Special to the
Opelika Observer
Spring flowers are bursting all over Pioneer Park and the gardens and other historic buildings will be open and free to the public on March 14. Grandma’s garden of pass-along plants is particularly lovely this time of year. Dr. Charles Mitchell will conduct a garden “walk ‘n talk” at 9 a.m. and members of the Auburn-Opelika Men’s Camellia Club will be planting a new camellia garden at Pioneer Park. They will be available to share their knowledge of camellias and how to plant them. Jonquils and daffodils are blooming everywhere. On the second Saturday of every month, volunteers and re-enactors gather at Pioneer Park in Loachapoka to demonstrate their arts and crafts. Andrea Crowder (amchomemaker@yahoo.com, 706-518-3609) will assist children and adults in creating old-fashion clothespin dolls inside the Trade Center Museum. At 9 a.m., The “Basket Cases,” a group of folks who enjoy making baskets the old-fashioned way, will continue their classes in making pine needle baskets under the leadership of Mike Thurman (emailbigscout@email.com). Blacksmiths are usually working at the forge, spinners and weavers are upstairs in the Trade Center and someone is always cooking up a period meal in the Cook House or outdoors over an open fire. The Trade Center Museum and other museums are open on Second Saturdays, and the Whistle Stop Pickers gather to practice their dulcimers at 1 p.m. What a great opportunity for visitors to explore the museums and enjoy a period meal from the Cook House at noon. If you have ideas for Second Saturday events or would like to participate should contact Crowder. Events like Second Saturdays at Pioneer Park are hosted by the Lee County Historical Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation, presentation and education about local history. More information can be found by visiting www.leecountyhistoricalsociety.org/.