FERRIDAY — The cause continues.

Last year, the Ferriday Garden Club decided to enter the town in the Louisiana Garden Club Federation’s cleanest city contest in an effort to unify the town and — if nothing else — beautify the area.

After several months of work, the town placed third in its category.

Now, it’s time to start again.

But work for the 2010 cleanest city contest has actually already begun.

“We started working on this in October,” contest committee chair Lena Bateman said.

“We are getting organized and getting our civic groups together. We want to get more representation from the civic groups.”

When the weather permits, the garden club members — with the help of an inmate crew and a Ferriday town employee — are clearing vacant lots, trimming and removing trees that don’t need to be there, edging sidewalks, cleaning out ditches and planting flowers in places with high visibility, such as the police station and in front of the Louisiana Technical College-Shelby M. Jackson Campus.

“We are doing things now that will still be good by the time Spring rolls around,” Bateman said.

Ferriday Mayor Glen McGlothin said the town employee who is working with the club is driving the town’s knuckle-boom truck and is helping move debris as it is collected by the ladies and their crew.

“This year, we are doing (cleanup) early,” McGlothin said. “It is a continuation of last year, but this year I want to win.”

If doing that means he’ll have to get out there and pull weeds himself, McGlothin said he would do that.

“I just want to make the town cleaner,” he said. “I will be glad to help.”

Bateman said in the coming weeks and months the garden club will be passing out fliers at the businesses and homes along the contest route.

“All of these supported us last year, and all of the business owners supported us and were very generous in their efforts and donations,” Bateman said.

The date for the contest has not yet been set, but Bateman said it is traditionally in early April.

Those who want to get involved in the effort to win the cleanest city title for Ferriday should contact Bateman at 318-757-6332.