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THE LEGACY OF
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A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 3
about from the lake us PUBLISHER Vince Johnson EDITOR Kayla Green COPY EDITORS Rhonda Barrick Melanie Smith WRITERS Shelbie Goulding Sharron Haley Tim Leible Bruce Mills Ivy Moore Melanie Smith COLUMNISTS Dan Geddings PHOTOGRAPHY Micah Green
Janel Strieter ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Karen Cave karen@theitem.com Mark Pekuri mark@theitem.com
on the cover
Mark Myers at his home on Greenfield Farm in Rembert, where the Black Cowboy Festival has been held for 22 years. Photo by Micah Green 36 W. Liberty Street • Sumter, SC 29150 www.theitem.com 4 APRIL-MAY 2020
KAYLA GREEN EDITOR OF LAKESIDE
APRIL - MAY
2020
Fi sh in g on La ke M ar io n
SPECIAL DELIVERY Local florist piv ots busines coronavirus ous during tbreak
The perfect so distancing activcial ity
Stuck at ho
me?
Growing a po garden can llinator active, get youkeep you outside and save the bee s
THE LEGACY
OF
SUM ER'S BLACK CT OWBOYS BERKELE
Y • CLAR END
ON • KER SHAW
• ORANG EB
URG • SU MTER
6
About a bridge
Micah Green
the Black Cowboy Festival or the Mary McLeod Bethune Festival, may well have been canceled or postponed between the time we wrote them and this magazine gets in hands. If they are, we figured it would still be nice to read about them because they still have interesting backgrounds. Lake Marion is always there, and while restrictions to large groups and public access may be in place, I envy you if you can get out there still. And what better job right now than to deliver beautiful flowers to someone? Social distancing, check. Support a local business, check. Make someone’s day, check. So, while things are weird, life must go on. We’re always thankful for the ability to write and take photos and design and do what we love here, but we’re especially thankful now. Take a look at our advertisers in these pages. They keep us going. Support your local businesses. Thank you for supporting ours.
What a new crossing point across Lake Marion could mean
PUBLICATION DESIGNERS Ryan Galloway
Things are weird. I’m writing this from our newsroom in Sumter. I’m the only one in here. Events have been canceled, restaurants closed for dining in, handshakes and hugs on hold. This issue of Lakeside is usually a favorite of ours. It’s when we get excited writing about all the festivals and events coming up this spring. They’re all ways to get outside after a cold winter, and there’s something for everyone. Bass fishing tournaments, family fun days in town squares, irises blooming around a lake populated with all the world’s types of swans. The novel coronavirus COVID-19 has thrown us for a loop. It has changed the way we all live in a matter of weeks, and it has changed the way we cover news and events in our community. We can’t get out as much to meet people. We can’t talk about all the fun festivals coming up because they’re not happening. This would have been the issue featuring the Striped Bass and Puddin’ Swamp festivals. What we can do, in light of this global pandemic, is still offer you some good reading. Some of these stories, like ones about the Shaw Air Show, which happens once every four years, or
30 26 24 22 14 8
Life on Lake Marion
Berkley's Outdoors can help outfit your social distancing fishing trip
Sumter's Black Cowboy Festival has a storied past
Celebrating the Black Cowboy
Mayesville florist brings beauty to homes during COVID-19
Special Delivery
Celebrating an educational icon
22nd Bethune Festival
Thunderbirds were set to highlight event that happens once every four years
Shaw Air Expo
Planting a pollinator garden during quarantine has multiple benefits
Save the bees and your health
what’s inside
FEATURE STORIES
A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 5
About a bridge Photo and story by Dan Geddings
It
was a long time ago, but I still remember it like it was just yesterday. The surface beneath my feet trembled and shook, then began to bounce. The sensation was somewhat like trying to stand or walk on a trampoline while little kids jumped up and down. It made me very uneasy. The big trucks roared on by, and the bouncing and shaking subsided. Regular car traffic caused no effect. In 1982, I was the new guy on a highway department maintenance crew, and we were setting up traffic control for a bridge inspection team on the Francis Marion Bridge over Lake Marion. I was surprised and alarmed that a concrete and steel structure could move that much. Later, I transferred to the engineering department and supervised a pavement marking operation over the nearby Inter-
