We're just back from a
“drive-around” of beautiful Arizona, trying our best to
stay away from all cities, except Sedona, which I had never
visited before. It is incredibly beautiful and April is
a wonderful time to see wildflowers in both the Arizona desert
and in the forested mountain areas. Husband likes old
abandoned and/or restored forts. Give me one wildflower
every 30 yards, I told him, and I'll follow you anywhere.
It's fun to see how our wildflowers differ, and to discover in
real life those I've only seen in books. Their Indian
paintbrushes are more reddish orange than ours, which tend to
be more orange-ish/red. Purple owl clover was
everywhere, as were desert poppies and marigolds, to name just
a few.
If you'd like to get out and smell the flowers (or at least,
learn more about them), but not quite so far from home, the
Greater Galveston area is going to be a hotbed for gardeners
in May.
• The biggest event of all, of course, is the Oleander
Festival — a great a ctivity for the whole family as well as
gardeners. This is the place to go if you want named
oleanders, a special delight because they have such wonderful
histories, many recalling those incredible women who helped
restore the beauty and vitality of the Island City after the
1900 Flood. You can get all the details at the International
Oleander Society site, www.oleander.org.
IOS is based in Galveston, as well it should be.
Specific events are listed in the
calendar below.
Consider the new dwarf oleanders if you're looking for an
absolutely no care plant for poolside or other blasting hot,
hard-to-water spot. We saw oleanders blooming deep in
desolate deserts in Arizona. The huge ones are wonderful
backdrop plants or focal points for any garden.
• Get started this weekend at the Gulf Coast Gardening Expo,
April 23-24: 10
a.m.-4 p.m., Moody Gardens, One Hope Boulevard in Galveston;
free. The
Plumeria Society, Orchid Society, Oleander Society and several
organizations that
focus on bromeliads will have booths with plants for sale.
Details: 800-582-4673
or visit www.moodygardens.org.
• Saturday (April 30): Clear Lake Plant and Seed Swap,
NASA Road One Park on the Water; free. Details available
at www.Gardenweb.com
• Saturday (April 30): Effective Weed Control by
Anna Wygrys, 9:00 -
11:00 a.m. Galveston County Extension Office, 5115 Hwy. 3,
Dickinson
(281-534-3413, ext. 6). Common weeds, cultural control and
chemical options. No fee but
preregistration required by April 28. Web site:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston/index.htm
• Saturday, May 7: Dedication of the Butterfly and
Hummingbird Habitat at
Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge. Join refuge
staff and volunteers for IMBC as
we dedicate the new Butterfly and Hummingbird Habitat
Landscape and Willows
Trail on Anahuac NWR. Guided bird and butterfly walks will
follow the
dedication. Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac,
TX 77514; 409/267-3337;
http://southwest.fws.gov/refuges/texas/anahuac;
email: michele_whitback@fws.gov+
Let me break here and urge anyone who has never been to the
Anahuac National
Wildlife Refuge to take a trip out there. Weekdays are
better, less crowded,
of course, but weekends are fine.
Most folks head to internationally-renowned birding site to
see how many
winged species they can spot. But we often stop by on
our way back to Houston
from our Bolivar beachhouse, just to make the trip around the
top of the
Shoveler's Pond dike to see how many alligators we can count
lounging in the soggy
marshes.
Several years ago, we started taking our beach neighbor Doris
Robinson with
us around Easter, which is when it usually is warm enough for
these fascinating
reptiles to start appearing. After one such trip, she
was home (recuperating
from the sight of 50 or more specimens at least 10 foot long
or better! —
needless to say, you DON'T get out of the car). Her
niece Paula called from
Ohio. “What did you do for Easter?” Paula asked.
“We hunted alligators,” Doris replied.
Long pause.
“Oh,” Paula said. “Up here we hunt Easter eggs.”
(Hey, this is Texas.)
Now the refuge volunteers have added a lovely butterfly and
hummingbird site
garden — well away from the alligator habitats, I might add.
Nothing in there
to attract these mammals. Fun day's outing for gardeners
and their kids
alike.
This is also daylily time, and if there's a better flower for
lazy gardeners,
I don't know what it is. A lot has been made of the rust
problem that's
invade daylily gardens. But I suspect it's going to be
like blackspot on roses.
