LEWES, DE - Volunteers from across Sussex County participated in Lewes in Bloom's annual tulip dig on Saturday morning.
On Saturday morning, volunteers got up early to participate Lewes in Bloom's annual tulip dig. People brought their trowels and buckets to help dig in several gardens across the city, including the 1812 Park, the Otis Smith Park, the Margaret Rollins Community Center and Lewes Library, and the Lewes Post Office.
Lewes in Bloom is a not-for-profit that's mission is "to promote and maintain the beautification of Historic Lewes public gardens and parks through citizen volunteerism."
WBOC spoke to John Roecker, who began volunteering with Lewes in Bloom in 2015 and is now the Co-Chair of the non-profit. Roecker and his wife are also lead patrons of the Lewes post office garden. They lead a team of about 12 volunteers who work annually to keep the site's garden looking bright and colorful. "We've planted about 1,500 tulips here in October and some pansies. In the middle of May we are going to replant some annuals."
Lewes in Bloom was founded in 2002 by Warren Golde and 7 other members. At the time, Roecker says they went around hand-watering the flowers in planters. Since its conception, the group has grown to about 460 members who donate about 1,600 hours per year to plant and upkeep the City of Lewes' gardens. Roecker says, "Lewes in bloom is here to provide beauty for the City of Lewes and keep its native heritage going". He adds that volunteering like this keeps the community together. "It means a lot to the community. The community is known for the gardens we have, so it's very special for the community and for us."
Volunteers from Lewes in Bloom will come back in May to plant about 1000 to 2000 annuals. The group is open to the public and invites those in the community to come out to assist in "beautifying" the city.