Looking for beautiful fall plants at excellent prices to share with friends and family? If so, then you won’t want to miss the 2024 Super Plant Auction scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday, November 10, at the Hillsborough County Fairgrounds, located at 215 Sydney Washer Rd. in Dover. The auction, presented annually by the Florida Conservation Coalition, will benefit area youth through conservation programs, scholarships and the extensive mini-grant program. Sponsoring the auction, which kicks off with an 11 a.m. preview, are Odiorne Insurance Agency and Auto-Owners Insurance, two major supporters of numerous events at the fair, which is running from now through Monday, November 11.
Featured plants in the auction will be annuals, perennials, landscape and butterfly plants, ferns, bushes, trees and plant nutrition items. Over 30 local nursery operations support the auction annually, with offerings ranging from 1-inch starter plants to full-size fruit and landscape trees. Fruit trees last year included citrus, mangoes, avocados, papayas, star fruit and bananas, among others.
According to Roy Davis, auction chair, “We’re really grateful for the many members of the nursery community that come together each year to make this terrific event possible. It’s a wonderful way to beautify the environment and help youth at the same time.”
Funds from the auction are rolled into conservation mini grants awarded to a myriad of youth organizations, including 4-H Clubs, FFA Chapters, Scouts and church youth groups. Groups of five or more students, with one adult, may apply for a $250 grant to conduct a conservation project within the county. Projects include road, river and beach cleanups; recycling paper, plastics and electronics; tree plantings; school and community gardens; pollinator and wildflower programs; and other related conservation activities. In fact, last year a Brownie troop took a class on building bat-nesting boxes, which they then constructed and placed throughout the county.
The Super Plant Auction is one of many programs, projects and activities presented annually by the Florida Conservation Coalition, which is dedicated to advocating, educating and facilitating conservation programs for youth and adults. For further information contact Betty Jo Tompkins, president of the Florida Conservation Coalition, at 813-477-8332 or bjt6890@yahoo.com.
