By Chellis Jensen
Immanuel Presbyterian Church (Corner of North 9th and J Street, Tacoma – 253-627-8371) will host its 7th Annual Free Plant Exchange on Saturday, May 7 from 9:30 am-1 pm.
Seven years ago two women bemoaned the fact that they couldn’t find any friends or anyone in their neighborhood to give the extra bulbs they had dug up, the iris and the lily of the valley that had taken over their flower beds, or the strawberry and raspberry shoots that were multiplying too fast. Thus the PLANT EXCHANGE was created and found a home at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in their parking lot, which faces North ”I “ street. It was important to make it successful and so they set some simple guidelines:
- There will be no charge of fees nor will monetary donations be accepted
- People will be welcome from everywhere
- People will not be required to bring any kind of garden seeds, plants, etc. in order to take some home, BUT they are encouraged to try and bring at least one plant from their yard. The more plants available, the more choices for our visitors
- The saved plants help restore oxygen to the atmosphere, and keep more natural products from being thrown into the garden waste bins, which delights the City’s Solid Waste Dept.
- We will have Master Gardeners on hand to answer questions and identify mystery plants
- Those attending can take home a small grocery bag containing one big shovel full of Tagro potting soil, courtesy of the City of Tacoma
- When it is possible, the City of Tacoma Water Dept. will give us some colorful gardening posters to hand out
- It will be a great place for children to find a gift for Mother’s Day
- This will always be the first Saturday of May, so that people can make it a tradition and put it on their calendars from year to year