​Blue Springs Historical Society’s Garden Blooms

By Extension Master Gardener (EMG) volunteers, Joanie Shover, Michele Cole, Sherri Carter, and MU Extension Horticulture Instructor Cathy Bylinowski, [email protected]
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The Blue Springs Historical Society Museum is where history lives in the garden! In 2019, the Blue Springs Historical Society Museum Garden became a University of Missouri Extension Partnership Garden.  Museum staff and Extension Master Gardeners also work with the local MU Extension 4-H Classy Clovers, teaching the children the science of gardening. They apply what they learn to their Regional Fair.  This year five qualified for State Fair Exhibition . 

As the project grew, the museum and garden staff needed direction, so we developed a vision statement and developed goals. 
Goal 1: To Provide education to youth and adults and encourage gardening in the historical section of Blue Springs.  

Goal 2:  To provide education to the community and those who visit the museum about flowers and plants in the gardens.

The vision was to create an educational “place of peace and beauty” that was easy to walk through and inviting for visitors of all ages. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the garden provides a respite for area walkers and visitors and gardening information through plant labels and signage. Historical Society members give tours three times a week during the growing season.

The garden staff and Extension Master Gardeners developed a program of gardening classes during April through August.  These classes are open to Extension Master Gardeners and the public.  Extension Master Gardeners teach these classes to encourage people to grow vegetables, flowers, native plants, and use reliable, science-based gardening methods.  Class includes hands-on learning in the garden.  Museum staff work with Extension Master Gardeners to write and illustrate storybooks for the children to read as they walk through the garden.  These storybooks connect the history of early residents to gardening and how gardening helped to grow the community in the 1800s.

One story book focuses on a female doctor who used medicinal herbs to cure patients. A second tells how people traded farm products with merchants for staples like flour and sugar during winter months. The latest tells how residents grew pumpkins and shipped them through rail service which began in 1879 in Blue Springs.  In addition to offering gardening classes at the museum, EMGs also hold plant sales to raise funds to support the museum, its grounds, and horticulture education programming. 

Blue Springs Historical Society Educational Garden. Photo used with permission of Extension Master Gardener Joan Shover                                      

Master Gardeners of Greater Kansas City Plant Sale at Blue Springs Historical Society Museum and Garden photo used with permission on Extension Master Gardener Joan Shover

Blue Springs Historical Museum Garden and Extension Master Gardener 2024 Schedule
For more information on upcoming classes and how to register, please visit this MU Extension webpage for Upcoming Gardening Education Opportunities - https://bit.ly/GardeningEd

Mark your calendars now!
March 23, 2024
Location:  Blue Springs Historical Museum Garden, 101SW 15th Street, Blue Springs, MO
Topic:  Tomatoes-Learn techniques for planting, pruning, watering, and disease management
Presenters:  Master Gardeners speakers
Short description:  Learn about tomatoes and how to manage plant growth and diseases
Max number of registrants:  35         
Time of Program:  9 AM-11 AM
 
May 4, 2024
Location:  Blue Springs Historical Museum Garden, 101SW 15th Street, Blue Springs, MO
Topic:  Managing your Garden in Extreme Conditions; Cold, Heat, Drought
Presenters:  Master Gardeners speakers and Garden staff
Learn the needs of your plants during extreme weather conditions including when and how to water, mulch, feeding, and covering plants
Max number of registrants:  35           
Time of the program: 9 AM-11 AM