Some daylilies, especially newer varieties, will get rust.
It only affects the leaves, it doesn't kill the plant and it
doesn't damage
the flowers. Other, especially older, varieties are
immune. It's something
we're just going to have to learn to live with. We don't
stop planting roses
because of blackspot and we won't stop planting daylilies
because of a little
rust here and there.
So go to these events and pick up some new daylilies.
You won't be sorry!
• May
14: Home Fruit Growers' Open House for three home fruit
orchards in the Santa Fe area. Each site open from 9:00 a.m.
to 12:00 Noon. Wide variety of fruit and citrus trees. Visit
website for more information:http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston/index.htm.
Galveston County Extension Office event (281-534-3413, ext.
6). Free.
• May 14: Daylily Sale and Flower show, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.
sale, 1-4 p.m. show,
Mall of the Mainland, 10,000 Emmett F. Lowry Expressway in
Texas City; free.
Lone Star Daylily Society event, 281-328-3308.
• Sunday, May 15: Daylily Festival, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Payne’s
in the Grass
Garden, 2137 Melanie Lane in Pearland, 281-485-3821 or
http://daylily.net/gardens/paynesinthegrass;
free.
• Sunday, May 15: Daylily Bloom Fest, 8 a.m.-7 p.m.,
Shimek’s Garden, 3122
County Road 237 in Alvin, 281-331-4395 or www.hal-pc.org/~neshimek;
free.
If you're game to go further afield in your search for
beautiful flowers and
gardening events, here are some more late April/May Greater
Houston area
events that might tempt you:
Wednesday, April 27: "A Trip Through Northern
Chile, Part 1" by Phyllis &
Dick McEuen. 7:30 p.m., Houston Garden Center, 1500 Hermann
Drive; free.
Houston Cactus & Succulent Society event, 713-827-8545
Thursday, April 28: Oleander Festival Kickoff Dinner &
Show, 6 p.m., Moody
Gardens, One Hope Boulevard in Galveston; $35. Tickets:
International Oleander
Society, 409-744-7860.
Friday, April 29: Lunch Bunch: Rumplestiltskin
Gardening...Weaving Golden
Gardens, from noon to 1 p.m. Mercer Arboretum, 22306 Aldine
Westfield Road,
Humble, TX 77338, 281-443-8731; Free. Bring a sack
lunch.
Friday, April 29: Oleander Festival Proclamation Ceremony and
Reception, 4
p.m., Darragh Park, 15th Street at Church St. in Galveston;
free. International
Oleander Society event.
Friday-Saturday, April 29-30: Begonia (and Other) Plant Sale,
8 a.m.-3 p.m.,
2806 Mulberry in Pasadena; free. Begonia Society event,
281-998-0953.
Saturday, April 30, "Year Round Color with Perennials and
Old Garden Roses"
by Dr. Bill Welch, Texas A&M, 10 a.m. The Arbor
Gate, 15635 FM 2920 in
Tomball, www.arborgate.com;
Free.
April 30: “Propagating Old Roses” by Barbara Ray, 10
a.m., “Drip
Irrigation” by Bob Roenigk, 11:30 a.m., and “Organically
Grown Roses?” by Judy
Barrett, 1 p.m., Vintage Rosery, Highway 36 in Needville,
979-793-2888,
www.VintageRosery.com;
free.
April 30 Houston Herb Society, Donna McGraw 10:00 a.m. Teas
Nursery, 4400
Bellaire, 713-664-4400, www.teasnursery.com;
free.
April 30: "Creating a Habitat for Wildlife" Speakers
include: Diana
Foss, Meg Goodman, Anita Nelson, Bob Honig, and Jaime
Gonzalez, 9:00
a.m. - 2:30 p.m., Houston Arboretum & Nature Center, 4501
Woodway 77024;
Cost: $20/members; $30/nonmembers (includes lunch).
Houston Arboretum
& Nature Center, 713-681-8433, www.houstonarboretum.org.