6 APRIL-MAY 2020
state 95 bridges. They also shook and bounced from the heavy traffic loads. Just not as much as the old bridge. U.S. 15 and 301 were the main routes up and down the East Coast of the United States before I-95 was completed in the late ‘60s. The highways merged in the Clarendon County town of Summerton and ran together across Lake Marion on the Francis Marion Bridge and separated just beyond the small Orangeburg County town of Santee. They are federal highways that are maintained by South Carolina. The old bridge across the Santee was closed in 1987 because of a lack of maintenance. There simply wasn’t any interest in keeping the bridge operational when the perfectly good I-95 bridges were right there. The only problem with that is that the interstate bridges over the lake were classified as “functionally obsolete” when
they were built because there are no emergency lanes. They are a bottleneck in the federal interstate system. Lane closures for construction activities or accidents on the I-95 bridges have caused unbearable delays and 100-milelong detours on local roads. People have even died because there is no quick way to move a disabled vehicle from the traffic lanes. These bridges will eventually have to be rebuilt. The Francis Marion Bridge had been closed to traffic but open to fishermen, cyclists and Palmetto Trail hikers since 1987. Then, before the solar eclipse in 2017 and to the dismay of many, the Department of Transportation closed the bridge to pedestrians, citing safety concerns. Now, finally, there is some political interest in reopening the 1.85-mile-long bridge again to pedestrians and fishermen. There is talk of fixing up the old bridge, even as naysayers grasp at reasons to keep it closed. Navigational concerns have been raised. That issue is ridiculous, considering there is a railroad bridge just upstream at Rimini on the Santee that nothing bigger than a pontoon boat could pass under. The Federal Highway Administration deals in billions of dollars. The money to
rework the bridge or build a new one right beside it could be secured if there were enough willpower and determination behind the effort. So I would say let’s not talk about what we can’t do but instead about what we can do. Here are a couple of examples of other recent projects. New bridges were built across the Congaree River and the floodplain swamp on U.S. 601 just a few years ago. The existing causeways were retained and realigned with the new bridges that were built to one side, so that traffic could be maintained during construction. The old bridges were then torn down. The only complaint was that environmentalists wanted the new bridges to be longer. Recently a new bridge and access connections were constructed at the U.S. 301/ I-95 interchange in Orangeburg County. The price tag would have been in the millions. No one complained about the location of the work or the cost. Sixth District Congressman Jim Clyburn was criticized by many more than a decade ago for wanting to build a 2.8-mile-long bridge across the Upper Santee Swamp. Hunters and fishermen wrote impassioned letters to the local papers crying out against the project for the damage it would
do to the swamp. Rep. Clyburn met opposition at every turn. The project was labeled “a bridge to nowhere.” Opponents argued that the bridge would offer little benefit to the rest of the state. A new bridge across the lake or a rebuilt Francis Marion Bridge could be a tremendous benefit to the entire state. It would reconnect the U.S. 301/15 corridor. Commercial zones on the route near the lake in Clarendon and Orangeburg could flourish. The bridge could serve as a nearby detour in the event of an emergency on I-95 until new interstate bridges are eventually built. The bridge could incorporate pedestrian access for hikers and cyclists, and fishing platforms could be built along its length. It would be a showcase for this region of the state. The old bridge could be made safe and used until it could be rebuilt or a new bridge is built. A new bridge would be a “bridge to somewhere.” Legislative delegations from the counties that surround the lake could get behind the effort. Perhaps Congressman Clyburn would also be interested in this project that is in the heart of his district.
