Leelanau Government Center Native Plant Gardens

 

In 2008 when the Leelanau County Government Center was built the decision was made to dedicate a portion of the decorative landscaping around the exterior of the building for educational native plant display gardens.  The help of Master Gardener Volunteers was enlisted early on and they helped choose and plant the native species that occupy these gardens.  Additionally, a rain garden was created in a prominent location near the main entrance where runoff from the roof of the building collects and is filtered by a selection of native plant species.

The property also includes a large hillside of about 15 large sections of native plants.  Six of these sections, with the help of Master Gardener Volunteers, are mulched and identifiable.  These were created by Chris Garthe and the Leelanau Conservation District.  Chris passed away a couple of years ago, but he processed a huge knowledge about Michigan native plants and wanted to create a sanctuary for native birds, pollinators, and wildlife.  We miss him and his fantastic knowledge and the hill has memorial markers in his name.

Volunteers

 

Master Gardener Volunteers perform the bulk of the maintenance, care, and upkeep of the gardens.  They have also created educational signage that teaches about the different native plant species contained in the gardens.

Master Gardener Volunteers Tom Patton, Kathy Spinniken, Jim Egan, and Sue Warren meet during the summer every Tuesday morning for about 2 hours working to maintain these beautiful gardens.  They weed, mulch, prune, thin plants and replace plants that are not happy in their current locations.  They enjoy working together and it is a treat to get together each week.  More help is welcomed, since it seems that everything never gets quite done each week.  As a bonus you will learn about native plants you might incorporate into your own landscape.  For more information, please contact Sue Warren  warrensusani@gmail.com 

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