April 30-May 1: Peckerwood Garden Open Days, 1-5 p.m., 20571
FM 359 in
Hempstead, 979-826-3232, www.peckerwoodgarden.com;
$5. Open Days are an opportunity
for the public to visit Peckerwood Garden for self-guided
tours between 1 p.m.
and 5 p.m. Parking is at Yucca Do Nursery.
April 30-May 1: Oleander Festival, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Moody
Gardens, One Hope
Boulevard in Galveston; free. Birding and Butterfly Habitat
Tours, Oleander
Sale. International Oleander Society event, www.oleander.org.
May 1: Hibiscus Show and Plant Sale, 1:00 - 4:00 pm. Fort Bend
Master
Gardeners and the Lone Star Chapter of the American Hibiscus
Society presents its
annual "Hibiscus Show & Plant Sale" where rare
grafted and common hibiscus
varieties will be available for sale. Fort Bend County
Community Center,
1330 Band Rd., Rosenberg, Tx. (Hwy. 59 at Hwy 36)
281-341-7068 or
281-342-3034 or www.fbmg.com
or http://www.lonestarahs.org/
May 1: Grow Prize Winning Begonias, 2 p.m., Houston Garden
Center in Herman
Park, American Begonia Society Event - No fee. Public
welcome. For
information call: 713 686-8539
May 3: "Tropical Hibiscus" by Roz and Pat
Merritt, 12 noon Harris County
Extension office, 3033 Bear Creek Drive. HCMG sponsored
event. Open to public
281-85-5600, http://hcmga.tamu.edu
May 3: Registration deadline for the May 4-July 27
Harris Master Gardener
Class, Wednesdays 9 a.m. –3 p.m., Houston Garden Center,
1500 Hermann Dr.; $150
Information at 713-524-5876, ext 332 or 281-855.5600 or
http://urbantaex.tamu.edu/Harris/horticulture.html
Friday, May 6: Registration deadline for the May 7
"Orchids for Mom"
seminar by Dr. Rainer Fink, Orchid Specialist, 11 a.m.,
Martha's Bloomers,
8101 Hwy. 6 Bypass, Navasota, www.marthasbloomers.com:
free. Register at
936-870-4044
Friday-Saturday, May 6-7: Spring Extravaganza, 9 a.m.-5
p.m., Brookwood
Community Greenhouses, 1752 FM 1489 in Brookshire,
281-375-2100 or
www.brookwoodcommunity.org;
free.
Saturday, May 7, "Herbal Soap" by Pam Dozier, 1:30
p.m., Wabash Antiques &
Feed, 5701 Washington Avenue; 713-863-8322; $20.00. Learn how
to make herbal
soap from your garden.
May 7: "Art in the Garden" 10:00am to
4:00pm The Arbor
Gate, 15635 FM 2920 Tomball, 281 351 8851 or www.arborgate.com;
free. Come
enjoy strolling through the beautiful gardens at The Arbor
Gate while chatting
with artisans on hand especially for this event
May 7, "Art in the Garden", Visit with Arbor Gate
artisan,10am-4pm. The
Arbor Gate, 15635 FM 2920 in Tomball, 281 351 8851, www.arborgate.com.
Free.
Saturday, May 7. Sugar Land Garden Club Spring Garden
Tour. 10 AM to 5 PM.
$8 to visit all 8 gardens or $2 for each individual garden.
Visit
www.sugarlandgardenclub.org
or call 281-565-4658 for the list of garden sites and
suggested starting locations.
May 7: Daylily Show and Sale, sale 10 a.m. to sellout, show
1-4:30 p.m.,
Penney's Court, 1022 Brazos Mall in Lake Jackson; free.
Brazosport Daylily Society
event, Phone: 281-413-4844.
May 7, Annual Daylily Flower Show, 1 PM-4 PM Mercer Arboretum
and
Botanic Garden. 22306 Aldine Westfield Rd. Humble Texas. Info.
281 356 2543.
Cypress Creek Daylily Club event.
May 7 Hibiscus Society Experts 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and
“Silverado Sage”
by Rob Trieber, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Teas Nursery, 4400
Bellaire, 71
3-664-4400, www.teasnursery.com;
free.
May 9: "How to Start a Community or School Garden"
by Gary
Edmondson, 4:00-6:30 p.m., Urban Harvest, 1900 Kane; free.
