Gateway Gardener April 2018

Gateway Gardener

APRIL 2018

THE

®

Your Guide to Enjoyable Gardening and Easy-Care Landscapes

018 2 the ntry Pa ! r o f de r k i o s o t In Lo llina Po uide G

Combining Beauty And Function Edibles in the Ornamental Landscape

A Guide to Plant Provenance Shortleaf Pine 2018 Eco-Product Guide FREE Courtesy of:

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Gateway Gardener THE

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Your Guide to Enjoyable Gardening and Easy-Care Landscapes

APRIL 2018

Volume 14, Number 3

Founded in 2005 by Joyce Bruno & Robert Weaver Publisher and Editor Robert Weaver Columnists Diane Brueckman Rosey Acres Joyce Driemeyer Master Gardener Abby Lapides Sugar Creek Gardens Steffie Littlefield Edg-Clif Winery Jennifer Schamber Nursery Professional Crystal Stevens EathDance Organic Farm School Scott Woodbury Shaw Nature Reserve

Printing: Breese Publishing, Breese, IL The Gateway Gardener® is published 9 times/year by Double Dig Communications, Inc. to promote enjoyable, successful gardening and livable landscapes in the St. Louis greater metropolitan area. The magazine is distributed free to the public at designated garden centers, nurseries, garden gift shops, lawn equipment rental, repair and sales establishments, and other locations supporting sound gardening, lawn and landscaping practices.

Please send letters-to-the-editor, questions, event announcements, editorial suggestions and contributions, photos, advertising inquiries and materials, and any other correspondence to: The Gateway Gardener Magazine® PO Box 220853 St. Louis, MO 63122 Phone: (314) 968-3740

info@gatewaygardener.com www.gatewaygardener.com The Gateway Gardener® is printed on recycled newsprint using environmentally friendly soy-based ink, and is a member of the PurePower® renewable energy resources network.

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From the Editor

hen I first got into gardening, there were three spaces one typically considered in the landscape: the lawn, the ornamental garden, and the vegetable garden. Of the two garden areas, the ornamental garden was stocked with pretty flowers and shrubs, while the vegetable garden produced the food.

These days, thoughtful gardeners are starting to look at their total landscape more critically and demanding more out of it than a pretty scene. Sometimes the expectation is for the garden to function to solve a problem, as a rain garden or bioswale manages water issues, for example. At other times, homeowners want the garden to attract and support wildlife, including birds and pollinators. And, as we explored in last month’s article on Matt Lebon’s foodscaping concept, sometimes we want it to provide food for people as well. We return to that topic this Earth Day month, as Abby Lapides explores in a little more specific detail (pg. 4) how we can incorporate edible plants into our ornamental gardens.

When gardeners are looking for that function to support birds, pollinators and other wildlife, they are turning more and more to native

the discussion begins and ends with the eastern red cedar. But Scott Woodbury reminds us on page 12 of another native conifer, the shortleaf pine. It’s already on my short list to celebrate Arbor Day with this month.

It’s also Earth Day month, and communities around the region are hosting festivals and other events, many of which The Gateway Gardener is participating in as a media sponsor and/or hosting a booth (see page 14-17). I invite you to stop by and say hi.

plants. But much discussion goes on among gardeners as to natives vs. non-natives, invasive plants vs. those that are just aggressive spreaders, and the many levels in-between. Many readers will know I love my natives, and yet one of the most popular pollinator attractor in my fall garden is the China import seven-son flower tree, Heptocodium. On a sunny fall day its white blossoms are literally abuzz with hundreds of bees and butterflies. To help us sort out the pros and cons of different plant categories, Jennifer Schamber offers a Guide to Plant Provenance on page 8.

I also invite you to follow us on our new Instagram account, and I want to give a shout out to Gateway Gardener subscriber Madalyn Painter Talla, a much more socialmedia savvy gardener than I, for setting us up there and getting our account rolling. We look forward to using this platform to extend our educational outreach and share the joy of gardening in a more, well, instant way.

Good Gardening!

Speaking of native plants, an oftasked question regards native needled evergreens, and usually

On the Cover...

Growers are making it easier to incorporate edible plants into an urban ornamental landscape by breeding smaller plants like this Jelly Bean blueberry bush. For more ideas, see page 4 (photo by Bushel and Berry).

IN THIS ISSUE 4 Combining Beauty with Function

8 A Guide to Plant Provenance 12 Native Shortleaf Pine 13 Top 10 Natives for Acid Soils and Part Shade 14 Earth Day and Spring Festivals 18 Peonies Old and New 20 April Veggie Gardening 20 JT’s Fresh Ideas 22 Spring in the Rose Garden 24 2018 Eco Product Guide 26 Growing Gardeners from Young Sprouts 28 Dig This 30 Upcoming Events

Combining Beauty and Function

by Abby Lapides

An ornamental planting at Missouri Botanical Garden features edible malabar spinach complementing ornamental annuals.

Tammy Palmier

T

HoneyberryUSA.com Bushel and Berry

inspired by nature

raditional gardening of fruits and vegetables doesn’t always fit into modern yard aesthetics and most of us don’t have enough room for the large vegetable garden right off the kitchen.

Luckily we can incorporate edible plants into ornamental ‘Juliet’ cherry. gardening to create a hybrid garden of beauty and function. beautiful forms and delicious fruit to enjoy! The newer sour Many leafy greens that look cherry shrubs named ‘Romeo’ great in a salad bowl offer and ‘Juliet’ only grow to about beautiful leaf color and 8’ tall and wide and can thrive texture to gardens, easily complementing blooming perennials. Lettuces come in arrays of colors and leaf textures that are all tasty and vigorous, giving months of accenting leaves. Be sure to cut off flower stalks to maintain foliage quality. Swiss chard is one of my favorite vegetables.

Not only is it absolutely gorgeous with its rainbow colors of stems and large dark Jelly Bean blueberry by Bushel green leaves, it is very tasty as and Berry. well! The splendidly colored stalks have a briny brightness in large containers or in the that are delicious sautéed and ground. They provide delicious their thick leaves may be used cherries that are great for similar to kale. They grow eating and in pies. Cherries about 2-3’ tall and add a large love well-drained soil—be sure to amend your soils if there’s a pop of color in any garden. lot of clay. The newer line of Berrying shrubs provide Bushel and Berry™ shrubs

Visit the Garden Shop for great ideas for the home and garden...

Lake St Louis 636-561-0124 Call for Garden Center Spring Hours 3230 Technology Dr. • Lake St. Louis

Abby Lapides is owner and a speaker at Sugar Creek Gardens Nursery. She has degrees from the University of Missouri, and is a member of the Landscape and Nursery Association of Greater St. Louis.

You can reach her at (314) 965-3070.

(Next to the Meadows Shopping Center)

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The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Ann Lapides

Ann Lapides Garden Debut

Meet us at: Kirkwood Market

Tomato ‘Rosella’

apples in small spaces. Many of the columnar apples grow only 2-3’ wide while still producing Urban Apple ‘Golden Treat’ good amounts of fruit. Their offer dwarf-sized shrubs that narrow nature causes them carry blueberries, raspberries to look great in more formal or blackberries and grow to a gardens or edging walkways. maximum of 3-4’ tall and wide.

Each has different ornamental Some vegetables just need to be elements that play well in hidden. Their unwieldy nature mixed gardens with the bonus makes tomatoes unattractive of scrumptious fruit! in ornamental gardens.

Luckily some of the dwarf Love apples, but don’t have tomato varieties can easily be room for an orchard? Columnar planted behind larger plants. apples like the Urban Apple® Tomato ‘Rosella’ produces series can provide delicious

Eggplant ‘Fairy Tale’

1-lb. tomatoes that can rival ‘Cherokee Purple’ in flavor. It only reaches 3-4’ tall making it easy to hide behind a medium sized shrub like beautyberry.

Just make sure the tomatoes receive at least 6 hours of sun a day.

Looking for something that can grow on a patio? Plant ‘Fairytale’ eggplant in the center of a mixed container.

It only reaches about 3’ tall Cont’d on next page

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Pick up orders at the sales.

Order in advance (by Tues.), or choose from our selection at the sale locations.

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PLANT SALE!

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and doesn’t require staking.

‘Fairytale’ produces adorable 6” long eggplants that are purple and white streaked.

The 2” purple flowers are also attractive before fruiting.

‘Fairytale’ can easily mix with blooming annuals like the new

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highly speckled flowers of Galaxy Petunias, which come in purple and pink hues (and are edible, too!). You could also mix in herbs like oregano and thyme, which spill down containers beautifully. Add a red basil and a ‘Tri-color’ sage and you’ll have a beautiful and useful container to enjoy all summer.

Perennial strawberries will grow into excellent midsized groundcovers with distinct attractive foliage of deep green, and produce mouthwatering berries. The main plant will slowly form runners and produce “daughter” plants that fruit as well. It’s best to limit the daughters to 3 per plant.

Strawberries love moist welldrained soil. Be sure to amend your soil and to mulch; they tend to do better on berms.

They can also be grown in containers. The All American Selections winner Delizz®

provides two large harvests of very sweet fruits. Their dark green foliage, adorable white flowers and tempting red berries are attractive in mixed containers or hanging baskets.

Playing with the different leaf textures and flowers of fruits, veggies and herbs can enhance a garden’s beauty and functionality. There may be better things in life than standing in the garden eating a tomato picked right off the plant while enjoying sweet summer blooms, but at this moment I can’t think of any.

Dig Deeper.

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COM for Articles, videos, projects and more!

