| Top drawer: Landscape makeovers
Makeover fans with a weakness for plants and flowers will love the DIY Network's new series, "Desperate Landscapes," that begins 10 p.m. Thursday. Landscaping, carpentry and remodeling expert Jason Cameron visits homeowners chosen because they have the worst front yards on the block, and helps them make dramatic changes in just one day. From planting beds, fencing, new big trees to fresh paint, it's all about going from helpless to beautiful and making the neighbors happy and surprised. .
Gardening calms, gives creative outlet
Asked if Id like to write a column about gardening as recreation, I jumped at the chance like a frog at an extra-fat fly. For me, gardening is recreation in the most literal sense, the re-creation of mind, body and spirit that comes from leaving day-to-day life for an interlude of more novel and refreshing experiences. I discovered the benefits of gardening when at 34 I was editing college textbooks in San Francisco and took on way too much freelance work. After months of extremely heavy workloads and unrelenting deadline pressures, I also found myself editing a string of textbooks that were so poorly written and filled with fluff that they should never have been printed, much less forced upon college students. The latter was especially demoralizing and, combined with overwork and fatigue, pushed me to a decision: I cant do this anymore, I said.
Wild Ones holds 10th annual plant sale
The Wild Ones is holding its 10th annual plant sale, offering 62 species of perennial wildflowers, grasses and sedges that are native to our Rock River Valley area. Deadline for ordering is April 29; the pickup date is May 12 in Rockford. The plants are sold in flats of 32 half-pint pots. Flats are $64, whether of one species or mixed. Minimum order is one flat. For more information and to request order forms, contact Dianne Stenerson at 815-636-9930 or dstenerson@rockriver.net. The purpose of the sale is to encourage homeowners, businesses, schools and churches to use native plants for environmentally sound landscaping practices. Native plants evolved here over thousands of years to survive in our weather extremes and local soils, in harmony with other local plants and animals.
Work with LESEC in East River Park (9:00 am)
Got plans for Earth Day weekend? Want to get active in your local park and brush up your gardening skills? The Lower East Side Ecology Center is looking for local stewards to help us during a volunteer work day in the park: Saturday, April 21st East River Park (meet near the Grand St. Fireboat House, 9:00-3:00. On this day, volunteers will be coming from all over the City to work in our park and perform basic gardening, weeding, painting and general upkeep jobs in the park. We need YOUR HELP to make them feel welcome, show them around, and guide them through these projects. All ages and skill levels are needed! .
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