Volunteers put in 170 hours for Dixon in Bloom’s petunia project

DIXON — Volunteers for the Dixon in Bloom committee were up early Friday morning and got to work “pinching” the petunias in preparation for June 8, when the baskets will be hung throughout Dixon’s downtown area.

At 8 a.m., the Rock River Garden Club and members of Discover Dixon’s beautification committee, Beautify Dixon, arrived at Nichols Greenhouse in Dixon with garden gloves, buckets and shears. Inside the greenhouse, the group was surrounded by 306 hanging pots, each with 21 petunia plants.

Until about 10 a.m., they went around to each pot and trimmed the petunia strands, known as “pinching.” Pinching helps the plant to grow full and round rather than growing in long strands.

Dixon in Bloom was started in 2011 by Robin Canode, Shirley Vivian, Jan Matha, Terry Nichols and Bill Ost. The group was a “joining of forces” between the Rock River Garden Club, the beautification committee and the since-disbanded Dixon Area Garden Club.

Today, Robin Canode, chairwoman for Discover Dixon’s beautification committee, and Shirley Vivian, member of the beautification committee, both serve as the leaders for the Dixon in Bloom petunia project.

Dixon in Bloom volunteers planted 6,426 petunias last week. The petunias will spend eight weeks growing in the greenhouse.

Friday was the second time this season that they’ve pinched the petunias and will repeat this step four more times. Before the petunias are displayed around town, the volunteers will have spent a total of 170 hours working on them, Canode said.

A lot of research went into choosing the best type of fertilizer for the petunias as well as their maintenance and care. “It’s a labor of love,” Canode said.

The city of Dixon provides the petunias’ water supply and city workers will water and fertilize the pots six to seven days a week depending on the weather.

Beautify Dixon, the Rock River Garden Club and Dixon in Bloom all intersect within the petunia project as they work toward the common goal of beautifying Dixon.

All plants, baskets and hardware are bought through donations from individuals, Beautify Dixon and the Rock River Garden Club. This year, the total costs added up to nearly $25,000, according to Canode.

The Rock River Garden Club is a major financial contributor to the Dixon in Bloom program and a significant amount of the money raised at their annual fundraiser, Blooming on The Rock, is put toward the petunias.

For information, call Discover Dixon at 815-284-3361 or visit Dixon in Bloom on Facebook.