The trees and shrubs are starting to bloom welcoming spring to Chautauqua County! For many of us that means it’s time to get our homes and yards ready for the outdoor season ahead. From lawn care equipment to plants to major landscaping projects, whatever your home and garden needs are, you can find what you need from local businesses. The Chamber’s online Business Directory features a drop-down list of categories that will help you locate a local Chamber member business to meet your needs. In addition to our pre-set category listings, you can search for a keyword in our Business Directory and find a business that can help.

Garden centers, greenhouses and nurseries will be fully stocked in the weeks ahead. For your planting needs, check out Brigiotta’s Farmland or Peterson Farms in Jamestown, Haff Acres in Mayville, or Westfield Nursery in Westfield.

Local hardware stores offer all types of building materials, tools, paint and supplies, and often sell grills and outdoor furniture too. Try ADD Lumber in Dunkirk, Irving or Westfield, Everyday’s True Value, Jamestown Pro Hardware, or Runnings in Jamestown, Service Hardware in Dunkirk, Stewart’s Mayville Hardware, or Tractor Supply in Westfield.

Landscapers and lawn care companies offer a variety of services. You can try Bloomquist’s Landscaping in Jamestown, Chautauqua Hydroseeding or Loomis Landscaping in Bemus Point, Greenbriar Property management in Dewittville, R & R Landscaping in Mayville, or Turftenders in Fredonia. For hardscaping installation, landscape lighting, and more check out Chautauqua Hardscaping or Hanft’s Landscaping in Jamestown or Stone & Outdoor Living Center in Bemus Point.

Lawn tractors and other equipment are available through 3 Seas Recreation in Mayville, LandPro Equipment in Falconer, Larry Romance & Son in Sheridan, and ROCKTerra in Westfield.

If you’re in need of help with trees, contact Kravitz Tree Service in Fredonia or Maple Springs Tree Service in Bemus Point.

When you need some great garden advice there is help available locally. Cornell Cooperative Extension hosts the Master Gardener program. The Master Gardener Help Desk is open Wednesdays from noon-2pm through September at the JCC Carnahan Center in Jamestown, or you can call them at (716) 664-9502 ext. 224 or email them at chautauquamg@cornell.edu. It’s a free service from the Master Gardener program. Cornell Cooperative Extension also holds a series of LEAF classes annually to help people learn more about gardening and more.

If you have bigger projects that may be beyond your DIY capacity, please check our online Business Directory for lists of contractors and other building tradespeople. The Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce is proud to count a wide variety of businesses among its more than 900 members throughout our county. They are in business to serve you.

REGISTER NOW FOR THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE BREAKFAST APRIL 19

Registration will close Monday, April 15 for the Chamber’s County Executive Breakfast. We hope you’ll sign up now to be part of this event.

County Executive PJ Wendel will be our special guest Friday, April 19, at the Chautauqua Harbor Hotel in Celoron. This is an opportunity for local businesspeople to join us for a candid question and answer session, with networking opportunities before and after. Check-in will begin at 8am, with breakfast and the program to start at 8:30. The price is $25 for Chamber members or $29 for non-members. Advance registration is required.

The County Executive Breakfast is sponsored by Brooks-TLC Hospital System/Kaleida Health, Chautauqua Harbor Hotel, Chautauqua Institution, Community Bank, County of Chautauqua Industrial Development Agency, DFT Communications, Jamestown Community College, Jamestown Mattress, LaBella Associates, Media One Radio Group, National Grid, Observer, Phillips Lytle, The Post-Journal, Southern Chautauqua Federal Credit Union, Southern Tier Environments for Living, and UPMC Chautauqua. We look forward to seeing you there.

KUDOS TO ALL WHO OPENED THEIR DOORS FOR ECLIPSE VIEWERS

Despite cloudy skies for the total solar eclipse, people did show up at venues all over Chautauqua County. In our downtown Jamestown visitor information center office, we welcomed visitors from southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Connecticut, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New York City, and elsewhere. In almost all cases they were looking for places to eat and guidance on good viewing locations for the eclipse. We were happy to help them find local restaurants and multiple places that were hosting eclipse watch parties.

Our sincere thanks to all the businesses that opened their doors to welcome guests. With any luck, they found something they liked here in Chautauqua County and will make their way back to enjoy more of the tremendous assets most of us take for granted, including our beautiful lakes, parks, museums, and hospitality. We also want to thank Tom Traub, Chair of the Martz-Kohl Observatory Solar Eclipse Committee and NASA Eclipse Ambassador member; Noel Guttman, Chautauqua County Director of Emergency Services; and Andrew Nixon, President and CEO of the Chautauqua County Visitors Bureau. These individuals and the organizations they represent did an outstanding job of helping to get local people and businesses prepared. It was a tremendous example of how local people and organizations work together, and the Chamber of Commerce was proud to play a small role.