The Berry Botanic Garden

March 2006

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Sowing Secrets, Seeding the Future
Seeds-tiny plants just waiting for the right conditions to emerge into the world-can be found in gardens for free. We'll discuss such topics as: When should you collect seeds? Once you've gathered them, how do you clean, process and store them? When and how do you plant seeds? In this hands-on class, you'll come away with skills, confidence and seeds-your garden will never be the same.
Andrea Raven/Courtney Vengarick
Saturday 3/4/06 10am - 1pm
$16.50 ($13 Members)Limit 20
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Cabin Fever Hike on Rowena Plateau
Ready to hit the trail? This is just a first taste of spring and summer hiking, but what a taste! Part of the Nature Conservancy's Tom McCall Preserve, the Rowena Plateau supports a wealth of early wildflowers. Grass widows, gold stars, desert parsley-there are always delightful surprises to be had in the rapidly-changing early spring season. The views of the Gorge and the terraced grasslands of Washington are tremendous as well. This is an easy hike of 2.2 miles round trip, with little change in elevation.
Thursday, 3/9/06 8:30am-late afternoon
Donations welcome!Limit 15
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Troughs with Pizzazz!
Troughs are ideal for small space gardening, or for those who want a few alpines without a ton of rocks. Whether you're new to rock gardening and troughs or an "old hand," you'll enjoy the camaraderie and cement-mixing efforts of a group. If you're tired of your standard trough or just want to take home a unique container, you'll also benefit from this class. Explore different shapes and possibilities of embellishments. Garden volunteer and plant addict Ginny has some creative ideas to share, concentrating on mosaic for surface decoration. Maybe you have some ideas of your own! Everyone will make a unique trough.
Ginny Maffitt
Saturday 3/11/06 10am - 12:30pm
$27.50 ($22 Members)Limit 10
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Mosses and Lichens Up Close
Before the discovery of the microscope, lichens were thought to be mosses. So if you've found yourself puzzling over their distinctions, take heart! This class will provide that closer look, as we stroll through the Magness Memorial Tree Farm outside of Oregon City. This invaluable "outdoor classroom" is the ideal setting to explore the diversity of these organisms that seldom get the attention they deserve. As you learn more about their structure and role in the ecosystem, you'll begin to widen your awareness. Bring a hand lens or borrow one of ours.
Thursday, 3/23/06 9am-3pm
$10 ($8 Members) Limit 15
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Join Us for Last Saturday Garden (Work) Parties!
If interested, call: Robbie, (503) 636-4112 ext. 105
>Work parties take place on the last Saturday of the month from 8:30-11:30am. There are many garden tasks that most efficiently accomplished with a group, and this is where you come in. This year we will be removing invasive plants, developing trails, building steps and much-needed maintenance and organization projects. After the work parties, we will be delighted to feed you a light lunch! Work parties are a good time to socialize while doing the garden a great deal of good. Students, take note: this is the perfect opportunity to complete required community service hours.

Conifers for the Small Garden
Conifers have a special place in the garden. The typical small yard offers particular challenges, but conifers offer unique color, form and shape to your landscape. Join Don Howse of PorterHowse Farms for a slide show and presentation from his years of experience with conifers of all kinds. Catch a sneak preview of new introductions to the trade. Don is past-President of the American Conifer Society and the proud owner of over 2300 varieties and species of conifers, from bonsai to full size.
Don Howse
Thursday 3/25/06 10am-noon
$16.50 ($13 Members) Limit 25
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Compost: The Single Best Thing for Your Plants and Soil
"The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out," the worms know the value of good compost! Your plants are not reaching their full potential if they're not getting their full complement of nutrients. Using compost is the best way to provide your plants with a ready storehouse of nutrients to draw from. Join Metro's natural gardening educator, Glen Andresen, for a primer on the basics of yard debris composting, bin design, worm bins and troubleshooting your composting system.
Glen Andresen
Thursday 3/30/06 7pm- 9pm
$10 ($8 Members) Limit 25
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