KELLOGG — Famed poet Alfred Austin once wrote, “The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just on the body, but the soul.”

Patrons of the Silver Bee Community Garden in Kellogg have been able to understand this glory firsthand over the past nine years. Most recently, celebrating the garden with the annual gala, with the theme of Honeybee — with gala goers eating and drinking their favorite honey concoctions.

“We celebrated our ninth season and the international honey bee day with a honey tasting station, honey barbecue ribs and summer dishes brought by the gardeners,” President and Coordinator Deanne Fitzgerald told the News-Press.

World Honey Bee Day is celebrated on the third Saturday in August, recognizing the honey bee and the bee keepers who tend the hives. Planting wildflowers, orchards, and other flowering plants like the ones at the Silver Bee Garden can support these pollinators.

The Silver Bee garden broke ground in May 2014, currently has 50 garden beds, and has gone through some changes over the years.

Most significantly over the COVID-19 pandemic, where strict guidelines, such as washing hands prior to entering the garden, limited the number of gardeners at a time as well as fully restricting visitors, and constant equipment sterilization.

The garden has come back to a sense of normalcy, as locals are able to use it as more of a community space once again, for events like the annual garden gala.

“I want to give a big garden thank you to all our gardeners who attended,” Fitzgerald said. “A big thank you to Sarah Murphy with Sol & Serre for our bouquet, and Don Lee for cooking the delicious main dish. Those who attended had a great time.”

For more information, please visit the Silver Bee Community Garden Facebook page.