Carpenters selected for garden of the month

Palm Coast Observer
News

Jill and Gerry Carpenter, of Kalamazoo Trail, have been recognized as Selection of the Month for April by The Garden Club at Palm Coast. They moved to Palm Coast from St. Augustine in 2004.

Jill, a member of the Garden Club at Palm Coast, has been gardening since she was a young girl in London, England. Their large corner lot in the Quail Hollow neighborhood is said to be a gardener's paradise. Over 200 different kinds of plants are planted on the nearly acre property located on a spring-fed lake. Having color in her garden all year round is important to her, and this time of year the yard is ablaze with azaleas, magnolia, red bud, bougainvillea, hibiscus, red crinum lily, epidendrum and nun orchids, geraniums, foxglove, petunias, roses, and bulbine.

The garden is a mixture of native and non-native plants that attract wildlife, like butterflies, bees, birds, and an occasional deer. Along the side on Kankakee Trail cedars, magnolia, crepe myrtle and Italian cypress screen the herb, vegetable and perennial garden. A large camphor tree provides mid-day shade. Cabbage and tomato plants are interspersed with herbs like thyme and lavender and pots of blooming geraniums, verbena and New Guinea impatiens color this area. Small coquina stone line the meandering paths. Ground covers of sedum, prostrate rosemary, peperomia, wandering jew, verbena, dwarf chennile plant, and baby sun rose reduce the amount of mulch needed in the beds.

ACT-SO students gear up for national culinary competition
Traditionally, students who participate in the local and national ACT-SO competition compete in categories within the sciences, humanities, performing arts, visual arts and entrepreneurship.

But the Flagler County Branch of the NAACP is pushing the bar. In conjunction with the 2014 Culinary Arts partner - Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Orlando - successfully hosted its first Culinary Arts Competition April 19.

Five Flagler students participated from Matanzas High School and Flagler Palm Coast High School and Travis Jordan, a senior at FPC took the win. Second place went to Nassannah Hall, junior at FPC, and third place to Daphnee Francois, also of FPC.

Over $100,000 in cash and scholarships are up for grabs at this year’s National ACT-SO Competition in Las Vegas and the ACT-SO Flagler County is hoping to send a 2014 participant in the competition.

Community support is needed to make this happen. Donations to help send the students to Las Vegas are being accepted. Send all donations to Flagler County NAACP, 1 Florida Park Drive, Suite 305, Palm Coast, FL 32137.

Flagler Humane Society promotes black dogs and cats in May
Flagler Humane Society will promote black animals for adoption between May 1 and May 31, as part of the Back in Black promotion sponsored by national animal welfare leader Best Friends Animal Society.

More than 175 animal rescue groups and municipal shelters across the country including Flagler Humane Society in Palm Coast are showcasing adorable, lovable cats, dogs, kittens and puppies for adoption.

“Black animals are so easily overlooked at our shelter, and those living in foster homes often don’t photograph that well for our website,” said Amy Carotenuto, executive director. “Flagler Humane Society will be promoting black and mostly black animals at a 50 percent reduced adoption fee. This excludes puppies and kittens under six months old. Last year through the Back in Black adoption event, more than 3,000 pets found homes nationwide.”