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Governor Steve Beshear's Communications Office
Grounds of State Capitol Adorned for Derby Visitors
FRANKFORT, Ky. – As spectators from all over the world anxiously await the 136th running of the Kentucky Derby on May 1, 2010, visitors to the Governor’s 2010 Derby Celebration will be drawn to the thousands of cannas, begonias and various other plants and flowers that will be on display on the grounds of the Capitol, the Executive Mansion’s formal garden and the Floral Clock.
Flowerbeds draped in a blanket of alternanthera, canna, salvia, begonia, ornamental pepper, and helenium will welcome visitors. This year the Landscape Branch of the Division of Building Services in the Finance and Administration Cabinet will present a world-class display, incorporating a mix of annuals and perennials into the design of the flowerbeds to help reduce costs and maintain color.
Roses, vitex, blue point juniper and native plants reflecting the formal nature of the structure will showcase the resplendent garden in front of the Executive Mansion. These perennial plants will be supplemented with alternanthera, ageratum, helenium, salvia, cleome, angelonia, euphorbia and scented geranium.
The Floral Clock, a famous Kentucky landmark, will present a thoroughbred and jockey racing along the rail created with various shades of alternanthera with begonias and alternanthera as a backdrop. Kentucky’s Floral Clock is one of six in the world that keeps time while suspended above a pool of water. Coins tossed into the reflective pool are collected to fund scholarships sponsored by the Garden Club of Kentucky.
Pruned trees, mulched plant beds, edged sidewalks and the lush green grass on the Capitol grounds will present a spring rebirth to the thousands of visitors from around the Commonwealth and throughout the world.
“The people of Kentucky are proud to present this beautiful scene to the world on the first Saturday in May,” said Gov. Steve Beshear. “Jane and I enjoy the beautiful surroundings every day and it is our privilege to share it with our many Derby Celebration guests from around the Commonwealth and the world.”
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