Library hosts plant swap for gardeners

With this especially cold winter hardly moving toward spring and daffodils, the Glen Ridge Environmental Advisory Committee gave Mr. Jack Frost a much needed kick in the pants to vamoose by holding its first ever plant swap Saturday, Feb. 15.

The modest yet enthusiastic event was held at the public library in a first-floor room.

There are several library happenings hinting at an everlasting growing season. There is the native seed library, available during the fall and winter months, offering envelopes of native flower seeds. There is a plant cart where potted, disease-free plants can be dropped off or selected during the spring and summer months.

“The hope is that the plant cart is a collaborative experience,” said Tina Marie Doody, the library director. “But don’t take the whole cart. It’s one for one.”

And there is the plant swap which, at its inaugural, involved a little patience and a little business. People came with plants, put them on an exhibiting table and were given tickets equal to the number of plants dropped off. A raffle was then held for the order of selection. No doubt, there were small disappointments, but enough plants to come away with a little happiness.

The swap was coordinated by Aileen Ruggiero who provided cuttings from her fruit trees. The swap was also her idea.

“I’ve had a swap stand outside my house for several years,” she said. “People would leave a plant and take one. I’ve always wanted to put a swap stand in my yard, but I had no shade until about three years ago. A crepe myrtle now provides the shade”

Ruggiero knew her plants and named some being swapped: string of hearts; anglewing begonia, lipstick plant, snake plant and aloe.

A man who also knows his way around plants, Chris Johnson, a borough employee with the Department of Public Works, said he thought the swap was awesome.
“I would consider today a success,” he said.

He came with his wife, Tiffany.

“She hasn’t just a green thumb,” he said. “She has green arms. We have a lot of plants in our apartment.”

With a box loaded with new plants, Tiffany told her husband they will go online and find a new table for them.

Doody was pleased with the turnout.

“The first time you do anything, it’s hard,” she said. “And today there was the weather.

Another plant swap may be scheduled by the library in April or May.

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