By LAURA BROOKHART / Community Columnist

A group of some 17 loyal and enthusiastic members of the Helena Beautification Committee arrived at the Caboose in Old Town on March 3 for Spring Clean-up Day.

Weeding was the most needed endeavor that day in preparation for spring plantings to come in the beds and hand-constructed planters throughout Old Town as well as City Hall.

The much-appreciated hanging baskets that adorn Old Town and extend further along Highway 261 will also return and be planted again by volunteers on Spring Planting Day, April 14.

The City Council is set to approve a budget of $4,000 for the project.

The theme of each basket will be the same motif as first implemented by Barbara Hyche, once known as the “flower lady,” and will contain a thriller, a filler and a spiller.

The delicate-leafed silver/blue Dichrondra ‘Silver Falls’ has been a favorite spiller for many years along with ornamental Sweet Potato Vines (Ipomoea batatas) “Margarita” and “Blackie.”

Filler plants have included yellow Calibrachoa “Million Bells” and red and pink blooming wax-leaf begonias, along with yellow-flowering Lysimachia “Golden Globes.”

Other plants one might look for to use in their personal plantings include Sweetheart Storksbill, Georgia Blue Speedwell, Northern Lights Viola, Scent First® Tickled Pink Dianthus, Morning Star White Sea Thrift and Super Bowl Sunset Wallflower.

The first two Earth-Kind roses, Sunrise Sunset and Home Run are starting to bloom at the Trial Grounds at the Helena Sports Complex.

Earth-Kind roses demonstrate superior pest tolerance, combined with outstanding landscape performance, and many will be popping up soon, so stop by and smell the roses.