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Celebrating the history of the black cowboy W hen it comes to history, sometimes there are missing pages in the books. Either the historical moment wasn’t witnessed by a spectator, or it wasn’t considered a moment worth recording. One of these moments was in the late 1800s, when African-American cowboys rode across America's plains. During this time, African-Americans weren’t seen as historically relevant, but Mark and Sandra Myers thought otherwise. They dug deep into the past of the black cowboy and celebrated the race and beauty of the historical riders every year at Greenfield Farm in Rembert. For 23 years, the husband and wife have celebrated with the Black Cowboy Festival, a weekend event consisting of rodeos,
horse shows and educating the public on the history of the black cowboy. “Cowboys come from all over to the festival,” Sandra Myers said. “The Black Cowboy Festival has grown into a huge event for the state of South Carolina. The Black Cowboy Festival is about celebrating the history of the African-American cowboy. The African-American cowboy was omitted out of history books, so my husband and I learned the history of the black cowboy, and this is our way of sharing it with the community and giving back.” The Myerses moved onto the Greenfield Farm property in 1994, where Sandra Myers’ great-grandparents were actually slaves decades ago, giving the land even more historical factors that needed to be
Story by Shelbie Goulding Photos by Micah Green shared with the community. Mark Myers ended up building some historical sites in the back of the 60-acre property to showcase during the festival, along with the show itself. The couple held their first black cowboy event, which started as a community horse show in 1997. The event grew more and more, becoming the educational festival it is today. Sandra Myers said this all started following her husband’s dream; he always wanted to be a cowboy. “When I started out a long time ago, around ‘81, I grew up on a farm, but I never had horses. I had mules, but I always loved the cowboy lifestyle,” Mark Myers said. From working on a farm and eventually getting horses for himself to watching
A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 9
Bonanza on TV, he realized he had never heard of a black cowboy. That’s when he started his research. “I found one out of every three cowboys was of African-American descent,” Mark Myers said. “When your slave ships came in, Charleston was one of your major ports. These folks took this knowledge to the West and helped build the West. Folks that settled in the West came from South Carolina and North Carolina, where all those drop-off ports were.” Myers said open grazing was also born in South Carolina, which is where cattle roamed regardless of land ownership. “They were herdsmen in Africa, and here they were a cowboy,” Mark Myers 10 APRIL-MAY 2020
said. “The word cowboy originated here because the plantation owner had a name for everyone that worked with him.” Mark Myers said when Hollywood made a legend out of the term cowboy, then everyone wanted to be a cowboy, becoming ranch hands. “After I found out all of this and much more, I wanted to do something to recognize us. To let society know that we helped build the West, that we played a major part in it, too,” Mark Myers said. “We had heroes and legends, too, just like any
other race.” Mark Myers said the festival isn’t about separating races. It’s named the Black Cowboy Festival because it’s about AfricanAmerican history, educating the public and celebrating the black cowboy with one another. “It’s not about a white or black thing,” Mark Myers said. “It’s about recognizing the man that got left out of history.” Mark Myers said he likes to showcase how horseback riding keeps a person physically and mentally fit, especially when it comes to age. “You’ll see some cowboys here this year that are 64 years old and still riding unbroken horses and bulls,” Mark Myers said.
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Myers said a 72-year-old man named Romeo Randolph just started riding a couple of months ago. There is also a married couple that started training in new activities for this year’s show. For 12 years, Tommy and Angela Frederick, both of Sumter, have been riding at Greenfield Farm. This year, the two decided to leave behind their usual shows and try something different. “I’ve always participated in the walking horse activities,” Angela Frederick said. “This year, I may be participating in the quarter horse activities. I’m in training for this new kind of horse.” Angela Frederick will be participating in pole bending, barrel racing and other obstacle activities once her training is complete, and she plans to be ready just in time for the festival and take on something different. “It’s a challenge, and I like challenges,” Angela Frederick said. “It is drastically different from the walking horse. As I’m growing in my skill level, I wanted to push myself a little more, like any athlete.” Tommy Frederick said he wasn’t quite sure which activities he’ll be participating in during the event, but he’s training for the quarter horse activities as well. In the past, both Tommy and Angela Frederick have done a couple routines together for shows, and they do a routine as husband and wife with their horses. This year, Tommy Frederick will ride Cocoa, a pure quarter horse, and Angela Frederick will ride Pansy, a quarter and thoroughbred mixed horse, in the show. The two horses belong to the farm, as Tommy and Angela Frederick don’t own horses themselves, but they love being at Greenfield Farm and taking
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part in the Black Cowboy Festival every year. “We’re kind of attached to the farm,” Angela Frederick said. “I like the idea of being a part of something that’s highlighting the culture and featuring the black cowboy.” Tommy Frederick gets out on the farm whenever he can to train, but Angela Frederick goes every other day to train with her trainer, Mark Myers. Not only is Mark Myers training Angela Frederick, but he’s also training three men he thinks can make a career out of riding. When he sees potential in a rider, he doesn’t quit on the rider. He helps the rider become the cowboy and horseman he or she is meant to be. “A horseman is a guy who has the ability to understand and inherit the mind and spirit of a horse. It’s not just a craft, it’s an art,” Mark Myers said. “Here at Greenfield Farm, we are artists.”
