By Pamela West-Finkle
Happy Spring! It has been a typical snowy March, but the sun gets warmer every day and I look forward to the Spring thaw so that I can feel safe walking around outside. My shoulder replacement was February 22nd, and I have been home healing while checking in on things at the library. Jesslyn and Tami are holding down the fort quite well. Thank you to all who have sent their well wishes. I have about a four to six month recovery with three months on medical leave, so if all goes well I hope to be back at the desk mid-May.
Seed Swap & Planning for the Edible Landscape
The new seeds are in for this season’s planting, and there are empty seed packets available at the library for those who have extras to share. If you plan to grow things like cabbage, broccoli, peppers, tomatoes, and eggplant from seed, don’t wait any longer to begin sprouting them.
We are in the planning stages of our Edible Landscape Garden, a community project where all are welcome to help and all are welcome to harvest. This is going to be a collaboration with the Andes Garden Club and we hope to bring the community together to transform the landscaping around the library to be of use to the public. We plan blueberry bushes, dwarf fruit trees, medicinal and culinary herb beds, and raised beds for vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, and greens. We hope to secure grant funding to help pay for materials, plants, and funds for someone to maintain the community garden. If you are interested in helping or even leading this project, please contact us at an.ill@4cls.org.
Andes Garden Club Audubon Presentation – Thursday April 13th
How many birds can you identify around your home? Do you want to learn how to spot, attract, and feed the birds sharing our local forests and gardens? On Thursday, April 13th, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm, the Andes Garden Club is presenting a guest speaker from the Audubon Society to discuss local birds in our area. The meeting will be held in the community room of the Andes Library, located at 242 Main Street. This is a free event. Donations welcome. For more information, visit: www.andesgardenclub.org.
Earth Day – Library Grounds Clean Up – Saturday, April 22nd
Weather permitting, we would like to invite community members or groups to come to the library at 10 am on Earth Day, Saturday, April 22nd. Bring your favorite garden tool, some gloves, and help us clean out the beds, remove dead bushes, trim hedges and remaining bushes, and dispose of weeds and remnants of our construction project. Snacks and beverages will be provided.
Summer Programs: All Together Now!
Next month I hope to announce a more definite schedule, but for now, our programs for youth and adults will focus on this year’s library slogan “All Together Now!” We are looking for community participation. If you have a skill you want to demonstrate, a special program idea, or fundraising event you’d like to help organize, we are inviting the community to get involved.
Ongoing Book, DVD, and Audio Book Sale Upstairs in the library!
Just a reminder that we still have a ton of donations and weeded books that we need to get rid of. Right now we are filled to capacity and I really cannot take donations. Please do not leave books on the porch. We will be sorting through the books on the porch that made it through the Winter and will move some overflow from the upstairs to the free shelves, but at this point, no reasonable monetary donation will be refused. Fill a shopping bag. There are many quality movies, television series DVDs, mint-to-very-good condition audio books, and fiction, non-fiction, young adult, and children’s books available to choose from. This sale does not include the gardening, home improvement, art history and modern classics collection that also resides upstairs. Each shelf is clearly marked as to whether those books are part of the sale.~
GUEST SPEAKER: On Thursday, April 13th, the Andes Garden Club welcomes a guest from the Audobon Society who will teach about local birds in our area. The meeting is hosted at the Andes Public Library between 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm.