By Terri Bryce Reeves, Times Correspondent
Thursday, September 30, 2010
LARGO — Fifteen-foot magnolia trees: $45.
Beautyberry shrubs in 7-gallon containers: $5.
Pink and purple pentas: $2 for a 3-gallon container.
They're jail plants, and they're a real steal.
Hundreds of native, butterfly-attracting and rare plants are now for sale at bargain prices at the Pinellas County Jail, 14400 49th St. N. They've been reproduced, watered, fertilized and pruned by misdemeanants in the Inmate Horticulture Program.
The program's plant nursery and shade house have recently been relocated to an expanded 2-acre plot of land on jail property.
The nursery is now accessible to the public and folks are invited to come and shop for plants Monday through Friday, normally between 1 and 2 p.m., but other times are available. Call first and make an appointment.
The program is under the tutelage of Chuck Pool, who has been a horticulture instructor at PTEC for 25 years; he's taught inmates for the past seven.
"People can get a tremendous deal here," said Pool, 63. "We used to have a budget. Now we don't, so we have to be self-sustaining. If we can break even, we can keep the program going."
Most of the plants for sale have been reproduced from other plants by the inmates. Some are clones from vegetation growing in Pool's yard. Sometimes, they come from a bay area wholesale nursery that donates overstocked and stressed specimens.
"We bring them back to life," Pool said.
On Thursday, inmate Andrew Cariola, 26, was taking cuttings from Mexican heather plants. He dipped the stems into rooting hormone, gently planted them in teeny containers and placed the newbies under misters.
Cariola, who landed in jail after a bar fight, is counting the days until he's out — 106 to be exact.
But he's trying to make the most of his remaining time, enjoying the fresh outdoors, working with his hands and learning new skills.
"All the things I used to take for granted," he said.
Previously, he helped to lay flooring. Occasionally, he did landscape work: digging, planting, watering.
Now, he's entered a new realm, learning the names of many varieties of plants and how to reproduce and nurture them so they grow into attractive specimens people will want to buy.
Will he become a horticulturist?
"I'm undecided, but am open to the idea of taking some classes when I get out," he said.
When he's released, he, like the others in the program, will receive a certificate of achievement.
But Richard Boisclair, 49, of St. Petersburg, who is serving a term for his third DUI, knows what he'll call his tree service when he gets out.
"It will be called B and B Tree and Landscape Service," he said.
Reach Terri Bryce Reeves at treeves@tampabay.rr.com.