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Capitol Hill Community Post | Volunteer Park Trust to Plant New Gardens for Fall Restoration Day

VPT_FallRestorationDay2016_WhoFish_500x320Volunteer Park Trust, the volunteer-driven organization working to preserve and restore Volunteer Park, is planning their annual Fall Restoration Day for September 18th. The popular community event brings over a hundred volunteers to plant, weed, mulch, and remove litter and invasive plants from beds.

This year will bring the culmination of two major garden beds funded in part by the Peach Foundation and the Seattle Garden Club. The empty beds, located near the north lily pond along the park’s main concourse, have been prepared over the past months at the Trust’s monthly work parties. Now the site is ready for planting such flowering and berry-producing perennials as Daphne, Epimedium and Hypericum.

As part of its mission to restore the park to its original Olmsted Brothers landscape design, the Trust is going back to the 1910 planting plans for reference on what to include in the new gardens. Not everything can be restored to the original species, however. “The areas at both ends of the Lily ponds were originally in full sun. They’re now in nearly full shade and among the roots of huge Atlas cedars. We have tried to duplicate flower color and foliage to match the original with plants that succeed in shade,” says Doug Bayley, former chair of the Trust and current co-chair of the Landscape Committee. The garden plans have gone through extensive review and approval by Seattle Parks & Recreation.

Since its founding in 2012, Volunteer Park trust has worked to beautify Volunteer Park’s main concourse in preparation for the coming renovation and temporary closure of Seattle Asian Art Museum. “After these two beds are planted, that completes our primary efforts in the central portion of the park,” says Bayley. “We want to keep the park beautiful and active for neighbors and visitors alike.”

The Trust invites neighbors, friends and families to join in the gardening any time from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Sunday, September 18. Gloves and tools will be provided, and no gardening experience is needed. As always, the Trust fortifies its volunteers with free Tulley’s coffee and Top Pot doughnuts.

The Trust is also the organizer behind the new Amphitheater coming to Volunteer Park, and co-serves in the Volunteer Park Sustainability Coalition working to create green solutions for the park. For more information on the nonprofit you can visit their website at: http://volunteerparktrust.org/2016-Fall-Rest-Photo-Option-22016-Fall-Rest-Photo-Option-3

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