BY DOLORES MULLER

Special to The Pilot

Spring is around the corner, which means it is once again time for the Pinehurst Garden Club's annual plant sale.

For the past 14 years the garden club has offered annuals for sale at rock-bottom prices. Geraniums, begonias, impatiens and vinca can be ordered in advance and picked up on April 30. Each year the sale is held in the sand parking lot next to the Given Memorial Library in the village of Pinehurst. On the day of the sale, a variety of hanging baskets, additional plants and herbs can also be purchased.

The plant sale profits are used to fund a full scholarship each year to a landscape gardening student at Sandhills Community College and for community beautification projects. These projects have not been restricted to Pinehurst, but have included Southern Pines, Carthage and Aberdeen as well.

Some of the projects include landscaping for Habitat for Humanity homes, Weymouth Center plantings and water garden, funds for the Arboretum, Woman's Exchange and the Greenway trail. The Fair Barn restoration, Urban Forest Fund, Master Gardeners working with children, Pinehurst village plantings, Christmas swags in the village, and the Sandhills Children's Center have also been recipients. Additionally, books have been purchased and given to the libraries and schools.

Pre-orders start Thursday, Feb. 17. Contact Barbara at (910) 295-4548 or Estelle at (910) 295-1765 or any garden club member to place an order