Plant Your Feet in Jenks

The Jenks Herb & Plant Festival will be Saturday, April 23 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown Jenks.

Attention all gardeners, plant lovers, and wannabe green thumbs! Widely anticipated as the official start to spring, the Jenks Herb & Plant Festival will be held Saturday, April 23 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown Jenks. Organizers are excited to be celebrating the festival’s 20th year.
Main Street literally turns green from the long line of booths brimming over with hundreds of flats of herbs of every variety, vegetables of all kinds – especially tomatoes – to get your garden started, flowers, shrubs and trees, garden decorations, and all the essentials. This one-day, free event hosted by Jenks Garden Club brings thousands of spring shoppers into downtown Jenks each year. The family-friendly event will feature 100 vendors this year, and to make shopping a whole lot easier, a shop and drop station will be available.
An exciting new addition to the festival will be the USDA Food Safety Discovery Zone from Washington, D.C. The Zone program incorporates the Be Food Safe campaign with a 40-foot interactive vehicle where consumers can enter and learn about food safety in a fun and engaging way.
The Jenks Kiwanis Club will be flipping pancakes from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. at First Methodist Church, 415 E. Main St. Several food vendors will be available for hungry shoppers, offering festival staples such as burgers, barbecue, funnel cakes, ice cream and fresh lemonade.
Helen Madden, a charter member of the Jenks Garden Club, which began 28 years ago, says the event has a relaxed, wholesome atmosphere due to the quaint setting of downtown Jenks. “It almost feels like a reunion every year. You are certain to run into people you haven’t seen in a while.”
Dixie Grahlman, president of the Jenks Garden Club, adds, “The festival has grown so much since club member Bill Twilley said 20 years ago that our club should hold an event like this. We started with a couple of tables of plants, and now an estimated 10,000 people attend each year.” Special edition T-shirts commemorating the 20th anniversary of the event will be on sale for $20.  
Relaxing acoustic music will fill the air as people of all ages enjoy a spring day outside in beautiful downtown Jenks. Of course, sunshine would be ideal, but the festival is held rain or shine. Mark your calendar now to attend this free event.
Membership to the Jenks Garden Club is open to anyone interested in gardening, novice to master. Dues are $15 per year, due by the second meeting you attend. Jenks Garden Club meets the first Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. at Jenks City Hall. In addition to their beautification projects, the club provides a $2,000 scholarship each year to a Jenks High School FFA member pursuing a horticultural degree.