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Festival of Color in the Heartlands

© Sueann Ahrens

I have truly enjoyed the month of September here in the Heartlands!!!!!!! Despite the above normal temperatures and below normal rainfall my garden has really came into itself during this month. My perennials are still blooming vigorously and my mums and asters have added tons of color to my garden beds. Of course, I enjoy the month of September too, due to the fact that my birthday is in this month. Even though I am forty plus, I still enjoy celebrating my birthday with my family. : ) Another enjoyment for the month of September is that the Festival of Color is held during this month in the Heartlands.

For my readers, who have never had a chance to attend this festival,or if you are a reader that had to miss the festival this year due to other commmittments, or if you are a reader who has never heard of the Festival of Color I invite you to read along for a description of what the Festival consisted of.

Let's begin!!!! The Festival of Color is held at the University of Nebraska's Agricultural Reasearch and Development Center near Mead, Nebraska. The town of Mead is approximately 45 minutes northeast of Lincoln, Nebraska. Mead's population is approximately a few hundred people. However, on September 12, 1998 which was the date for this years sixth annual festival the population of the town exploded to 10,500 visitors. These figures are up approximately 1,000 people from the Festival of Color in 1997. I am sure that the number of visitor will continue to grow in size each year that the festival is held.

The Festival began as a way for University specialists to share research findings on water pollution in home landscapes. It has evolved into a popular event showcasing environmentally compatible landscapes. Demonstrations, talks, tours and how-to sessions were conducted throughout the day providing opportunities for interaction between visitors and Festival presenters. I took home a vast amount of practical knowledge from the 26 vendors and 31 organizations located at the site.

The Festival had a tremendous Children's Garden. Let me briefly describe two gardens within this area that were very new ideas to me. First, the Couch Potato Garden. For this garden use an old sofa with variegated sweet potato vines planted in place of the bottom cushions. In front of the couch sat an old console television set with geraniums or any annual planted on top of the console set. As the sweet potato vines grow - and grow - they will grow towards the television set. It was a very cute and unique idea. The other idea was the Bath and Shower Garden. Use an old bathtub and pcp pipe to make a shower around the tub. After you have the pipe in place hook an old shower head onto the pipe and drape a shower curtain around the pipes. In the tub plant ground cover or annuals, whatever you prefer. Also, in the tub you need to save room for planting loofa sponge seeds. If you are not familiar with the loofa seeds, they are large vine type plants which will grow up the pipes with large pods (which look almost like giant size cucumbers) that will dangle down from the vines. After the pods dry up they look like sponges you use in the bathtub. For a final touch place two or three rubber ducks amongst the flowers in the bathtub. Try one of these two gardens for a wonderful conversation piece with your friends and neighbors.

The copyright of the article Festival of Color in the Heartlands in Midwest Gardener is owned by Sueann Ahrens. Permission to republish Festival of Color in the Heartlands in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.