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Want to go? The 23rd-Annual Black Cowboy Festival is now scheduled for July 30-August 2. The event welcomes all to celebrate the history of the black cowboy with a cultural experience, great food, many vendors and entertainers, as well as an old-fashioned rodeo with pole bending, barrel racing, calf roping, gaited horses and more.
The four-day event will be at Greenfield Farm, 4585 Spencer Road, Rembert, and some events, like the dinners, require reservations. For more information on costs and to make a reservation, visit blackcowboyfestival.net or call Sandra and Mark Myers at (803) 499-9658 or (404) 707-4656.
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A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 13
SPECIAL DELIVERY Branching Out brings fresh cut flowers to your door
T
Story by Tim Leible | Photos by Erica Goza
his spring has been hard to predict for everyone, as the coronavirus has kept people holed up in their houses far more than normal. Erica Goza, a Mayesville resident who runs a floral company called Branching Out, wanted to do something small to help bring a little joy to people stuck inside. That’s when Goza had an idea. She had a surplus of flowers after deciding to add a crop of ranunculus to her collection this December. Normally she’d sell them at the farmers market, but that wasn’t going to be an option because people were asked to stay home whenever possible. So Goza decided to bring the flowers to them. “Sumter Farmers Market was supposed to have kind of their kickoff market this Friday, so I was hoping to have blooms for that, and it just came down to, ‘How am I going to get these blooms to the people?” Goza said. “It was more of me having to take the blooms to them, and I have had an overwhelming response from the Sumter community.” Goza announced on Instagram that she’d
14 APRIL-MAY 2020
Erica Goza poses with one of her bouquets.
be offering free home delivery, and it took off pretty quickly. She did two batches of deliveries on Wednesday, March 18, and Friday, March 20, and delivered flowers to more than 30 people across Sumter. The most surprising thing to Goza wasn’t that people were interested, but who was interested.
People decided not only to order flowers for themselves, but they also were ordering surprise deliveries. “I had one lady from California contact me to send flowers to a friend,” Goza said. “Then there were several folks that I took multiple bouquets to that were giving them to other people. It wasn’t just people wanting them for themselves; they were trying to spread the joy to someone else.” Those surprise deliveries were the most fun part for Goza. In times like this, a random flower delivery is exactly what a lot of people need. “One delivery I made was that a lady was sending flowers to her mother and her aunt, who live across the street from each other,” Goza recounted. “They didn’t know the bouquet was coming, and I got out of the truck with the bouquets and went to one of the doors, and it just so happened that the two sisters were talking to each other on the phone, so they were talking to each other while I was delivering flowers to the other one.
They were just giddy as school children, so it was a tremendous surprise for those folks.” This decision to do deliveries ended up being a surprise to Goza, too. Normally she’s not selling flowers until late May other than her weekly arrangements for local businesses. She decided to plant the ranunculus without a set plan on what to do with them, and it just so happened that the virus gave her the perfect excuse to sell them with free deliveries. “My goal for the early spring was just to have enough to supply my businesses, and if people contacted me wanting arrangements, I would have the option to do them for special occasions like a birthday or an anniversary,” Goza said. “It doesn’t do me any good to have fresh flowers (and not sell them). They’re like milk; they have a shelf life, and they have a much shorter one than milk. It does nobody any good to have all these flowers all cut and just sitting in a bucket where no one will enjoy them.” “So it was helpful for me to be able to make a little money to pay for them and bring a little happiness to folks during this time, but I’m just figuring this out as I go.” Because this wasn’t something that Goza was planning on doing from the start, she doesn’t have a huge supply left, but she’s hoping to do one more sale of this crop with free deliveries and then see what the future has in store for delivering flowers in the future. “The ranunculus are almost done. I cut a pretty big crop of them this morning, so I’ll probably announce another sale and do another free delivery,” Goza said. “I can’t do that all the time, but with folks stuck at home, if I make 10 or 15 deliveries, then it’s worth my time to go to town and deliver straight to folks.” You can contact Erica on Instagram - @branchingoutSC
