Keep Liberty Beautiful is so happy to have three summer interns this year.  They are participating in the Liberty County Summer Youth Employment Program.  

We have been doing a lot of work outside, and Shyanne, NiKaylah, and Brianna have firsthand experience of being out in the hot summer heat.  

It has been scorching outside, and we are taking every precaution to stay safe.  

Here at Keep Liberty Beautiful, we are working hard in our Reading Garden and preparing for Pollinator Census, Rivers Alive, and our Cigarette Litter Prevention Program.  

We hoped to see more butterflies in our certified Pollinator Garden. We are certified as a Butterfly Waystation. We are also working on getting our Butterfly Garden Certification, which is exciting to us.  

While working in our Reading Garden, we always try to plant native plants, which are better for the environment.  During my readings and receiving advice from our own volunteer coordinator and garden expert, Lisa Choeun, native plants are better matched to growing in their native area.

Native plants grew naturally before humans began to bring in outside plants to grow and farm. Native plants adapted to the climate and the cultural conditions of an area.  The plant becomes a part of the ecosystem. There are many benefits of native plants to include trees also.  

Native plants take less care and energy and ultimately will be healthier than planting exotic plants. 

You will have some weeding duties when starting a native garden, but once the plants begin to grow, they will require less time for things like mowing, planting, and chemical sprays.  In our Reading Garden, we are doing our part to “Keeping it Green” by planting native plants and making an effort to increase pollinator habitats in Liberty County.  

Keeping it Green is not the only thing we are doing this summer.  We are trying to Keep it Beautiful too.  

One of Keep Liberty Beautiful’s goals this summer is to promote awareness and reduce cigarette litter in Liberty County and Fort Stewart.  

We are doing this by being a part of Georgia’s Coast is not and Ashtray.ORG partnership.  Cigarette butts are so small, some people do not think it’s littering when cigarette butts are thrown on the ground.  

KLB is giving away cigarette receptacles that can be placed on a building, a pole, and stand-alone.  

They are available to anyone who needs one and wants to participate in the Liberty County Proud and Beautiful program.  

If you want information on the Liberty County Proud and Beautiful program or plants to grow in your garden, email klcb@libertycountyga.com or call (912) 880-4888.  

Also, don’t forget to follow us on Facebook @keeplibertybeautiful or website:  keeplibertybeautiful@org.