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Landscapes: Restored, Rebuilt and Rejuvenated

Saturday, April 13 at 9:30 a.m.

Garden guru and national bestsell-ing author Donna Balzer will show you how to create a sustainable yard to suit your needs in her presenta-tion, Landscapes: Restored, Rebuilt and Rejuvenated.

“In my mission as a horticulturist, I help gardeners grow,” explains Bal-zer, who is a gardening consultant, journalist and radio and television personality. “I do that by giving them really practical, hands-on advice on how to change their garden.”

Regardless of what is currently in fashion, Balzer believes it’s important for gardeners to show their own personality in their garden. “I think if you try to copy or imitate fabulous gardens you’ve seen in England or in slide shows, it’s very difficult to do,” she notes. “First, you have to please yourself and create a garden that will put a smile on your face.”

In her presentation, Balzer will fo-cus on helping people develop a vivid picture of their ideal garden — and what they’ll need to do to get it.

Develop your ideal garden

FEATURED SPEAKER Donna BalzerHorticulturist, author, radio and TV personalityThe spring Garden Show is the Calgary Hor-

ticultural Society’s celebration of spring, as well as its premiere annual fundraiser.

“It’s a chance for the Society to gather gardening enthusiasts together and get ready with optimism and good cheer for spring,” says the Society’s events manager Cassandra Christie. “Especially in early to mid-April, it’s exciting to be around flowers, smell soil and talk to other gardeners about the new sea-son. It’s a lovely little trip to the country and a nice reminder that spring is just around the corner.”

The Garden Show offers many different things to see, do and experience.

Always a highlight are the featured speakers, “a quality lineup of fantastic gardening experts,” Christie says.

The speakers include Joe Lamp’l, host of Fresh from the Garden on DIY Network and GardenSMART on PBS; Donna Balzer, horticulturist, author and radio and TV personality; Owen Dell, an international sus-tainable landscaping expert; and several other. Check the schedule on Page 7 for details.

You can also learn about gardening at the How-to Clinics, which feature 45-minute presentations by lo-

cal experts on a variety of topics ranging from getting started to lasagna gardening.

One of the show’s little gems, according to Christie, is the Ask an Expert feature. “There are profoundly helpful and intelligent gardening experts standing by, ready to sit down face-to-face and discuss your garden queries,” she says.

In addition, “we are fortunate to have some of the best vendors of garden and outdoor living products to help celebrate spring. It’s also a great opportunity to meet local groups such as the Alberta Regional Lily Society, Friends of Reader Rock Garden and others.”

On Sunday morning, Let’s Talk Gardening will broadcast live at the Garden Show.

For those who would like some hands-on experience, they can sign up for a workshop (space permit-ting). The workshops, which require a fee to reg-ister, include:

n Green Roof Birdhouse, presented by Kath Smyth, will see participants creating a green roof for a prebuilt birdhouse. “It’s a really fun opportunity

to dabble in the basics of green roof design, and take home a beautiful living environment for the birds in your neighborhood,” Christie says.n Living Wall Containers,

with Tricia Ingram of Cobblestone Garden Centre, is back by popular demand. Living walls are all about vertical gardening, one of the new-est, hottest trends in horticulture worldwide.n Countryside Garden Centre will

present a workshop on Terrific Ter-rariums, featuring ferns and mosses.n Gorgeous Container Gar-

dens, presented by Golden Acre Garden Sentre, will take workshop participants step by step through the process of creating a sun- to part

shade-loving planter.Check calhort.org for details.

Garden show celebrates spring

Become a new member of the Calgary Horticultural Society by May 25, 2013 and you’ll be eligible to

win a beautiful pandora bracelet with garden related charms! A random draw will be held at the member’s talk on Sunday, May 26th.

Did you encourage a new membership? Have them tell us and your name will also be entered into the draw!

This gift has been made possible with a generous donation from society members Michael & Maryjo Fairweather.

Prize not exactly as shown.

Membership has its benefits...

Gardening for Life!Gardening for Life!

Help us grow our membership and achieve success at our Annual Garden Show!

WIN A BUTCHART GARDEN GET-A-WAY FOR TWO

Share your passion for gardening by coming to the Garden Show and/or by inviting a friend to join the Society.

EAsY WAYs TO ENTER • Visit the Society’s membership booth at

the 2013 Garden Show to fill in a ballot with your valid membership number OR join the Society and receive a ballot.

RECEIvE ExTRA BAllOTs • Invite a friend to join the Society and both

you and your friend can fill in a ballot. As you know, member benefits enhance your gardening experience, and sharing the joy of gardening creates a lifetime of benefits. Membership makes a great gift too!

Thank you to our friends at Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC for their donation of this fantastic get-a-way for two. And, thanks to our amazing President, Scott Gedak, your airfare is included!

butchart Gardens Get-a-way for two includes:

• Admission & Afternoon Tea at Butchart Gardens

• Airfare ($800)

• Budget Car Rental (pick up at the airport)

• 2 Nights’ Accommodation at The Royal Scot Hotel & Suites

• Prince of Whales 3-hour whale watching tour aboard the Ocean Magic

• Admission to – Royal BC Museum – IMAX Theatre – Shaw Ocean Discovery – Victoria Butterfly Gardens

draw date: Sunday, May 26th

MeMberShip benefitS

Magazine-quality Calgary Gardening newsletter Rated #1 benefit.