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Very nice well maintained waterfront detitled manufactured 3BD 2BA Home in White Oak 1 Area of Wyboo Creek. Owners Added An All-season Sun Room cooled by a mini split unit on the water side of the home. Windows can be opened or removed. $224,900
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20 APRIL-MAY 2020
Tri-Level home in gated waterfront community. Ground level has covered parking, bedroom w/ half bath, laundry area & interior staircase. Second level has great room, kitchen, dining, 2 bedrooms, full bath & screened porch. Third level is a large loft/bedroom w/ closet & full bath. $189,000
Move In Ready Triple Wide Manufactured 3BD 2BA Home In Gin Pond Shores Subdivision In The Taw Caw Creek/Goat Island Area. Neighborhood Has A Boat Launch Ramp Into Taw Caw Creek/ Lake Marion And Pier. Several Golf Courses Located Nearby $129,900
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SERVING SUMTER & THE SURROUNDING AREAS FOR 34 YEARS! A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 21
Bethune Festival celebrates Mayesville's education icon
Story by Ivy Moore
A
ctivist, educator, presidential adviser, women’s and civil rights advocate, college founder, longtime officer of the NAACP – the list goes on – Mary McLeod Bethune was perhaps the most determined and accomplished person ever to come out of Mayesville. In May, if the coronavirus allows, she’ll be celebrated for the 22nd year by her hometown with a parade, a special church service and numerous other activities. Founded by Jereleen Hollimon-Miller, mayor
e • Sant eorg ee G . • St
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of Mayesville, the Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune 22nd Legacy Festival is set for Friday, May 15, through Sunday, May 17. The theme is “Empowering Communities through Financial Literacy, Health, History, Art, STEM Education, Music and Poetry.” Hollimon-Miller, the great-niece of Bethune, cited many of her “Aunt Bethune’s” accomplishments as the incentive for beginning the festival. “In April of 1998, I came up with the idea of establishing a weekend in honor of my Aunt Bethune,” she said. “I, along with my husband, Ed, met with then-Mayor (Willie) Jefferson to
discuss -- and agree, he did. The first grand marshal was S.C. House of Representatives’ Joe Brown, and 22 years later, here we are.” The grand marshal for the festival parade this year will be Dr. Penelope Martin-Knox, superintendent of Sumter School District. In accepting the invitation, she emphasized Bethune’s work in education: “Our community and our nation are certainly better because of the extraordinary efforts of this American educator and civil rights leader. How fortunate were the students who originally attended the Bethune-Cookman University for AfricanAmerican students … started by our very own Dr. Bethune in 1904. This most amazing contribution to education, along with having served as adviser to four United States presidents and having been the first black cabinet member on African-American Affairs to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, certainly is more than worthy of continued recognition and celebration of her legacy.” Praise for Bethune is universal. “If there were a Mount Rushmore for AfricanAmericans, she would definitely be on there,” U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, a Sumter native, remarked in a PowerPoint created by SCETV. See it online at https://is.gd/IgWFRg. In addition to the parade, there will be music by DJ Al, food, games, educational workshops and rides for the kids all day Saturday; the festival will conclude on Sunday with a special service led by Dr. Marion H. Newton at Jehovah Missionary Baptist Church in Sumter. Bethune died in 1955, leaving behind a last will and testament, in which she wrote:
Garris Dental Care W. Scott Garris, D.M.D. • Tiffany Deaton, D.M.D. Rory Furrows, D.M.D. • Jessie S. Robinson, D.M.D.
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I leave you love. I leave you hope. I leave you the challenge of developing confidence in one another. I leave you a thirst for education. I leave you a respect for the use of power. I leave you faith. I leave you racial dignity. I leave you a desire to live harmoniously with your fellow men. I leave you a responsibility to our young people. Hollimon-Miller said the town of Mayesville invites the public to attend the celebration of Mary McLeod Bethune’s contributions and legacy.