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If you grow your own, grow with Osmocote®.

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A Guide to Plant Provenance

by Jennifer Schamber

As consumers become more educated on the quality-of-life benefits of plants, the horticulture industry is shifting its focus from the business of aesthetic-driven landscaping to more functional and purposeful plant selection and design. Decisions made now will impact the environment, health and economics of our communities for generations to come. Here’s a basic guide to help direct decision makers to determine the best options for improving and stewarding their outdoor spaces.

Straight-species native plants (locally sourced eco-types)

climate and soil conditions making them resilient and well suited for many applications. This type of plant production ensures the preservation and enhancement of native biodiversity within these bio-geographic regions. Size constraints can be a limitation with this category, as some species may be too large for small residential landscapes. Another challenge can be the assumption that all natives can survive in any condition, but the concept of “right plant, right place” is still a very important consideration, especially when working with post-construction/compacted soil conditions.

An important component to a successful native planting is creating “living” soil systems that will have a beneficial impact on native root systems.

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hese are native plants (indigenous to this region prior to European settlement) that are grown by seed sourced from a specific bio-geographic region. The majority of the native plants grown or sold by Grow Native! professional members would fit in this category. Straight-species native plants One of the benefits of plants (mass produced, non-local eco-types) hese are plants grown by large-scale growers that do not cater in this category is that these Rattlesnake master (Eryngium to a specific region. The “American Beauties Native Plants” plants have evolved and yuccifolium) with webworm moths are adapted to particular program has been instrumental in raising awareness across the country on a large scale and has served as an effective marketer of the benefits of planting natives. This country has an enviable number of native species that has even attracted the attention of Let Us Help Your Garden Thrive many European gardeners. In some cases, the plants are quite adaptive and can perform consistently in a range of regions, but in some cases (especially with certain native trees), it would be best to source a local eco-type for long-term success. There is some research being done to help determine how important this may be, but the results will vary based on a wide range of factors. Some variables, like climate change, may influence results at a faster rate Bring ad in for than plants can adapt.

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Nativars

A

Walters Gardens

nativar is a cultivar (or selection) of a native species. These plants are oftentimes found by chance along a roadside or in a prairie and have some sort of expressed desirable genetic trait, maybe a different color or smaller size than other plants of its species. Plant breeders and hybridizers are finding more interest

Some nativars closely resemble their straight species cousins, such as Echinacea ‘Purple Emperor’, left, while others, like ‘Hot Papaya’, right, have significantly different features. in working with natives as they have increased in popularity.

The plants are propagated and sometimes put into large-scale production based on demand from the horticulture trade. This category increases consistency and makes natives more desirable to a larger range of consumers. There is research being done on determining the environmental impact/benefit of these compared to straight species natives and preliminary results vary (for instance, in some cases, color changes may be confusing to some bees, but in another case, a longer bloom period may be beneficial to foraging insects). Since most nativars are propagated by divisions, this limits long-term genetic variation, therefore, large scale restoration and conservation projects will most likely continue to require straight species native plants.

were brought for ornamental purposes. A wide range of plants were introduced to this country due to their resistance to pests, and the thought process behind this made sense at the time, the more resistant a tree is to pests, the less chemical intervention.

The problem with this theory is that large-scale production of non-native trees caused an imbalance in urban and suburban eco-systems. There is now widespread awareness of how trees impact the wellness of a community, so more sound decisions are being made to

The seven-son flower tree, Heptocodium, is a non-native tree that nonetheless is an excellent autumn nectar source for pollinators. cont’d on next page

Jennifer Schamber is the General Manager of Greenscape Gardens, and plays leaderships roles in the Western Nursery & Landscape Association, GrowNative!, the Landscape & Nursery Association of Greater St. Louis and the Horticulture Co-op of Metro St. Louis. She has earned Green Profit Magazine’s Young Retailer Award, and Greenscape Gardens was named the National Winner of the 2015 “Revolutionary 100” Garden Centers by Today’s Garden Center Magazine.

Non-native plants

The simplest definition for this category is plants that were brought to this country post-European settlement. Many of these plants were brought for human or livestock consumption, while others

APRIL 2018

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cont’d from previous page ensure long term success. It’s important that we look at many factors before determining the worthiness of a plant, just because a plant isn’t native, doesn’t mean it can’t be functional within our landscapes. Some of these plants may be an excellent food source for people, or maybe it can survive with minimal water usage. By focusing on function, we can determine what is the right balance in our own outdoor spaces.

Invasive species

These are plants that are detrimental to the livelihood of our natural ecosystems, and the vast majority are non-native.

There are quite a few of these in the St. Louis area one of the most destructive Weedy callery pear and bush is bush honeysuckle, honesuckle have taken over this partially due to the fact highway right-of-way. that it is one of the first plants to leaf out in spring and one of the last to lose its foliage in the fall, so they shade oue native woodland plants, which diminishes the biodiversity of the area.

This causes an imbalance in both the flora and fauna of the area, and we lose the eco-system services provided by a wider range of plants. Unfortunately, some plants from the horticulture trade that were thought to be non-invasive, have gone to “the dark side,, and are now highly invasive, like the Callery pear (Bradford pear and other cultivars). There are some communities in the U.S. that have determined that some invasive species are a public nuisance and are requiring residents to remove them from their properties or face a penalty. We may see more of these types of ordinances as research indicates the economic, environmental and health impacts that invasive species have on our communities.

As our late friend Cindy Gilberg would always say, “Consumers vote with their dollars,; therefore, aware and educated consumers will look toward using plants that have a positive impact overall and will move away from plants that don’t contribute to the betterment of our health, environment and economy.

Photos by Robert Weaver except as noted.

St. Louis Greenhouse Plant Society

Annual Greenhouse Plant Sale May 5th • 9am-3pm

May 6th • 10am-2pm

Located at: South Technical High School, 12721 West Watson in Sunset Hills

All plants grown locally by the St. Louis Greenhouse Plant Society master gardener level volunteers.

Annuals • Perennials • Herbs • Vegetables • Water and Bog Tropicals • Natives • Pollinator Attractors • Succulents Proceeds benefit St. Louis city and county parks, youth and community gardens and Special School District students.

Please bring your own boxes or bags. Thanks!

GreenhousePlantSociety.com 10

(314) 965-1367 The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

2018 St. Louis Earth Day Festival April 21-22, 2018 11:00am-5:00pm

Forest Park Muny Grounds www.stlouisearthday.org Helping YOU make St. Louis greener!

Use low-impact transportation.

Bring bottles/bags, avoid disposables.

Consume more plantbased foods.

#EarthDayChallenge

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Your Guide to Enjoyable Gardening and Easy-Care Landscapes

APRIL 2018

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Naturally Natives Shortleaf pine: The Original Grove

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text and photos by Scott Woodbury

ver walk through a grove of pine trees? Inside, sounds are muffled, wind is tempered and the smell of tree sap takes my breath away.

The ground is springy and soft from years of needles piling up, slowly decaying. Wind whistles through needles in the treetops.

Tree trunks stand straight, dark, tall and at times massive, like at the Pioneer Forest virgin grove along highway 19 south of Round Spring. These towering shortleaf pine trees started growing in 1791 according to dendrochronologist Dr. Richard Pinus echinata, Shortleaf pine Guyette. (Dendrochronology is the study of climate changes and past events by comparing the

Shaw Wildflower Market Saturday, May 12 | 9 a.m.–2 p.m.

Members only preview Friday, May 11 | 2–7 p.m.

Chose from the widest selection of native plants available in the metro St. Louis area!

Browse hundreds of varieties of native annuals, perennials, ferns, trees, shrubs, and vines. Market vendors will be selling local beer, wine, snacks, body products, furniture, art, and much more.

Free for members and their children $5 nonmembers | $3 students and seniors 65+ Learn more at shawnature.org/wildflowermarket

Hwy 100 and I-44 Gray Summit, MO 63039 www.shawnature.org (314) 577-9555

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groves. One in the Whitmire Wildflower Garden is perhaps eighty years old. Years of pine needle decay has changed the soil pH beneath these stately white pines (Pinus strobus, not native to Missouri) from 6.4 (nearby soil pH) to 5.8, which is acidic. This is the only place in the garden where we can grow mountain azalea (Rhododendron prinophyllum) which requires acidic soil. After nearly twenty years of weeding, watering and pine-needle mulching, five of the dozen plants growing here are mature enough to bloom.

successive annual growth rings of trees or old timber.) But at times old shortleaf pines (Pinus echinata) are demure like the virgin grove at Dan Drees and Susan Farrington’s property near Eminence, Missouri. These two- to three-hundred-year-old dwarfs are growing on bedrock with a dash of topsoil. Like with all living things, size relates to available nutrients. The more nutrients, the bigger the grass, the bird or pine tree.

Flowers appear in the first two At Shaw Nature Reserve there weeks of May and are light are a number of planted pine pink, tube-shaped and very sweetly scented. Other native acid-loving shrubs that tolerate Looking for part shade include Virginia Something Unique for sweetspire (Itea virginica), wild your Garden?? blueberr (deerberry) (Vaccinium Come Stroll Thru Our stamineum) and leadplant Gardens and Discover (Amorpha canescens).

the Pleasure of Plants!

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(618)344-8841

I occasionally see shortleaf pine planted in groves around old houses. I’m impressed by the dramatic evergreen canopy, multiple tall dark trunks. They remind me of Ozark wilderness.

