The 2014 Sault Ste. Horticultural Society Plant Sale was held yesterday (May 24, 2014), and was a huge success (see video interview with Suzanne Hanna at the bottom of this post). Mother Nature rolled out the red carpet with a glorious spring day, and a long line of eager plant buyers was snaking through the United Baptist Church parking lot well before 9 a.m. The first 100 received free poppy seeds to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, courtesy of the Hort Society.

The weather was gorgeous, MANY plants were sold, including perennials, annuals, shrubs, herbs, etc., and there were many happy conversations about gardening and plants. Two feature items this year were rhubarb and lovage, with interesting recipes handed out such as rhubarb chilli and candied lovage stems. (For the uninitiated, lovage is a perennial herb that grows similarly to rhubarb and has celery-like stems and very aromatic leaves that can be used in soups and stews. You can also eat the stems like asparagus.)

In addition to plants, the society had a “Nearly New” table with used gardening items and magazines, and the following vendors provided an interesting array of complementary goods for sale and contributed financially to the event. Thanks to all of these groups/individuals for supporting community gardening and education:

• Clean North sold bat houses and coir blocks (they also have rain barrels available).
• Lemieux Composting brought a trailer load of beautiful compost—yes, compost is beautiful! :-)
• Jennie Pearce of Pearce Farm sold organic eggs and brought three of her pretty live chickens to the sale (she is currently taking orders for organic chickens and turkeys!).
• Paul Mozarowski sold spectacularly vigorous zinnias and tomatoes started inside and currently way ahead of anything you’d find at a local nursery (email the society for his contact info).
• Algoma Farmers Market had three vendors selling honey, plants, and other items.

The Hort Society would like to thank the many volunteers who helped out with this event, both those with the society as well as four youth volunteers. This sale is a lot of work to organize, host, and clean up from, and our many volunteers are integral to its success. Gardeners are a positive lot and have boundless energy, enthusiasm, and passion for growing a greener world—a great bunch of people to hang with!

What’s more, we’d like to thank United Baptist Church, especially our society liaison with the church, Stephania Hattie, for providing the venue for this event.

If you missed this sale, please note that on Saturday, May 31, the Allard Street Community Garden will be hosting a $1-$2-$3 Plant Sale from 8 am to noon at 105 Allard Street. Contact Suzanne Hanna (705-759-2893) for more information.

Please share this information with any members who may not subscribe to our blog or with others gardeners who might find it of interest.