While the first snowflake of the winter has yet to fall, members of Dowagiac’s Town and Country Garden Club already have their eyes on spring.

Around a dozen men and women with the local organization teamed up with employees with Dowagiac’s Department of Public Services to plant nearly 2,000 crocus flower bulbs in the lawns surrounding downtown’s “Cheetahs on the Run” statue on Depot Drive. Safely buried several inches below the earth, the bulbs are expected to blossom into a vibrant array of purple, pink, yellow and other colorful petals early next year, enhancing the beauty of the green space, said Town and Country Garden Club member Mike Wells.

“Crocuses are among the first flowers to emerge in the spring,” Wells said. “Often times, they will push the snow out of the way when they blossom.”

The green thumbs with the garden club have added the flower plantings to their list of beautification projects for the downtown in recent years.

The club first began planting crocuses in the city in 2014, planting around 1,000 bulbs on the grounds outside the Dowagiac Area History Museum in honor of late members JoAnn Gaideski and Hallie Jessup. The following year, members planted another 1,000 seeds in the same location, this time in memory of another former member, Bonnie Blaske.

While Friday’s planting was not done in honor of late colleagues, the gardeners did receive a large boost from the city — which donates the seeds and lends tools for the garden club to use for the project — given 2,000 bulbs to plant downtown.

Among those pitching in Friday was Dowagiac’s Harriett Thomas, one of the founding members of the Town and Country club. She has been helping out with club activities and attending monthly meetings for more than 50 years, she said.

“I like the gardening and the socializing that comes with being in the club,” Thomas said. “Though we have had a lot of members come and go over the years, there is still so much you can learn and can do through the club.”

In a few weeks, the garden club will plant evergreen plants in the planters lining the downtown sidewalks, in time for the city’s annual Christmas weekend, Thomas said.

People interested in joining the garden club can call Wells at (269) 462-9543.