Register at
713-880-5540. Information at www.urbanharvest.org.
Learn the basic
ingredients for a successful community or school garden,
including
planning, coordination, finances, and garden design. Gary
Edmondson is
May 9: Snakes in the Garden by Mike Howlett, 7 pm, Good
Shepherd Episcopal
Church, 2929 Woodland Hill in Kingwood; free. Lake Houston
Gardeners event,
832-368-9870
May 11: Lunch Bunch: Members Auction Highlights, noon to 1
p.m. Mercer
Arboretum, 22306 Aldine Westfield Road, Humble, TX 77338,
281-443-8731; Free. Bring
a sack lunch.
May 12: Green Thumb Seminars presents "Plant
Propagation," by Fort Bend
Master Gardeners, 7:00-9:00 p.m., Bud O'Shieles Community
Center, 1330 Band Rd in
Rosenberg; free. Green Thumb Seminar, (281) 342-3034;
http://www.co.fort-bend.tx.us
OR www.fbmg.com.
May 13: Registration deadline for the May 14
"Containers and
Hanging Baskets for Summer" seminar by Gay Houston and
Karen Weir, B.A.
Horticulture, 11 a.m., Martha's Bloomers, 8101 Hwy. 6 Bypass,
Navasota,
www.marthasbloomers.com;
free. Register at 936-870-4044
May 13: “Herbs in the Garden” by Molly Fowler, 10:30
a.m., Houston Garden
Center, 1500 Hermann Drive; free. Houston Federation of
Garden Clubs event,
713-284-1989.
May 14, "Garden Pest & Disease Control" by Lucy
Harrell, 1:30 p.m., Wabash
Antiques & Feed, 5701 Washington Avenue; 713-863-8322;
free. Author of " Ladies
of the Garden" Learn how to use natural ways to control
pest and disease in
the garden.
May 14: Daylily Sale and Flower show, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. sale,
1-4 p.m. show,
Mall of the Mainland, 10,000 Emmett F. Lowry Expressway in
Texas City; free.
Lone Star Daylily Society event, 281-328-3308.
May 14: Spring Beauty Photo Contest Winners Gallery show, 11
a.m. Teas
Nursery, 4400 Bellaire, 713-664-4400, www.teasnursery.com;
free.
May 14-15: Peckerwood Garden Open Days, 1-5 p.m., 20571 FM 359
in Hempstead,
979-826-3232, www.peckerwoodgarden.com;
$5. Open Days are an opportunity for
the public to visit Peckerwood Garden for self-guided
tours between 1 p.m.
and 5 p.m. Parking is at Yucca Do Nursery. Please
contact us or visit our web
site for further information.
May 14 & 15: Plant Sale, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Bromeliad
Society,
Houston and Cactus & Succulent Society, Houston Arboretum
& Nature
Center, 4501 Woodway 77024; Free. Houston Arboretum &
Nature Center,
713-681-8433, www.houstonarboretum;
free
May 15: Mosaic Stepping Stone Class 1:00pm The
Arbor Gate 15635
FM 2920 Tomball 281 351 8851 or www.arborgate.com;
$35 due at time of
registration. Design and construct your own stepping
stone using cut glass mosaic
pieces.
May 16: "How to Start a Community or School Garden"
by Dr. Bob
Randall, 1:00-3:45 p.m., Urban Harvest, 1900 Kane; free.
Register at
713-880-5540. Information at www.urbanharvest.org.
Learn the basic
ingredients for a successful community or school garden,
including
planning, coordination, finances, and garden design. Dr. Bob
Randall,
the director of Urban Harvest, has advised over 150 community
gardens
over the last 15 years.
May 17: "You Canna if You Wanna" by Dr. Greg
Grant, garden writer, lecturer,
plant developer at 6:30 pm, Harris County Extension office,
3033 Bear Creek
Dr. Free Master Gardner Event. Call 281-855-5600: access
http://hcmga.tamu.edu
May 17: “ Timeless Treasures, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mercer
Arboretum, 22306
Aldine Westfield Road, Humble, TX 77338, 281-443-8731; Free.
