St. Charles volunteers thinking spring with Project Daffodil

The overcast skies and blustery weather Saturday may not have conjured up images of flowery blooms, but the work of about 100 volunteers along the Fox River ensured gorgeous spring sights next year for visitors to Mount St. Mary Park in St. Charles.

The volunteers labored around the park's iconic Mr. Eggward statue to plant about 5,000 bulbs as part of Project Daffodil.

The effort was the idea of John Rabchuk, a member of the River Corridor Foundation of St. Charles, and made possible by a donation of bulbs from the Heinz Brothers Greenhouse Garden Center.

Volunteers began work Saturday morning, planting along the western edge of the park and the nearby bicycle trail.

It may be just the beginning, Rabchuk said last week.

"If we go all the way from the Mr. Eggward sculpture down to the south parking lot, there's room for 100,000 bulbs," Rabchuk said. "The Fox River Valley is such a wonderful place, and it's kind of a hidden gem. Anything we can do to make it better, that's our goal."