P L A N N I N G   A H E A D

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Calendar of Events

by Terry Tanner,
Master Gardener

APRIL, 2003
4/5 thru 4/6 - 7th Annual Home Garden Tour at Tucson Botanical Garden. Saturday & Sunday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Here is your chance to take a peek behind the fences of five beautiful Tucson gardens. From the dramatic to the whimsical, the Tucson Botanical Gardens 2003 Home Garden Tour offers something for everyone. You will find lots of ideas you can adept for your own garden, or just enjoy the beautiful scenery. The five gardens chosen for the 2003 Tour were designed by local landscape architects as well as by homeowners, and include water features, vegetable gardens, small gardens packed with beauty, and a railroad garden village. Your ticket will also admit you to the Tucson Botanical Gardens where you may enjoy the many gardens and exhibits including the Tucson Garden Club Flower Show and Art in the Gardens. Tickets are on sale at the Tucson Botanical Gardens and the following nurseries: B&B Farm, Civano, Harlow Gardens, Mesquite Valley Growers and Rascon. For more information call the Tucson Botanical Gardens: 326-968, Ext 10. Tickets: Public in advance: $14. Public on the day of: $16.

4/5 thru 4/6 - 19th Annual Blessing of the Vine Festival in Elgin, Arizona. Saturday & Sunday from 11:00am to 4:00pm. Location: The Elgin Complex. Cost: $13/person. Oldest wine festival in Arizona. Sample world-class wines, stomp grapes, listen to great music, and enjoy life in the heart of Arizona's wine country. Contact: Gary Reeves at 520/455-9309, or email festivals@elginwines.com.

4/12 - Herb Festival at Boyce Thompson Arboretum, 37615 Hwy 60, Superior, Arizona. Saturday from 11:00am to 3:00pm. The charming and enchanting Wing Memorial Herb Garden is the setting for this festival. With live music and live culinary demonstrations of herbal cuisine, this event also includes children's games and crafts, as well as exhibits by local herbalists - Fun for the whole family! There will also be a variety of herbs for sale.

4/13 - Art al Fresco: Art-in-the-Garden Exhibit & Auction at Tucson Botanical Garden. Sunday from 8:30am to 4:30pm. Sculptures, hand-painted tiles, ironwork, and pottery are just the beginning of the types of garden art you will see immersed in the natural beauty of the Gardens. Expect the unexpected on a walking tour down pathways commemorating eras of history such as 'Old Mexico,' 'Way Out West,' 'Victorian Times Americana,' 'Roaring 20s,' and 'Psychedelic 60s.'

4/26 - Earth Arbor Day at Boyce Thompson Arboretum, 37615 Hwy 60, Superior, Arizona. Saturday from 11:00am to 3:00pm. Enjoy live music beneath the canopy of trees in the Arboretum's Pine Grove and Australian Forest. Get tips on tree care and planting techniques from Arboretum horticulturists and enjoy tree exhibits, crafts and children's activities.

4/26 - Herb Sale and Botanical Book Sale & Signing at Tucson Botanical Garden. Saturday from 9:00am to 3:00pm. Admission: Free during sale hours. Tucson Botanical Gardens' Herbs of the Old Pueblo brings together useful plants that are part of our heritage. The Tohono O'odham; Jesuit missionaries; and settlers from Mexico, Asia, and the eastern United States all grew and shared seeds, roots and cuttings of the herbs we still use today. A selection of plants will be interpreted in the TBG Herb Garden and offered at the sale. Plant lists will be made available at the sale for those who are interested. Visit the Botanical Book Sale & Signing in the Historical Gardens area. Authors will be on hand to autograph and discuss their books on all manner of subjects in the areas of gardening, botany and natural history.

MAY, 2003
5/24 - Learn Your Lizards at Boyce Thompson Arboretum, 37615 Hwy 60, Superior, Arizona. Saturday from 9:00am to 11:00am. Why do Arizona lizards do "pushups" to display their azure abdomens? Participants can observe this unique behavior, learn why lizards have blue bellies, and about other Sonoran desert adaptations during a guided walk. Arizona Game and Fish Department herpetologist Daren Riedle will lead the walk, which lasts an hour or two up the main trail that loops for 1.5 miles through the Arboretum. Participants should carry binoculars and water bottles, as well as wear a hat and dress expecting a warm day.

5/24 - Gardening with Ease at the Desert Botanical Gardens. Saturday from 9:00am until noon. 3-hour workshop. Gardening with Ease is not a contradiction in terms, but a real possibility. Many gardeners suffer needlessly and quit earlier in life because they use their bodies improperly. The result of misuse of joints is heartbreaking, not to mention backbreaking. The Gardening with Ease Workshop teaches you how to alter the use of your body while lifting, bending, pushing, or digging, in order to make gardening activities more productive and less painful. Turn drudgery into joy. The vehicle for change is the Feldenkrais Method of Awareness Through Movement, a sensory-motor educational approach to improving body mechanics and use of energy. You will be lying or sitting on the floor, and will be verbally guided in movement explorations in order to become aware of your body parts and how they can work together with more ease and pleasure. Then you will apply this awareness to the body mechanics of actions in the garden. Wear comfortable clothes and bring a mat or blanket to lie on. Register at The Desert Botanical Garden-201 N. Galvin parkway, Phoenix. Phone: (480) 941-1225.

ALSO ON THE CALENDAR
6/18 thru 6/21 - 2003 International Gardener Conference. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Department of Horticulture, University of Kentucky, N-318 Agricultural Science Building, North, Lexington, KY 40546-0091. Phone: 859-257-3249.


Maricopa County Master Gardener Volunteer Information
Last Updated April 29, 2003
Author: Lucy K. Bradley, Extension Agent Urban Horticulture, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, Maricopa County
© 1997 The University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cooperative Extension in Maricopa County
Comments to Maricopa-hort@ag.arizona.edu 4341 E. Broadway Road, Phoenix, AZ 85040,
Voice: (602) 470-8086 ext. 301, Fax (602) 470-8092