Members’ Speaker Series Educational talks and socials—back for 2013.

Spring and Fall Plant Shares Meet fellow gardeners at these fun events!

Summer Open Gardens See and learn what works in real Calgary gardens.

Online members’ area Soon to include “Carol’s Corner” forum and online version of newsletter.

Coming soon! Members’ Only Plant Database Listing plants that do well in our climate.

Make your membership pay for itself by taking advantage of all the great discounts on workshops, Garden Show tickets and purchases at the many garden retailers that support the Society.

new annual Membership fees Effective May 1, 2013

Membership Type New PriCeStudent $ 25Senior $ 25Senior Family $ 35Affiliate $ 45Individual $ 45Family $ 55Corporate $ 245Community Gardens NEW $ 75

Memberships can be purchased or renewed online, in person or by phone.

208 – 50th Ave. SW Calgary, Alberta T2S 2S1Phone 403-287-3469 Email office@calhort.org Website www.calhort.org Gardening in Calgary is a special publication of the Calgary Herald in partnership with the Calgary Horticultural Society and its 2013 Garden Show. Publication date:

Thursday, April 11, 2013 Special Projects Manager: Barb Livingstone; 403-235-7339 livingstone@calgaryherald.com Co-ordinator: Jennifer Worley Writer: Jacqueline Louie

2013 Garden Show

Spruce Meadows: 18011 Spruce

Meadows Way S.W. Show Hours:

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

admission: $15 at the door, $12 at greengate

garden centres Members $10 with valid membershipFree admission for

children 12 and under

Free ParKInG

Calgary Horticultural Society 2013 Garden Show4 Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 GARDENING IN CALGARY Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 5Spruce Meadows April 13-14

Connect with people, environment

Society promotes gardening for life

Shoulder Seasons and Urban Farming

Saturday, April 13 at 12:30 p.m.

Kevin Kossowan — entrepreneur, documentary filmmaker, journalist and urban farmer — will discuss the viabil-ity of urban farming and growing your own food in his presentation Shoul-der Seasons and Urban Farming.

Anyone interested in gardening at home and urban agriculture should come to this talk, says Kossowan, who has a commerce degree and describes himself as an economics geek. In his presentation, he will ad-dress everything from producing food for your family on a low budget to the economics of developing an urban farming business.

He will discuss cold frames, season extension, intensive gardening practic-es (tight row spacing and in-row spac-ing, multiple crops per year), yields and crop rotations and plant varieties suitable for the shoulder season.

Kossowan is part owner of Lactuca Urban Farm, a market gardening venture that supplies two farmers’ markets and multiple restaurants and caterers in his local area with sustain-ably farmed greens. Using shoulder season gardening techniques and root cellaring, Kossowan also grows the vegetables his family of five con-sumes year-round, on a small city lot just five minutes from downtown Edmonton.

Taste of farmingin the city

FEATURED SPEAKER KEvIN KoSSowAN Entrepreneur, urban farmer

For gardeners of all ages and experience, the Calgary Horticultural Society is a vast resource for gardening in Calgary.

Established 105 years ago, the Society is a reg-istered charity offering a wide range of benefits to members, including a subscription to Calgary Gardening; open garden visits throughout the growing season, intended to educate and in-spire; and talks by guest experts on a variety of garden-related topics.

In spring and fall, the Society hosts two an-nual plant shares, which are an opportunity to pick up a variety of plant materials that flourish in Calgary.

Society members also receive a discount on their purchases at more than 50 garden retail-

ers in the Calgary area. Another members-only benefit is a plant database being launched by the Society this spring.

A new membership benefit this year is a lower entry fee — $10 — to attend the garden show. Non-Society members, “will have the oppor-tunity to purchase a membership and save $5 on admission right at the door,” says executive director Elizabeth Jolicoeur.

Members attending this year’s show will have the opportunity to win two fantastic prizes: the Butchart Garden Getaway which includes airfare, two nights’ hotel accom-modation in Victoria, car rental, admission to the world famous Butchart Gardens and afternoon tea, a three-hour whale watching

tour and admissions to the Royal BC Mu-seum, IMAX Theatre and Victoria Butterfly Gardens.

This free draw is open to any Society member who attends the Garden Show and fills out a ballot; new members can also enter. If a current Society member encourages someone to join the Society, that existing member will receive a second ballot to enter the draw.

Become a member by May 25 for chance to win a garden-inspired Pandora bracelet, valued at $400.

“For 2013, we are really looking at engag-ing more people to garden and to join us in supporting our vision of Gardening for Life,” Jolicoeur says.

Gardening is all about having fun and meeting people, says Scott Gedak, presi-dent of the Calgary Horticultural Society.

“Gardening shouldn’t be looked at as a solitary activity — gardening is about growing a com-munity,” Gedak says. “It’s a great way to meet your neighbours when you’re out working in the yard. And there is nothing better than getting out and meeting fellow gardeners, asking questions, and sharing stories and successes. Gardening is a fantastic way to learn about where we live and to connect with the environment.”

Gedak always recommends new gardeners start out container gardening.

