Palmer FFA program hosting plant sale

Just in time for the start of the growing season, the annual Palmer High School FFA Plant Sale will be held on May 9-10 and May 16-17 this year.

Students will be selling a variety of vegetables, flowers and hanging baskets, ready to be planted in a garden or proudly displayed on the porch. Supporting local youth and the future of agriculture in Alaska is good for the community, as well as the health and well-being for those in the Valley.

“I think it’s important to have a big plant sale like this to have the community come together,” FFA student Ella Luey said. “Farming is really important and agriculture is really important, especially in the environment and the society right now. And to just show up for our community and have a huge plant sale like this, I think it’s really important.”

The list of vegetables offered this year include broccoli, cauliflower, sage, parsley, oregano, thyme, cilantro, basil, zucchini, pumpkin, kale, several varieties of tomatoes, three kinds of cucumbers, two types of cabbage and strawberries. A variety of flowers, including geraniums, fuchsias, petunias and calibrachoa will add color to any garden or in any porch planter this summer.

“We’re in the greenhouse more than we are in the classroom,” Luey laughed.

FFA students have been preparing for the plant sale since the beginning of January. They inspected their seed packets to determine growing times for each plant and generated an online planning board to determine when to start each variety.

Students have been posting fun content on Palmer FFA social media accounts providing greenhouse tours, transplanting tips and interviews with other students to advertise for this year’s event.

All proceeds from the plant sale go to Palmer FFA to support them throughout the year and to purchase seeds and equipment for next year’s sale. All are encouraged to attend over the two weekends to enjoy the FRUIT-ful labors of the next generation of farmers, gardeners and agricultural workers in Alaska.

“It definitely brings our community together and it can get more people involved in FFA, which then produces more people in agriculture,” FFA student Lanie Rosenberg-Dreyer said.