Merryspring Gears Up For Annual Plant Sale

Volunteers and staff at Merryspring Nature Center are feverishly pruning and watering, pinching back and primping a wide variety of plants in preparation for the 66-acre park’s popular annual sale. On May 16^th (4 to 6 p.m., members only) and May 17^th (10 a.m. to 2 p.m. open to the public), volunteers will once again shine the spotlight on perennials and shrubs that have proven their worth in midcoast Maine.

     “We’ll be offering award-winning varieties of delphinium, dianthus, monarda, artemisia, yarrow, and other perennials grown from seedlings in the greenhouse,” notes MNC Buildings & Grounds Manager Gail Sutton. “We’ll also have divisions taken from plants that have performed well year after year here at Merryspring and in the gardens of our members.” Tried-and-true favorites, from bluestar (Amsonia tabernaemontana, ideal for mixed borders) and cutting-edge daylilies to great-blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) and ultra-hardy Siberian iris, will greet gardeners searching for inexpensive ways to create the garden of their dreams. These perennial favorites will be joined by hard-to-find heirloom dahlias (great for keeping the color coming right up to autumn’s first frost) and old-fashioned hollyhocks (including familiar pink “outhouse” and rust-resistant figleaf types, as well as yellow Alcea rugosa). Scented geraniums (rose, chocolate-mint, nutmeg, and lemon, to name a few) and charming marguerites (both white and pink) will provide other sure routes to the romance of an earlier time, as will lily of the valley and bloodroot.  And anyone who likes to cook (and eat!) will want to arrive early to get the pick of the tomato crop: succulent, firm ‘Pink Beauty’ and ‘Tomatoberry’, with sweet, strawberry-shaped fruit, are just two varieties seldom seen in nurseries that passed the taste test at Merryspring last summer.

       As always, Merryspring’s signature rosemaries will be on hand, along with other must-have herbs for kitchen gardens. New and used gardening books are also on offer. The biggest attraction at this year’s sale, though, will be the plants whose identities are yet unknown---specifically, generous donations from local professional growers including Plants Unlimited and Fernwood Gardens & Nursery), and contributions from MNC’s members, among them some of the keenest and most accomplished gardeners on the midcoast. Plant donors are asked to place divisions in plastic bags with adequate soil to keep roots cool and moist. Labels should indicate species and color. Volunteers will be standing by to accept contributions anytime from 9 to 3 (or call to make arrangements) in the days preceding the sale. FMI: 236-2239.

     Merryspring Nature Center is located off  Route 1 at the end of Conway Road, behind Hannaford Market. For more information, call 236-2239.