“Use a large container — the bigger the better and with a good potting soil mix. That way, you

are the most likely to have success starting out.” The next step is learning about the soil where

you live. “In Calgary, we have heavy clay soils that tend

to stay cold in the spring. So if you take your plants and put them straight into the soil you will probably be disappointed,” Gedak says, explaining that in Calgary, gardeners need to amend the soil, add organics and use mulches to find success.

There are many resources available to help you learn about soil, climate and gardening in Calgary, including the Calgary Horticultural Society, which publishes Calgary Gardening, a newsletter for Society members; books, such as Gardening under the Arch, published by the Millarville Horticul-

tural Club; and the Calgary Herald’s Gardening in Calgary section. You can also visit a variety of local gardens, including the Reader Rock Garden, and the gardens at the Calgary Horticultural Society, Lougheed House and Calgary Zoo.

Also key to success is “be a happy gardener,” Gedak says. “If we’re looking at it as a chore, what are we doing that isn’t working for us? For example, if you hate cutting the lawn, get rid of the lawn. You want to design a garden that works for your lifestyle. If you have a limited amount of time, that’s where containers and raised beds allow you to focus your efforts, so you can get the maximum ‘wow’ in your garden.”

Last but not least, Gedak’s final words of wis-dom: “remember to water.”

Step into a garden for all seasons, set up especially for this weekend’s garden show as part of the Dis-play Garden Competition.

Six newly created outdoor living spaces have been set up around the perimeter of the Equi-Plex building.

“The challenge is to create a functional year-round outdoor space,” says Calgary Horticultural Society events manager Cassandra Christie. “The amount of effort is inspiring, and it’s truly a feature worth seeing at the show.”

The professional landscapers entered in the Display Garden Competition are: Five Star Landscape & Design, Year Round Landscaping, Eco Yards, Baber Design + Build, Create Escape and Scottish Gardens.

In addition to the judges’ choice prize of $2,500, the competition winner will receive a People’s Choice award of $1,000, plus a trophy. Everyone who attends the spring Garden Show can vote.

The awards ceremony will take place Sunday at 4:30 p.m. on the How-to Clinic stage. The 50/50 draw prize winner will also be announced at this time.

Small Space Gardening Saturday, April 13 at 11 a.m.

Learn about making the most of any small-space garden, whether it’s ornamental, edible, or both. In his talk, Small Space Gar-dening, Lamp’l will draw from a vast net-work of expert designers and plant breeders to share the latest information to allow you to make the most of any small space.

“Even gardeners with a lot of space still have small spaces that need to be dressed up, so this is applicable to everyone,” says Lamp’l, founder and CEO of The joe gardener Company, executive producer and host of Growing a Greener World, and host of Fresh from the Garden on DIY Network and Gar-denSMART on PBS.

Edible Landscaping Saturday, April 13 at 3:30 p.m.

Edible landscaping is one of the hottest new trends in home garden design, with front-yard gardens integrating edible growing space for fruits, vegetables, herbs and ber-ries. In this talk, Lamp’l will discuss simple design techniques that incorporate edible ornamental selections to enhance both the look and function of your garden.

“There are so many great varieties of ed-ible plants that work well in a landscape, as well as in a vegetable garden,” says Lamp’l, noting many edible plants can be an orna-mental feature in the garden.

“There is such a trend toward growing your own food these days.

“Who doesn’t love to walk out their front or back door and harvest something they can eat or cook?”

Small spaces, edible landscaping

FEATURED SPEAKER JoE LAmp’L Founder, CEO joe gardener Company

At thE ShowSENSoRY ShowCASE

Green thumbs — both big and little — have put their creativity, artistic flair and gardening know-how to the test with the adult and children’s container garden competitions, on display at this weekend’s garden show.

The theme for the Peter the Plantman Adult Con-tainer Competition is A Season for the Senses, while the Copperfield Children’s Container Competition is A Garden for the Senses.

There will be ribbons and cash prizes for first-, sec-ond- and third-place winners in both the adults and children’s competitions. Everyone who attends the gar-den show is eligible to vote for their favourite entries.

ChILD’S pLAY

Children will have lots to see and do at this weekend’s Garden Show.

“They can get their hands dirty, learn something about gardening and maybe become future garden-ers,” says program co-chair Janice Bakal.

The following educational activities are free:n Seed bombs, presented by the Calgary Zoo;n Make a thumb-controlled watering pot from

recycled materials, with Green Calgary;n Little Sprouts, with the Lougheed House, will

allow children to plant seeds in a pot, to take home and grow on a windowsill;

n Leaf rubbings, with the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

There will also be a registered workshop on carniv-orous plants, Plants that Bite Back ($15 per partici-pant) presented by John Duncan of greengate garden centres. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

GARDEN FoR ALL SEASoNS

CompANY NAmE Booth#

DISpLAY GARDEN CompEtItoRS DisplayBaber Design + Build Garden#4Create Escape Inc. Garden#5Eco-yards Garden#3Five Star Landscape Garden#1Scottish Gardens Garden#6Year Round Landscaping Inc. Garden#2

