Annual BHS plant sale set for Saturday, with pre-sale scheduled for Friday afternoon
The annual Breckenridge High School plant sale will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 13, but this year’s event will have some extra activities going on.
“This year, we teamed up with the Stephens County Farm Bureau for a full Ag Day,” said BHS ag teacher Jessie Shortes. Participating in the event will be the Farm Bureau, Stephens County 4-H, BHS’s FFA officers, and the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
BHS ag student Madi Warren waters plants that will be on sale Saturday. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
Pulled pork sandwiches will be served for lunch; donations will be accepted for the lunch with the proceeds being divided between the FFA and 4-H. The Farm Bureau will have its mobile lab on site. Additionally, if the weather allows, the FFA will have a booth set up for Easter pictures with animals.
The original plan was for most of the activities to take place outside, but with rain in the forecast, most of it may be moved inside the school greenhouse, located on the east side of BHS.
The predicted rain also has added another element to the sale: the ag department has decided to offer a pre-sale event for one hour – from 4 to 5 p.m. – on Friday, April 12.
The plants for sale will include petunias, geraniums, purple fountain grass, lantanas, a variety of succulents, and some mixed baskets including sweet potato vines, coleus and wandering jew. Prices will range from $4 to $12 with price breaks for multiples.
In addition to buying plants from the greenhouse, customers can bring in an empty pot and the horticulture students will fill the pot with the plant of their choice.
All of the plants were grown by BHS students. This year, Shortes said, the horticulture and advanced ag students are focusing on ornamental plants and nursery production. The freshmen students are focusing on crop production.
During the sale, attendees will have a chance to see the ag department’s newest project, an outdoor raised bed for vegetables. The department received a “Growing From the Ground Up” grant from the Farm Bureau. Shortes said the Principles of Ag classes built the frames for the beds and the freshman students will grow vegetables in them this spring.
Sales from the plant sale fund the horticulture program. “The way this works,” Shortes said, “is last year’s sale funds this year’s plants.”
Breckenridge High School student Kyler Knight dumps a load of dirt into the raised beds for a new ag project while Cecil Isham, center, and ag teacher Jessie Shortes, right, look on. The raised beds will be used for a new vegetable growing project. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
BHS ag students work on the new raised beds outside the school’s greenhouse. The project was funded with the Farm Bureau’s “From the Ground Up” grant. Pictured, from left, are Morgan Robertson, Hagen Anderson, Cecil Isham, Lane Berkley, Brandee McKnight, Madi Warren, Kamryn Nicklas and Sydney Presley. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
Story by Carla McKeown/Breckenridge Texan
Cutline, top photo: Breckenridge High School ag student Brandee McKnight waters some of the plants that will be on sale in the annual plant sale on Saturday, April 13. Because of the possibility of rain on Saturday, there will be a pre-sale from 4 to 5 p.m. Friday, April 12. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)
