50 hours of hands-on training volunteering next to certified FCMGVs. Once they finish their training, they become certified Master Gardeners. If you would like to learn more about plants, serve your community, and have fun, consider joining the training class of 2019 in January.
Contact Sara Creamer at 740-335-1150 or [email protected] for more information.
