Sacramento Digs Gardening Article
Your resource for Sacramento-area gardening news, tips and events

Articles Recipe Index Keyword Index Calendar Twitter Facebook Instagram About Us Contact Us

Harvest Day workshop spotlight: Grapes, butterflies, compost

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED AUG 2, 2019

Master gardener Carole Ludlum talks about trouble-shooting grapevine problems during 2018's Harvest Day. Grapes again will be a hot topic at this year's event. (Photos: Kathy Morrison)

Mini sessions offer lots of learning opportunities

So many chances to learn; where to start?

Harvest Day, Sacramento’s annual celebration of gardening and garden know-how, is packed with informative demonstrations and mini-workshops. Set for 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Fair Oaks Horticulture Center in Fair Oaks Park, Harvest Day is free and open to the public. No advance registration necessary.

The hardest part: Figuring out which demonstrations to see. Three sections of the Hort Center will host multiple mini-workshops. Here’s a rundown of Saturday’s short sessions:

In the Water-Efficient Landscape:

* 10 a.m.: Creating a Wildlife Habitat. Learn how to bring more beneficial insects, birds and more into your garden.

* 11:15 a.m.: Butterfly Basics. How do you get more butterflies to visit your landscape? Start with the right plants.

In the demonstration vineyard:

* 9:20 a.m.: Pests and Problems in the Vineyard. Get answers to the most-asked questions and solve problems before they start.

Check out the grapevines at the Fair Oaks Horticulture Center.

Grapevines also will be available for sale by the master gardeners.
Bring cash or checks.

* 10:15 a.m.: Six Steps to Vineyard Success. Know the basics and plan for a good harvest.

* 11:15 a.m.: Vineyard Q&A. Bring questions, get answers to common (and not-so-common) issues with grape growing.

In the compost demonstration area:

* 9:20 a.m.: Making a Worm Bin. Learn how to put together a home for happy worms, who will reward you with garden gold.

10:15 a.m.: Backyard Composting Basics. Find out how to balance the greens with the browns, and create your own fertilizer from kitchen and garden waste.

11 a.m.: Worm Wrangling. These critters are amazingly efficient at creating high-quality compost. Learn how to put worms to work for your garden.

11:45 a.m.: Critters in the Compost Pile. Learn how to tell good critters from unwanted invaders as well as composting basics.

For more on Harvest Day: http://sacmg.ucanr.edu/

Comments

0 comments have been posted.

GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

Harvest Day UCCE master gardeners vineyards worms composting gardening Sacramento workshops low-water plants Fair Oaks Horticulture Center

Newsletter Subscription

Sacramento Digs Gardening to your inbox.

Taste Spring! E-cookbook

Find our spring recipes here!

Local News

Thanks to our sponsor!

Sites We Like

Garden Checklist for week of May 19

Temperatures will be a bit higher than normal in the afternoons this week. Take care of chores early in the day – then enjoy the afternoon. It’s time to smell the roses.

* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. If you haven’t already, it’s time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.

* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.

* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.

* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.

* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.

* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.

* Don’t forget to water. Seedlings need moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants.

* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.

Taste Summer! E-cookbook

Find our summer recipes here!

Taste Fall! E-cookbook

Find our fall recipes here!

Taste Winter! E-cookbook

Find our winter recipes here!