January 2011 Gardening Events & More...

The Holidays are over, the family is floating back from whence they came, kids are heading back to school and things are starting to normalize. You can make sure that you don’t have a let down if you plan ahead and take advantage of some of the fun gardening events coming up in our area. Here are some to pique your interest.

As always, I want to remind you to shop local, and get the freshest produce around by heading out to the local Farmer’s Markets in Santa Clarita:

Sundays 8:00am – noon
College of The Canyons Parking Lot
Don’t forget to visit my friend Sarah from Worldwide Exotics Nursery
There is also another great Farmer’s Market:
Thursdays in Old Town Newhall from 3-7pm.

Thursday Garden Talks with Lili Singer
Winter 2011: 8 Thursdays, January 6-February 13
(Please note special times for field trips, self-driven & require pre-registration)
$100 for the series, $20 per class / Reservations or you may pay at the door
Information and registration: 626.821.4623 or jill.berry@arboretum.org

Thurs - 1/6/11 – 9:30 - noon – Palm Room

Water Wisdom 2011: An Overview for Gardeners with Bob Galbreath
Our first session of the New Year discusses the latest and greatest on landscape irrigation, including water-efficient equipment, catching run-off and graywater, smart controllers and more. Bob is an irrigation consultant with 30 years of experience in landscape water conservation. A former certified irrigation designer and landscape contractor, he recently retired as a Landscape Water Resources Manager for the City of Santa Monica
www.arboretum.org


Garden Chats With Mike Brown
Saturdays 9:30-10 a.m. Nature's Table
Back by popular demand: Mike Brown, Descanso’s Display Horticulturist, leads informal talks on gardening issues. Bring your gardening questions. Mike's chats are most Saturdays, except Christmas and New Year's. Meet at Nature’s Table, Descanso’s garden of edibles.
Free with Gardens admission.
Descanso Gardens

Boy… there is a lot of Rose information out there this month!



Rose Care University at Otto & Sons Nursery
This event will be repeated all month!
Sat. 1/8/11 – 10 am – noon - $15.00
Otto & Sons is located out the 126
1835 E. Guiberson Rd., Fillmore, California 93015
phone: 805.524.2123

Rose Pruning at the Arboretum
Sat 1/8/11 – 9am – Noon
Meet at the Arboretum’s Victorian Rose Garden
$25 / $28 non-members
Join Jill Morganelli, curator of the Arboretum’s Victorian Rose Garden, for a hands-on workshop about rose pruning and rose care. January is a big month for roses; proper pruning and soil building will determine the health and beauty of roses throughout the year. Bring your garden gloves and a sharp pair of pruning shears as after learning pruning techniques, you are invited to practice what you’ve learned! Disease control and soil building will also be covered.
www.arboretum.org

Adventures at the Arboretum - January is Wildlife Exploration
Sat 1/8/11 – 10am - noon
Free with Admission
Meet by the fountain in front of the Oak Room.
Join your adventure guide as we explore the Arboretum. Each Saturday is new and exciting, and will have a different theme relating to nature. Come early as space is limited to 25. Children of all ages are welcome! Family adventures will go on rain or shine so dress appropriately!

Rose Pruning Demo – Rose Pavillion Descanso Gardens
Sat 1/8/11 – 11am
Conquer your fear of pruning: Amanda Everett, Descanso Rose Horticulturist, will go over the basics of pruning different types of roses. Find out why pruning is necessary, what tools to use, the best times to prune and pruning techniques. The program starts with classroom discussion and presentation, then moves out into the Gardens for a field pruning. Free with admission
Descanso Gardens