Because they are narrow, single

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Tips and Resources for Growing and Landscaping with Sustainable Native Plants specimens can be planted in small urban spaces (but not under power lines). They grow tall and lose all of their lower branches in a short period of time so they make poor screens.

They work well in groves (five to fifty planted close together) because that’s how they often grow in nature and because the multiple dark vertical trunks make a bold statement. To create a naturalistic looking grove, plant seedlings 15-20 feet apart in a random pattern with wide and narrow gaps. In deep welldrained soil they grow fast. One I planted by my office door is 7 years old and twenty feet tall with a six-inch trunk diameter.

The soil doesn’t have to be acidic for them to grow well.

They grow in soil pH 5-7. They also tolerate growing in poor

(but hard-to-find) acid-loving perennials include slender bushclover (Lespedeza virginica), violet bush-clover (Lespedeza frutescens) and bush-clover (Lespedeza violacea).

The Missouri Department of Conservation sells bundles of one-year-old shortleaf pine seedlings online. Forest ReLeaf, a non-profit organization in St. Louis, offers them in containers. So does Forrest Keeling Nursery and Missouri Shooting star, Primula meadia Wildflowers Nursery. Larger soils as long as they are well- meadia), smooth blue aster field-grown shortleaf pine are (Symphyotrichum laevis), goat’s difficult to find and should drained (on slopes). rue (Tephrosia virginiana) and only be transplanted balled and Beautiful companion plants zig-zag goldenrod (Solidago burlapped. for shortleaf pine that prefer flexicaulis). Other stunning dry acidic soils and half shade/ half sun include cream wild Horticulturist Scott Woodbury is the indigo (Baptisia bracteata), Curator of the Whitmire Wildflower Garden shooting star (Primula at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit, MO, where he has worked with native plant propagation, design, and education for more than 20 years. He is also an advisor to the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s A Grow Native! Top 10 List GrowNative! program.

®

™

Keeping Nature Near ™

FEATURED CATEGORY:

TOP 10 NATIVE PLANTS FOR ACID SOILS AND PART SHADE Attractive Blooming • Part Shade and Acid Loving

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

NATIVE PLANT NAME Deerberry Vaccinium stamineum Cream wild indigo Baptisia bracteata Goat’s rue Tephrosia virginiana Leadplant Amorpha canescens Mountain azalea

HEIGHT SUN/SHADE UNIQUE QUALITY shrub with edible 1-3 ft. Part shade Small blueberries. Bee magnet. perennial.

1-2 ft. Part shade Spring-blooming Low-growing.

Showy bright pink 18 in. Part shade Perennial. and yellow flowers. textured shrub. Slow1-2 ft. Part shade Fine growing.

Light pink flowers 3-5 ft. Part shade Shrub.

Rhododendron prinophyllum fragrant. Blooms in spring.

Shooting star 12-18 Part shade Small perennial. Flowers Primula meadia in. fragrant. Dormant-summer.

Shortleaf Pine Pinus echinata Slender bush-clover

Lespedeza virginica Violet bush-clover Lespedeza frutescens Virginia sweetspire Itea virginica

Healing the Earth one yard at a time.

Joi nU rin at th s gW e Sh aw Mar ildflo we N k r Ma atur et y 1 e Re 1 thser 12 th ve Sp

30-50 ft. Part shade Narrow evergreen tree.

12-16 in.

6-8 in.

3-4 ft.

perennial. RosePart shade Compact pink flowers in summer. perennial. VioletPart shade Compact purple flowers June-July. summer blooming Part shade Early shrub. Tolerates wet soil.

This list is intended as a starting point. It is not in ranked order. It was created by Scott Woodbury, based on his many years of experience and observations as the Curator of the Whitmire Wildflower Garden at Shaw Nature Reserve. For details on soil moisture and other growing needs, visit www.grow native.org, Native Plant Database. For sources of these plants to purchase, visit the website’s Resource Guide.

Grow Native! is a native plant education and marketing program of the

ST. LOUIS CHAPTER stlwildones.org

APRIL 2018

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Join Us for Earth Day Events and Other Spring Festivals!

This spring, The Gateway Gardener will be joining in Earth Day celebrations and other events all across the region.

Come visit us at many of these events for free plant food samples, great information on sustainable gardening practices and that special back issue of The Gateway Gardener you may have misplaced! Here’s a quick look at some Earth Day and other spring celebrations on the upcoming calendar:

Yihuang Lu / Missouri Botanical Garden

Meet Me Outdoors in St. Louis Weekend Festival April 7th-8th 10-am-4pm Missouri Botanical Garden • Shaw Nature Reserve Butterfly House Events are held simultaneously at all three locations.

Climb into the tree canop, try stand-up paddleboarding, or take a nature scavenger hunt to kick off spring. Enjoy food, music, special exhibitors and more. A fun line-up of active, outdoor experiences, exhibitors, experts and more can be enjoyed

YUM.

throughout the weekend. Take home native plants and native plant gardening and landscaping design ideas and inspirations. Construct micro-habitats like nest boxes, insect hotels and native bee homes.

Try outdoor activities including the Canopy Climb, geocaching and more. Interact with experts from the region’s national, state and city parks and reserves. (The Gateway Gardener will be at the Missouri Botanical Garden site on Sunday only—please stop by our booth and say hi, pick up a back issue or help yourself to a free plant food sample!)

Tillman Elementary’s IGNITE Resource Expo and Jamboree April 14th 4-8pm 230 Quan Ave. Kirkwood, MO 63122 Tillman IGNITE is a PTO-driven initiative of Tillman Elementary School to enhance outdoor and sustainability educational opportunities through development and use of an outdoor classroom, natural/recycled play area, native gardens and other campus amenities. The Resource Expo and Jamboree celebrates this initiative by providing garden-related community work day projects (4-6pm), an Expo featuring informational booths hosted by area green businesses (garden centers, native plant specialists, and other businesses and organizations promoting gardening and sustainable practices) (5-7pm), a ribbon cutting and party featuring food trucks, live music and more (6-8pm), and educatioinal tours of the new outdoor learning facilities throughout the evening.

Riverbend Earth Day Festival April 14th Noon-6pm Piasa Harbor on the Great River Road Godfrey, IL The 7th annual Riverbend Earth Day Festival, hosted by The Nature Institute, is a celebration of local artisans, entertainment, and environmental education. Guests can walk and visit over Cont’d on page 16

Plant Sale

Saturday, April 28 • 9 AM to 1 PM Sunday, April 29 • 11 AM to 1 PM

Preview Party & Sale Friday, April 27 • 5 to 7 PM

$25 donation includes Wine, Cheese & Snacks Reservations Requested: www.ucityinbloom.org or call 314-973-6062

Heman Community Center • 975 Pennsylvania Ave.

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U City in Bloom

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find out how trees reduce stress - www.TREESWORK.org APRIL 2018

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Celebrate the magic of spring in Downtown Kirkwood. The 9th annual Earth Day at the Market will be held in the Market Greenway.

Learn from experts in Herbs, Organic Gardening, BeeKeeping, Composting, Tree Care, Native Plants and Wildflowers, and much more. Free tree seedlings will be available from the Missouri Department of Conservation. Visit with vendors there just for Earth Day, including The Gateway Gardener, as well as Market regulars— especially our friends from Missouri Wildflower Nursery!

Andrew Dobson

cont’d from page 14

St. Louis Earth Day Festival April 21st-22nd 11am-5pm both days Forest Park, St. Louis, MO 60 vendors and local non-profits, enjoy tasting food offerings, Unfortunately, our previous commitment at Kirkwood prevents and celebrate Mother Nature with this free event. The Gateway us from having a booth this year at this great event, but The Gardener is proud once again to be a media sponsor for this event. Gateway Gardener is once again proud to be a media sponsor of one of the largest Earth Day celebrations in the country! Learn Earth Day at the Market about sustainable products, services and practices, meet area nonApril 21st 10am-3pm profits that share Earth Day values, and enjoy local music and Downtown Kirkwood’s Farmer’s Market Greenway performances, hands-on educational activities, great food and Kirkwood, MO more. Visit StLouisEarthDay.org for more information.

O’Fallon Garden Expo May 5th 10am-2pm Fort Zumwalt Park O’Fallon, MO Enjoy two festivals on the same day as the Garden Expo again coincides with O’Fallon’s Founders’ Day! Live entertainment, an Arbor Day ceremony with the Mayor, St. Charles Model Railroad Club open house, tours of historic Heald Home, and free

Forrest Keeling is ‘Bringing Nature Home’ on May 5 If you’ve always wanted your yard to come alive with beautiful wildflowers and watchable wildlife, mark Saturday, May 5 on your calendar for Forrest Keeling’s Spring Celebration of Native Plants and Biodiversity!

Join us in our Habitat Headquarters to hear presentations by Doug Tallamy, native gardening expert and author of Bringing Nature Home, and other native plant pros.

Arrive early for the best selections of our special RPM-produced native perennials, grasses and woodies. Then stay all day to learn, mingle with the experts and stock up on the native plants you need to bring nature to YOUR home.

Hwy 79, Elsberry, MO 63343 800 -FKN-2401

Saturday Garden Center Hours 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

Learn more at www.fknursery.com 16

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

demonstrations, games and activities for the kids! Vendors will have folk arts and crafts, garden décor and plants, and plenty of food for sale. We’ll be here as well!