EQUI-pLEX EXhIBItoRSA-1 Contractors est. 1987 27Airdrie Tractorland P2Almac Landscapes P8Amazon Iron P9Arbor Care Tree Service Ltd. 37The Arborest Expert Tree Service Ltd. 31Anthony Jamieson Design Studio 231ATS Pond Maintenance 1The Awning Factory 219-220Badger Ridge Greenhouse P6Blue Grass Nursery & Garden Centre P7Bow Point Nursery Ltd.   32Brassard Greenhouse Ltd. 21Brothers Two Small Engine Inc. P10 - P11Butchart Gardens 16Bylands 17Calgary Zoo & Botanical Gardens 28Cobblestone Garden Centre 206-205Countryside Garden Centre 18Creative Ironwork & Design Ltd. 035-038Creekside Country Store 7City of Calgary Waste & Recycling 040-041City of Calgary Water Services 039-042Eagle Lake Nurseries Ltd. 203-204Eagle Lake Turf Farms Ltd. 226-225Eastern Slopes Rangeland Seeds 23Feng Shui By Iris (w/ two foot gardener) 34Flora Tech Garden Design 46G.R. Distributors Inc. 207-208Garden Retreat 105-108Gardeners For The Prairies 13Gardens West Magazine 29greengate garden centres FeatureHelgor Marketing Inc. 12Homespun Outdoor Décor 215-216Kayben Farms 9Kwik Kerb Scenic Acres 24The Landscape Artist Inc. 19

CompANY NAmE Booth#

Juice Plus - Tower Garden 2Manderley Turf Products Inc. 22My Garden Creations 211-212Naiad Irrigation Systems Ltd. 36Nutri Lawn Calgary Inc. 214-213Olds College 33One Yard At A Time 15Ornamental Stone / Wonder Tote 044-045Pages Books On Kensington Gallery GreenPatioline Imports 221-224Patioline Imports 218-217Pisces Pet Emporium Ltd. P4Plantation Garden Centre 210-209Pottery by Pamela & French Linens 230 - 229Pressed Wishes 009-010Quick Grow Garden Centre P1Regency Irrigation 227-228Rocky Mountain Landscape Bark P3Silver Solutions / Bead Buzz 14Sean Goddard Insects 232Soil Kings Inc. 30Spring Break Garden Centre 43Spruce It Up Garden Centre P12Sud-Z Distribution Ltd. 8Tomboy Tools 20Top Spray 26two foot gardener (w/ Feng Shui By Iris) 34Wickerland 101-104Wild About Flowers 202-201Western Canada Compost 6Winged Weeder @ Klipper Distributing 25Worms @ Work 3Your Tree Doctor P5

mAhoGANY mARKEtpLACE EXhIBItoRSHopewell - Mahogany -Copperfield 600Alberta Regional Lily Society 407The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs 402C.R.A.G.S. (Calgary Rock & Alpine Society) 414Calgary Rose Society 404Canadian Peony Society 405Chinook Honey Company 602Edmonton Horticultural Society 410Foothills Orchid Society 406Fort Calgary 416Friends of Reader Rock 413

CompANY NAmE Booth#

Gardens by Laura 506Green Calgary 415Gramma’s Garden Shed 500ISA Prairie Chapter 400Larchwood Nurseries Inc. 603Living Soil Solutions/Earthly Matters 501Lougheed House 411Master Gardeners Association of Alberta 409Nature Calgary 401Red Barn Mercantile 503Sapphire Fresh Jewellery 505Stampede City African Violet Society 412Ten Thousand Villages 508Trochu & District Arboretum Society 408Venturers Society 403Ziegler Stone Designs 504

oUtDooR CoURtYARD EXhIBItoRSBabbling Brooks #2Eagle Lake Turf #3Shed Solutions #1Paramount Landscape Design Inc. M2

April 13 & 14, 2013Spruce meadows

18011 Spruce meadows way S.w.

6 Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 Calgary Horticultural Society 2013 Garden ShowGARDENING IN CALGARY Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 7Spruce Meadows April 13-14 GARDENING IN CALGARY

EQUI-pLEX

mAhoGANYmARKEtpLACE tENt

FEAtURED SpEAKER SChEDULE — GALLERY oN thE GREEN

SAtURDAY, ApRIL 13time Speaker presentation9:30 a.m. Donna Balzer Landscapes: Restored, Rebuilt and Rejuvenated11:00 a.m. Joe Lamp’l Make the Most of Any Small Space Garden 12:30 p.m. Kevin Kossowan Shoulder Seasons and Urban Farming2:00 p.m. Sara Williams The New Prairie Xeriscape3:30 p.m. Joe Lamp’l Edible Landscaping

SUNDAY, ApRIL 14 time Speaker presentation9:30 a.m. Megan Evans Native Pollinators in the City 11:00 a.m. Owen Dell Sustainable Landscaping: Future of Gardens12:30 p.m. Owen Dell Designing a Garden That Works2:00 p.m. Sara Williams Gardening, Naturally: Reducing Chemical Pesticides 3:30 p.m. Kath Smyth Yard Smart Gardening

how-to CLINIC SChEDULE — EQUI-pLEX BUILDING

SAtURDAY, ApRIL 13time Speaker presentation9:45 - 10:30 a.m. Janet Melrose How to Square Foot Garden10:45 - 11:30 a.m. Kim Wickwire How to Grow a Cutting Flower Garden 1:15 - 2:00 p.m. April Demes How to Get Started Gardening in Calgary2:15 - 3:00 p.m. Matt Davis How and When to Prune Trees and Shrubs3:15 - 4:00 p.m. John Duncan What’s New for Your Garden in 2013