Free Pruning, Planting, and Rose Care Seminar
Sun 1/9/11 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Cost: Free of Charge
Location: Located at SCV Senior Center
22900 Market Street
Santa Clarita, California 91321
The Santa Clarita Valley Rose Society is hosting a free rose care seminar.The seminar will feature Rose Consultants Bob Belendez, Kitty Belendez, and Steve Jones who will demonstrate how to properly prune various types of roses. The Rose Consultants will also explain how to plant bareroot roses, how to rejuvenate roses grown in containers, and how to fertilize and mulch. You will be rewarded with beautiful blooms when you practice these techniques on your own roses. The club will also have a door prize, rose raffle, and refreshments after the seminar.
There is no cost to attend, and the public is invited. New members who join the rose society (annual dues are $20/e-mailed or $30/mailed per family) will receive a year’s subscription to the club’s award-winning newsletter “Rose Ecstasy” and a 10% annual discount card good at Green Thumb Nursery all year.
For more information contact Kitty Belendez at (661) 296-5033, or e-mail rosextckb@aol.com. Please RSVP so that we can provide sufficient seating, handout materials, and refreshments. Visit the Santa Clarita Valley Rose Society web site at www.scvrs.homestead.com

Thursday Garden Talks With Lili Singer
Winter 2011: 8 Thursdays, January 6-February 13
(Please note special times for field trips, self-driven & require pre-registration)
$100 for the series, $20 per class / Reservations or you may pay at the door
Information and registration: 626.821.4623 or jill.berry@arboretum.org
Thursday 1/13/11
Recycling in the Garden with Yvonne Savio
Go really green in your garden! Join Yvonne Savio, manager of the University of California Cooperative Extension Common Ground Garden Program in Los Angeles County, and most recently the Southern California Horticultural Society’s 2010 Horticulturist of the Year, for a showing of the “California’s Green” program of Huell Howser’s visit to her garden and a stimulating discussion of the many ways that household throwaways can be used as garden tools in home and community.
www.arboretum.org

Rose Care University at Otto & Sons Nursery
This event will be repeated all month!
Sat. 1/15/11 – 10 am – noon - $15.00
Otto & Sons is located out the 126
1835 E. Guiberson Rd., Fillmore, California 93015
phone: 805.524.2123

Heritage Oak Walk Center Circle Descanso Gardens
Sat. 1/15/11 – 11 am
Meet the giants of today and tomorrow, Descanso’s six “heritage” oaks. Curator Wen Wang leads this informative walk focusing on Coast live oaks (Quercus agrifolia). These trees are a keystone species, meaning many creatures (including humans at one time) rely on the trees for their existence. Free with admission
Descanso Gardens

Baiko-En Bonsai Kenkyukai Show and Sale – LA Arboretum
Sat & Sun 1/15-1/16/11 – 10am – 4:30pm
The Baiko-En Bonsai Kenkyukai Society will present the only show of deciduous miniaturized trees in the US. This show features Japanese graybark elms, ginkgo, zelkova and maple trees in their dormant stage. Demonstrations each day will show how to prune the branches and roots of ordinary nursery plants, transforming them into classic bonsai planted in the traditional shallow pots. Bonsai trees, both finished and partially trained by club members, will be offered for sale.
www.arboretum.org

MLK and Cookies – For Martin Luther King Jr Day
Sun 1/16/11 - 3pm St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church – A Season of Diversity Event
*All Ages and Families
Blessing, prayers, and a few songs for unity honoring Martin Luther King, and enjoying some good homemade cookies.
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church is located at:
24901 Orchard Village Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91355


Culture Night – A Season of Diversity Event
Fri. 1/21/11 - 5 pm Newhall Community Center
During this event, participants will enjoy multi-cultural performances, arts and crafts, and a diverse selection of food from a variety of cultures, countries, and continents. Special cultural artifacts will also be on display.
Newhall Community Center is located at:
22421 Market Street, Santa Clarita, CA 91321



Backyard Orchard Culture at Otto & Sons Nursery
Sat. 1/22/11 – 10 am – noon - $15.00
Otto & Sons is located out the 126
1835 E. Guiberson Rd., Fillmore, California 93015
phone: 805.524.2123

Rose Care University at Otto & Sons Nursery
This event will be repeated all month!
Sat. 1/22/11 – 2 pm – 4 pm - $15.00
Otto & Sons is located out the 126
1835 E. Guiberson Rd., Fillmore, California 93015
phone: 805.524.2123

Family Fun Classes – (Jan)Terrarium Madness!
Sat 1/22/11 - 10 am – Noon
Create your own little ecosystem, take it home and watch it grow! We will learn a simple lesson about habitats, decorate miniature clay figures and create terrariums for them to "live" in. The class will end with a walk to one of four different types of habitats talked about.
Price: $12 per family for members; $14 per family for non-members
Pre-registration required for all classes. Enrollment includes admission to the Arboretum. Call 626.821.4623 or 626.821.5897 to register. Meet by the fountain in front of the Oak Room.

