Last Tuesday, Stevie Westberg, chairman of the garden project on U.S. Highway 12 in Kamiah, scheduled a work party for 9 a.m. I decided to join them a little later. I expected Stevie to assign a section for me to weed, so I grabbed my favorite hand weeding tool and a short-handled spade for any deep roots. When I arrived, I found a group of four Valley Garden Club members just finishing up. Cherlyn Pankey and Crystal Paul were gathering up their tools and Lenette Smith was deep in the back weeds, aptly wielding her SKIL hedge trimmer. Working on uneven ground, she still made the job look easy. It had replaced her old weed-eater and was so much more effective. When I was surprised by such early efficiency by the small group, Stevie explained that Connie Bueler had been weeding at her convenience all week. There was barely a weed to be found when they arrived. Thanks, Connie!
In case you are wondering why you don’t know more about this beautifying project at the entry into Kamiah, let me fill you in. It was first implemented by Janet Cruz, who managed it by herself. She planted lots of perennial and reseeding flowers but was frustrated by all the bindweed and wild grass that had crept in. So, when she moved out of the area in 2017, she was relieved to pass on the responsibility to a much larger group, like a garden club.
Stevie had previously experienced chairing the All Native Pollinator Garden Project at Kelly Creek, so this project would be much closer to home. I asked her what the biggest challenges have been throughout the years. She said getting reliable help at work parties three times/year and choosing plants for consistent flowering; most easy, perennials flower only in the spring. Some of the current flowers to watch for are allium and columbine, which will reseed and bloom in the early spring; shrubby Russian sage, which blooms in June/July and purple lavender, which doesn’t always survive the winter.
If you were to drive by now to check it out, you would recognize it by the notable sturdy arch and bench in the center of the project. Stevie reminded me it was our husbands, David Westberg and Jim Morrison, who had the appropriate tools and manpower to make the arch project look like light work. Setting up the arch required lifelong skills. Thank you, David and Jim. It really needed a sturdy, weather-proof focal point, and thanks to the City of Kamiah for your support.
I first became aware of the Valley Garden Club in 2007 when lifelong local, Lorraine Smith, was president. I remember meeting Joan Thomas, Jean Carroll, Joyce Parr, Elaine Landry, Ruth Harder and Lillian Blair. Our current president, Cheryln Pankey, first became aware of our organization when she walked into the Kooskia City Hall meeting room, where we were hosting a district meeting. I remember it well. She was impressed by how friendly and welcoming we were and vowed she would join as soon as she quit working. And what a blessing it has been to have her for president for the past eight years, or is it 11?… Thank you, President Cheryln!
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