It’s getting late in the season, but not too late to visit the butterfly-friendly garden established on the grounds of the Royal Oak Public Library. The garden is complete with host and nectar plants and is growing more beautiful with year. This past spring and summer, Maria Blair, our new garden coordinator, along with her crew of volunteers, maintained and planted in the garden.

They recently planted fall flowers and dressed the garden up with pumpkins, just in time for the Time Capsule ceremony.

Plans are underway for a special dedication ceremony for the Butterfly Garden in June 2012. Many exciting Butterfly Garden events will take place next spring and summer!

• Beginning in mid to late May, live caterpillars will be at work in the library, eating, growing, and developing into chrysalises and emerging as butterflies.
• Tuesday, June 19, 2012, a special program “All About Butterflies” will be held for children.
• Saturday, June 23, 2012, the Butterfly Garden Dedication and Butterfly Release (weather permitting) will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 12 p.m.
  • Feed the Butterflies & Life Cycle Exhibit - 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
  • Butterfly Gardening Presentation - 10:00 AM.
  • Dedication and release of the butterflies - 12:00 PM. 

The Butterfly Garden project started as a volunteer project in late 2008 with a team of five Master Gardeners, Sandra Blocker, Sid Thomas, Beth D’Anna, Mary Jean (MJ) Skiba and Emily Franckowiak. The gardeners created a magnificent plan complete with paths, stones, types of plants, and possible art work.

In May of 2009, the heavy work began. Greg Rassel, Dan Dickinson and their crew began removing the sod. DPS delivered mulch to apply to the beds. Path material and edging was ordered and delivered. The Master Gardeners and many community volunteers removed bushes, plants, and rocks to get the beds ready. They laid the pathway material, edged around the paths, and distributed mulch. Jeff Birkett of Worryfree Maintenance volunteered to help the gardeners finish the pathways. Then, the Master Gardeners and volunteers planted bulbs, many donated by Telly’s of Troy, to insure color in the garden for the spring of 2010.

In May of 2010, the Master Gardeners and volunteers started to plant the butterfly attracting nectar and host plants. We had special planting days for volunteers. Gwen Ross, Market Master of the Royal Oak Farmer’s Market approached the farmers and asked for plant donations. Many local gardeners contributed plants from their own gardens.

If you would like to volunteer, you can stop at the library and complete a volunteer application or you can contact librarian Mary Ann DeKane or call her at 248-246-3714 and the next time volunteers are needed, you will be contacted by Mary Ann or Maria Blair.

Many people also contributed monetarily to the project. Donations included a generous gift from the War Memorial Society and donations in memory of loved ones. If you wish to contribute, your check should be made payable to the Royal Oak Public Library, write “garden” in the memo field.