Introduction to Gardening – Descanso (Birch)
Sat 1/22/11 – 10 am
Don’t know diddly about gardening? Rachel Young, Descanso Native Horticulturist, can get you started digging. The first session of this two-part class teaches basics about soil, planting, how to choose plants, differences between perennials and annuals, how to water and how to pick a container for planting. The second class covers plant care, pruning, pests and weeds. Part Two is scheduled for March 5 and is priced separately. Classes meet indoors and outdoors; dress appropriately. $20, $10 members
www.descansogardens.org

Santa Clarita Street Fair
Sat & Sun 1/22-23/11 - COC Parking Lot 8
A once-per-month marketplace that is fun, festive and entertaining for the entire family. Open Saturday and Sunday, 8am-3pm. Vendors offer arts, crafts, handmade items and new merchandise presented by some of Santa Clarita’s most innovative and creative entrepreneurs.
So come on by to browse, shop and have lunch. We will have special lunch vendors arriving between 11am and 2pm each day.
So come early and come often as the admission and parking are always FREE!
We will continue to look for new vendors, entertainment and attractions for you to enjoy month after month."
10% of proceeds will benefit SCV Emergency Winter Shelter.

We Shall Overcome – A Season of Diversity Event
Sun 1/23/11 - 2pm Valencia Library
*All Ages and Families
Musical theater, educational and historical journey through African and African-American music. In this animated and interactive show, Makinto explains the history of black people in America through the evolution of black music.
Valencia Library is located at:
23743 W. Valencia Boulevard, Santa Clarita, CA 91355


Santa Clarita Valley Green Drinks MeetUp
Tuesday – 1/25/11 – 6pm
Salt Creek Grill
Towne Center
Valencia, CA 91355
Green Drinks allows for anyone concerned about environmental issues to get together over a drink. Green Drinks events are very simple, informal, unstructured, and self-organizing. We bring together the environmental community and have fun doing it! Please join
Green Drinks MeetUp

Thursday Garden Talks With Lili Singer
Winter 2011: 8 Thursdays, January 6-February 13
(Please note special times for field trips, self-driven & require pre-registration)
$100 for the series, $20 per class / Reservations or you may pay at the door
Information and registration: 626.821.4623 or jill.berry@arboretum.org
Thurs 1/27/11 - 10am - 1 pm
Field Trip: Four Westside Gardens by Susanne Jett
Traveling from the Pacific Palisades to Mar Vista to the Robertson district, we’ll visit four residential gardens of varying sizes, styles and ages – each with its own stunning mix of native, South African and other Mediterranean-climate plants. Susanne, owner of Jettscapes Landscape has been designing and installing environmentally sensitive gardens in the Southern California area for nearly three decades. Since 1989, as landscape consultant to the City of Santa Monica, she has designed and coordinated four public demonstration gardens. Pre-registration required.
www.arboretum.org



Rose Care University at Otto & Sons Nursery
Last chance for this event!
Sat. 1/29/10 – 10 am – noon - $15.00
Otto & Sons is located out the 126
1835 E. Guiberson Rd., Fillmore, California 93015
phone: 805.524.2123

Spring Bedding Plants – Descanso (Promenade)
Sat 1/29/10 – 10:30
Mike Brown will discuss choosing and planting spring bedding plants for maximum impact and lasting beauty. Free with admission
www.descansogardens.org

Celebrate the Lunar New Year with Dance
1/30/11 – 2pm Santa Clarita Senior Center
Family Program - Open to the Public
Enjoy traditional Lunar New Year performances, including Chinese and other Asian dances, songs, and drums.
Senior Center is located at:
22900 Market Street, Santa Clarita, CA 91321

I hope you like the list that I have compiled and that you can attend some of the events. We can always use volunteers at the Community Garden and we’ll be working hard to be open this March, so please visit our Facebook Page for updates and to offer your volunteer Services!

For more on my designs, check out my website!