Yard of the Week

Usually when someone asks homeowners if they want to display a sign in their yard, the request is met with resistance, but Tammy and Bruce Nelson of Havre will be proudly displaying a new sign: Yard of the Week, awarded by the Bullhook Blossoms Garden Club.

Members of the garden club take turns throughout the summer choosing eye-catching yards around the city, and this week’s choice came from Paulette Cronk, one of the club’s co-founders who is also a member of the Jumping Juniper Garden Club in Chinook.

The Nelsons’ yard, which can be seen at 440 3rd Avenue, caught her eye right away, Cronk said.

“They obviously put so much thought and effort into it,” she said.

The Nelson’s told her that they hadn’t lived in the house long, but they wanted to do something that would showcase their historic home, which is around 100 years old.

Cronk said they had accomplished just that with an array of blue flowers and other decorative accents in a well-kept yard that includes a line of potted flowers leading from the sidewalk to the front door.

The Nelsons told Cronk that they will be working on developing the landscaping and flower beds in the backyard next.

Cronk said that each garden club member looks for something about a yard that appeals to them personally, but in general they are looking for well-kept yards that look eye-catching and healthy from the street. Though they have chosen yards done by professionals, many of the yards chosen for the award are designed, created and maintained by the homeowners themselves, like the Nelsons.

The garden club members hope that the Yard of the Week award and sign will not only reward the yard owners for their efforts, but also inspire others to spruce up their yards.

Bullhook Blossoms Garden Club meets the fourth Thursday of every month with a regular meeting and an educational presentation from a member or a guest.

Anyone interested in joining the Bullhook Blossoms Garden Club or suggesting a Yard of the Week can contact Carole Spolar at 399-7030 or Laurie Sageser at 262-3627. People in the Chinook area can find out more about the Jumping Juniper Garden Club by calling Linda Haugen at 357-3756.