400 New Plants in the Ground

A couple of weeks ago, we told you about nearly 200 new trees and shrubs that were scheduled to be planted in Overton Park.  Now that the planting is done, we’re thrilled to report that the actual number of trees planted was 300, along with 100 shrubs. You’ll see the new trees everywhere from the border of the Greensward to the East Parkway picnic area.

Originally, Greg Touliatos & Associates had about 200 plants to offer to Overton Park Conservancy at a reduced cost.  As the planting began, though, more trees and shrubs became available, and the nursery offered a deeply discounted price on those as well.  The Miriam and Ernest Kelly Family Foundation and members of the Kelly family, who funded the original planting scheme, were excited to take advantage of the extra availability and generously covered the cost of the additional plants.

Among the new additions are wintersweet shrubs, a few of which are already blooming along the median between the Brooks Museum and the Levitt Shell, and Cornelian cherry dogwoods, which produce amazing displays of yellow flowers in early spring.  (You won’t be able to miss these on the outskirts of the formal gardens when they begin blooming.)

The crew at Echo Systems Landscape Services did a fantastic job of planting most of the trees.  We also had some wonderful volunteers who braved the rain this past weekend to plant bottlebrush buckeye shrubs in several locations.  Most of the volunteers came from Cub Scout Pack 13 at Trinity United Methodist Church, who are working on their Leave No Trace merit badges.  They got dirty and had a great time, and you can see their work throughout the park.

We’re so excited about these positive changes to the landscape, and we can’t wait to watch the trees grow in the years to come.  Thanks again to Greg Touliatos & Associates, the Kelly family, landscape designer Tom Pellett, Echo Systems, and our wonderful volunteers for making this possible!

(More photos available on Facebook)