Spring beauty in the Garden!

by Maribeth Frinzi, Membership & Donor Relations Coordinator, Green Bay Botanical Garden

Is it possible to give away a season? Can you fit it neatly into a box, wrap it up with beautiful paper, tie it with a bow, and present it to a friend or loved one? How can you package the dramatic colors of fall, the exquisite perfection of a snowflake in winter, the much-anticipated blooms of spring, or the warm sunshine of summer? Actually, it’s easier than you would think! When you give a membership to Green Bay Botanical Garden, either as a reward to yourself or in appreciation of someone else, you are giving an entire year’s worth of inspiration, a priceless time to experience Mother Nature in all her ever-changing glory.

Of course, membership is about more than just unlimited visits to Green Bay Botanical Garden. Membership starts at just $30, and members receive special preview nights of Garden Fair and Garden of Lights, discounts on purchases in the Trellis Gift Shop, advance notice of upcoming activities, significant discounts on classes and events, borrowing privileges at our horticultural library, and free or reduced admission to more than 150 other Gardens through the American Horticultural Society’s reciprocal admission program.

This summer, we are expanding our programming to further meet the needs and wishes of our members. Members will receive free admission to Concerts in the Garden, our weekly music series held Thursday nights in July and August. We have an exceptional lineup of performers this year, and enjoying great music in the peaceful beauty of the summer Garden is truly an idyllic way to spend an evening. We are also planning a special orientation cookout for our new members to become acquainted with the Garden and fully embrace all the benefits their membership offers (Wednesday, June 23), as well as a special Members-Only Tea, in partnership with the Brown County Historical Society, on Sunday, August 8. Our Garden Angel-level members can also enjoy a special Evening in the Garden, with food, beverages, and live music on Tuesday, August 17.

In addition to the many wonderful benefits offered by Green Bay Botanical Garden, members who join or renew through June 15, 2010 will receive a complimentary one-year subscription to Better Homes and Gardens magazine courtesy of the American Public Gardens Association. Full of tips, tricks, and ideas to help you grow your Garden, the magazine, coupled with a visit to Green Bay Botanical Garden, is sure to inspire you to create beauty in your own outdoor paradise.

Unwrap the gifts of spring with a membership to Green Bay Botanical Garden and uncover a truly perennial adventure!

Children on a tour discovering daffodils in the Larsen Orchard Remnant.

As the tulips and daffodils in the Garden start blooming, so do the sounds of OOHs and AHHs as students arrive for guided garden tours.  For many teachers, the arrival of May means an annual field trip to Green Bay Botanical Garden.  The students look around in amazement by the sight of more flowers and color than they have ever seen.  They are thrilled to find plants in the herb garden that spell like mint, pizza, and licorice, and become as excited as bees when they find the pollen on the flowers’ anthers.  The chaperoning teachers are just as pleased as the students.  They watch with pride as their students name the parts of the flower that were learned last winter, or explain how the flowers will produce seeds that will continue the cycle of life.  Even Garden Docents are happy, as they show the students the ladybug larvae hiding on the plant leaves and hear the laughs of the children as they run through the maze.  This is the reward of educational tours at Green Bay Botanical Garden – watching students make new discoveries and helping them learn about horticulture in a different and exciting way.  But don’t think that education at the Garden ends once school is out!  Scout troops visit and participate in activities to earn their badges, day care centers stop by to explore for the afternoon, and families attend story hours and learn to tend gardens.  Click here for more information on the school field trips at Green Bay Botanical Garden.  You can also check out all of the wonderful programs we offer for children and families by clicking here.  If you’d like to join the dedicated crew of volunteer Garden Docents that lead school tours and help with summer and family programs, please join us on Thursday, April 8th from 10:00-11:00 am for an informational meeting.  You’ll learn more about the training process and time commitment involved with bringing new experience to area youth!  For more information on the training, click here.

Come see the splendor of the Garden through a child’s eyes!

Tool Care featured on Fox 11\’s Living with Amy

by Green Bay Botanical Garden’s horticulturist, Loretta Dorner

Spring is just around the corner and before you start your garden work, you need to get your tools ready!  Clean, sharp tools save time on garden chores, giving you more time to enjoy your creation. 

If you do not currently own any gardening tools and are considering purchasing, here are a few things to keep in mind.  The tools you use in your garden are important – they should be the type of tools that do the work for you.  Sometimes we buy the cheaper tools to save money.  However, when purchasing your tools, ask yourself “Is this tool going to work for or against me?”  It’s been my experience (doing gardening for years), that saving money does not always save my back or prevent blisters on my hands.  Buying a tool for each task does not save money either and it’s hard to get a lot of work done when you have to switch tools for each task.  I highly recommend two tools and they are the tools I carry with me in my tool sheaths at the Garden:  a soil knife made by A.M. Leonard and a #2 FELCO pruner.  The A.M. Leonard soil knife is made of high quality, rust resistant stainless steel and has a 6″ blade with dual edges: a tapered slicing edge, plus a deeply serrated edge for root cutting.  It can be used to plant bulbs, annual flowers and herbs, dig weeds out of your flower beds and lawn, scrape out cracks in your drive, walk, patio, etc, loosen compacted soils, chop the greens off of your root vegetables, saw through roots, divide perennials and grasses and so much more.  Along with a soil knife, a pruner is great gardening tool to have.  Click here to read more about the benefits of a FELCO pruner.  I use both of these tools for the majority of my garden tasks and have them with me at all times.  The A.M. Leonard soil knife and FELCO pruner can both be purchased at the Trellis Gift Shop located inside the Visitors’ Center at Green Bay Botanical Garden. 

For those of you who already own gardening tools, here are a few tips on how to care for them.  Tools you have stored should have been oiled and sharpened last fall.  If this is not the case, it’s time to sharpen and check for wear from the previous season.  Shovels, rakes, hoes, loppers and hedge trimmers should all be checked for wear.  If you find rust on any of your tools, it can be removed by spraying ‘PB Blaster’ or ‘WD-40’ (available at Fleet Farm) and using # 1 steel wool (for rustier surfaces use a courser # 3 steel wool) to polish the surface.  The handles on your tools should be tightened and should be checked for cracks.  Blades on hedge trimmers, FELCO pruners and others should be sharpened.  You can sharpen them by filing with a fine metal file or honing stone.  Always remember to file in one direction across the tools beveled edge.  Shovels and hoes can be sharpened as well.  However, it is important not to make them too sharp, as this will cause the edge to bend and wear faster. 

For more information on how to clean and sharpen tools, read this article from Fine Gardening magazine.   

Think spring!  And remember, well cared for tools make gardening easier and make for happy gardeners!