Children’s Willow Play Structure

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – A local Basket Farmer is putting his creativity to assist the ‘Urban Greens’ Agriculture movement in Zanesville.

Muskingum Soil and Water Conservation District started bringing the community gardens into Putnam area at Restoration Park. Employee Jessica Stonecypher knew of Local Basket Farmer Howard Peller and asked him to join in on the project by making a children’s structure.

“I’ve been building these structures as a movement in making more ecological play spaces kind of where art craft, the environment, and getting kids to experience nature,” said Peller.

Peller started the structure by cutting Willow in the winter, storing them in a cooler. Once the Willow rods are inserted into the ground they’ll start to grow once again.

“The cells transform themselves and their roots and as long as these rods are moving upwards the vascular system that’s moving water and nutrients up keeps it alive,” Peller said. “Once it starts to leaf out and flourish, roots set it’s really a strong plant.”

The structure will be covered in greenery by next summer. The ‘Urban Greens’ project started once the Muskingum Soil and Water Conservation District received the Cora E. Rogge Memorial Foundation grant for $50,000.