Daffodil Project gets ready to plant 22,000 bulbs

By Gillian Slade on August 7, 2018.

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Medicine Hat News

Preparations are underway for the fall planting season of bulbs by The Daffodil Project.

A total of 22,000 daffodil bulbs will be planted this fall, the fourth planting season for the project, in two locations.

The first community planting day takes place Saturday, Sept. 22 at Len Mitzel Meadow.

A donation of bulbs was made by Adair Prouty this spring in memory of the late Len Mitzel, former MLA for Cypress Medicine Hat. Prouty chose the location, on the corner of Trans-Canada Highway and South Ridge Drive — near the College overpass. The planting will take place in the flat area closer to the highway. It is a route Mitzel took regularly as he headed home from his office and is a fitting tribute to him.

The second planting date is Oct. 13 with bulbs to be planted along the fence/border from near the Teepee all the way along towards the Visitor Centre.

The Daffodil Project is looking for volunteers who would like to participate for an hour or two on those planting dates. Planting will begin at 9 a.m. and continue until about 3:30 or 4 p.m. There are all sorts of ways to get involved. Trenches for the bulbs to be placed in are made by machinery. Volunteers either place the bulbs in position, use rakes to pull the soil over the bulbs or help carry buckets of bulbs to those doing the planting. The project offers jobs for people of all physical abilities.

If you are interested in helping email hatdaffodils@gmail.com

The goal of The Daffodil Project is to have one million bulbs planted along the highway between Redcliff, Medicine Hat and Dunmore, creating a 10-kilometre stretch by 2025.

It’s something that can bring a smile peoples’ faces as they drive along the highway in the spring when they are in bloom.

For more information on the project, including how you can donate for the purchase of bulbs, go to: http://www.medhatdaffodils.wordpress.com

Every cent donated goes to purchase bulbs. The Daffodil Project depends on a variety of businesses for generous donations and the use of equipment to make this possible.

You can also contact Gillian Slade, chair of The Daffodil Project, by telephone at 403-528-8635.