Volunteers are needed to help restore part of the garden at Tracy Memorial Library to its 1920s splendor.
Members of the Garden at Tracy Library are looking for others to join their ranks when they begin to work on the New London library’s outdoor space this April. While all of the half-acre garden will be attended to, special attention will be paid to what volunteers are calling the “taming of the quadrants” project. Among the plants volunteers will use to restore the quadrants are delphinium, campanula, hollyhock and crocosmia.
“This year because we have the quadrant taming we’re looking for more people to come and help,” said Carolyn Fraley, interim president of the Garden at Tracy Library. “Last year they just looked overgrown. There was lots of propping up of plants and branches and whatever.”
The garden was designed by the Olmstead Brothers Landscape Architects in 1927. In the early 2000s, volunteers came across those plans and restored them. It includes a mix of shrubs, flowers and trees.
“We have a lot of perennials and we have a rose garden,” Fraley said. “We put in quite a few annuals as well, so there’s always color in the garden.”
There are also benches for sitting, and it’s not uncommon to see folks reading in the garden when weather permits.
Volunteers meet from 9 a.m.-noon Mondays from mid-April through mid-November. People wear masks and social distance. If they feel more comfortable, they are also welcome to come during their own time.
“We always have a list of chores that are necessary,” Fraley said. Among those are cutting back, weeding and fertilizing.
Professional gardener Sally Dean will be on hand to offer instruction. People are welcome to bring their own tools, but if the group will also have supplies available. Children accompanied by an adult are welcome.
“It’s amazing how many people know about it in town, but haven’t been,” Fraley said.
This year, people can be introduced to the Garden at Tracy by helping continue a decadeslong tradition of keeping it up to its 1920s glory.
Editor’s note: For more information, visit gardenattracy.org. People interested in volunteering should email volunteer coordinator Karen Berg at karen.a.s.berg@gmail.com.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
Correction
People interested in volunteering with the Garden at Tracy in New London should email Karen Berg at karen.a.s.berg@gmail.com. An earlier version of this item included an incorrect email address.
