Winter is a great time to restore your well-loved gardening tools. Correctly caring for and maintaining your tools will increase their longevity and the health of your plants. Learn how to properly store, clean, and sharpen your hand tools in this hands-on workshop. Bring along a pair of used pruners, a trowel, loppers, or a…
Immerse yourself in the ethics and principles of garden design as we “rethink pretty” and explore the ecology of gardening at this year’s Native Plant Conference, Ecological Landscapes. Learn from renowned landscape design experts, horticulturists, conservationists, and visionary thinkers who are shaping sustainable landscapes and offering fresh perspectives on integrating ecological principles in garden design. Meet regional change-makers who actively…
Join the Library at the Gardens in celebrating National Seed Swap Day with a community seed swap!
Growing out of a late 19th-century reaction to Victorian design and industrialization, Arts and Crafts gardens became some of the most influential, world-renowned gardens of the turn of the century. They continue to have an enormous influence on how we garden today. Contemporary gardening approaches—garden rooms, using local materials in the hardscape, abundantly planted beds,…
Join us in the Japanese Gardens as horticulturist Julia Adams demonstrates methods of propagating woody plants through grafting and air layering. While these horticultural methods require skill and practice, each can be used to propagate plants that don’t root well from cuttings. In this hands-on workshop, you will practice grafting using Japanese Maples and experiment…
Immerse yourself in the ethics and principles of garden design as we “rethink pretty” and explore the ecology of gardening at this year’s Native Plant Conference, Ecological Landscapes. Learn from renowned landscape design experts, horticulturists, conservationists, and visionary thinkers who are shaping sustainable landscapes and offering fresh perspectives on integrating ecological principles in garden design. Meet regional change-makers who actively…
Dive deep into some of the intriguing spring-time wildflowers and other showy ephemeral plants in the Kaul Wildflower Garden with Senior Horticulturist Keith Turney. On this stroll through the garden, you will learn about the unique groups of plants that give visual interest and provide important food and habitats for wildlife in early spring. Become…
Filled with perennials, annuals, and blooming shrubs, a flower garden adds color and dimension to your landscape—and provides an inviting habitat for essential pollinators like birds and butterflies. But if your garden is covered in lawn, you might wonder how to start a flower garden. Join gardening expert Bethany O'Rear as she discusses the basics…
Learn the basics of tomato gardening with horticulturists Julia Adams and Katelyn Bahr. This informative class will explore how to select varieties, care for your plants, and troubleshoot threats like insects and diseases. Bring your questions and leave with your own tomato plant to start your spring vegetable garden! Location: Outdoor Classroom
Celebrate Earth Day at the Gardens by joining Specialty Garden Horticulturist Katelyn Bahr and fellow community members for the annual planting of the Bruno Vegetable Garden! We will prepare garden beds, plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and okra, and mulch with leaf litter. Location: Bruno Vegetable Garden
A cut flower garden has more seasons than just spring and summer. Blue Rooster Farms owners Allison and Kirk Creel grow blooming flowers for most of the year! Learn their tips for expanding the types and variety of flowers you grow and extending the season of your cut flower garden. Topics include overwintering, succession planting,…
Victoria Crenshaw, an experienced organic vegetable gardener and owner of Fleurish Gardens, joins us in the Bruno Vegetable Garden to discuss the principles of raised bed gardening. In this class, she will guide you in creating a plan for your garden layout and teach you how to plant your own raised beds. The class will…
David Doggett, advanced master gardener and current president of the Alabama Hydrangea Society, will introduce you to the defining characteristics and pros/cons of the five main classes of hydrangeas we typically see in Southern gardens. You will learn about the effects of climate change on plant selection and which plants your pollinator population prefers. Location:…
