Public Library of Catasauqua held an informal indoor planting event during the week leading up to Earth Day where kids and their families could come and learn how to plant seeds.

Though originally scheduled to run April 18 and 19, the library staff extended the program through April 21 to provide families more opportunities to participate.

“It’s quite possible families are still returning from Easter vacation, so we wanted to give them a chance to come in if that was the case,” said Kath Morrison, library director.

The event was supplemented by a reading program run Tuesdays and Thursdays by Amy Feidler, children’s services manager at the library. In addition, Catasauqua Garden Club President Deb Mellish was there on the first day.

“In past years, they’ve had a reading program where they read a book about plants or planting,” Mellish said. “During that reading program, all the kids who participated would come and plant something to take home, and the garden club would always assist with that.

“During those types of events, they would have about 20 kids, and the garden club would have a couple people at each table,” Mellish added. “We’ve done that for many years until COVID-19. But this year, the kids just came and went without a set time, and they really didn’t need us to be there all the time.”

Children and their families were welcomed in the afternoon and were guided by library assistant Alyssa Yeakel, who coordinated the project.

Children were able to plant a flower or vegetable seed of their choice. The majority of the materials were donated by library staff.

“In the future, we won’t run it so close to the Easter holiday,” Morrison said, adding she was pleased with the event and feels it was a success.

She noted attendance was stronger April 20 and 21.

“It was fabulous to see the children planting their seeds and looking forward to eating the produce or watching the beautiful flowers grow,” she said.