Garden Party at Snyder Park

The OSUE Master Gardeners of Clark County are a volunteer group of around 120 men and women, who have been carefully tending to nearly 55 acres of Snyder Park for almost a decade. Since the Snyder Park Golf Course closed its greens in 2014, they have been maintaining the earth and developing a park system since 2015. Thanks to this group of dedicated individuals Springfielders have a public space to enjoy and learn from the natural phenomenon which ecology has to offer. 

With the aroma of the flowers in the research plots saturating the nearby air, current volunteer Jill Phister conducted one of the many summer tours of the grounds on August 17th. She begins by speaking on some of its history, telling how the Snyder Brothers who owned the land donated it to the city in the early 20th century. “The only caveat was that it had to remain green space for the public. Originally there were sheep grazing in this area, then the golf course came along. It was later decided to close the course because too many were in this region. That’s when the master gardeners were asked to handle it and offer education, beautification, and a park that would be available for all people in the city of Springfield in order to improve the community” says Phister. For about 35 years she worked as an educator at Ohio State University, and has been trained to teach agriculture in the school system for over 50 years. 

Jill Phister has been a member of the Master Gardeners of Clark County for nearly 2 years but is already in the process of becoming the president of this branch. The Master Gardeners initiative is a division of Ohio State University’s public Extension program. “There is an academic side which involves the curriculum which is taught at the university, which is what I was a part of. Then there’s a research and extension side which works to take what is being researched in the gardens and studied at the university to develop it into a format which the public can utilize and understand” adds Phister.

Each member of The Master Gardener Volunteers of Clark County offers a unique touch to the work they do. One member has even provided the organization with the carpentry skills to build things like sheds for many of the plots and a vine trellis to beautify the old golf clubhouse at the fore of the land. 

The initial update they made for this western-most portion of Snyder Park was to develop a victory garden in the style of those developed during World War I. All of the produce which is harvested is given to the food bank. So far this year the Master Gardeners of Clark County have grown and donated around 2,300 lbs of everything from squash to beans from this garden, alone. 

There are multiple other gardens in this area offering educational materials and research data for people to visit and enjoy. There is also a Children’s Garden sponsored by the Springfield Kiwanis Club which includes an obstacle course and hands-on activities for visitors to enjoy, and be inspired by. Other than the fenced-in dog park on site, Central Bark, a gazebo for concerts and .5 mile walking trail has also been erected to promote visitation and participation from the community. Benches have been set up which locals are able to memorialize or dedicate to a loved one. 

Considering the restoration of the land, incorporation of the clubhouse and development of the park system, current Master Gardener Volunteer Pat Martin has this to say: “I am not even a Springfield Native, however my husband is and I just think the community has done such a wonderful job at paying homage to the history here.” Many of the other sculptures and lawn decor which are peppered around the plots are even scraps from the recently demolished Memorial Hall of Clark County. 

Aside from tours, each year there is a new itinerary of events and workshops to be explored at the Snyder Park Gardens and Arboretum. Everything from their annual plant sale held on the first Saturday in May, to their annual Jubilee on the first Saturday in August; learn more about their schedule and research information, donate, or find out how to devote a park bench to a loved one by visiting their website at https://clark.osu.edu/program-areas/master-gardener-volunteers .