SUNDAY, ApRIL 14time Speaker presentation9:00 - 11:30 a.m. AM770 Live Broadcast Let’s Talk Gardening 1:15 - 2:00 p.m. Elaine Rude How to Create a Lasagna Garden 2:15 - 3:00 p.m. Ron Jones How to Incorporate the Sound of Water in Your Garden 3:15 - 4:00 p.m. Mike Dorion How to Improve Your Soil 4:30 - 5:30 p.m. Leslie Horton - Global TV Awards Ceremony

2013 GARDEN Show woRKShop SChEDULE

SAtURDAY, ApRIL 1310:00 a.m. - Noon Instructor presenter FeeGreen Roof Birdhouse Kath Smyth Calgary Horticultural Society $80 and greengate garden centres 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Terrific Terrariums Lorie Bjorkman Countryside Garden Centre $70

Children’s workshop Plants That Bite Back John Duncan greengate garden centres $15 Half-hour sessions starting at 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.

SUNDAY, ApRIL 14 10:00 a.m. - Noon Speaker presenter Living Wall Container Tricia Ingram Cobblestone Garden Centre $80

1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Gorgeous Container Garden Carol Gillis Golden Acre $75

Children’s workshop Plants that Bite Back John Duncan greengate garden centres $15 Half-hour sessions starting at 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.

Generously sponsored by:

Hopewell Residential Communities is an enthusiastic new sponsor of the spring Garden Show.

“We have really found a kinship with the Calgary Horticultural Society, whose mission is building awareness around horticulture in Calgary through education and practice,” says Hopewell senior manager, marketing and community relations, Scott Hamilton, noting the opportunity to sponsor the Garden Show and partner with the Calgary Horticultural Society allows Hopewell to bring that same kind of awareness about gardening to the communities it builds.

“We really appreciate what the Horticultural Society does and at Hopewell we are very much about greening up communities, and providing owners with the education, knowledge and inspi-ration to do so.”

In southeast Calgary, Hopewell’s new communities are Ma-hogany, which is centred around a large lake, and Copperfield, a naturally inspired community.

Mahogany is a SAM Award finalist in 2013 for Community of the Year. The SAM Awards, which celebrate innovation and excellence in Calgary’s residential construction industry, will be announced on Sat-urday, April 13. Copperfield is a past SAM Award winner.

Hopewell welcomes Society partnership

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Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 9Spruce Meadows April 13-14 GARDENING IN CALGARY8 Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 Calgary Horticultural Society 2012 Garden ShowGARDENING IN CALGARY

Native pollinators in the CitySunday, April 14 at 9:30 a.m.

Megan Evans will help you cre-ate some buzz in your backyard with her talk, Native pollinators in the City.

A range ecologist with an Al-berta environmental consulting firm, Evans will discuss the diver-sity of native bees in Alberta, the difference between native and managed pollinators and how to create nesting areas for native bees in your backyard — because a garden that is friendly to native bees can lead to increased pol-lination for your plants.

Most bees in Alberta are soli-tary and live in the ground. Bees, along with many other creatures, are pollinators: they help plants reproduce by transferring pollen.

“This is important not only in agriculture, but also for plants in parks, gardens and natural areas,” Evans says.

Research suggests bee popula-tions are declining, so whatever gardeners can do to help them, can make a difference.

“Raising awareness about the importance of bees and the is-sues they are facing will give peo-ple the knowledge to make small changes in their own gardens to help native bees,” Evans says.

Bees welcome pollinators

FEATURED SPEAKER MEGAn EVAnSRange ecologist

Make some magic in your mini fairy garden

Container gardening, vertical gardening and growing food are some of the hottest trends in the

garden for 2013.This year, fruits and vegetables “are

still really big. Anything to do with food is big, because people want to know where their food comes from,” says greengate garden centres greenhouse manager John Duncan, who is a speaker on the How-To Clinic stage during this weekend’s spring Garden Show.

Even if you don’t have a lot of space, you can still grow edibles, Duncan says, noting people can grow vegetables and herbs in containers. They can also do vertical gardening on walls; or rooftop gardening, to make the most of the space they have. Gardening in small spaces is a growing trend, with more people living in condos or in homes

with smaller yards.Another new trend that has popped

up this season is fairy gardening. “It’s like miniature gardening,” Duncan ex-plains. People buy little chairs, houses and other small-scale decorations, and, together with miniature trees and low-growing plants, use these decorative elements to enhance their yard. “It’s one of those things that has become very popular in North America.”

Duncan will be speaking about new gardening trends at the spring Garden Show on Saturday, April 13 from 3:15 to 4 p.m., on the How-To Clinic Stage. In his talk, What’s New in 2013 for Your Garden, Duncan will take the audience on a full colour tour of new plants for the 2013 growing season. He’ll cover gardening must-haves, overlooked plants and some of his favourite plants. 

Don’t be afraid - pruning tips

Grow your own, organically

Growing your own vegetables means enjoying freshly picked produce — straight from the garden.

