With the local garden club no longer active and the Chamber of Commerce not providing funds for flowers, the whiskey barrel planters that line Indiana Street in downtown Chinook have stood empty until recently. In the face of these challenges, several area merchants and generous volunteers have agreed to carry-on the beautification project.

In early June, Owner of Shores Floral & Gift, Bonnie Weber noticed the barren barrels and decided the town needed some color and a welcoming touch for tourists. Realizing that the Jumping Junipers Garden Club had dissolved and that the Chamber currently has a different operational structure, Weber began calling business owners who had a barrel in front of their shops. She asked whether each would be willing to purchase flowers and then care for them over the summer.

Weber received an overwhelmingly positive response. "I was just so pleased by the number of people who responded by saying, 'Sure; no problem,'" Weber reported.

The planters were originally purchased by the Chinook Chamber of Commerce, and for several years, members of the Jumping Junipers Garden Club planted and cared for the blooms. Over the course of the summer, watering and nurturing the living attractions could become fairly labor intensive, so using the current divide-and-conquer approach makes the project more manageable.

Cassie Johnson and Lesley Zellmer will not only care for the planter in front of Lodestar Land and Home Real Estate and Treasure State Title Company but offered to take on the one in front of the Mint Bar, as well.

Likewise, Loren and Heather Baird, who live on Chinook's main street, took on two planters, and the workers at the Liquor Store have agreed to water them.

The congregation at the Chinook Alliance Church will fill and care for the planters in front of their buildings, and the crew at Dan's Auto Parts will also maintain the one in front of their store.

Other enterprises that will take part in the beautification project are State Farm Insurance, First Bank of Montana, HUB International, and Ace Hardware. For those establishments that may not have a budget for such an expenditure-like the museums, the Eagles Club, the Chinook Post Office, and the Senior Citizens Center-generous volunteers have stepped up. Bonnie Ortner will plant the two near the Wildlife and Blaine County Museums, Emma Azure will plant and care for the one in front of the Eagles' Club, Postmistress Kasha Jeide volunteered for the barrel in her care, and Karyn Higgins has agreed to nurture flowers for her clientele.

Further adding to the community's appeal, several businesses-such as the Blaine County Journal-have their own planters that feature an array of plants and flowers and have offered to plant and water the planter in front of Finleys Food Farm.

In making a difference on Indiana Street, Weber drew from the information she learned during the Reimagining Rural program last fall. At this MSU Blaine County Extension sponsored virtual event, presenters shared ideas to suggest that in getting something done, it's not essential to form a committee or to set up a series of meetings.

"Seminar speakers suggested we take initiative, lead by example, and start small. Make changes yourself, generate interest and get the word out-maybe even add a social element to make the work more pleasant. If everyone does a small part, we can get something done," Weber stated.

Because of Weber's initiative in simply asking and because Chinook business owners answered in the affirmative, visitors to town will benefit from the welcoming atmosphere, and hopefully the economy will thrive, as well.

After all, research reveals that investing money in landscaping far exceeds the cost of trees and other ornamental plants. Such improvements not only contribute to a positive aesthetic environment that enhances store appeal but also attracts customers and reduces shopper stress. Although aesthetically-pleasing landscaping welcomes customers inside, it further enhances their perception of the level of quality of products and services offered. This translates into expanded sales resulting from longer shopping occasions because of an increase in the perceived quality of the establishment.

According to one former garden club member, Chinook's beautification project began some ten or more years ago. What started as a junior gardening project for getting young people interested in gardening evolved over the years. Initially, the Chamber bought barrels, the youth planted them, and the Jumping Junipers organized, supervised, and followed-through with all of the physical labor of weeding and watering.

Then four or five years ago, the Chamber allocated around $500 for the purchase of flowers, which were ordered from local greenhouses and again planted and cared for by garden club members. Eventually, that allocation ceased.

Petunias are a common flower in the barrel planters that line Indiana Street in Chinook.

Last year, Robin Allen, Advisor of the Chinook Chapter of the FFA at that time, received a National FFA Living to Serve grant. In collaboration with a fellow agriculture education teacher, Allen purchased 200 petunia plugs, which were then transplanted into container trays by the Exploratory Ag class and cared for in the Chinook High School greenhouse located north of the school. In May, a floral planting crew with a few students and several members of the Jumping Junipers assisted Allen in transplanting the petunias to their summer homes.