A Special Garden for Sims Park Again

Our long-time residents will remember the beautiful perennial garden in Sims Park, to the left of the Henn Mansion. More than thirty years ago the Euclid Lakeshore Garden Club lovingly installed and cared for this circular garden until some years back. Unfortunately, time moves on for us all and the gardeners could no longer care for the bed. The garden lay empty and weed ridden. Two years ago, the club worked to develop a native plant garden but efforts failed.

The Friends of Euclid Creek heard about the garden site and decided to take it over as an ”Adopt-a-Spot” for the City of Euclid’s “Keep Euclid Beautiful” program. This new garden will contain only native plants. Native plants and pollinators such as bees and butterflies grew up together in North American over the centuries. Plants are “natives” if they were growing here before people came to our shores. Natives are the very best food and habitat we can provide pollinators and birds. Many of them travel long distances north and south and need good food for their migrations. A native garden right on the shores of Lake Erie is ideal for them.

Two naturalist volunteers with extensive native plant experience are designing the garden and choosing the best plants. Each plant will have a nametag for easy identification. Plants will go in about the middle of September. The maintenance of the garden will require spring and fall weeding and watering during the first year or so. (With a bit of scheduling coordination, a hose and water will be available.) Native plants rarely need watering once they are established. With many volunteers helping, maintenance will not be a burden for anyone.

A native garden in Sims Park will continue the tradition set by the Lakeshore Garden Club thirty years ago. It will support our pollinators and birds, educate viewers on the value of native plants and will charm everyone with its beauty. Please contact Kelly Butauski, (216) 731-3489, kbutauski@att.net, if you would like to help with this worthy Euclid project. For more information on Friends of Euclid Creek, go to euclidcreekwatershed.org.