Community Corner

A Garden Grows On Library Terrace

The garden is part of a project by children in the Summer Reading program.

An urban garden at Clearwater's Main Library is growing day by day.

Sweet potatoes, tomatoes and marigolds are growing on the third floor terrace. A rain barrel and compost bin are also part of the garden that was established by children in the library's Summer Reading program, said Jen Obermaier, assistant director of the Clearwater Public Library System.

The garden started with some heat tolerant and attractive plants and has taken off since then, said Mercedes Bleattler, who helped oversee the project. 

The Family Storytime group planted green bean seeds in plastic swimming pools. The Main Thing campers decorated the bottles and planted the marigolds. Another group planted sunflower seeds.

The urban garden shows the value of reusing objects, Bleattler said. The sweet potatoes are planted in ripped canvas library book bags. The marigold containers are two-liter bottles.

There has been some other help as well.

The city's Parks and Recreation department brought in more than a truck full of dirt, the composter was donated from a resident and the Clearwater Garden Club is working on becoming a partner, Bleattler said.

Although the summer program is over, the garden will continue to grow.

In the fall are plans for a pizza and salad garden with herbs and lettuces, Bleattler said.


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