BCGA announces spring gardening classes
Beginning March 13, the Bonner County Gardeners Association will host the Spring Home Horticulture series of classes on topics of interest to gardeners. The popular series features seasonal tips and information of value to all gardeners — whether neophyte or experienced. Every-thing from the basic beginnings to special crops to cooking them, bee-keeping to creating an ornamental meadow, and special tricks and how-to for success is offered in this years’ outstanding line-up.
The classes are held on Wednesday evenings from 6-8 p.m. at 401 Bonner Mall Way, Suite F in Ponderay. Each class costs $10. To reserve a place in the classes, visit the website at www.bcgardeners.org , e-mail at bcgardeners@gmail.com or leave a message at 208-265-2070 and someone will return your call. Walk-ins are also welcomed and can pay at the door. Classes start promptly at 6 p.m., so arrival should be at least 15 minutes before that. Please, no children under 12.
The schedule is as follows:
March 13:
Starting Seeds Indoors with Janae Dale, Ann Kaiser and Ann Warwick. Save money, extend the growing season, and increase your plant choices by starting your own seedlings at home. These three experts will show you how to succeed.
March 20:
Beginning Gardening in North Idaho with Laurie Brown, Janae Dale and Ann Warwick. Learn the basics of starting a new garden with step by step instructions from selecting a site to planting and nurturing the plants to a bountiful result.
March 27:
Promoting a Healthy Landscape for Bees with Stephen Augustine. Bees can use all the help we can give them. This class will teach ways we can benefit these valuable, hard-working and endangered pollinators.
April 3:
Farmer’s Tricks for the Home Gardener with Katherine Cresswell and Spencer Nietman. They will share tips on organic gardening, how to extend the seasons, working with no-till techniques and more. Learn something new and exciting from this unique class.
April 10:
Planting an Ornamental Meadow with Beth Goodnight. Perennial meadows as part of an ornamental landscape are low-maintenance, consume few resources, have a restful, organic feel, and integrate well with our North Idaho scenery. Come see if a meadow might be right for your property.
April 17:
Growing Tomatoes and Potatoes in North Idaho: Our climate requires some special techniques to achieve ripe tomatoes. This class will offer some tips for success. Potatoes are a satisfying crop with all the many varieties with which to experiment. Learn how to create optimal growing conditions.
April 24:
Ergonomic Gardening with Gail Blasingame and Julie Price. Gail will talk about efficient use of garden tools, and Julie will discuss posture, body mechanics, stretching and strengthening exercises to prevent back strain while gardening.
May 1:
Cooking with Spring Greens with Alex Jacobson. Alex will demonstrate creative ways to serve up spring veggies in this fun hands-on class with attendees sampling the delectable results.
Plan to join the BCGA members and mentors for any or all of these information-packed evenings sure to inspire and inform.
Valle Novak writes the Country Chef and Weekend Gardener columns for the Daily Bee. She can be reached at bcdailybee@bonnercountydailybee.com. or by phone at 208-265-4688.