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2023 MELNA Community Outreach Project

MELNA will be working with Project GROW, (Garden Roots & Outdoor Wellness) at Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham, Maine. Project GROW is a collaborative school garden program designed to provide a variety of environmental learning opportunities for all students. MELNA has a strong desire to welcome the next generations into our professions, so let’s welcome the students!

MELNA is fundraising to install a small greenhouse for the program as well as create a Maine Native Plant area, fence installation to keep critters out, a small paver entrance, and other site work around the garden.

We are looking for labor, materials, and cash donations for this project. If you or anyone in your company is willing to participate, please contact Katey Campbell for a full list of items. Below is a summary of what we are looking for:

  • Fencing materials + labor to drill holes, trench, and install fence.
  • Plants, soil, mulch for Maine Natives Area + labor to install.
  • Conduit, wood, polycarbonate sheets, hardware and more for the Greenhouse.
  • Pavers, edging, polymeric sand and other items for the hardscape installation.
  • Waterline, trenching and hook-up.
  • Equipment – Excavator, skidsteer, compactors and dingo/ trencher. There have been discussions of letting students have a chance to operate the equipment (minimally). Not many students get this opportunity!

September 15 – Site work and base prep for concrete slab.

September 22 – Small patio and fence work.

September 29 – Soil amendment, plantings, mulch, tidy up. *This is Eagle Day for the high school, a non-academic day with activities, peer building and MELNA’s participation will be a great station for them.

*There will be a separate day for the installation and potential seminar of Genest Concrete’s Comfort Block as well as greenhouse construction. Dates TBD.

A heartfelt thanks goes out to the following companies for their generosity already!

  • Genest Concrete for the donation of their Comfort Block and materials for the greenhouse base.
  • Auburn Concrete and Schaedler Concrete for the concrete and slab prep.
  • Crooker Construction for the crushed stone donations to build the base.
  • Pierson Nurseries donating some of the plant material.
  • Country Fare for loam.
  • Campbell’s Landscape & Design for labor, material, and equipment.

Katey Campbell @ 207-756-5553, campbelllandscapedesign@gmail.com

 

 

Community Outreach Project:

Each year requests are submitted to our organization to request our expertise in landscaping a particular locale. It is our difficult task to choose a project deserving of our attention. Once chosen, a landscape is designed, plants and materials are donated by our membership in a coordinated effort, and we descend upon the site for the installation. It is an amazing to see a site transformed so quickly by many experienced hands. Equipment and materials quickly move about, completing the project many times in a matter of hours. The camaraderie amongst the workers is a true draw on the day for many. If you haven’t had the experience, we encourage you to become involved – you will be in awe of what we can do!

 

 

 

If you have any questions or ideas, please contact

Don Sproul, Executive Director

Maine Landscape and Nursery Association
PO Box 4666
Augusta, ME 04330

Email: exdir@melna.org

Phone: (207) 623-6430
Fax: (207) 623-6431