Last call for Spring Ideas House
You have a few more days to scout ideas for sprucing up your home for spring. Bachman's Spring Ideas House is open for touring through April 19. Each of the dozen rooms in the Bachman family's former home have been decorated for the season with energetic color, fresh florals, terrariums and other live greens.
The home is open for touring 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase online at www.bachmans.com, with same-day tickets also available at the gift counter at Bachman's on Lyndale. Each $5 ticket includes a coupon for $5 off a $25-plus purchase at Bachman's. The house is at 5936 Lyndale Av. S., Mpls.
DIY Landscaping
If you're thinking about creating or enhancing your outdoor spaces this season, it's best to start with a plan. Bachman's is offering a DIY Landscaping workshop where landscape designers will discuss site analysis, bed lines, soil and plant selection to help you formulate a plan that you can execute yourself. The class will be offered twice, from 5 to 7 p.m. April 16, and from 1 to 3 p.m. April 19. The cost is $10, which includes $5 off a purchase of $25 or more. Workshops will be held in the Heritage Room at Bachman's on Lyndale. For more information, visit www.bachmans.com/events or call 612-861-7311.
Earth Day at the arb
What are you doing for Earth Day? The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is celebrating with a self-guided scavenger hunt in the arb's tree collections. From April 22-26, visitors can pick up a map at the membership desk in the Great Hall of the Oswald Visitor Center, then search for 20 varieties of marked trees on the grounds to check off a list. Find them all, and you can pick up a souvenir button in the gift store.
Also on Earth Day, the arb will host a public symposium on "Building Sustainable Lawns for a Better Planet," from 1 to 5 p.m., where experts will offer tips on how to rethink your lawn and make it more eco-friendly and beautiful. The cost is $25, $15 for members and $20 for master gardeners. Register at www.arboretum.umn.edu/2015EarthDay.aspx or call 612-301-1210.
Rite of spring
Gertens is kicking off the gardening season with a Home Opener weekend April 18-19, featuring workshops, how-to demonstrations, specials and industry experts. Seminars will include "Hummingbirds, Orioles and More," "Fairy Gardens," "Growing Tomatoes, Potatoes and Onions," "Landscaping 101," "Growing the Best Lawn," "Container Gardening," "Maintaining the Perennial Garden," Weber grill demos and more. On April 18 there will also be behind-the-scenes greenhouse tours.
Home Opener hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. Gertens is located at 5500 Blaine Av., Inver Grove Heights.
KIM PALMER