Country Club Estates on .86 acre lot. 3brs 2ba, home with new roof, windows and storm doors. Kitchen has granite countertops, ceramic tile backsplash, tile floors, and stainless appliances. Bathrooms have been updated. 10x14 workshop/storage. $215,900
Waterfront Lake Marion Eagle Point, open floor plan, half acre lot. Split 3br, 2ba floor plan. Kitchen has granite countertops. Family room w/ gas fireplace, cathedral ceiling and windows overlooking the waterfront. Boat house w/lift, dock, sea wall, large 2 car carport w/workshop. $359,900
Commercial location across from hospital on hwy 260. 2,963 sf with oak floors covered in carpet throughout building. 2 unused kitchens, 2 full baths, and extra parking in the back. Concrete 20x30 storage building in back. Shown by appointment. $159,900
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SHAW AIR EXPO Once every four years, Shaw soars for the public
Story by Shelbie Goulding
S
ince 2016, community members from Sumter and all other neighboring counties have been waiting for the Shaw Air and Space Expo to return in 2020. With various show displays and aircraft from all over the U.S., the Shaw air show was being boasted as the best yet, as Thunder Over the Midlands was set to highlight for an unforgettable event. “This air show is about giving back, and we’d like to show our gratitude the best way we know how: with a little bit of air power,” said First Lt. Sable Brown, 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs for Shaw AFB. “You will experience the mission of Shaw Air Force Base and the ‘Uncommon Patriotism’ from the Sumter community as they support our biggest event yet. Representatives from all of the services will unite here to demonstrate to the community how much their support means to us.” Brown said this year’s expo will feature
performances from the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, the U.S. Army Black Daggers Parachute Team, Shaw’s very own Viper Demonstration Team and a variety of military and civilian acts. The Thunderbirds are the premier air demonstration squadron for the U.S. Air Force, which consists of 12 officers and more than 120 enlisted personnel, representing 30 career fields. The team combines years of training and experience to provide hourlong demonstrations showcasing the USAF’s advance capabilities. The event also gives Shaw AFB the opportunity to enhance public awareness of Air Force preparedness, to demonstrate modern weapon systems and capabilities, to promote positive community and international relations, to showcase the airmen and to support Air Force recruiting and retention. “In our last air show, an estimated 70,000
people entered our gates to see the U.S. Air Force front and center,” Brown said. “The daring feats and precision maneuvers pushed the boundaries of what we think is possible — which also defines who we are at Shaw.” Deputy Air Show Director Dan Tindall has been working for the Shaw Air Expo shows since 1998 and shared a video online about his role in this year’s show. “The role of deputy director within the planning process and execution of air show is essentially to serve as the assistant to the air director,” Tindall said. “(My) overall favorite part of the job is seeing the young people out on the flight line, and their love of aviation is either born or brought to life by seeing what happens with the different performers and different displays that we have.” **Editor's note: The Shaw Air and Space Expo was canceled in light of COVID-19. When we finished this magazine, there had been no new date set yet.
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2019
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A PUBLICATION OF THE SUMTER ITEM 25
Growing a pollinator garden Save the bees and your mental health Story and photos by Melanie Smith
D
uring a stressful time when we’re all trying to avoid getting sick and passing COVID-19 on to others, we all probably need a break from the headlines, maybe with a cup of hot tea, a mystery novel or a bit of time outdoors. For me, my worries tend to disappear when I’m focusing on my vegetable garden, and since late last summer, I’ve also been creating a pollinator garden in my front yard to attract butterflies, bees and hummingbirds, as well as to enjoy cheerful, showy blooms. If you think growing your own flowers might help you to destress and step back a bit from everything that’s happening in our world right now, you can create an easy pollinator flower garden at home. You can get A bumblebee lands on a daylily at a garden in Swan Lake-Iris Gardens in Sumter. your kids involved, too, and they’ll learn how rewarding growing plants can be. Cut a few stems of your favorite flowers to bring indoors and add color and cheer to your home while attracting beneficial insects to your area and likely helping your vegetable garden if you have one nearby. According to Clemson University Extension, “approximately one third of the food that ends up on a plate is there because of pollinators,” and “about 40% of the flowering plants in North America require insect pollination for reproduction.” Insects such as bees, wasps, butterflies and beetles are crucial to our ecosystem and our food supply, and if you have a vegetable garden, they’re a welcome addition to your yard. You won’t get those juicy tomatoes or delicious sweet corn without them. Master Gardener Amy Landers of Gardens That Matter says pollinators get something out of helping plants reproduce and create seeds and fruit or vegetables, and even moths and bats visit our gardens and move pollen among plants in the evenings. Insects can feed on pollen and nectar and use them for their offspring. According to Landers, bats are important in tropical areas and are part of the reason we can enjoy chocolate, avocados and bananas. She encourages gardeners to think about attracting different types of insect, bird and animal pollinators by planting varieties of flowers that bloom in all seasons. To create your own oasis for yourself and these beneficial insects and animals, all you’ll need is some soil, an empty space that gets A Horace’s duskywing butterfly visits lantanas at a garden center. Lantanas are a great choice for a pollinator garden in South plenty of sun and a few seeds or your favorite Carolina, as they do well even in drought conditions.