“The best reason to grow vegetables is because they taste better and are better for you,” says master gardener Elaine Rude, who will be at this weekend’s spring Garden Show as a speaker on the How-To clinic stage, and is also an expert in the Garden Show’s Ask an Expert booth. “You can pick them right when they’re fresh, and their nutritional content is much higher. Food isn’t being trucked in from 1,000 miles away, and you can grow it organically, without sprays.”

Rude suggests starting off with veggies you like to eat. If you are successful, it will give you confi-dence to pursue other things.

“Once you get confident with some of the simpler things, you can move out and try more unusual vegetables,” she says.

Rude also suggests starting off small, with plants that are easy to grow in Calgary’s climate — for

example, cool-season crops such as lettuce, spinach and carrots. These are veggies that don’t mind a cool spring, don’t require a lot of fussing and work within Calgary’s short growing season. Things like Swiss chard, potatoes, carrots, beets and onions all do well here, as do many types of herbs, and fruits such as strawberries and raspberries.

Rude also recommends becoming familiar with your gardening space. “Everyone’s gardening space is a little bit different, so get to know your site a little and know what’s going to do well there,” she says.

Even if you live in an apartment, there are new products on the market that allow people to gar-den on balconies, where “you can grow potatoes in a bag and get a good crop.”

According to Rude, there’s no reason why people in Calgary couldn’t grow some of their own veg-etables, since many veggies grow very well here. “Everybody has enough space that they can grow some of their own food. My grandmother gardened on a balcony for years and grew all sorts of stuff.”

the New prairie Xeriscape Saturday, April 13 at 2 p.m.

 Saskatchewan-based horticulturist Sara Williams, author of the new and revised Creat-ing the Prairie Xeriscape, will preview the best hardy and drought-tolerant plants for the Prai-ries in her talk, the New prairie Xeriscape.

“Xeriscape is not rocks and gravel. It can look just as colourful and attractive as a con-ventional landscape,” says Williams, noting that xeriscaping is now widely accepted, and mulching is a common practice.

Her presentation will cover the principles of xeriscaping, and the wide range of plant materials that are moderately or extremely drought tolerant for the Prairies.

Williams will also discuss how to save wa-ter in your landscape. “Water is a finite re-source — it’s getting more expensive — and we should do all we can to conserve it.”

Gardening Naturally: Reducing Chemical pesticides in Your Landscape

Sunday, April 14 at 2 p.m.

Most people realize it’s important to reduce pesticides, but they haven’t had a tool box that is readily available to them,” says Sara Williams, co-author of Gardening Naturally with Hugh Skinner.

Gardening Naturally is a chemical-free hand-book for the Prairies that presents alternative tools for gardeners who want to reduce their use of chemicals and pesticides. It covers or-namental plants — trees, shrubs, flowers and lawns — and edibles, both vegetables and fruit.

Williams will discuss cultural methods for gardening naturally. Any gardener interested in reducing pesticides should attend this talk, says Williams, noting natural gardening methods might become a requirement as more munici-palities adopt bylaws reducing the use of 2-4-D and other cosmetic pesticides.

Natural gardening

FEATURED SPEAKER SARA wILLIAmS Horticulturalist, author

35th Annual Show & SaleFriday May 10th - 10:00 am - 9:00 pmSaturday May 11th - 9:30 am - 4:00 pm

Northland Village Mall5111 Northland Drive N.W.

Information on Membership, Meetings & Events is available on our website:http://www3.telus.net/scavs

E-mail your questions to: violets@telus.netTelephone: (403) 241-8300

Stampede City

African Violet Society

Eutrochium maculatum ‘Atropurpureum’ Common name: Joe Pye weedFamily: AsteraceaeZone: 3Exposure: Full sun or part shadeheight: 150 – 250 cm Spread: 90 – 120 cm

Joe Pye weed is a bold, architectural plant that adds colour and structure to the late summer and early-fall garden. Dark purple stems and enormous clusters of deep rosy-purple flowers make Eutrochium maculatum ‘Atropurpureum’ an especially outstanding cultivar. This easy-to-grow North American native prefers moist soil and is great for the back of the border, meadows, waterside or mass plantings. Joe Pye weed is deer- and rabbit-resistant and beloved by all pollinators.

Perennial of the year

If you’d like to create rich organic soil to grow your veggies in, check out How to Create a Lasagna Garden, a How-To Clinic that runs on Sunday, April 14 from 1:15 to 2 p.m.

Master gardener Elaine Rude will explain the lasagna gardening method, which is an easy way to create a new garden on any soil without having to dig. You build up the soil you are going to plant in by layering different types of organic materials on top of each other and letting them rot down to build up friable soil.

“It’s a way of making a garden bed. It’s a really good way to build up the soil in places where people want to garden but the soil is terrible. It’s an efficient way of building up the soil without bringing in a lot of dirt.”

Create a lasagna garden

If the thought pruning has you in fear of doing more carnage with your shears than good, journeyman land-scape gardener Matthew Davis has some suggestions.

Davis will explain how to make pruning cuts cleanly and properly in his talk, How and When to Prune Trees and Shrubs, Saturday afternoon at the spring Garden Show.

Calgarians “probably live in one of the toughest cli-mates in North America to get plants to grow, because of the cold winters and the chinooks. It makes it really tough on things,” says Davis, an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)-certified arborist and owner of Adair Tree Care in Calgary.

