Poplar Bluff has so many parks, there are activities for everyone, new city horticulturist Murray Hammond said this week during a walk through of an area of Hendrickson Park which will be expanded this summer.
A donation of about two acres on the park's 13th Street side will add green space to the children's discovery and learning area, officials say. The donation came at the end of 2016 and work will be done over the summer to transform the dirt lots.
"The kids really like it over here because it's an open area and there's things for them to bang and clang," Hammond said.
As he spoke, 21-month-old Ryker Ladyman pounded on the metal pieces of a structure near the sensory garden under the direction of his mother.
The park wants to add more of these activities, Hammond explained.
Already installed in the area are pasta sauce and salsa gardens -- planters containing all of the plants needed to make these dishes -- near a trellis for cucumbers and pole beans.
"It's so they can learn about gardening, where food comes from," Hammond said.
The area also has a butterfly garden overseen by a local garden club, an area with the footprints of various animals cast in cement and a stage where children can play and perform.
Across a footbridge, playground equipment, walking paths, a disc golf course and pollination garden are also overseen by the park department.
Pointing out butterfly weed, cone flowers and asters, Hammond explained these plants should attract everything from Monarch butterflies to honey bees.
Hammond and other workers will spend the summer ensuring these plants and those in 10 other city parks are healthy and well managed.
Mondays are reserved for a visit to each of those parks to determine the tasks for the upcoming week, he said.
Limb and brush clean up have been a big focus for the early spring and watering, mowing and weed eating will consume the summer.
"We have a variety of parks and the parks all have something different for people," said Hammond, who was hired by the city in March following the retirement of longtime horticulturist Angela White.
One of the most important tasks for crews, according to Hammond, is trying to schedule work around public use.
The local park system includes Ferguson Grove at Ninth and Maud, a personal favorite of Hammond's before he joined the park department. It offers trails and picnic areas.
Picnic areas are available at almost every city park, with softball and soccer areas at Black River Park on the east side, basketball courts at Wiseman Park, and more playground equipment at Hillcrest, Linc, Wheatley and Whiteley parks.
A full list of park department resources can be found in the recreation guide on the city's website, at poplarbluff-mo.gov.