A recent Eagle Scout project brought new life and energy to the entrance of Cedar Lane Park, in Columbia.

Johann Lilly, 17, of Ellicott City, recruited about 30 of his friends to help him landscape the west entrance of the park to replace the previous foliage there that had fallen prey to plant disease.

Lilly, who is using the project as part of his application to become an Eagle Scout -- the highest rank in the Boy Scouts of America -- said he worked with Howard County's Department of Recreation and Parks throughout the spring to coordinate the project.

On May 24, Lilly's group refurbished the park entrance with 64 trees and shrubs, including American elm saplings, Kousa dogwoods, cherry laurels and black-eyed Susans.

Neal Hollingshead, Cedar Lane Park operations supervisor, said the new landscape "definitely is an enhancement."

Lilly, who attends Centennial High School, said he chose to focus his Eagle Scout project on Cedar Lane Park because he wanted to work on a place close to his home so he could see how his project turns out. After tossing around a few ideas for his project, he was happy with the one he finally chose, he said.

"When I first decided to do landscaping, I was torn between what I really wanted to do," Lilly said. "During the whole process, I had that feeling until after I saw the final project. It was like 'Oh my goodness,' when I saw everything planted. Now I can't wait to see everything bloom."

Hours of planning

Lilly spent hours planning the design and type of plants for the area with Tim Overstreet, the horticulturist for the parks department. He also sought plant donations from local nurseries and wrote about 100 letters to friends and family members asking them to donate money for the supplies.

On the day of the planting, Lilly was surprised to see so many of his friends from scouts and his wrestling and football teams show up for a day of digging and sweating, he said.

At the end of the day, "I was sunburned and exhausted," said Andrew Hoch, 17, of Severna Park, who has been friends with Lilly for about 10 years. "All of us put in an incredible amount of time. It was a lot of effort, but it was totally worth it. It looks so much better now."

Overstreet said the plants at the site will begin to "put on a show" in about five years, once they've matured. He added that the most unique part of the collection, the American elm trees, won't grown into full shade trees until about 2020.

Overstreet urged Lilly to include the elms because he wants to "re-establish American elms in parks," since Dutch elm disease destroyed many elms in the country, he said.

Even though the parks department planned to landscape the park entrance regardless of Lilly's effort, Hollingshead and other department officials said they were pleased to have Lilly take on the project.

"I think the project certainly benefits the parks," said Ann Combs, volunteer coordinator for the department. "Citizens take ownership of their areas, and it provides us with much-needed help in some areas that we don't have the time to get to."

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