YOUNGSTOWN — Local gardener Norman Cappitte’s tomato weighed in at more than 3 pounds at the annual horticulture show held recently at Fellows Riverside Gardens.

Another gourd on display measured a whopping 8 feet long.

The Men’s Garden Club of Youngstown sponsored the 55th annual event the weekend of Aug. 24 in the gardens at Mill Creek MetroParks.

Gardeners were showing off not just their vegetables, but also their flowers and various other plant life at the event, including ornamentals, annuals, fruits, perennials, roses, bulbs and succulents. They were judged on their plants in a youth and adult division. The winners were awarded ribbons and cash prizes.

Chairman of the club, Rodney Toth, said he was exposed to gardening at a young age because his father was an avid gardener. As he grew older, he began planting small vegetable gardens and later on dahlias. When he became more experienced and began adding more plants, Toth opened his home gardens to the public, and in 1994, he joined The Men’s Garden Club of Youngstown.

“When it comes to gardening, you can’t just put the things in the ground and say grow,'” Toth said. “You have to give them daily attention. I go out in the morning and the evening, and I call that speculating and what I do is, I go out and I take a look at things and I see well what needs done here.

“Do I need to trim things? Do I need to hoe things? Do I need to weed things? Do I need to fertilize things?” Toth said.

The key, he said, is devoting the time and attention.

“Without proper attention, you do not get quality,” Toth said.

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