May 18: "Sell What You Grow at a Green Market" by
Ray Sher,
4:00-6:00 p.m., Urban Harvest, 1900 Kane; $30. Register at
713-880-5540.
Information at www.urbanharvest.org.
Techniques and strategies including
selecting vegetables for market, transportation, packaging,
pricing,
enticing displays, set-up, regulations and certifications. Ray
Sher is
the owner of Westbury Seeds, a garden that grows produce for
sale at the
Bayou City Farmers' Market.
May 19: Grasses, sedges and rushes by Dr. Larry Brown.
7PM, Houston
Arboretum, 4501 Woodway. Native Plant Society event,
(713)681-3665. www.npsot.org.
May 19: Registration deadline for two Botanical Arts Workshops
by Cynthia
Padilla: May 20: “Introduction to Botanical Drawing,” and
“Botanical Drawing:
Colored Pencil,” both 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Mercer Arboretum &
Botanic Gardens, 22306
Aldine-Westfield, www.cp4.hctx.net/mercer;
$65 each. Register at 281-443-8731.
May 21 Herbs Society of America - South Texas Unit Experts at
Teas, 10:00
a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Teas Nursery, 4400 Bellaire, 713-664-4400, www.teasnursery.com;
free.
May 22: Endangered Species: Beyond the Basics, 10:30 a.m.
until noon. Mercer
Arboretum, 22306 Aldine Westfield Road, Humble, TX 77338,
281-443-8731; Free.
May 25: Houston Cactus & Succulent Society presents
"Cactus of the Northern
Chihuahuan Desert" by Dr. Cathryn A. Hoyt, Executive
Director of the
Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute, 7:30 PM, Houston Garden
Center, 1500
Hermann Drive. Free. 713-827-8545.
May 26: “Less Common Culinary Herbs: Culture and
Uses", by Lana Sims, 7:15
p.m., Bud O'Shieles Community Center, 1330 Band Road in
Rosenberg; free. Fort
Bend Master Gardener event, 281.341.7068 or www.fbmg.com.
May 28, "Herbal Cosmetics" by Pam Dozier, 1:30 p.m.,
Wabash Antiques & Feed,
5701 Washington Avenue; 713-863-8322; $20.00. Making
cosmetics from your herb
garden.
May 28: Texas Bamboo Societies Bamboo Festival, 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. Mercer
Arboretum, 22306 Aldine Westfield Road, Humble, TX 77338,
281-443-8731; Free.
June 3: Registration deadline for the Master Gardener Class,
June 7-July 7,
8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays, Harris County Extension
office, 3033 Bear
Creek Park; www.hcmgap2.tamu.edu;
$150. Register at 281- 991-8437.
Send gardening questions and gardening event notices to Brenda
at
brenda@guidrynews.com.
Gardening event notices must be submitted by the 20th of the
preceding month (eg. July events must be submitted by June
20.)
IF YOU ENJOY BRENDA'S COLUMNS, YOU'LL LOVE HER GARDENING BOOKS
— available
online at www.urbanharvest.com.
FROM THE LAZY GARDENER •
• “The Lazy Gardener's Guide” — revised and updated!
First published 10
years ago, The Guide is described by Brenda as “a gardening
book in calendar
format … so you don't have to think!” Based on her
humorous-yet-informative
Houston Chronicle calendar, The Guide details what gardeners
should be doing in
the garden each month, provides garden designs (using the
hardiest plants for
our climate) for butterflies, hummingbirds, sun, shade and a
variety of other
typical suburban situations. Filled with funny and
touching anecdotes from
decades of covering gardening in the Greater Houston/Galveston
area. As the
daughter of a BOI, many of these involve Galveston sites and
people!
• GARDENING WITH DOGS. Co-authored with Frances Burke
Goodman, this little
booklet offers tips, landscape plans, good plants for
dog-challenged areas and
lots of fun insights into why dogs do what they do (and how
you might just
unknowingly be encouraging “bad” behaviors!)
Look for all these River Bend Company books at your
neighborhood nursery this
fall or online at www.urbanharvest.com.
For a list of potential retail
sources, to order by email or to receive an order form,
contact River Bend Company
at 713-621-3468 or email: RiverBendBook@aol.com.
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