Self-watering planters coming to downtown Wakefield
Thanks to ‘Wakefield Main Streets’ program
By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — You’ve seen the flower barrels currently along Main Street in the downtown filled with colorful plantings from spring through summer. Starting in May, look for some new additions to that downtown beautification effort.
The Wakefield Main Streets program will be providing four new self-watering planters right in the center of the downtown. The new planters will be placed on the bump-outs on the corners of Main and Chestnut streets and Main and Centre streets.
John Ross, a member of the Wakefield Main Street Program board of directors recently appeared before the Board of Selectmen to pitch the idea.
He said that the Main Street Program would pay for and maintain the new planters, the soil and the flowering plants, so there will be no cost to the town. He said that the group would like to have the self-watering planters in place by May 1.
The Main Streets board has narrowed the type of self-watering planter to three different styles. The new planters will not supplant the flower barrels currently all along Main Street, which are maintained by a different organization.
In a self-watering planter, the potting mix is held above the water by a screen or false bottom. The water chamber and the soil above are connected by small porous channel filled with soil, which then acts as a wick.
As water is used by the plants or evaporates off the surface of the soil, capillary action draws more water up from below, exactly as much as is used, and no more. The soil has just the right amount of water all the time, but also maintains air pockets, which the plant roots also need.
Selectman Paul DiNocco, who is also president of the Wakefield Main Street program board, added that the self-watering planters have a reservoir for water that only needs to be refilled about every three weeks, even less often if supplemented by rain. In between fillings, the soil is kept moist by the planter itself.
Wakefield is one of more than 2,000 communities in the United States where “Main Street” programs have taken root. Main Street America is a national movement, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
According to its Facebook page, “The mission of the Wakefield Main Streets program is to promote and enhance the economic vitality, cultural resources, historic significance and quality of life in downtown Wakefield. Our programs are dedicated to making downtown Wakefield a great place to invest, work, play, live and experience.”
Ross told the selectmen that he thought the new self-watering planters would be “a great addition to the downtown.”
The selectmen agreed and voted to approve the idea.
[This story originally appeared in the March 31, 2016 Wakefield Daily Item.]
Filed under: Columns & Essays, Community, Feature stories, News, Wakefield | 1 Comment
Tags: Board of Selectmen, downtown beautification, flower barrels, John Ross, Main Street USA, Mark Sardella, Massachusetts, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Paul DiNocco, self-watering planters, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield MA, Wakefield Main Streets
Search this site
Categories
Flickr Photos
Archives
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
- December 2018
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- July 2018
- June 2018
- May 2018
- April 2018
- March 2018
- February 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- July 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
- April 2007
Recent Comments
Mark Sardella on A very Special Town Meeti… John Breithaupt on A very Special Town Meeti… Mark Sardella on A very Special Town Meeti… John Breithaupt on A very Special Town Meeti… Dan Noren on A very Special Town Meeti… Blog Stats
- 368,060 hits
LINKS
Flower boxes and signs are very nice
Main Street America and Main Street Wakefield is a noble organization but when is our town leadership and our chamber of commerce going to start putting more of an emphasis on incentives and great offerings to business’ to fill the many vacant run down closed up store fronts on our Main Street? All due respect to our leaders we can have hundreds of signs saying stroll shop and dine and twice as many beautiful flowers in self watering plants but unless this community begins to losen it’s restrictions and high rents fees and taxes on small business’ all the signs and flowers in the world will do nothing to attract people and strengthen our towns economy if our downtown storefronts continues to remain vacant.
Historical preservation and revitilalization should not be a bad word and certainly not feared. If Melrose can have such a successful and beautiful mix of historical preservation and thriving downtown business’ why can’t Wakefield. Stop living in the good old days and instead start concentrating on making Wakefields Downtown prosper again.