LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) -In just about an hour, more than 80 volunteers helped transform Sunken Gardens, planting thousands of flowers in a vibrant new display inspired by the patterns and colors of American quilts.
For the team behind the annual redesign, planting day is the moment months of planning finally come to life.
“This is the best time of the year because this is when the plants and everything we’ve been working on all winter actually go into the ground,” said Zac Halley, public gardens supervisor.
This year’s design began with a creative spark from the International Quilt Museum. Halley said the team looked to quilt patterns for inspiration, tying the display to America’s 250-year history and the role quilts have played in it.
“We kind of relied on some designs and loosely based those onto the gardens here, with 250 years of America, and quilts have been a big part of that,” Halley said.
Using photos from the museum, horticulturist Mike Fallon created a garden layout that mirrors the bold colors and geometric shapes found in traditional American quilts.
“Just kind of took pieces from each of those, different blocks and stuff like that from those quilts, and kind of fit them into our garden,” Fallon said.
Sunken Gardens typically introduces five to six new plant varieties each year, but Fallon said this year’s theme gave the team even more room to experiment with color and arrangement.
Though the planting itself moved quickly, Halley said the work behind it has been underway for months. From the initial design to growing the plants through the winter, the display is the result of careful preparation and patience.
“It’s a lot of prep that goes into this. We kind of start that process with that design, and we’re growing out those plants throughout the winter,” Halley said.
By the end of summer, the display will look entirely different — a living, growing patchwork shaped by both design and nature.
“We let the plants decide what they want to do in the garden,” Fallon said.
As soon as the final flower goes into the ground, Fallon said, the team is already looking ahead to what comes next.
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