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Plant City Program Plants Seeds Of Preservation

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By GEORGE WILKENS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 19, 2008

PLANT CITY - About once a month, two dozen children invade the city public works building for a free lesson about nature, the environment and ecology.

The youngsters, ages 4 to 12, participate in hands-on education programs aimed at helping develop environmentally conscious citizens dedicated to helping preserve their planet.

May's hourlong program started with a slideshow and short lesson on wildflowers, followed by what most interested the children: the opportunity to paint a terra cotta pot and anything else nearby.

Trent Sanders, 9, used his four-color palette to create a classic "Jack and the Beanstalk" scene on the pot that would soon become a wildflower garden.

"I decided on that because it was a plant," he said.

Many of the classes, led by city environmental education coordinator Shawna Everidge, are held at the city's public works building, 1802 Spooner Drive.

Others, including some geared more for adults, are at Bruton Memorial Library.

A recent workshop about bats provided participants with a house to attract the furry, flying mammals, plus information about the benefits of the nocturnal animals known for a voracious appetite for insects.

Upcoming classes include one on sea life and another on worms.

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