Yay, We got a press release for our project!

It is not every day that I get mention in a press release. Pretty sweet :)

MOSI AWARDED GRANT FROM FISKARS’ PROJECT ORANGE THUMB®

Tampa, FL (March 27, 2009) – The Museum of Science & Industry’s Richard T. Bowers Historic Tree Grove has been awarded a grant from Fiskars’ Project Orange Thumb®. The grant will support the planting of nine themed gardens in the Historic Tree Grove the week of Earth Day 2009.

“Through Fiskars and Project Orange Thumb, MOSI hopes to increase awareness of how gardening cultivates community involvement and sustainable agriculture,” said Wit Ostrenko, MOSI President.

MOSI’s Richard T. Bowers Historic Tree Grove provides museum visitors with a stroll through history by focusing on the stories of 17 culturally significant trees that are associated with notable people and places across America. The nine garden areas will expand upon the historic significance of each tree and add to the beautification of the Historic Tree Grove.

MOSI is searching for volunteers to help plant three gardens each day during the week of Earth Day, April 23-24 from 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. Participants will be separated into teams, and each person will be assigned to plant one garden each day. To pre-register yourself, or a team of 10 people, contact Kristen Gilpin at (813) 987-6357 or by email kristeng@mosi.org.

The nine gardens to be planted include:
Sensory Garden: planted at the Ray Charles Live Oak to encourage the use of non-sight senses, and to experience a garden in the way of someone who is visually impaired.
Moon Garden: planted at the Moon Sycamore, will focus on plants that bloom at night and reflect moonlight.
Medicinal Garden: planted at the Clara Barton Red Bud to highlight plants from which medicine is derived or plants with healing properties.
Jurassic Garden: planted at the Frank Lloyd Wright Ginko, will focus on fossil plants which, like the Ginko, have lived since the time of dinosaurs.
Flatwoods Garden: planted at the Olustee Longleaf Pine, will highlight native plants of the Florida Flatwoods ecosystem community and similar to those found at the site of the Civil War Battle of Olustee
Edible Garden: planted at the George Washington Carver Persimmon, will focus on edible plants including floral varieties of Carver’s favorite plant: the peanut.
Air Plant Garden: planted at the Wright Brothers Sweet Gum, will focus on plants that can live above the soil, like orchids and tillandsias.
Native Garden: planted at the Fort Matanzas Red Ceder, will focus on plants native to Florida.
Rose Garden: planted at the Juliette Gordon Low Magnolia, will highlight several species of roses in honor of the Girl Scouts founder.


One of the oldest companies in the world, Fiskars—best known for its consumer products, such as scissors, knives and garden tools—began as an ironworks in the small village of Fiskars, Finland in 1649. Started in 2003, Project Orange Thumb is a grant program that provides community garden groups with tools and materials needed to reach set goals for neighborhood beautification and horticulture education. Marking its 7th year in 2009, Project Orange Thumb has provided over 100 community groups with over $200,000 to create and develop their own community gardens.

MOSI today is the result of 52 years of growth and maturity reflecting both on the institution and the surrounding community. With a total size of over 400,000 square feet, MOSI is the largest science center in the southeastern United States, and home to the only IMAX® Dome Theatre in the state of Florida. MOSI is a not-for-profit, community-based institution and educational resource that is dedicated to advancing public interest, knowledge, and understanding of science, industry, and technology. For more information on MOSI, visit www.mosi.org.

About MOSI (Museum of Science & Industry)

MOSI is a not-for-profit, community-based institution and educational resource dedicated to advancing public interest, knowledge, and understanding of science, industry, and technology. With a total size of over 400,000 square feet, MOSI is the largest science center in the southeastern United States, and home to the only IMAX® Dome Theatre in the state of Florida. Kids In Charge! The Children’s Science Center at MOSI is the largest children’s science center in the nation. Disasterville, featuring WeatherQuest, combines education and 10,000 square feet of interactive exhibits on the science behind natural disasters. MOSI’s newest permanent exhibition, The Amazing You, explores the intricate world of the beginning of life, childhood, and adolescent developmental life stages. For more information, visit www.mosi.org.