ThisWeek CW 05/03/2012

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/canalwinchester/news/2012/05/02/potting-day-city-staff-digs-in-to-beautify-downtown.html

Each year, city staff members roll up their sleeves for a chance to get dirty while beautifying downtown Canal Winchester and saving taxpayers money.

Potting Day, said Urban Forester Dick Miller, is an annual event leading up to hanging flower baskets and preparing planters in downtown Canal Winchester. He said was a tradition since long before he joined the city in 2002.

“It’s usually the end of April or beginning of May, and we set aside time on a Friday where virtually all city employees come to the Public Works Complex and pot our heads off,” Miller said.

The staff eats lunch together before digging in, he said.

“Everybody brings a dish for lunch and we cook up some burgers and have a good meal prior to the potting,” Miller said. “When we’re done eating, we all get to work.

“We do 150 to 160 hanging plants and about 30 containers,” he said. “We also plant some backups, because sometimes things go wrong and we have to replace dead plants.”

Miller said the whole process takes only 20 to 25 minutes.

“We usually park an equipment trailer so that people can work down either side like it’s an assembly line,” he said. “Everybody who has done this before knows their jobs and either plants, waters or attaches the hanging wires.”

The process saves the city and taxpayers money, Miller said.

“It’s an astronomical savings. Just one of these baskets can be quite pricey,” he said. “Other communities will have someone else grow their plants, but we don’t pay for that. We can buy petunias for just a little over $1, meaning each basket is only a little over $4.”

The city uses plants that are acclimated to the area for better results, he said.

“In case residents want to emulate what we’re using, we plant alyssum, purple sweet potato, white yarrow, impatiens, wave petunias — which is our standard — and torch begonia,” Miller said.

Another opportunity for residents to match their plantings with those used by the city is to participate in the annual tree giveaway, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 5, at Stradley Park.

Varieties offered this year include bald cypress, fringetree, hackberry, American holly, magnolia, red cedar, dawn redwood, tulip, kousa dogwood, maple and oak, Miller said.

Eighty trees will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis as a part of an initiative by the city’s Street Tree Advisory Board and the Division of Stormwater. Miller said increasing the tree canopy cover throughout the city means the trees capture stormwater, which helps to prevent drain overflows and erosion. It also cools the city and promotes cleaner air.

The tree giveaway is open to any Canal Winchester resident. Proof of residency, such as a city water bill or a driver’s license that shows a Canal Winchester address, is required.