By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Time is running out to help the Barton County Conservation District and your yard with a new tree via the 2023 Nursery Tree sale. The fundraiser ends Monday, March 20, at the end of business hours. Barton County Conservation District Manager Veronica Coons said funds generated through the sale will go back into the community.
"The last couple of years, the profits made off it have gone into creating a matching fund for the Victory Garden of Barton County," she said. "It's raising money to be able to build some raised beds out there so we can offer individual plots for people coming up in the next season."
The Victory Garden is located at the Barton County Historical Museum and gives residents hands-on experience with starting a home vegetable garden. Prices for the new trees range from 1-gallon evergreen trees at $14, to 10-gallon Crimson King and Autumn Blaze maples for $114. There are a variety of options and sizes in between. The trees will be available for pickup in April.
The Conservation District also has seed packets with pollinator-friendly varieties that are free to the public. Those can be picked up on a first-come, first-serve basis.
"Really, one of them would be more than enough seed for anybody who wanted to do a pollinator garden at their home or next to their garden," Coons said. "We get these seed packs through the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts in our efforts to promote awareness of pollinators and provide habitat and food sources for them."
To purchase a tree before the Monday deadline, call the Conservation District at (620) 792-3346, or stop by at 926 Patton Road in Great Bend. Orders can also be emailed to [email protected], or sent via message on Facebook.