Traverse City Record-Eagle

Life

February 17, 2008

Home & Garden in Brief: 02/17/2008

Classes focus on natural landscaping

TRAVERSE CITY -- The first of two natural landscaping classes being offered by Northwestern Michigan College will start Wednesday.

"Natural Landscaping: Part I" will meet from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Feb. 27. Participants will discover processes that blend plant communities, native species, water flow and natural pest control into the design. The cost is $59.

"Natural Landscapes Workshop: Part II" will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. March 12 and will allow participants to apply concepts learned in Part I and create a landscape plan for a current project. The cost is $35.

Both classes will be taught by landscape architect Dean Connors at the NMC University Center on Dendrinos Drive, off Cass Road.

To register, call the NMC Extended Education Office, 995-1700, visit the office in suite 102 at the University Center, or log on to www.nmc.edu/ees.

Farmers invited to Buckley Farm Show

BUCKLEY -- Area farmers are invited to the Buckley Farm Show on Thursday.

Topics will include an update on new crop insect pests, a comparison of 10 new corn herbicides, newly funded corn research projects, a weather forecast for the summer and a review of the newest forage varieties. There also will be information on fertilizer and herbicide costs and availability, efficient use of fertilizer dollars, crop variety recommendations and new precision corn planter parts.

The event will be held at the All Star Restaurant on M-37 at the west end of Buckley. Registration and refreshments will begin at 10 a.m. and the meeting will start at 10:15 a.m. A free lunch will be served at noon and the show will close at 2:45 p.m. with door prize drawings.

For details, call Frank Lipinski, 269-4040.

Master Gardener program planned

LELAND -- A free informational session will be held for anyone interested in the upcoming spring Master Gardener volunteer program.

The Leelanau County MSU Extension is taking registrations for the next scheduled Master Gardener training program, which will meet from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Thursdays from March 13 through May 29 at the MSU Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station. The $250 cost includes a training manual, soil test kit, speakers and facilities. Financial aid is available on request. The registration deadline is Feb. 28.

The informational session will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the research station.

Anyone unable to attend the informational session may contact Pam Schmidt, 256-9888 or schmi345@msu.edu.

Knitting retreat coming in March

TRAVERSE CITY -- Amy Detjen will be the instructor for a three-day knitting retreat at the Bayshore Resort.

Detjen writes technical articles for Knitter's magazine and is a technical editor for Schoolhouse Press.

The retreat will be held March 7 through 9.

A $225 non-refundable fee must be paid by Feb. 25. It includes lunch and dinner March 8 and lunch March 9. Snacks will be provided each day.

For details or to register, call Lost Art Yarn Shoppe, 941-1263, or contact Thistledown Shoppe, 271-9276 or thistledownshoppe@yahoo.com.

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