Shaw Spring Wildflower Market May 11th and 12th 2-7pm Friday, 9am-2pm Saturday Shaw Nature Reserve Gray Summit, MO Visit us for plenty of information about growing with natives while taking advantage of the largest selection of native plants available in the St. Louis area! Shaw Nature Reserve and several nurseries throughout the area offer hundreds of varieties of Missouri native annual and perennial wildflowers, ferns, trees and shrubs. Favorites like milkweed for monarchs and beautiful coneflowers, plus many plants essential for attracting pollinators and wildlife to your garden. Plus live music, food and crafts.

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Peonies Old and New

by Steffie Littlefield

There are both herbaceous and tree peonies, and intersectional peonies, which are a cross between the two.

Herbaceous Peonies Herbaceous peonies die back to the ground in winter and send up new growth in the spring.

These old-fashioned garden favorites bring opulent, fragrant white, pink or deep rose flowers to the garden in mid-spring.

The biggest challenge with these old-fashioned varieties is to plant them where they get a half day of good sun and have good air circulation. When they

most plant nurseries to help, or do as I do, cut the big fat buds on long stems and bring them inside in a vase for a spectacular show on the kitchen table. Some of the best known old fashioned favorites are ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ (full blooms of soft pink), ‘Duchesse De Nemours’ (fluffy white), ‘Raspberry Sundae’ (mixed pink, cream and light yellow), and ‘Kansas’ (deep rose to red large flowers).

Tree Peonies Tree Peony ‘Nike’ are in too shady a spot or closed in, the foliage is susceptible to powdery mildew and will be unsightly come mid to late summer. These hardy plants seem to still survive but will not thrive. Affected foliage should be removed ASAP and the plants and surrounding soil treated for the fungus. The other disadvantage of the oldfashioned plants is the flowers can be so heavy they bend and break in our crazy spring

Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm and Nursery

Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm and Nursery

T

hese sturdy and extremely hardy perennials range from delicate and exotic single-petal flowers to large and lush double blooms, with shades from pure white to the deepest red. In Missouri they flower in May in time for all the graduation and spring celebration events. The glossy, deep green leaves look good all season, when properly sited.

They make superior cut flowers, lasting more than a week if cut in full bud.

Tree peonies are woody plants, native to China that retain their structure year-round. Tree peonies are slow to mature, so weather of wind and rains. don’t be surprised if there are Peony rings can be found at few or no flowers the first spring after planting; plants generally take a few years to settle in and bloom heavily. Once tree peonies are established they will bloom profusely (up to 50 flowers) on larger size shrubs with darker foliage that looks great all summer. The flowers are immense, extremely fragrant and the colors more exotic with Herbaceous Peony shades of gold and peach and ‘Raspberry Sundae’ old rose coming into the mix.

Davidsan’s Japanese Maples BUY ONE TREE GET THE SECOND ONE

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No limit! All sizes! Maples and companion trees!

April 1 through Sunday, April 15

Second tree must be of same or lesser value. Lowest price trees will be discounted first.

There are a few extra rare cultivars that are not included in this sale.

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Davidsan’s Japanese Maples 919 S Farmingdale Rd New Berlin, IL Just 5 miles west of Springfield, IL 90 minutes from St Louis on I-55 info@davidsansjapanesemaples.com www.davidsansjapanesemaples.com 217-303-2641 18

Japanese maples including dwarfs, weeping and upright.

ALSO, ginkgo, rare conifers, oak, Metasequoia, Franklinia, Stewartia, beech, larch, dogwoods, pumice pots, and more.

Current availability list link is on the website.

There are a few trees excluded from this sale.

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Dogwoods, Redbuds, Weeping Cherries, Shade Trees, Evergreens, Azaleas & Rhododendrons

Planteck

Over 10,000 Perennials Itoh Peony ‘Sequestered Sunshine’

Again do not cut these back in the fall or ever as you do with traditional peony plants.

Intersectional Peonies Intersectional peonies are hybrids of traditional herbaceous peonies and tree peonies.

They boast attributes from both parents; large gorgeous flowers, faster establishment, hardiness, stiffer stems to hold flowers upright, a broader range of colors and superior foliage quality. One line of these is known as Itoh peonies, and the light yellow colors of ‘Sequestered Sunshine’, deep yellow of ‘Peony Yellow Crown’ are irresistible.

All peonies may be planted in both spring and fall, however if you want to move them and or divide them this should best occur in the late fall when their foliage has yellowed and can be cut off. Each viable section of peony root or stem should be crowned by an oversized bud or “eye”. The eyes of herbaceous and intersectional hybrids should be planted just

below the surface of the soil so they may feel the cold of winter temperatures but not be damaged by dry winter winds.

As the spring sun warms the top layer of the soil and mulch in the garden, these eyes will sprout shoots up through the ground with a fairly red coloring. This is more prominent in some varieties and is very healthy.

It is advised to place a support structure over the plant before it gets too tall to support the large heavy flowers in spring rains and to protect the base from pet and foot traffic. They can be somewhat vulnerable to animal damage, and my grandmother always recommended planting narcissus or surprise lilies around them so the pest-free foliage would protect the emerging shoots. This is a perfect solution since you get to enjoy the narcissus flowers early before the peonies are full and then the surprise lily flowers rise over the peony foliage later in mid summer giving that part of the garden yet another spectacular show of flowers.

Steffie Littlefield is a St Louis area horticulturist and garden designer. She has degrees from St. Louis Community College at Meramec and Southeast Missouri State and is a member of Gateway Professional Horticultural Association, Missouri Botanical Garden Members Board and past president of the Horticulture Co-op of Metropolitan St. Louis. She is part-owner of Edg-Clif Winery, Potosi, MO. www.Edg-Clif.com.

APRIL 2018

The Gateway Gardener™

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The Cornucopia Corner April Gardening

By Crystal Stevens

A

pril is a wonderful time to plant a variety of seeds and transplants into the garden.

planting, light and water requirements, height, spacing, and aesthetics. There are a number of books available at your local library on vegetable gardening that offer garden plans ranging from raised beds to acre plantings.

Step 1: Grow what you love to eat! Choose exciting varieties.

Support local seed companies such as Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and Seed Geeks. Try Step 3: Prepare your space as heirloom seeds. Heirlooms are soon as the ground is ready. The heritage varieties that have not ground should be thawed and been altered. They are typically slightly dry. Use a broad fork or passed down from generation to a potato fork to turn the top layer generation. Organize your seeds of soil over and gently break it according to planting dates. An accordion-style organizer up. Your goal should be a fine tilth soil. (Don’t overdue the works well for seed organization. tillage—think bread crumbs, not powdered sugar.) Be sure to Step 2: Choose a large garden space that gets plenty of add plenty of compost, bags of leaves, grass clippings, and sunlight. Plan the layout of your garden. Draw sketches green manure before you prep. These soil additions will feed of where you want each crop to go. Research companion your plants throughout the year.

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Jt’s Fresh Ideas Spinach & Feta StuFFed Flank Steak

Ingredients

1 - 2 lb flank steak, butterflied 2 cups chopped fresh spinach 1 cup feta cheese ½ tsp red pepper flakes 1 tsp black pepper 1 can (15 oz) Organic Tomato Sauce 2 tablespoons olive oil Salt and pepper

Directions

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Preheat oven to 400°F. On clean cutting board, use a sharp knife to butterfly your steak as evenly as possible across the grain. Try to get it to be an even thickness without too many holes in it, but don’t worry about it being perfect.

In a medium bowl, stir together chopped spinach, feta cheese, red pepper flakes and black pepper.

Spread ⅓ cup of tomato sauce over the top of the flank steak and top with the spinach and feta mixture.

Roll flank steak up into a tight cylinder and secure with kitchen twine. Drizzle the stuffed flank steak with olive oil and season with a big pinch of salt and pepper.

Pour the rest of the can of tomato sauce over the top and around the edges of the flank steak.

Bake at 400°F for 30-35 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 130°F at the thickest point. Turn oven to broil and cook 5 minutes more.

Remove from oven and transfer flank steak to a cutting board. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before removing the kitchen twine. Slice the steak roll-up into 1-¼” rounds and spoon tomato sauce from the baking dish over the pieces before serving.

Recipe and photo courtesy of: https://www.tablespoon.com

Please share some of your favorite recipes with us.

You can e-mail us at: info@gatewaygardener.com

Great for a weeknight dinner!

Enjoy...

Jt

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Tips for Growing, Buying and Cooking Fresh, Locally Sourced Food for Your Table Step 4: Easily create raised beds with straw bales, cinder blocks, and untreated scrap wood, or heat-treated pallets. In a raised bed, additions of any of the following layers would be helpful for creating good living soil and provide organic pathways for roots: leaves, followed by straw, grass clippings, more leaves, and compost. Next, add half compost and half topsoil. Finally, your top layer should be well-decomposed compost mixed with topsoil. You want your top layer to have a fine tilth so that it is easy to sow seeds.

Step 5: After the last frost (April 15th on average) when the ground can be worked, the following seeds can be planted directly into the ground: spinach, carrots, peas, chard, kale, collards, mustard greens, arugula, salad mix, lettuce, radishes, beets, turnips, green beans, as well as herbs such as parsley, cilantro, basil, mint, and oregano. Be sure to follow package directions for each seed variety in terms of spacing, soil type, depth, and light requirements. Plant seed potatoes. Asparagus crowns, strawberry slips, and sweet potato slips can be planted this time of year. Buy tomato, pepper, eggplant, squash, and cucumber transplants from a garden center and plant them in the garden late April.

