Retired teachers seek help with project idea
Members of the Brown County Retired Teachers Association have been working for several months to revive a flower garden at Brown County Health & Living Community (see photo above), but they also see potential for a much larger project.
The administrator of Brown County Health & Living has approved preliminary plans to redo the large courtyard near the back of the building. Many residents’ rooms look out onto it. It already contains trees, grass, a gazebo and some other elements. Designscape has donated a garden design that would include paths for walking or wheelchair use, flowers and other features.
Susan Ridge, one of the retired teachers who worked on the other flower garden at BCH&L, would like to know if any community members would be interested in doing fundraising or other work to make these plans come to life.
To express interest or to learn more, call 812-988-7776 and leave a message.
Help save Indiana ash trees with donation
The Indiana Parks Alliance is collecting donations to help save ash trees on Indiana public lands from the emerald ash borer, an invasive insect that’s killed tens of millions of these trees since 2002.
Emerald ash borer has been documented in all 92 Indiana counties, the parks alliance reports. Ash trees once took up 15 to 20 percent of the state’s forests; but without aggressive action, 95 percent of all Indiana ash trees will be lost within 10 years, the group has said.
Donations to the Indiana Parks Alliance will help cover the cost of treating ash trees and killing the bugs. A special insecticide is injected into holes drilled near ground level. It’s a type that won’t harm pollinators like honeybees, said Tom Hohman, president of the parks alliance.
It costs about $10 per inch of diameter to treat a tree, he said. The group is trying to raise $20,000.
“If we can find good ones in great shape, we’d like to save them,” he said. It takes awhile for trees to mature enough to drop seeds, and the group wants to make sure the tree species isn’t lost.
To donate or to learn more, visit indianaparksalliance.org.
Natural history tours offered in December
Indigo Birding Nature Tours guide David Rupp will give in-depth van tours of Brown County State Park and nearby landmarks from 9 a.m. to noon, Fridays, Dec. 1, 8 and 15.
Tours, $25 per person, will focus on the history of the land, people who lived here, and native plants and wildlife. Points of interest will be chosen based on weather conditions and some short walks may be incorporated.
With questions or to register, email [email protected], visit indigobirding.com or call 812-679-8978.
