The sidewalks of Dowagiac’s historic downtown district will soon become a lot more colorful.

The members of the Dowagiac Town and Country Garden Club will be bringing life back to the 22 stone planters dotting downtown sidewalks beginning at 3:30 p.m. Thursday. The members will be planting an assortment of red, white and velvet petunia flowers, along with fireworks grass and dark sweet potato vines, just in time for Friday’s opening of the Dogwood Fine Arts Festival, said Club President Polly Judd.

The club selected a red, white and blue theme for this year’s summertime bouquets. As in previous years, the purchased plants have been grown locally by Dohm’s Pat-Ch Greenhouse, Judd said.

“The planters are being dedicated to Charlie Dohm in honor of all he has done for the garden club and the City of Dowagiac,” Judd said, in a comment emailed to the Daily News.

The club, which was organized  in 1952, has been handling the planting of summertime annuals since the city installed the planters back in 1992, Judd said.

Once planted, the flowers will need minimal upkeep from the club, with only a handful of planters around the train depot needing regular watering, Judd said.

“When the city re-did downtown [in 1992], they had the foresight to irrigate those urns, so they don’t need to be watered like those in some other towns or villages,” Judd said.

The summer planting is one of several annual projects the over 20 members of the gardening club undertake every year to spruce up the city landscape. In addition to planting flowers around the Dowagiac District Library and Beckwith Theatre, the club plants and decorates Christmas trees in the planters every November, in time for the annual Christmas Open House weekend, Judd said. The club has also recently began planting mums during the fall for another downtown event, October’s Under the Harvest Moon festival.

Following the plantings, the club will conduct its regular monthly business at Zeke’s Restaurant. The club is encouraging guests to participate on Thursday as well.

“New members are very welcome, if they like to put their hands in the dirt and they’re interested in gardening,” Judd said.

In case of rain, the club will move the meeting to the same time Friday.