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OCC is reviving its annual Spring Plant Sale on April 7 and 14 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Horticulture center.
The OCC and surrounding community is invited to visit the first two Fridays of the month to purchase plants produced by students of the Horticulture Program as part of their hands-on learning.
“It’s full circle for the students,” Horticulture Instructor and Lab Coordinator Joe Stead said. “They get ownership of the plants and see the seed out to the customer.”
Plants are donated to the program by local vendors. Students then propagate and tend to them throughout the semester until they are big enough to take home and sell to the community. Edible plants such as tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, and cooking herbs will be available at the sale, as other household greens and flowering selections.
“It’s our time to show off one of the many things we do here and what the community knows us for,” Horticulture Instructor Lori Pullman said. “We get to reconnect and shake hands with the community and the OCC staff.”
This 25-plus-year tradition has seen changes throughout the years with the changes in the community and its needs and wants. Sustainability has become a focus and has seen some greenhouses converted to aquaponics and crops shared with on-campus departments such as culinary and Pirate’s Cove.
Profits from the sale go towards scholarships, student projects, and new supplies like plants and soil. The goal: “We would like to sell out,” Stead said, but any remaining plants will be donated to the community that the department appreciates for its support.
The event is accessible to the general public. For more information, please visit the horticulture department’s website at www.occhorticulture.com or visit them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/occ.horticulture
