New Cambria gallery, historic home tour, free landscape seminars and more

Anoka, one of the state's oldest and most historic cities, is opening its doors for the 10th annual Anoka Heritage Home and Garden Tour next Sunday. This year's tour will feature 11 historic sites and gardens in the Whiskey Flats district and surrounding neighborhoods.

Four of the homes are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Woodbury House, a Federal/Greek Revival home built in the 1850s. The tour also will showcase more recent architectural styles, including midcentury modern.

The homes will be open for touring from 1-5 p.m. on July 14. Advance tickets are $12, at the Anoka County History Center, 2135 3rd Av., Anoka, or 763-421-0600 or online at www.anokacountyhistory.org. On the day of the tour, tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the Artique, 1900 3rd Av., Anoka.

Interested in converting some of your lawn into an edible landscape? Gertens is offering a free seminar, with tips and tricks for successfully growing fruit in Minnesota, including berries, apples, grapes, plums, pears and more.

The seminar will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday.

If you want to learn how to preserve your homegrown produce, Gertens is offering a free small-batch canning workshop. Participants will learn the fundamentals of canning fruits and vegetables, including proper techniques, supplies and recipes. This workshop will be offered twice, at 11 a.m. Saturday and again at 6 p.m. on July 18.

If Gardening 101 is more your speed, Gertens also is offering a Summer Garden Success seminar. The seminar will offer tips for productive vegetable gardening, and beautiful flower beds and containers. You'll learn about fertilizing, watering, weeding, trimming, insect and disease control, mulching and harvesting fruits, vegetables and herbs. Summer Garden Success will be offered at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Now that summer is finally here, it's a good time to explore the city's history and architecture. Preserve Minneapolis' slate of Walking and Biking Tours are now underway.

"Church Week," starting July 28, will focus on three architecturally significant Minneapolis churches: Hennepin Avenue Methodist, the Basilica of St. Mary and Wesley United Methodist. The cost is $8 per person, and participants must preregister online.

Other tours for the season include: The Edwardians of Bryant Avenue, the Gateway District, Madams of Minneapolis, Historic Old Highland and Modernism in Minneapolis. Tours fill up fast; you can reserve a spot at www.preserveminneapolis.org.

Is there a new countertop in your future? Cambria, the Le Sueur, Minn.-based producer of quartz surfacing, has opened a new showroom, Cambria Gallery on 7th, in downtown Minneapolis. The gallery showcases residential and commercial vignettes by several local designers, a live demo kitchen by Billy Beson Design, a bar by Steve Kleineman of SKD Architects, a bathroom vanity by Daisy Firebaugh and a traditional kitchen by Angela Parker.

Also on display are 4½-by-10-foot slabs of Cambria surfaces. The Cambria Gallery on 7th is located at 625 2nd Av. S., and is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.

The site collects new looks from the runway by top fashion designers, then pairs them with interior photos showing how those style trends are being interpreted in home decor, from colors, to finishes, to motifs.

You can indulge your inner fashionista at www.fashiondecor.com.

KIM palmer