By TERI L. BROWN
Spring is around the corner, and Thanksgiving Point is getting area gardeners excited and anxious.
Thanksgiving Point, located in Lehi at 2095 N. West Frontage Road, opened their 'Idea Gardens Nursery' Saturday. The 'Idea Gardens Nursery' includes 10 acres of gardens designed to showcase a variety of landscaping options. It includes an assortment of conifer and deciduous trees, shrubs, perennials, herbs and annual flowers.
'The opening day was a success. Saturday, about 5,000 people came to see what we are all about,' said Paul D. Eddington, Thanksgiving Point's communications specialist.
'The Garden Center embodies the mission of Thanksgiving Point,' said Alan C. Ashton, Thanksgiving Point owner. 'It includes educational facilities where guests can learn about gardening. It has wonderful gardens. And it provides visitors with the means and opportunity to beautify their own property.'
Eddington said Thanksgiving Point was founded on the belief that all things that come of the earth were created for the benefit and the use of man, to please the eye and gladden the heart, to strengthen the body and enliven the soul.
The Garden Center is also a retail nursery. It carries garden supplies, plant material, fertilizers, soil additives, sprays and ornamental outdoor furniture.
'Our emphasis in the nursery will be quality and variety,' said Jim Gish, nursery manager. 'We want to help everyone with their gardening needs at a very competitive price. The beauty of the Idea Gardens sets us apart, and our trained staff is anxious to share their horticultural knowledge with our customers.'
Hour-long, free gardening classes will be taught in the Idea Gardens on Monday and Wednesday evenings in the amphitheater. Classes will also be taught on Saturdays. The nursery is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The Idea Garden is only one of Thanksgiving Point's many attractions. The large wholesale nursery is beginning its second year of operations. The Animal Park, Garden Emporium and Garden Wall Restaurant all opened last fall.
The Garden Wall Restaurant is a fine dining restaurant set in beautifully decorated rooms for a special occasion or a relaxing evening out. Thanksgiving Point also has European-style bakery and a lunch salad and soup buffet daily.
The Thanksgiving Gardens and golf course are both under construction.
'If the weather continues to agree with us like it is now, the golf course will open on June 2,' Eddington said.