FAIRFIELD BAY — The 16th annual Van Buren County Master Gardeners Plant Sale will take place once again this year at Ed Leamon Park, in conjunction with the Bloomin’ in the Bay festival on Saturday. Hours for the sale are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“This year’s plant sale will be bigger than ever,” said Maud Huber of Fairfield Bay, co-
chairwoman of the plant sale, along with Jill Bailey of Fairfield Bay and Tina Johnson of Clinton. “We will have a wide variety of plants including herbs, perennials, annuals, shrubs, native plants, hostas and trees, all locally grown and selected specifically to thrive in this area.”
Edie Calaway of Fairfield Bay, president of the local Master Gardeners program, said the sale will feature “more native plants” this year.
“We will also have pollinator plants that help support birds, bees and butterflies,” Huber said. “Fairfield Bay is now registered as a Monarch City (part of the Monarch City USA nonprofit corporation based in Maple Valley, Washington). We want to help the monarch-butterfly population recover. We also have our own butterfly garden here in the park, which attracts hundreds of butterflies every year.
“We will have Ruth Andre (a docent with the South Fork Nature Center near Clinton), an expert on butterflies, especially the monarch, to talk about butterflies,” Huber said. “She will share tips on how to attract monarchs and other butterflies.”
Huber said patrons will also be able to purchase milkweed grown through the Clinton High School greenhouse project to help feed the butterflies.
“We will also have a special kids’ project,” Huber said. “They will be able to make butterfly ‘puddlers,’ which are small containers filled with wet sand, which is full of minerals. Butterflies can land on these and “puddle” or drink to fulfill their need for salt and nutrients.”
The plant sale will also feature “oversized clay flowers, which would make perfect Mothers’ Day gifts,” Huber said. “We have three local potters who have created these flowers — Eleanor Hilsenrath of Fairfield Bay, Marguerite Dory of Bee Branch and Dianne Percefull of Edgemont.”
Huber said Berni Kurz, consumer horticulture specialist with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture County Extension Service, is scheduled to attend the local plant sale.
“He was hired to fill Janet Carson’s position when she retired,” Huber said. “We are honored that he is coming to our plant sale.”
Calaway said the Van Buren County Master Gardeners program began in 1997 with five members. There are now 48 active members in the program, which is operated under the auspices of the Van Buren County Cooperative Extension Service, headquartered in Clinton. Danny Griffith is the county agriculture agent and adviser for the Master Gardeners program.
Proceeds from the annual pant sale will support the Janet Carson Scholarship and beautification and education projects in Van Buren County. Among the projects in Fairfield Bay are Ed Leamon Park and the gardens at the Senior Center; projects in Clinton include the landscape beds at the Van Buren County Courthouse and Annex and at the Van Buren County Public Library. Master Gardeners also work at the Van Buren County Fair, where they maintain a public-education booth. For more information, call (501) 745-7117.
Bloomin’ in the Bay will also feature an afternoon food and music experience — the annual Blues & BBQ event, which will run from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and will be highlighted by music throughout the day and a competition among backyard barbecue enthusiasts.
“We are thrilled to watch how this festival has grown,” said Dan Feuer, Blues & BBQ event director. “Each year, we see new entries and get to sample some of the best barbecue in Arkansas. Plus, the music just has everyone jumping. Bands start at 10 a.m. and continue throughout the early evening. New for this year is a street dance with our headliner, the Zac Dunlap Band.”
The Cruisin’ in the Bay Car Show will also be part of Saturday’s event. Set for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., the car show is hosted by the Fairfield Bay Chamber of Commerce.
All events at Bloomin’ in the Bay are free and open to the public. Ed Leamon Park is at 522 Dave Creek Parkway at Fairfield Bay.