Step 6: Weed regularly. For young seedlings, be sure to keep the soil weed-free with hand tools. It’s a good idea to lightly weed your garden by hand often rather than trying to do it all at once; weeding on a regular basis will save you time Crystal Stevens is the author of Grow Create Inspire and Worms at Work. She is the Garden Manager and her husband Eric is the Farm Manager at EarthDance Organic Farm School, a 14 acre certified organic farm in Ferguson, MO. Visit www.earthdancefarms.org for more information.Follow EarthDance on social media at EarthDance Organic Farm School on Facebook and @earthdancefarms on Instagram. Follow Crystal at @growcreateinspire.

in the long run and will improve the quality of your garden.

For transplants, the use of weed barriers such as weed cloths, sheet mulching, straw, and compost are important for suppressing weeds and retaining moisture.

Step 7: Use soaker hoses on your beds. Keep your seed beds well watered until they sprout. Water on a regular basis once plants are established, according to the plant’s needs.

Happy planting!

Herb Sales in April

Don’t miss the Annual Herb Days sale at Missouri Botanical Garden by the St. Louis Herb Society. The sale is open to the public April 27th and 28th from 9am-5pm with a special member’s only sale April 26th from 5-8pm.

Another popular annual herb sale is hosted by the Webster Groves Herb Society on April 21st from 8:30am-2pm at the

First Congregational Church in Webster Groves. For further information visit their website at www.wgherbs.org.

Of course April offers dozens of plants sales throughout the region, most of which feature herbs among the wide selection of plants. Be sure to check out the Upcoming Events calendar in the back of this issue, and online at GatewayGardener.com,

Your Complete Garden & Gift Center

EARTH DAY CELEBRATION Come have Fun with Us! April 21st & 22nd

A Gardener’s Destination for 34 years

Poker Chip Discount Days • Free Saplings • Popcorn Sat. 10-2: Hootie’s Rescue Haven Pet Adoption & American Eskimo Rescue.

Sun. 10-3: Crestwood Animal Shelter will join us.

Other April Events

Join Us April 24th or 26th, 7pm 4th Annual ‘Girls Night Out’ Planting Party!

Ladies Planting Project: Tea for Two Refreshments included • $30 • Reservations needed

6967 Route 111 • Piasa, IL 62079 (618) 729-4324 www.cottagegardennet.wordpress.com APRIL 2018

The Gateway Gardener™

11530 Gravois Road St. Louis, MO 63126

(314) 843-4700 or www.sappingtongardenshop.com OPEN 7 DAYS 21

Spring in the Rose Garden

by Diane Brueckman

T

Brian Schultz

his year was a fairly normal winter, albeit very cold. Roses that were covered well will be fine. The danger is having the bud unions exposed to the elements. The bud unions of tender roses will freeze. There are many black canes in my garden but, when I remove the mulch cover on those roses the base will be fine. Some of the hardier roses that were covered are starting to bud out and the temptation is to uncover, but if we get a late freeze that new growth might be destroyed. Just be patient and wait until our last frost date to uncover that will protect the lower canes and save your rose. Our last average frost date is April 15th. Chances are you will end up cutting back some of the top growth anyway.

are best cut in stages. I like to cut the lateral canes, those coming from the base of the plant, back to about 4 or 5 bud eyes. Doing the laterals first gets a lot of prickles out of the way making it safer for the person working on the rose. Check the main canes for any disease, broken canes or spindly canes coming from the crown of the plant.

Trim out the bad canes from the bottom, leaving the best to be tied to the support. Tie the main canes to the support, stressing them (bending the canes to a more horizontal position) as you tie them. When you stress the canes the laterals you trimmed are triggered to bloom all along the main canes. When the main canes are allowed to grow straight up with no tension they will only bloom on the ends.

If you have not cut back your climbers, do it now. Large climbers Another area you can work on are the shrub roses like Knock Outs.

All roses appreciate a good pruning. The hardy shrubs that you don’t cover can be pruned now or even in late winter. So often people don’t think about the shrubs. They are sold as carefree but they benefit from a little TLC. Before the foliage opens up, it is easier to see into the center of the plant. Remove any dead canes CELEBRATING OUR 38TH YEAR or canes crossing through the center of the plant. The final step is to shape the plant by trimming back some of the top growth to New Shipments Arriving Daily! even it out.

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Early spring is the best time to plant bare-root roses, in fact bareroot roses should not be planted later than the end of April for the best results. When you receive bare-root roses (usually mail order roses) open the package immediately. Check the plants for broken canes or roots and trim back to good wood. The plants should be soaked overnight in water with a little bleach (a couple of tablespoons in the bucket). Mound the soil in the center of the

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hole and place the plant on top of the mound with the roots fanned down the mound. Fill the hole half way with soil then pour water in the hole and fill soil to an inch or two above the bud union. Add a cup of organic fertilizer to the back fill soil. I use the water the bush was soaking in to water the plant. When you plant dormant or bare-root roses, they must be covered with mulch the same way you cover for winter protection. This step allows the roots to settle in before the foliage develops and needs the nutritional support. I usually leave the mulch cover on the new bushes until I have all the existing roses uncovered.

Diane Brueckman is a retired rosarian with Missouri Botanical Garden, and currently owns Rosey Acres in Baldwin, Illinois. You can reach her at (618) 785-3011 or droseyacres@ egyptian.net.

If you plan to move an existing rose, now is an excellent time to do it. Prepare the new location first.

Dig your hole big enough for a large root-ball. Dig as large a rootball as you can manage and trim the ends of the roots that protrude from the root-ball, if they are broken.

Backfill the hole and water well to settle the soil. Re-cover the rose if you had not previously uncovered it. If the rose was uncovered, just water and feed with organic fertilizer and mulch the bed as you normally would. If the rose was dormant it will not know it was moved.

A great deal can be done before April 15th. After the 15th uncover, prune, feed, spray and mulch your beds then wait for the show.

Dig Deeper.

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APRIL 2018

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23

2018 Eco-Garden Product Guide You can make your green thumb even greener by practicing sustainable gardening in your landscape! Here are some suggestions from area retailers for products that can help us all establish our own greener gardening habits.

Happy Earth Day! Hillermann Nursery & Florist 2601 E. 5th Street Washington, MO 63090 636-239-6729 Hillermann.com

Harvest Lane Honey Backyard Beekeeper Kit. With this simple all-in-one kit anyone can start beekeeping the moment bees arrive. The hive components are painted & assembled. Includes: Outer Cover, Inner Cover, Deep Hive Body, Deep Frames with Foundation, Bottom Board, Entrance Reducer, In-hive Feeder, Smoker, 1# bag Smoker Fuel, Steel Hive Tool, and Bee Brush. $182.99 Frisella’s Nursery 550 Hwy F Defiance, MO 63341 (636) 798-2555 FrisellaNursery.com Bee’s Wrap. A sustainable alternative to plastic wrap.

Made from organic cotton, beeswax, jojoba oil and tree resin, Bee’s Wrap is a natural kitchen staple. Use the heat from your hands to seal the 24

Garden Heights Nursery 1605 S. Big Bend Blvd.

Richmond Heights, MO (314) 645-7333 GardenHeights.com

wrap around a pan or piece of food. Bee’s Wraps are washable, reusable and compostable. Four patterns available in many sizes.

Combination pack of 3 sizes $19.99 Eangee Lamps. Fair-trade, eco-friendly lamps made Rolling Ridge Nursery with recycled paper and real 60 North Gore Ave. leaves! Natural food-based Webster Groves, MO 63119 dyes provide vibrantly colored RollingRidgeNursery.com shades with a soft, warm light certain to spruce up any interior space. Available in 3 sizes and 10 colors. $24.99 to $75.00 each.

Greenscape Gardens 2832 Barrett Station Rd. Manchester, MO 63021 (314) 821-2440 GreenscapeGardens.com

Deet-Free 100% Organic Bug Repellent. Made from citronella, lemongrass and cedar oils. Safe for kids and pets! Repels all mosquitos, flying insects, ticks and greenheaded flies.

Smarty Spray. Instead of conventional fruit tree spray,

why not give plants the nutrients and bacteria they need to be healthy from the inside out? “Smarty Spray” does just that. It is a concentrated blend of oils, bacterial colonies, and beneficial nutrients that strengthens plant immunity against pests and disease. Spray smart.

Sugar Creek Gardens 1011 N. Woodlawn Kirkwood, MO 63122 (314) 965-3070 SugarCreekGardens.com

2018 Native of the Year: Missouri Primrose.

A cherished Missouri and Illinois native perennial, Missouri Evening Primrose, Oenothera marcrocarpa, boasts brilliant 3-5″ cup-shaped yellow flowers, stunning winged 2-3” seed pods follow. Low growing, sprawling plants 6-12″ tall are easy to grow. Its long roots grow deep into the soil making it extremely drought tolerant.

Deer resistant. Its nectar attracts hummingbirds, moths and butterflies. An important food source for native bees.

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Sappington Garden Shop 11530 Gravois Rd. St. Louis, MO (314) 843-4700 SappingtonGardenShop.com

O.K. Hatchery 109-115 Argonne Kirkwood, MO (314) 822-0083

Messinas Pulverize Weed Control. Effective selective and non-selective weed control without glyphosate! Choose the product that fits your need, from selective weed control for lawns, to non-selective weed, brush and vine control.

Wasp Trap. Don’t let wasps ruin your outdoor fun. Wasp Trap is people and pet friendly.

Just fill with a sweet liquid and wasps will immediately be attracted to it. They crawl in the bottom of the bottle and become trapped, leaving you to enjoy Kirkwood Gardens your event. Can be used sitting 2701 Barrett Station Rd. or hung. Small $8.99. Large St. Louis, MO 63021 $12.99.

