ANNA MARIA – From the serious gardening enthusiast to the casual plant admirer, this year’s annual Anna Maria Island Garden Club Plant Sale on Nov. 17 had something for everyone.
Each year, the Garden Club holds a plant sale at Roser Church to raise money for beautification projects on the Island. Money from last year’s sale went to pay for the wind sculpture at City Pier Park in Anna Maria.
“A donation was recently made to install a wind sculpture at the Island Branch Library in Holmes Beach, then we’ll do Bradenton Beach,” AMI Garden Club President Kathy Morgan Johnson said. “We also do all of the plants at the library, and we’ve donated to Annie Silver (Community) Center in Bradenton Beach for their new garden.”
Johnson said this year’s sale had a line of people at the door before it even began, and after the first two hours had already surpassed last year’s total sales. The total dollar amount raised is not yet available.
The plants in the sale come from local nurseries, and since the Garden Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, they get a nonprofit discount, allowing the club to make money from the sale of each plant. Dozens of club members were on hand to assist in the sale.
The club has more than 120 members and holds its meetings at Roser Church. Anyone interested in joining can visit www.amigardenclub.com and sign up online. Members can take part in monthly lunches, field trips, volunteer projects and participate in fundraising efforts such as the plant sale and the flower show, scheduled in January.
