Blooming for spring

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HURON — The Huron Area Master Gardeners gear up for the season with its “Leap into Spring” festival from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Women’s Building on the South Dakota State Fairgrounds.
“Winter here gets a little long, its nice to have something to remind us that spring is coming and to get back into digging in the soil and planting,” said Joanne Groves Master Gardener and organizer.
Master Gardeners will each have a table set up to present a different topic to the public which will include dividing daylilies and other perennials, orchids, native grasses, preserving garden produce, how to win a purple ribbon for 4-H kids and much more.
“Dividing daylilies and other perennials is quite a skill people will get to learn,” Groves explained. “Our Master Gardener that does the All About Birds topic is an excellent photographer, her photographs are very beautiful of the birds. Native grasses will be using native plants for gardens, not just grasses as well as information about healthy soil.”

The feature event this year will be hands on bulb planting that attendees will be able to bring home and enjoy the spring flowers.
“You refrigerate the bulbs and keep them cool, then you plant them and they blossom out of season. People use them for Easter or any event,” explained Groves. “There will be a large variety of flowers people will see when they take them home and water them.”
This is the second year running for the Huron Area Master Gardeners spring festival. There is no admission fee for the event, the public is encouraged to attend, enjoy a refreshment and get ready for spring.
“Last year we were really tickled, we had more people than we expected,” Groves smiled. “Everybody was happy that came, they feel more energetic and excited that summer is coming and winter is ending. It’s a lovely summer topic to think about.”
Last year approximately 70 members of the public attended the free educational event to assist them in achieving their planting and gardening goals as the season approaches.
“As Master Gardeners our goal is to educate and help people learn more about planting and taking care of the earth. We also work with people on showing them how to do these things and educate them so they can do more with their yards, planting fruits and vegetables, whatever it is they would like to do,” noted Groves. “This is a nice way to get a boost to everyone’s energy and enthusiasm for spring.”
For more information or to learn about the SDSU Extension Master Gardener Program, visit extension.sdstate.edu/garden-yard/master-gardeners or contact any member of the Huron Area Master Gardeners.