26 APRIL-MAY 2020
Plants that attract S.C. pollinators
SAVOR & ENJOY.
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•Aster spp. •Azaleas (Rhododendron spp.) •Bee Balm (Monarda spp.) •Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) •Blazing Stars (Liatris spp.) •Butterfly-weed (Asclepias tuberosa) •Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) •Cardinal-flower (Lobelia cardinalis) •Ceanothus spp. •Coreopsis spp. •Goldenrods (Solidago spp.)
Wine Dine.
•Ironweed (Vernonia spp.) •Joe-pye-weeds (Eupatorium spp.) •Milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) •Phlox spp. •Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) •Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) •Sumacs (Rhus spp.) •Sunflowers (Helianthus spp.) •Sweet Pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia) •Verbena spp. Source: South Carolina Wildlife Federation
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annual or perennial flowering plants. If you’re short on space or live in an apartment or rented home, containers make great choices for these plants, too, as long as they’re watered well during the steamy South Carolina summer months. There are attractive and unique options for containers at Simpson Hardware and Sports, and Master Gardener Sue Timmons, who works in the store’s garden section, can help you pick the perfect varieties for what you’re planning. Clemson Extension’s website, https:// hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/pollinatorgardening, suggests choosing eight to 10 species of flowering plants to attract a wide range of pollinators to the garden. Plants the extension recommends for our state include zinnias, brown- and black-eyed susans, sunflower, cosmos, coneflower, Joe Pye weed and milkweed. Many of these can be easily started from seeds and don’t need to be started indoors, just scattered in your chosen space. If you’re quarantined because of COVID-19 or don’t have many options for buying plants near you, many companies sell hundreds of varieties of seeds online. Zinnias sprout in just three or four days, and I’ve found a powdery mildewresistant variety online to try this year, Benarys Giant, in a rainbow of colors that
should be covered in butterflies by June. Your garden doesn’t have to be limited to just flowers, and you don’t need to group all plants together. More options recommended by Clemson Extension include shrubs and trees that bloom during different seasons. If a flowering tree you’d like to include might shade shorter plants, include it in a different part of your property. Pollinators will still find their way to all your selections. Watching plants grow and bloom in your own space can be rewarding and will help shift your attention to something more positive during this time of uncertainty and worry, and I hope you will give it a try – for your family and for the pollinators we rely on.