(314) 966-4840 KirkwoodGardens.com Sherwood’s Forest Nursery 2651 Barrett Station Rd. Ballwin, MO 63021 (314) 966-0028 Sherwoods-Forest.com

landscaping beds and works in hillside gardens (does not wash away). Pine straw can assist in retaining moisture levels in your soil without creating a hard crust-like layer typically occurring with hardwood mulches. A bale of pine straw covers more area than hardwood mulch, making it a great costeffective addition to your beds and lip balms are created year-round. $8.99/bale, $8.50 locally by hand in small batches 10 or more. without the use of preservatives.

We love supporting local small Timberwinds Nursery businesses in our shop.

54 Clarkson Road Ellisville, MO 63011 Effinger Garden Center 636-227-0095 720 South 11th St. Timberwindsnursery.com Belleville, IL 62220 (618) EffingerGarden.com

Purple Cow Organics.

Products using very careful, FoxFarm Organics. Hand patient and precise recipes to crafted organic soil mixes, rejuvenate and rebuild the soil natural and organic fertilizers and feed specific plants. Their and organically based products product line offers fertilizers, Corn Gluten Pre-Emergent that “Combine the Best of compost tea and more. Stop in Fertilizer 9-0-0. Use in your Technology with the Goodness to see full selection. lawn, veggie garden or perennial of Nature.” beds. Organic alternative to synthetic pre-emergent. Stops Zicks Great Outdoors weed seeds from germinating 16498 Clayton Rd. and will reduce your weed Wildwood, MO Bloem Bagz. Fabric planters pulling dramatically. 40 lb bag (636) 458-1445 to visit our Gateway ZicksGreatOutdoors.com in a variety of colors, sizes and $48.00 Gardener booth at configurations, including selfstanding models or hanging rail The Potted Plant Garden Earth Day and other planters. Made from recycled Center & Gifts events this spring. water bottles and other recycled 1257 St. Peters Cottleville Rd. Stop by and say hi materials.

Double-layered St. Peters, MO 63376 or ask your questions breathable fabric allows air to (636) 447-9000 on how to practice reach the roots, flexible material PottedPlant.net more sustainable folds flat for easy storage. gardening!

Natural Skin Care. Our PLH line of natural-preservative Pine Straw Mulch. A fantastic See page 14 for some free skin care products is great eco-friendly product that can of the events we’ll be for everyone, and especially add beauty to your gardens. It participating in. gardeners. The all-natural soaps, is a natural mulch that enhances lotions, eye cream, face creams, the nutrient composition of your

We invite you

APRIL 2018

The Gateway Gardener™

25

Growing Gardeners from Young Sprouts

by Robert Weaver

A

Youth Master Gardener Program Takes Root

t first glance, t h e r e ’ s something different about this Master Gardener group. They’re lower to the ground, they giggle a little more, and they have stronger backs! Well, none of those things may be true across the board, but as a Master Gardener myself, I speak from personal experience…and aches!

These young people will represent the charter members of a new Youth Master Gardener Program, a collaborative partnership developed and sponsored by The St. Louis County Parks, Missouri Botanical Garden, University of Missouri Extension, St. Louis County Parks Foundation, and St. Louis Master Gardeners.

Students ages 9-13 are invited to join in hands-on investigations and project-based learning opportunities. The Youth Master Gardeners will gain an appreciation of gardening and the environment, learn to work cooperatively with others, and understand science and math concepts through nature-based lessons.

Each week students will enjoy fun, interdisciplinary lessons and investigations led by Master Gardener instructors. Students will learn about botany, horticulture and garden design, planning and maintenance. An established fruit and vegetable garden and the parks’ forested trails will provide an ideal outdoor classroom for hands-on learning.

By the end of the program, students will be able to: • Classify plants using botanical and horticultural terms • Describe plant needs and garden planning steps • Demonstrate planting and care skills • Know the benefits of growing and eating fruits and vegetables.

Participants will meet on Saturday mornings from 10am-noon at Queeny Park in Ballwin, Missouri, April 7th through May 12th.

Ready.

Set.

To register or for more information, contact Diane (St. Louis County Parks) at (314) 615-8481 or dpfeiffer@stlouisco.com.

Advance registration is required by April 6th.

Piasa Harbor, along the Great River Road

Local Entertainment

Glow.

Artisans Market Environmental Education Old Bakery Beer Co. and others serving tasty food And more!

Fuchsia Glow™ Hydrangea

www.gardendebut.com 26

Sponsored by:

Gateway Gardener, Old Bakery Beer Co., Phillips 66Wood River, Madison County Government, Planning & Development

Shop, Eat, Save Our Ecosystem Partners: Great Rivers Land Trust, Sierra Club, & National Great Rivers Research and Education Center/Lewis & Clark Community College

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

Children’s Garden Club

Safe Digging starts with

B

y the way, if you have an even younger sprout who wants to get his/her hands dirty, be sure to check out the monthly Children’s Garden Club, also a program of the St. Louis County Parks. This program is open to kids of ALL ages. It’s free, and no reservations are required.

The Club meets the first Saturday of each month at 9am at various locations throughout the City and County. Programs are designed to educate and entertain with gardening and horticulture projects the children start themselves and take home to continue to grow and enjoy. This month, the Club meets April 7th at For the Garden by Haefner’s, 6703 Telegraph Rd., for “Fun Things to Do in the Garden.” On May 5th, they reconvene at Sherwood Forest Nursery & Garden Center, 2651 Barrett Station Road., to learn about “Pollinators and Plants.”

YOU

1

Call or Click 3 Working Days Before You Dig.

2

Wait the Required Amount of Time.

3

Confirm Utility Response.

4

Respect the Marks.

5

Dig with Care.

So, if you have young sprouts interested in flowers and plants, help grow their knowledge and enthusiasm through these youth gardening programs!

mo1call.com

1-800-DIG-RITE or 811 APRIL 2018

The Gateway Gardener™

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Dig This!

Gateway Gardeners and Businesses in the News “Beer” Garden Open for Visitors The next time you visit Schlafly’s Bottleworks (7260 Southwest Ave. in Maplewood), Ally Kowalski invites you to grab a pint of your favorite ale (or lager or pilsner or stout or…) and step out into the beer garden. Well, it’s a garden, anyway, and if you bring your beer, then Ally Kowalski it’s a beer garden. Ally is the gardener at Schlafly’s “Gardenworks” as it is known, and oversees the planting and maintenance of the 1/7th-acre vegetable garden to the east of the restaurant/brewery building. There, in season, you’ll likely find her, possibly along with some volunteers, tending to all manner of vegetables, including heirloom tomatoes, sweet peppers, lettuce, spinach, kale, cucumbers, okra, squash…and to no one’s surprise, hops! In the past, the garden had been intensely planted and cultivated, producing up to 6,000 lbs. of produce each season, much of which found its way onto the restaurant tables at the Bottleworks and Schlafly’s other location, The Tap Room. Today, Ally manages it more as a demonstration garden, though she’ll still harvest over 2,000 pounds of produce per season. Occasionally still, the restaurant will include some of the harvest on special event menus, but most of the produce now goes to food pantries and farmer’s markets, including their own Schlafly’s Farmer’s Market located on the parking lot.

Ally also cares for the ornamental plantings around the garden and in parking lot islands, which feature native plants that help attract much-needed pollinators to the vegetable garden.

In addition to the daily activity of growing veggies, the GardenWorks also hosts events throughout the year, including “Yoga in the Garden” (where else can you pair yoga with a beer?), and a Winter Seed Swap.

But Ally encourages visitors not to wait for an event— just stop by for a self-guided tour, or call in advance and she’ll be happy to show you around. You can follow harvest and event activities at Facebook.com/ SchlaflyGardenworks.

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Greenhouse Plant Community Efforts

Sale

Benefits

Last year the St. Louis Greenhouse Plant Society funded over $20,000 in plants and cash donations to local community efforts. Organizations benefiting include St. Louis city and county parks, youth and community gardens and the Missouri Botanical Garden. Additionally, scholarships were awarded to students at South Technical High School.

These contributions are a result of their Master Gardeners John Hensley, annual plant sale. left, and Denny Green volunteer-This year’s sale will and shop at the sale. be held in the greenhouse complex at South Technical High School on Saturday May 5th from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM and Sunday May 6th from 10:00 AM until 2:00 PM. The greenhouse is located behind the school at 12721 West Watson Road.

Shoppers will find over 12,000 locally grown plants including many unusual and hard-to-find varieties of perennials, annuals, herbs, tropicals, succulents, vegetables, water and bog, native plants and pollinator attractors.

The Saint Louis Greenhouse Plant Society is a notfor-profit organization with the mission of promoting community gardening efforts. Volunteers are master gardeners who want to share their knowledge, love of gardening and commitment to the community. They use and maintain the 10,000 square foot greenhouses at South Technical High School.

For additional information visit the website GreenhousePlantSociety.com or call 314-965-1367.

New Business Installs Raised Beds

If you would like to enjoy the ease of gardening in raised bed spaces, but don’t want to go through the hassle of building and filling with soil, Patrick Kelly of St. Louis County has a new service for you.

Through his business My Raised Garden, he offers an assortment of options for building raised beds with long-lasting and safe cedar lumber and filling them The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

with locally sourced St. Louis Composting garden soil. Options include different sizes and shapes, trellises, and other services like end-of-year clean up. Find out more at MyRaisedGarden.com.

