You’ll find the garden at the E Olive Street Entrance to the Green Forest Public Library. View map.
- Green Forest Library – 12/12/25
A big thank you to CCMG members. Mary Burks. Regina Hooten, Lisa Anderson and Brenda Bennett. After a great deal of cleanup… Read more: Green Forest Library – 12/12/25 - Green Forest Library – 8/6/25
Tuesday the garden at the Green Forest Library got quite the clean up by Stacee Nuckolls, Julie Sooter, as Cynthia Osborne was… Read more: Green Forest Library – 8/6/25 - Green Forest Library 6/17/25
Great day at the GF Library garden. Thanks to Stacee Nuckolls and Brenda Champlin. Weeds were pulled a bit of deadheading and… Read more: Green Forest Library 6/17/25
Where’s the Garden?
May 24, 2021
Green Forest Library
On our first work day at the Green Forest Library Jennifer, my mother, and I managed to get the beds weeded and cleaned up the fall plantings. As we were finishing up the rain started and officially set in for the evening. We had to put off the planting for another day.
On the next work day Jennifer, Anita, Jan, and my mom helped with pruning the Nandina that was severely damaged by the cold this spring. The perennials were just starting to bloom (Echinacea, Daisy, Phlox, and Hosta). We planted several annuals (Profusion Zinnia, Celosia, Vinca, Lantana, Marigold, and Green and Purple Sweet potato vine. The beds should start to fill in nicely if we can get some sunshine! ~ Tammy McCance and Jennifer Hudspeth co-chairs
May 21, 2020
After checking with the librarian at the Green Forest Library we opted for similar plantings as last year. She felt what they would like to see were new plants complementary to last year’s garden.
We had a great group brave the rain to work on the garden at the rear entrance of the library . We began to weed and so came the rain, which finally slacked off after getting us wet. May sure is a wet month, two years running!
We placed the plants and then started planting. The plantings were Profusion Zinnias, Trailing Verbenas, Homestead Verbenas, Shasta Daisy, Lantanas, Pholx, Echinacea, Black Eyed Susan, Begonias, Hostas, along with Green and Purple Sweet Potato Vine, and Vinca Major Variegated Vine. We added a slow release fertilizer with the plantings along with watering them in with a water soluble fertilizer to give them a boost.
We blended the new plantings in with plants that retuned from last year. Some of the returning plants were purple butterfly bush, echinacea, lilies, Nandina, day lilies and foliage from tulips and daffodils that bloomed earlier. There were violas still blooming and looking pretty. So for now we left them and will remove them when the temperature rises and they start to fail.
Next we carefully touched up with additional mulch and cleaned up the area. We didn’t have time to work on the rocks lining the back side of the beds but will hopefully be able to address it on a later work day. It would help protect the plants and contain the mulch. Lastly we placed the Master Gardener Sign in the flower bed.
It was a great work day even if we all got wet. Everyone enjoyed seeing each other and visiting as we worked. I want to say a big thank you to Nancy Plagge, Karen Reeves, Jennifer Hudspeth for working on the project and getting wet! You may notice an extra in some of the pictures. My mother came out to help as well. She enjoys gardening and was in need of some socializing since she has been staying at home. The forecast is for dryer weather so maybe we can keep dry at the next work day! ~ Tammy McCance
The Beginnings
The Green Forest Public Library contacted Jennifer Hudspeth to inquire if CCMG would be interested in maintaining their small garden in late June, 2019. The person who had been maintaining the area was no longer available to do the work. They had mulched and had a few hostas, day lilies, and nandinas. Jennifer contacted Sue Davis, CCMG president, and she suggested we create a committee made up of Jennifer, Nancy Plagge, and Tammy McCance. A meeting was set to evaluate the garden and meet with the library director, Tiffany. We explained the process for becoming a sanctioned project, completed the forms for the project, and got a general idea of what she would like to see in the garden.
The Site
The garden space is approximately 7’ x 30’ with morning shade and afternoon sun. It is next to the back entrance and there is a water spigot next to the garden (there must be water for a sanctioned project). The library had funds for plants and said they would ensure the plants were watered.
The project progresses…
It is a small and manageable space, and very visible to the community. Most patrons use the rear library entrance as it is next to the parking area. Since it was late in the season for planting and most plants were on clearance, Jennifer and Tammy decided to take on the planting as unsanctioned hours. Nancy was in the process of moving to a new home and was much too busy to help with the planting.
Planting Design
A key to garden success is getting the right plant in the right place. Since the garden bed is mostly sunny, the hostas were moved to the most shaded part of the bed. The day lilies were moved closer to the nandina to provide a foundation for the other plantings. The plants selected had to tolerate sun and heat since there is minimal shade and the heat reflects off the cement parking lot. The plants selected were Profusion Zinnias in yellow, orange, white, and pink along with lantanas that were pink and yellow. Both of these plants tolerate heat, dryer conditions, and will bloom continually throughout the season with minimal maintenance. There was a hot pink verbena selected to compliment the color scheme along with pink cone flowers and some fillers of both green and purple sweet potato vines. These too are heat tolerant and prefer sun.
Begonias were selected for the more shaded area to provide some color with the hosts in pink, red, and white. A purple butterfly bush was added to help distract from the light pole and provide some height to the bed. There were two containers with day lilies in the bed. They were part of the lilies transplanted and the two containers were moved to frame the back entrance to the library. The rule of thumb on containers is that they need a filler, a spiller and a thriller. The containers were planted with large red begonias (filler) along with purple sweet potato vine and variegated vinca vine (spillers) and a couple of dracaena (spike plant for height and thriller). During the planting there were many favorable compliments from the patrons of the library. The project was presented to the CCMG’s. After questions, answers and discussion they voted to sanction the Green Forest Library Project. The library is located on the town square, check it out!
~Tammy McCance