“The difference between a tree growing in your yard and a tree growing in the forest is that in your yard, it’s typically open and the tree is allowed to grow without restriction. So pruning is important to keep people and property safe, and to ensure that trees add value to your property.”

Davis will speak Saturday from 2:15 to 3 p.m. on the How-To Clinic Stage, where he will discuss how to use cuts to help shrubs and trees develop good struc-ture and form. He’ll also cover pruning methods and the effect they have on plants, as well as the best time of year to prune. 

10 Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 Calgary Horticultural Society 2013 Garden ShowGARDENING IN CALGARY Calgary Herald Thursday, April 11, 2013 11Spruce Meadows April 13-14 GARDENING IN CALGARY

Growing communities one garden at a time

Yard Smart Gardening Sunday, April 14 at 3:30 p.m.

Learn how to make your garden “smart” by using a variety of water-conservation techniques — and enjoy a beautiful yard at the same time. Calgary Horticultural Soci-ety horticulturist Kath Smyth will discuss design techniques to create and sustain a rain-friendly garden, which will protect not just the environment, but also people and the community.

Yard Smart Gardening is water-wise gardening — something that everyone needs to be doing, according to Smyth, who will offer a variety of tips and tricks that Calgarians can draw on to use water more frugally. For example, by grouping plants together in the garden and in con-tainers, you’ll be able to water groups of plants in one go, instead of walking all over your yard.

An instructor for the Calgary Zoo’s Master Gardener program, Smyth has been gardening for more than 40 years, and appears on both radio and television to dish about gardening.

Yard Smart gardening includes practis-ing good soil management and water use, combined with growing plants that are suitable for Calgary’s climate. Use the right plant for the right place, Smyth says — “instead of trying to play nurse-maid to a bunch of exotic material that isn’t going to survive here.”

This way, you can develop a beautiful space that is a tranquil retreat for you and your family. “It’s an expression of your personality after all, and a valuable part of the real estate you own.”

Rain-friendly gardens

FEATURED SPEAKER KAth SmYth Horticulturist

The Calgary Horticultural Society’s Community Garden Resource Network (CGRN) is all about connecting people with gardening, nature and

each other. “It’s really extraordinary what

can happen when people are meeting and collaborating around the premise of the satisfaction of growing plants,” says CGRN co-ordinator Gael Blackhall. “People grow, as well as the plants. People are growing and developing friendships, knowledge and outdoor experiences. It’s all about the enjoyment of the natural world, and connecting to that when you are in a city.”

A project of the Calgary Horticultural Society, the CGRN wants to develop a community of gardeners throughout Calgary, working with citizens in all neighborhoods who are interested in going forward with a group gardening project.

The CGRN assists community gardeners at all stages in their gardening journey: from the busy excitement of the first year of planning, constructing and launching a community garden to facilitating gardener-to-gardener conversations as part of regular small group discussions on a set topic.

“It’s all about sharing information so that community gardens can become more sustainable, both in their gardening practices and also with their people and organization,” Blackhall says. “The Calgary Horticultural

Society and CGRN are there to connect you with learning in all kinds of ways.”

For example, the Calgary Horticultural Society has been running a How-to series of workshops for community gardeners on a variety of topics, ranging from how to start a community garden to how to get the most out of your community gardening experience, and how to extend the gardening season.

This year, the CGRN has developed a community garden database and photo galleries for Calgarians planning to launch a community garden.

“This means that people looking at starting a community garden in their neighborhood can learn from other garden teams year-round,” Blackhall says.

“They can see where gardens are located, read a profile of the garden’s specifications and look at photo galleries.”

This is a valuable year-round tool for new groups of citizens starting group gardening projects. When they see something they’d like to learn more about, they can contact that community garden’s organizers, since the website profile also lists contact information for each garden. Visit calhort.org/community-gardens for more information.

Breathe new life into gardening Getting your little sprout involved in gar-

dening can be both fun and rewarding. Children learn about growing food, where

food comes from and about the natural world. The family spends time together in the garden and ev-eryone reaps the benefits of harvesting fresh vegeta-bles, herbs and fruits they have grown themselves.

Getting children involved in the garden can be fun for the whole family, says Calgary Horti-cultural Society garden animator Janet Melrose, who offers several suggestions to help intrigue your child about heading out into the garden:n Choose seeds that are quick germinating

and quick-growing, because “children want to see something happening quickly.” n Choose plants that are easy to grow in Cal-

gary’s climate, and that taste great. “You want your child to be able to harvest edibles and eat them right there in garden, when they’re the best, freshest and just picked out of the ground,”

Melrose says.For instance, “Tom Thumb lettuces “are small

and taste wonderful, little finger carrots explode in your mouth with taste and the Round Romeo carrot is very sweet.” Other good choices are cherry

tomatoes such as Sun Gold, and snap peas, tender enough that the pods can be eaten as well as the peas inside. Melrose also suggests growing unusual-looking veggies such as kohlrabi, which “looks like a spaceship — a Sputnik. Kohlrabi is in the same plant family as broccoli, excpt that instead of eat-ing the flower, as you do with broccoli, you eat the stem.” You can steam kohlrabi or slice it thinly and eat it fresh, says Melrose, who enjoys eating raw sticks of freshly cut kohlrabi. n Grow colourful vegetables. For example, in-

stead of green beans, go for purple or spotted beans, “because they look funky and have a great taste.”n Finally, choose plants that will attract “all

the butterflies, bees, dragonflies and everything else that hums and buzzes in the garden.”