Local Tree Pro Earns Master Arborist Certification Hansen’s Tree Service recently announced that its employee, Certified Arborist Russ Talley, has received his accreditation as a Master Arborist. Master Arborist is the highest level of certification offered by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA).

In addition to passing an extensive exam, a Master Arborist must have 20 hours each of Continuing Russ Talley Education Units in Science, Practices, and Management and have a minimum of 3-5 years as an ISA certified arborist, among other criteria. Russ Talley first began work for Hansen’s Tree Service in 2001 and received his Certified Arborist certification in 2003.

In becoming a Master Arborist, Russ will provide valuable resources to the public and staff, providing assistance in training and helping both residential and commercial customers make informed decisions as to their tree’s health and care, said a spokesperson for Hansen’s.

O’Fallon Receives Reconstruction

Grant

for

Prairie

The City of O’Fallon’s (Missouri) plan to provide O’Day Park with natural meadows and wildflower areas received a major boost from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), which notified the City that it will receive a Community Conservation Grant Program matching grant of $30,000 for the project. The grant calls for the City of O’Fallon to control invasive species in the project area; seed at least eight acres in O’Day Park with native grasses and plants, develop and implement a 15-year long-term management plan to maintain habitat improvements, and install signs to identify the project as supported by the Missouri Conservation Department. For its part, the City of O’Fallon will provide $27,000 in matching funds or in-kind assistance to acquire or rent specialized equipment, pay salaries and provide other expenses to support the project.

Native Plant Nurseryman Conservation Award The

Conservation

APRIL 2018

Federation

The Gateway Gardener™

of

Earns Missouri

(CFM) recently honored leading citizen conservationists and natural resource professionals with its Conservation Achievement Awards at a ceremony held in Jefferson City. Mervin Wallace, founder and owner of Missouri Wildflowers Nursery, was honored as Conservationist of the Year. In the presentation Mervin was described as “a passionate biologist, ecologist, conservationist, nurseryman, landscaper, educator, and advocate for

Mervin Wallace, center, accepts the award from Brandon Butler, executive director of CFM, left, and Martin Mac Donald, Bass Pro Shops.

native plants and ecosystems. He has committed decades of his personal and professional life to advancing knowledge and appreciation of native plants in Missouri.”

Also honored from our area was John Behrer, who recently retired from Missouri Botanical Garden’s Shaw Nature Reserve (SNR), where he was the 5th and longest-serving director since SNR was founded in 1925. John received the Soil Conservationist of the Year award.

Tower Grove Park Recognized

Tower Grove Park in St. Louis has been named a level-II arboretum by ArbNet, the international accrediting agency. The ranking is considered a prestigious indicator of the size and quality of the tree collection, its care and education programs.

There are only 74 level-II A white redbud allee in Tower arboretums in the world, Grove Park. and only two in St. Louis.

The Park currently has 6,820 trees, with 225 species and 58 subspecies. Every tree is digitally labeled on a GPS-enabled interactive map viewable at TowerGrovePark.org. The park also has approximately 2,000 woody shrubs of over 100 species.

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Upcoming Events Meetings, Classes, Entertainment and More Updates to this information are often posted on our online events calendar at www.GatewayGardener.com, so check there for the latest details.

Give us the details of your upcoming gardening, lawn or landscaping event and we’ll add it to our website and include it in our next issue. Deadline for printing in the June issue is May 1st.

How to reach us: Mail: PO Box 220853, St. Louis, MO 63122 Email: info@gatewaygardener.com

GARDEN CLUBS AND PLANT SOCIETY MEETINGS Interested in Joining a Garden Club or Plant Society? We have meeting dates, locations and contact information on more than 50 area garden clubs on our website at www.GatewayGardener. com. Don’t have access to the internet?

Just call us at (314) 968-3740, or write us at PO Box 220853, St. Louis, MO 63122, and we’ll get the information to you. So share your joy for gardening and join a garden club or favorite plant society today!

FUN FOR KIDS April 7th 9am-Children’s Garden Club-Fun in the Garden. For the Garden by Haefner’s, 6703 Telegraph Rd.

GARDEN TOURS, PLANT SALES AND SHOWS March 31st-April 1st 9am-5pm—Greater St. Louis Daffodil Society Show. New cultivars and old favorites are shown by the area’s top growers, who are on hand to give plant care advice and share information about their organization. Missouri Botanical Garden, Ridgway Center, Jordan Education Wing.

April 7th 9 am-Noon –Spring Sale! Gardeners

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will find a selection of vegetable seedlings, asparagus and strawberry transplants, seed packets, as well as Gateway Greening T-shirts, water bottles, and memberships! Quantities are limited, so please plan to arrive early for best selection. FREE. Gateway Greening Demonstration Garden, 3841 Bell Ave, St. Louis, MO 63108.

and others donated by area gardeners.

If you would like to donate plants, club members will come dig and divide.

Call (314) 961-4096 before April 21st.

Proceeds benefit club outreach activities including scholarships for Meramec horticulture program students. Webster Groves Recreation Center, 33 E. Glendale Rd., Webster Groves, MO.

April 14th-15th 9am-5pm—African Violet Show and Sale. Metropolitan St. Louis African violet Council presents “Violets Go to the Movies”, its 63rd Annual Show and Sale. Horticulture-Design exhibits, educational culture info, supplies, African violets, Episcias and other gesneriads for sale. Missouri Botanical Garden, Orthwein Hall. Missouri Botanical Garden, Ridgway Center.

Free with Garden admission.

9am-4pm Fri, 9am-2pm Sat—St. Louis Community College, Meramec Horticulture Club Plant Sale.

Annuals, perennials, vegetables, native and pollinator plants. Cash or check.

Parking Lot K, 11333 Big Bend, Kirkwood. All proceeds benefit STLCC students’ Meramec Botanical Society.

April 15th 1-3pm—St. Louis Hosta Society Vendor Day Sale.

Hostas and companion plants and garden items for sale. Open to the public. Creve Coeur Community Center, 300 N. Ballas.

FREE. April 21st 8:30am-2pm—Webster Groves Herb Society Spring Herb Sale. Thousands of herbs, vegetables and native herbs.

Useful tips, demonstrations, tasty treats and recipes. No admission charge and great parking. Proceeds help the society support and maintain several gardens plus provide scholarships to local horticulture students. First Congregational Church of Webster Groves, 10 W. Lockwood. Free admission and parking.

9:00am—Olivette in Bloom Native Plant Sale. Native plants at great prices until sold out! Get there early! Stacy Park Pavilion (Old Bonhomme Rd. just south of Olive in Olivette.) www. olivetteinbloom.org.

April 26th-28th Members Only Thur. 5-8pm., Public 9-am-5pm Fri., 9am-noon Sat.—Herb Days. Choose from a wide selection of potted fresh herbs, including new and hard-to-find varieties. Herb Society members will give demonstrations and guidance on selecting, planting, growing and using herbs. Included with Garden admission or membership.

Missouri Botanical Garden. Orthwein Floral Display Hall.

April 27 28 8am-6pm Fri, 8am-noon Sat—Webster Groves Garden Club Plant Sale.

Plants from club members’ gardens th-

th

April 28th 8am-2pm—Plant Sale-Ascension Lutheran Church. Pre-orders on annual flowers but additional perennial and annual flowers sold along with honey, Pot on Spot feature, and garden accessories. Located at Word of Life Lutheran School, 6535 Eichelberger, 1 block from Francis Park, 63109. Details at AscensionStL.com.

8am-1pm – 7th Annual Lincoln County Master Gardener Plant Sale. A variety of plants for sale along with seeds and garden art. Also a basket full of garden tools to be raffled off. Check us out at our Facebook page Lincoln County Master Gardeners. U. of MO Extension, 880 W. College, Troy, MO. 9am-noon—St. Charles County Master Gardeners Plant Sale.

Annuals, perennials, herbs, Missouri natives, vegetables and more. A follow up sale will be held May 5th, 9am-noon, limited plants. University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd., St. Peters, MO 63376.

April 28th-29th 9am-1pm Sat., 11am-1pm Sun.—U. City in Bloom’s Annual Plant Sale. Perennials, annuals, native and wildlife-attracting plants, culinary herbs and vegetables. (Opening Night Party and Plant Sale April 27th, 5-7pm. $25 donation, includes wine, cheese and snacks. Reservation required.)

Heman Park Community Center, 975 Pennsylvania Ave., University City.

UCityinBloom.org, 314-973-6062.

SAVE THE DATES MAY 5th and/ or 6th—Plant Sales hosted by Central Missouri Master Gardeners, St. Louis Greenhouse Plant Society, Edwardsville Garden Club, and Webster Groves Women’s Garden Association. More information in the May issue calendar.

CLASSES, LECTURES AND EVENTS April 3rd and 5th 9:30-10:30am—High Impact for Small Spaces. Discover landscape ideas to maximize the impact for smaller gardens and yards. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. Call (314) 965-3070 for reservations.

April 4th 1pm—Trial of Bush Honeysuckle. An educational, FREE event, taking place with a real judge, real lawyers, real issues in a real historic courthouse for the real purpose of educating St. Louis about the issue of invasive bush honeysuckle, and about our responsibilities and capabilities for dealing with it. The Old Courthouse in downtown St. Louis.

Open to the public. Learn more at www. woodworms.net.

April 5th 7pm—Garden Design Using Hosta.

Guest Speaker, Bruce Buehrig, cofounder of the St. Louis Hosta Society, will speak about hostas and elements of the shade garden. Hosted by the Franklin County Master Gardeners.

Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 2601 E. 5th St., Washington, MO. April 6th-7th 9am-5pm—Arbor Day Tree Giveaway. The Kemper Center for Home Gardening will give away Missouri native tree saplings. Tree saplings will be distributed on a firstcome, first served basis, one per visitor while supplies last. Master gardeners will answer questions and give advice on planting trees. Also meet representatives from St. Louis Arbor Association (Fri. and Sat.) and Spire Energy’s “Call Before You Dig” group (Fri. only) Trees available while supplies last. Missouri Botanical Garden. Included with Garden admission. www.mobot.org or call 314-577-5100 April 7th 11am – Wake Up Your Garden. Learn tips, techniques and timing to prepare your garden for the growing season. Timberwinds Nursery, 54 Clarkson Road, Ellisville. To reserve a seat, call (636) 227-0095 or register online at timberwindsnursery.com.

10-11am –Spearing No Details Workshop. This new workshop will cover how to plant and grow both Asparagus and Strawberries, with live demonstrations. Gateway Greening Demonstration Garden, 3841 Bell Ave,

The Gateway Gardener™ APRIL 2018

St. Louis, MO 63108. $5 Suggested Donation.

on “Upcoming Events” and look for “Floral Arrangement Atelier.”

11am—What’s New and What’s Best: New Varieties Natives and Nativars.

Bill Ruppert, St. Louis horticulturist and local gardening guru. Effinger Garden Center, 720 South 11th St., Belleville, IL. (618) 234-4600.

April 14 10-11am –Mindfulness in the Garden, Educator Workshop. This workshop will explore the fundamentals of Mindfulness practice with children and adolescents and introduce mindfulness activities to reconnect ourselves and children to the natural world. FREE. Gateway Greening Carriage House, 3815 Bell Ave., St. Louis, MO 63108.

1-3pm—Kokedama Moss Ball Workshop. Hands-on class. RSVP required. $20 for all materials. Frisella Nursery, frisellanursery.com/events, 636.798.2555.

April 7th-8th 9am-5pm—Meet Me (Outdoors) in St. Louis Garden Weekend. Active outdoor experiences, exhibitors, experts and more at Missouri Botanical Garden, Shaw Nature Reserve, and the Butterfly House. See page 14 for more.

April 10th and 12th 9:30-10:30am—Naturally Beautiful Gardens with Missouri Native Plants.

Learn the Missouri native plants needed to create and maintain a lovely native plant garden Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. Call (314) 965-3070.

April 12th 1-4pm—Native Plant School: Native Wild Edible Plants. Class members and horticulturists will identify some common native plants that are edible and delicious. $17 ($14 Garden members). Classroom behind Joseph H. Bascom House at Shaw Nature Reserve. For reservations or more information, call (314) 577-9526 or visit ShawNature.org.

April 13th 2pm--Callery Pear Field Event. An event to call attention to the invasive problems posed by callery pear (Bradford and others) trees and provide practical information for control and eradication. South Providence Medical Park, 551 E. Southampton Dr., Columbia, MO. Organized by the Missouri Invasive Plant Task Force, an inter-agency and interorganizational resource of the Grow Native! Program of Missouri Prairie Foundation. For more information visit http://moinvasives.org/event/stop-thespread-bradford-pear-field-event/ April 13th-14th Floral Arrangement Atelier. British television personality Alan Gray will conduct a two-day Atelier on flower arranging for all occasions at The Church of St.. Michael & St. George in Clayton. The fund raiser will help the church’s Flower Guild in its efforts to improve and expand CSMSG;s own gardens. For more information and to make reservations online, visit www.csmsg.org. Click

APRIL 2018

th

11am—Top 10 Garden Tips. Rick and Trudy Effinger show you how to save time, money and labor in your garden.

Effinger Garden Center, 720 South 11th St., Belleville, IL. (618) 234-4600.

11am---Intro to Bonsai. Join an instructor from the Bonsai Society of Greater St. Louis for a demonstration to learn the basics of Bonsai, including soil, potting, trimming, wiring and design. Timberwinds Nursery, 54 Clarkson Road, Ellisville. To reserve a seat call (636) 227-0095 or register online at timberwindsnursery.com.

1-2pm—Monarch Madness.

Informational talk about attracting and caring for monarch butterflies. Frisella Nursery, frisellanursery.com/events, 636.798.2555.

4-8pm—Tillman IGNITE Ribbon Cutting and Resource Expo. Help dedicate the new school outdoor learning space and learn from vendors about sustainable gardening and living.

Activities, food, and live entertainment.

See page 14 for details.

Noon-6pm—Riverbend Earth Day Festivals. See page 14-17 for details.

April 15th 1-4pm—Frost-Free Celebration.

Celebrate the start of spring weather with our unveiling of new annuals. Planter Demo at 3pm. FREE refreshments!

Frisella Nursery, frisellanursery.com/ events, 636.798.2555.

April 17th and 19th 9:30-10:30am—Plants That Work.

Discover the perennials and shrubs that reward us with abundant blooms and luscious foliage without all the fuss.

Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. April 18th 6:30-7:30pm–Pints ‘n’ Plants: Healing Horticulture. Therapeutic horticulture is the practice of using plants and plant-related activities to improve one’s well-being. Learn about the mental and emotional benefits of nature and how to mindfully turn your gardening experience into a therapeutic one. Urban Chestnut Bierhall in The Grove. 4485 Manchester Ave, St. Louis,

The Gateway Gardener™

MO 63110. $5 Suggested donation.

April 21st 9am-3pm—Urban Homesteading Sustainable Living Conference.

Practical information and demonstrations on sustainable living in an urban setting, with workshops on Horticulture, Nutrition and Healthy Homes. University of Missouri Extension, 132 E. Monroe Ave., Kirkwood, MO 63122. $45 includes lunch. Register at extension.missouri. edu/stlouis. Pre-registration required.

314-400-2115.

11am—Oh Deer. Learn tips and techniques for managing these visitors to your garden: plant selection, repellents and more. Timberwinds Nursery, 54 Clarkson Road, Ellisville. To reserve your seat call (636) 227-0095 or register online at timberwindsnursery.com.

65th Anniversary Party. Garden Demos, giveaways, Frisella’s “All Around the Yard” live broadcast 1-2pm, Zero Waste Home Workshop 1-2pm, Gardening for Pollinators class 3-4pm.

Frisella Nursery, frisellanursery.com/ events, 636.798.2555.

10am-3pm—Kirkwood’s Earth Day Celebration. See page 10 for details.

10am-2pm—Health and Wellness Earth Day Event. Information booths from Washington in Bloom and Urban Forestry Council from 10am-2pm.

11pm Herb Talk by Lesli Mahin. Grilled lunch by Missouri Mulch. Free redbud or wild plum sapling while supplies last. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 636-239-6729, www.hillermann.com.

April 21st & 22nd Earth Day Celebration at Sappington Garden Shop. Poker Chip Discount Days, free saplings, popcorn. Sat. 10-2 Hootie’s Rescue Haven Pet Adoption and American Eskimo Rescue! Sun. 10-3 Crestwood Animal Shelter.11530 Gravois Rd. St. Louis, 63126. Call (314) 843-4700.

10am-6pm—St. Louis Earth Day Festival. See pgs. 14-17 for information.

Chinese Culture Days. Annual celebration features a Grand Parade with 70-foot dancing dragon, authentic regional cuisine, t’ai chi and acrobatics.

Special tours in the Grigg Nanjing Friendship Garden (the Chinese Garden) focus on the symbolism of many plant species and architectural details. Please note: No trams, free hours or early morning walking hours on signature event weekends.

Gardens. Learn creative combinations of plants, colors and textures to amaze your family and friends. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. April 24th or 26th 7pm—Girls Night Out Planting Party. Ladies will put together their own Succulent Soiree Centerpiece.

Refreshments included. $30. Call (314) 843-4700 for reservations. Sappington Garden Shop, 11530 Gravois Rd. April 25th 9:30-10:30am—Beginning Tomato Gardening. Learn techniques and tips needed to grow and harvest a bumper crop of delicious tomatoes. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. April 26th 5-7pm—Ladies’ Night Out. Just for the Girls! Vendor booths, samples and Make-n-Take workshops: Plant a Herb Garden (5-5:30pm), Plant a Patio Garden (5:30-6pm), Plant a Flower Garden (6-6:30pm). $25.00 fee for each workshop (sign up when you RSVP).

Please call 636-239-6729 to RSVP by 4/23. Hillermann Nursery & Florist, 636-239-6729, www.hillermann.com.

April 29th 9:30-10:30am—Solutions for your Gardening Challenges Q&A. Bring your challenges and learn about the plants and techniques that work in tough situations. Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. May 1st 9:30-10:30am—Gardening Under Trees. Learn how to garden under trees without damaging them, using an ever expanding selection of shade plants.

Sugar Creek Gardens, 1011 Woodlawn Rd., Kirkwood. FREE. May 5th 8am-5pm--Spring Celebration of Native Plants and Biodiversity. Join Forrest Keeling Nursery at their Habitat Headquarters to hear presentations by Doug Tallamy (10am), native gardening expert and author of Bringing Nature Home, and other native plant pros.

Arrive early to shop, then stay all day to learn, mingle with the experts. Forrest Keeling Nursery, Hwy 79, Elsberry, MO 63343. 1-800-FKN-2401.

O’Fallon Garden Expo—See page 14-15 for information.

April 24th, 26th and May 3rd 9:30-10:30am—Dazzling Containers for Entrance Ways, Patios and

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What are you doing to benefit your garden this Spring?

By adding STA-Certified Compost of course!

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