City-Wide FREE Plant Exchange held within Historic Meridian Park (HNP) on Saturday, May 9th, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM
The Mapleton-Fall Creek (MFC) Unity group is hosting a city-wide FREE plant exchange within the HMP neighborhood. The exchange takes place on Saturday, May 9 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM, rain or shine, at St. Richard’s School’s open-air courtyard next to the school gym. The school is located at 33rd and Meridian Street at 33 E. 33rd St. Ample parking can be found in the large parking lot north of the school or in IPS School 60’s lot.
Organizers are encouraging residents throughout Indianapolis to bring their non-invasive plants, divided perennials, bulbs, tubers or indoor plants, vegetable or flower seeds, or seedlings to share. Likewise, anyone is welcome to take what he or she needs from the wide variety of plants at the exchange. While not a requirement, small donations will be accepted from those who don’t bring plants to share.
Organizer Sarah Wiehe, a MFC resident and MFC Unity group member, lived in Seattle for 6 years and appreciated plant exchanges held there. “The Seattle plant exchange really brought people together from across the city who were interested in sharing both plants and ideas about urban gardening,” says Wiehe. “It was purposefully held in a community whose residents may have had more difficulty buying plants and with less access to transportation, so this community could both benefit and interact with the surrounding communities on a shared interest.”
After the exchange, a crew of volunteers will plant leftover donations in the yards of nearby elderly residents. “We want to be able to share the joy flowers and plants bring to people by turning this event into a service opportunity for seniors or other neighbors within MFC who are not able, due to any number of reasons, to plant flowers or vegetables on their own, but would appreciate and could care for these plants,” adds Wiehe.
“We timed the plant exchange to start after the conclusion of the May 9 Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society (INPAWS) annual plant sale held inside St. Richard’s gym, so anyone going to the INPAWS sale is encouraged to drop off their divided or unwanted plants outside the gym for the our exchange,” notes Lorraine Phillips Vavul, HMP resident and MFC Unity member. The INPAWS sale starts at 10:00 AM with a live plant auction beginning at 11:15 AM and features a wide collection of reasonably priced, quality native Indiana plants. “INPAWS always offers a first rate plant sale and we are happy to be building a synergy between the events to encourage both overlapping participation and interaction,” adds Vavul.
According to Scott van Kirk, Watson McCord resident and MFC Unity member, “The plant exchange grew from discussions held at last year’s “Going Green” Forum, one of three Unity Forums the MFC Unity group staged to develop neighborhood camaraderie, cohesiveness, and engagement.” The MFC Unity Forums were made possible through an IMAGINE grant from the Great Indy Neighborhoods Initiative (GINI). The MFC Unity group consists of an informal collection of neighbors from all parts of the MFC area including the Watson McCord, HMP, traditional MFC neighborhoods, Haywood Park block club, and the MFC Development Corporation.
Anyone willing to volunteer to plant plants in the MFC neighborhood on May 9 from 3:00 to 5:00 PM or know an elderly or disabled MFC resident who needs help with planting, please contact Sarah Wiehe. Volunteers are also needed to dig perennials the weekend before the Plant Exchange (May 2 and 3) and to give advice on plant care during the plant exchange (May 9, 1:00 to 3:00 PM). Anyone needing help dividing their plants for donation, please call or email the address above as soon as possible. Additional information, including promotional flyers to pass out to friends and neighbors, can be found at the IndyTilth website.