Chattahoochee Valley residents hoping to hone their “green thumbs” while learning about the power of plant-based eating can do so at the Plant Party, a family-friendly event celebrating plants, hands-on learning and the joy of growing your own plants and food.
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on Friday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The event is free and coincides with Farmstand Friday. No registration is required.
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
“We wanted to, set up a day where people could learn how to grow their own garden, how to make a healthy plate, how to bring in beneficial insects,“ MercyMed farmer Keith Sims told the Ledger-Enquirer. “These are all questions that we get daily.”
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. “We wanted to, set up a day where people could learn how to grow their own garden, how to make a healthy plate, how to bring in beneficial insects,“ MercyMed farmer Keith Sims told the Ledger-Enquirer. “These are all questions that we get daily.” Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. Sims said the plants for sale will appeal to a variety of gardeners and their experience levels.
MercyMed of Columbus, is hosting the first-ever Plant Party on Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at MercyMed Farm, located at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The event is free and coincides with Farmstand Friday. No registration is required. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops, and a plant sale. 04/15/2026 Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
“We have some complicated heirlooms that are harder to grow for people who want to test themselves, and then easy ones that are really hard to mess up, like some cherry tomatoes,” Sims said, “We have the Sungolds that, honestly, if you’re a beginner gardener, you can’t stop growing them. They grow faster than you can keep up with, even when you neglect them usually.”
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. A group from the Columbus chapter of American Heritage Girls volunteered at the farm Wednesday morning, picking produce, including strawberries. Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
The free workshops begin at 9 a.m. and happen on the hour. They are:
9 a.m. “How to Manage a Greenhouse,” taught by Sims, is for people thinking of building a small, backyard greenhouse.
10 a.m. “Start a Spring Garden,” led by Chris Jackson of Jenny Jack Farm, will teach people how to start a spring/summer garden, which plants to grow, how to take care of them and how to get ahead of garden weeds
11 a.m. “Plant-Based Eating” will be taught by Jamie Benefield, a registered dietician at MercyMed. She will teach people how to create a plant-based diet and how doing so can lead to better health.
Noon. “Pollinator Gardening” will be led by Erycka Brock Kim, a UGA Extension agent. “She’s going to be teaching about native pollinator plants and how to bring in beneficial insects into your garden and into your space so that you can have beautiful insects and work with nature to grow beautiful plants and flowers,” Sims said.
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. A group from the Columbus chapter of American Heritage Girls volunteered at the farm Wednesday morning, picking produce, including strawberries. Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
Billy Holbrook, chief development officer for MercyMed of Columbus, said the farm has grown and become an integral part of MercyMed’s clinical work.
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. Billy Holbrook, chief development officer for MercyMed of Columbus, said the farm has grown over time and become an integral part of MercyMed’s clinical work. “For example, our dietitian, who will be teaching one of these classes, she’ll prescribe what we grow out here on the farm to our patients that are in the medical practice,” Holbrook said, “and so this is another wonderful way that we think we can get involved with our patients healthy living, in hopes of improving health outcomes, through eating well and eating healthy.” Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
“For example, our dietitian, who will be teaching one of these classes, she’ll prescribe what we grow out here on the farm to our patients that are in the medical practice,” Holbrook said, “and so this is another wonderful way that we think we can get involved with our patients healthy living, in hopes of improving health outcomes, through eating well and eating healthy.”
MercyMed of Columbus is hosting its first Plant Party on April 17, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MercyMed Farm, at the corner of 38th Street and Second Avenue in Columbus. The Plant Party will include local vendors with items for sale, plant giveaways, free hands-on workshops and a plant sale. The event is free and coincides with Farmstand Friday. No registration is required. Mike Haskey mhaskey@ledger-enquirer.com
Michigan native Mike Haskey graduated in 1985 from Central Michigan University with a B.A.A. in journalism. Though trained as a photojournalist, Mike has embraced the industry’s always evolving multimedia demands by learning various video skills and more, including becoming the Ledger-Enquirer’s drone pilot. He’s served and lived in Columbus, GA, for more than 30 years.
