Shelter Gardens

This is from a Shelter Insurance web page:

Arguably the most well-known feature of Shelter's corporate office is Shelter Insurance Gardens. Just beyond the beautiful stone-and-wrought-iron gates are five acres containing over 300 varieties of trees and shrubs and more than 15,000 annuals and perennials. The gardens are open to the public daily between 8 a.m. and dusk (except Christmas Day, when the gardens are closed).

I have been visiting this Columbia attraction for years and have included here pictures from the last three years.  As we head into winter this is a reminder of warm times, and beautiful flowers, to come.   This is a must see and a wonderful place to picnic, or just relax.  All four of my kids have made frequent trips to the Shelter Insurance compound to visit the garden, sit by the water fountain at night, or enjoy the summer concerts. 

Make sure to check out my other story about the wonderful fountains that Shelter Insurance also maintains.

Entryway into the gardens.

Pathways.

Elephant Ears

 Flowers

The school house pictures:

I am very thankful that Shelter Insurance has made a decision to keep the gardens open.  This along with the fountain, which was mentioned in another  story I referred to earlier, make them a good corporate neighbor to  have in our community.

Make sure to visit.  How can you loose with beautiful scenery in this Columbia landmark that is free and open to the public?

FFA Community Service Challenge: Adopt A Spot for Missorui Cancer Associates

On Saturday (17 October 2009), high school students in  FFA (Future Farmers of America) from North Shelby and Chillicothe high schools volunteered their time here in Columbia.  The location for their community service project was a traffic island they landscaped at the intersection of Broadway and Old 63.

 This specific project was a community service challenge for Missouri Cancer Associates and was supervised by master gardener Carolyn Oates:

Carolyn explained the requirements for a master gardener.  Locally master gardeners must take a class from the University of Missouri Master Gardener Extension program, and then volunteer 30 hours the first year and 20 hours for subsequent years. Master gardeners must also continue with six hours of ongoing education per year.  The University of Missouri has an outstanding Master Gardener Extension program with a very informative web site where you can go to get more information. 

 

This statement about the Master Gardener program is from the American Horticultural Society web page:

The Master Gardener program, conducted throughout the United States and Canada, is a two-part educational effort, in which avid gardeners are provided many hours of intense home horticulture training, and in return they "pay back" local university extension agents through volunteerism. Master Gardeners assist with garden lectures, exhibits, demonstrations, school and community gardening, phone diagnostic service, research, and many other projects.

In the future I plan on doing a related story on community gardens.

There is increasing concern with our food supply and an increasing interest in urban gardening.  There are highly productive, and efficient, methods for growing produce in urban settings and I predict that will continue to be a growing trend.  Newer methods of cultivation, like the square foot system are boosting productivity while cutting down on the need for harmful chemicals.  I would like to see more young people involved with the FFA which not just about traditional farming but also about agriculture education in general.  How about FFA groups for urban high schools with a focus on urban gardening?

I drove by a couple of days later and took a picture of the completed project.  Looks pretty good: