by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
How does your garden grow?
Downtown, it grows in 75 hanging baskets that make up the streetscape beautification initiative. On Newnan, Forsyth, Ocean and Adams streets, 75 hanging baskets are cared for by the Downtown Ambassadors.
Since the program began, the baskets were assembled by a local nursery and delivered to Downtown Vision Inc. They were placed on the brackets and watered, in some cases every day.
That plan has changed with the new winter baskets installed this week. They contain plants that will tolerate colder weather better than those in the summer baskets.
Instead of purchasing ready-made baskets, Liz Wilson, the “Green Thumb” Ambassador, has planted each new basket with the proper selection of plants. Her colleagues in the orange shirts and pith helmets will handle the watering chores.
DVI purchased hundreds of plants, plus potting soil and replacement parts, for the baskets for the do-it-yourself project. The baskets were assembled in an underground “potting shed” in the basement of the Ed Ball Building.
“The first thing I did was determine how much sun each basket gets, then I chose plants for each one based on the amount of sun or shade. That way we can keep the baskets looking great all winter,” said Wilson.
Having an inventory of plants on hand will allow DVI to replace them as needed instead of waiting for next season’s baskets to arrive while pedestrians have to look at a less-than-perfect hanging garden.
Wilson said the new baskets will be watered every day for two weeks, then as needed. She also has a plan to cover the baskets if the weather forecast calls for frost or freezing temperatures.
The DIY effort also has a recycling angle. Most of the summer baskets still contained healthy plants, so instead of discarding them or turning them into compost, Wilson planted the survivors in the flower beds at Snyder Memorial Church near Hemming Plaza.
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