Through gardening, Melrose explains, children can learn about how bees pollinate plants, and how the many other beneficial bugs, such as lady-bugs, help both the garden and the gardener.

Quick growing, colourful and unusual looking veggies will help entertain children in the garden.

Calgary Horticultural Society board members describe their favorite plants:

Clematis occidentalis, a na-tive clematis that blooms early and seems to flower for much of the summer.- Merlin Brinkerhoff, board member

Clematis. Why do I love them? The size and intense colours of the flowers, and the variety of colours. I have them growing in the sun, but also climbing up a tree in the shade. - Denyce Lundeen, board member

The peony, for completely nostalgic reasons. My Baba used to grow them on our family farm in Saskatchewan. As a small child, they were the one flower in her garden that I was allowed to pick. I made huge bouquets of them and placed them around the house in quart sealer vases. No one seemed to mind when the ants (from the plants) would take over the house for a couple of days because the fragrance was so lovely. My Baba passed away a number of years ago, but every time the peonies are in bloom, I feel and see her presence in their fat, pink blossoms.- Kenna Burima, vice-president

Hepatica nobilis, or Liver-wort. Its vivid blue flowers are one of the first harbingers of spring in my yard, and it has amazing patterned foliage the rest of the year. - Scott Gedak, president

Autumn Joy Sedum (Se-dum spectabile). This plant is drought-tolerant, rabbit-resis-tant and has a presence in my garden throughout the year, reaching full maturity in the fall with showy dark pink rounded heads on sturdy stems. - Gerda Harrity, board member

Bee balm and pasque flower. Bee balm because of the co-lour. A native Prairie plant, it is fragrant, attracts bees and butterflies, and can be part of a cutting garden. Pasque flower, because of the colour, and the fact it is a native Prairie plant, and Calgary’s official flower. - Sharon Trottier, board member

The hosta is my favourite plant. It’s all about the leaves, with the colour variation from light green through to blue. - Bonita Luciow, treasurer

Perennial favourites

Sustainable Landscaping Sunday, April 14 at 11 a.m.

Landscape architect and educator, Owen Dell believes in making land-scaping productive and beautiful.

In his presentation, the U.S.-based author of Sustainable Landscaping for Dummies and a pioneer in the sustainable landscaping movement will take a visionary look at the future of gardens — what landscaping could and should be, and its potential to be more than merely decorative.

“Landscape isn’t just a pretty thing to look at,” he explains. “It also has the potential for creating food, for creating climate control around the house, modifying energy use, con-trolling erosion, providing habitat for native birds, insects and wildlife and many, many other things. We really have only begun to understand what the role of landscaping is in a sane world.”

Landscaping is a major human activity. “Unfortunately, it’s often just seen as a means of improving prop-erty values,” Dell notes. “Creating a pleasant living space is fine, but there

is a lot more to it than that.”In his presentation, Dell will ex-

plain what people can do to build a more sustainable future, by creating spaces that are beautiful, enjoyable and sustainable.

how to Design a Garden that works Sunday, April 14 at 12:30 p.m.

A successful garden is a highly functional, stable ecosystem. In this participatory workshop focused on environmentally friendly landscape design, you’ll learn how to create a garden to suit your lifestyle.

how to Design a Garden that works is aimed at both home gar-deners and entry-level professionals. It will address the nuts and bolts of getting into your garden and making sustainable changes that will work well not just for today, but also for the long term. In this presentation, international landscape architect, edu-cator and author Owen Dell will “give people the basic tools for rethinking their property, and doing some work on creating a sustainable landscape — whatever that means for them.”

Sustainablelandscaping

FEATURED SPEAKER owEN DELLLandscape architect, educator

green thumb guide

403.860.5706frontporchdesigner@gmail.com

COME SEEUS ATBOOTH

34 email addressitrigg@shaw.ca

IRIS TRIGGCertified Feng Shui Practitioner(403) 398-0377• (403) 560-7753

• Landscape Construction& Design

• Decks & Fences• Irrigation

• Spring Cleanups• Weekly Maintenance

403.452.0763

AIRDRIE TRACTORLANDJASON WEGA

105 East Lake Crescent, Airdrie AB. 403 948-7400

www.airdrietractorland.ca

Community Gardens Networking Event

Seeds for the Future

Educator and author Dan Jason — owner of Salt Spring Seeds, co-founder of Seeds of Diver-sity and president of the Seed Sanctuary of Canada — will be in Calgary Friday, April 19 to speak about seed-saving, food security on the prairies and how gardeners can preserve a sus-tainable future.

Friday, April 19, 7 to 9 p.m., Richmond Knob Hill Community Association, 2433 26th Ave S.W.

Tickets $20 (includes refresh-ments). Pre-register at calhort.org/events or call 403-287-3469.The event is presented by the Community Crop Garden So-ciety, in partnership with the Community Garden Resource Network, a project of the Cal-gary Horticultural Society.

It’s not summer yet,but we can pretend.

Greengate Expo • Scan and win up to 25% off • May 4, 9am - 9pm