Two New Gardening Programs Coming to Westland

The William P. Faust Public Library of Westland is pleased to announce a new summer youth program, Junior Master Gardeners, presented in cooperation with the MSU Extension Services. The series will feature six sessions in which youth will learn vegetable gardening basics. The program will meet every two weeks beginning on Wednesday, June 15 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and will be led by a certified master gardener. The program is free and is open to youth ages 8-11. Registration is required and a commitment of attending at least four of the six sessions is requested.

Claire Mueller is a Library Associate with the Youth Services Department and will be assisting with the program. "We're offering instruction so the kids will learn about plants and how they grow as well as hands-on gardening," she says. "The idea is to cultivate the garden, water it, tend it, help it to grow, as well as the classroom instruction on a bi-weekly basis." Classroom instruction will include science as youth learn the basics of horticulture. The library has two children's gardens and one will be used for hands-on work as the kids design and plant a pizza-themed garden which may include tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic and other herbs. Mueller, who enjoys gardening herself, says the public is more than welcome to stop by and observe as the garden takes shape over the summer.

Registration for the Junior Master Gardener Program began on June 1 and will continue until the program is full. Those interested should be prepared to dig in the dirt and dress accordingly and bring garden gloves and any garden hand tools they may have. To register, go to http://www.westlandlibrary.org/events.

Also at the William P. Faust Public Library is the arrival of the Westland Seed Library. The Seed Library is a collection of vegetable and flower seeds that are available free to community members. Individuals can "borrow" seeds from the library just like they would borrow a book, and plant them with the expectation that seeds will be saved from the harvest and returned to the Seed Library. Community members can borrow up to five packets of seeds per month and a Westland Library card is not necessary to use the Seed Library. The Seed Library has reference material on which plants are easiest and which are most difficult to harvest seeds from. Information about each plant is available and all seeds are inventoried in a binder and kept in a file cabinet at the library. To find out more about the Seed Library or any library program go to http://www.westlandlibrary.org.