LEWISTOWN - The Mifflin County Garden Club has been busy beautifying the library grounds in preparation for its upcoming flower show.
The club's co-chair Betsy Baker said the committee, which is made up of six local residents, Deanna Spickler, also a co-chair, Bonnie Mills, Marty Fisher, Sue Hunter, Sara Buffington, MaryAnne Wilson and William Basom, began working on the garden project in April.
The club added educational plaques to the landscaped area around the library. Plaques bear both the common and botanical names of the different plants and flowers in the garden. Also, the committee planted a butterfly bush in memory of George H. Armstrong, who was the husband of a long time and active club member, Lois Armstrong. In addition to the butterfly bush, the committee planted purple fountain grass, petunias, profusion zinnia and sweet potato vine.
Baker said the committee has been maintaining the grounds of the library for a number of years, but the project this year was entered into the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's Community Greening Award. Baker said the competition is designed to bring notice to public spaces and gardens. The club's work at the library has been judged, but the club does not yet know how well they fared, Baker said.
Baker said the committee, with the help of some other volunteers, recently completed the project and just in time for the flower show which beings next week.
The flower show, "Making the Pages Pop," is slated for Thursday, Aug. 20 from 2 to 7 p.m., Friday, Aug. 21 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Baker said the flower show will be going on all throughout the library building with different book-related table designs at various locations in the building. Baker said there will be displays that portray popular books like The Great Gatsby, Little House on the Prairie and Harry Potter, by using flowers. Also during the show there will be educational and horticultural exhibits on display.
Baker said the exhibits will be judged on Thursday morning before the show is open to the public at 2 p.m. Baker said the judges for the event come from all over Pennsylvania and are part of the Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania, of which the Mifflin County Garden Club is also a member.