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Providing Advanced Orthopaedic Care To Keep The Community Moving. McLeod Health Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr. Rodney Alan is now providing advanced orthopaedic care to patients in Clarendon and Sumter Counties. A resident of Sumter, Dr. Alan looks forward to providing convenient access to care so greatly needed within our area. A Board Certified Orthopaedic Surgeon, Dr. Alan has expertise in the latest surgical and non-surgical procedures for joint and bone disorders. Welcome home Dr. Alan. Specializing in: • Joint Replacement • Anterior Total Hip Replacement • Knee & Shoulder Arthroscopy • Rotator Cuff Repair • Fracture Care • Sports Medicine • Carpal Tunnel • Non-Surgical Treatment Options
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Life on Lake Marion Story by Sharron Haley Photo by Micah Green
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nown for its amazing fishing, abundant wildlife and tranquil waters, Lake Marion has something for everyone. The 110,600-acre Lake Marion and the 60,400-acre Lake Moultrie are both favorite fishing holes for professional and amateur anglers. Teeming with striped bass, white perch, white bass, crappie, channel catfish, Arkansas blue catfish, shellcrackers, bream and jacks, the Santee Cooper lakes are a haven for avid anglers. Lake Marion also holds the state record for largemouth bass with a weigh-in at a whopping 16.2 pounds. Big cats have also been lured out of the depths of the two lakes. The fishing in lakes Marion and Moultrie is exceptional. When Lake Marion was built in late 1941, an abundance of underwater structures was left behind. Today, the underwater stumps, standing dead tree trunks and live cypress trees are a breeding ground for some of the best fishing in the entire United States. With a 315-mile shoreline over five counties, South Carolina’s largest lake entices anglers to try landing their prize fish from depths ranging from very shallow near natural brush piles and the mouths of the many creeks that feed the lake to the deeper depths the lake has to offer. Like the rest of the world, Lake Marion really comes alive in April and early May when the fish are spawning in the shallows. “The first full moon in April, you’ll be able to catch crappie on almost anything, crickets or worms,” said Alice Weathersby, owner of her family's Elliott's Landing and Campground, which is located at 2010 Elliott's Landing Road near Pinewood and serves as a one-stop shop for everything fishing. “I love getting out on the lake. It’s the best medicine, the sunshine and the outdoors. Getting out on the lake is just so relaxing.” Crappie, a favorite for the dinner table, begin biting from late March until early May, and don’t be surprised if you land a two-pounder or two. In April, a variety of fish begin hitting the lures, crickets and worms, with May becoming an even better time to reel in a potential record-setting fish. Don’t forget to check the calendar. During May’s full moon, the fishing is at its best. While fishing at Lake Marion is a monumental lure, the biggest of the Santee Cooper lakes is a huge draw for water enthusiasts. Whether it’s skiing, tubing, wake boarding, jet skiing, partying with your friends or 30 APRIL-MAY 2020
simply floating along its soothing waters, Lake Marion is the place to be. Elliott’s is also known for its crawfish. “It’s crawfish now until July 1,” she said. “You can buy it by the pound, and it’s also good catfish bait. One good thing … if you don’t catch any fish, you can eat the bait.” What’s new on the water this year? Stephen Wray, general manager of Berkeley Outdoors, 4695 Sumter Highway, may have your answer. “Pontoon boats are popular,” Wray said. “Why? Twelve to 15 people can be onboard. They can be set up for luxury or sunbathing. People also prefer to fish from a pontoon boat because of the stability, and you can have a lot of rods set up at one time. We sell a lot to families and those who want to entertain for the entire day on the lake.” Brand names offered at Berkeley include Tracker, Ranger and Triton, with the Tracker boats priced very affordably. Another popular name in boating, Bennington offers boaters new and improved models every year, Wray added. “They are more cutting-edge,” he said. “They are the No. 1 name brand of pontoons in America.” Wray said while Berkeley offers a complete line of boats, pontoons and jet skis, the company is also selling Tracker off-road vehicles. “This is our first year offering these,” he added. “They come as side-by-side utility vehicles in either twoseater or four-seater extended-cab vehicles. Some come with beds and are popular with farmers.” Wray said the Trackers come in all sizes, from adult models to the 90-cc vehicle for children age 12 and up. “We have replacements and upgrades that are
Coast Guard and DNR approved,” he said. “We also have a variety of toys including tubes.” Wray said his company also specializes in power poles, trolling motors and GPS fish finders. Berkeley is also stocked with safety equipment and parts with a service department that is known for getting vehicles repaired and back on the road or lake in no time at all. Berkeley also has two service technicians, David and Robbie Barwick, who have a combined 40-plus years of experience. They can work on anything, including Mercury, Yamaha and Suzuki models. If your boat or off-road vehicle needs rewiring, they can do that, too, Wray said. “Our goal is to help customers get on the water or back on the road as quickly as possible,” he said. “We pride ourselves with our honesty and integrity. We strive to make sure we make our customers happy.” Like Weathersby, Wray agreed that getting out on the waters of Lake Marion is an “escape.” “It’s so relaxing," Wray said, "being on the water and seeing all the nature around you.” **Editor’s Note: According to business owners of landings, marinas and campgrounds on Lake Marion as well as owners of businesses related to fishing and recreational activities, the COVID-19 pandemic may result in restrictions impacting their business into the spring and early summer months.
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