Over this hot summer we have been watching the fence garden grow. It is located next to the Mauldin Cultural Center. It has been a battle to keep the grass and weeds out while encouraging the plants we put in. The first year of a garden is all about weeds and experimenting with types of plants and their requirements. We will be putting only Native South Carolina plants in this area to encourage birds and pollinators. In April we planted 5 types of perennials. I am happy to show the Echinacea (purple cone flower) and Rudbeckia (black eyed Susan) are currently in bloom and doing well.

One of our initiatives this year is to encourage the public to make mosquito buckets rather than using pesticides in the yard. Fogging kills bees, butterflies and bugs that feed the birds. Fog will also cover everything in the yard that you may touch. Buckets are also less expensive and can be reused. Using 1/4 of a mosquito dunk in a 5 gal. bucket is good for 30 days. A good resource for making your own is https://homegrownnationalpark.org/mosquito-bucket.

For information about the club please contact Linda at Lbaer565@gmail.com●