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"Hark, I hear a robin calling! List, the wind is from the south! And the orchard-bloom is falling Sweet as kisses on the mouth.
In the dreamy vale of beeches Fair and faint is woven mist, And the river's orient reaches Are the palest amethyst.
Every limpid brook is singing Of the lure of April days; Every piney glen is ringing With the maddest roundelays.
Come and let us seek together Springtime lore of daffodils, Giving to the golden weather Greeting on the sun-warm hills." - Lucy Maud Montgomery, Spring Song
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Backyard CompostingIn Person Monday, April 3, 2023 at 6:30pm The quality of the soil in your garden is the most important factor in determining your garden's success. Learn the basics of composting from Master Composter Linda Schilbe. Find the answers to all of your questions on how to get started, where to locate your compost, managing your compost, and what kind of materials can be composted.
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Long before Islam took hold in this region the Persian Empire dominated the Western world. Their legacies range from Aqueduct and drip irrigation to a staggering number of plants we all assume as “our own”. Insightful and thought-provoking, this lecture illustrates how the Persian Empire aesthetic influenced our modern American back yard. Garden Designer Ed Blondin is a Master Gardener with horticultural training from Michigan State University. He has worked with homeowners and corporate clients in southeast Michigan for more than 30 years.
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Learn how to grow mushrooms at home indoors or outdoors, using mushroom grow kits or putting together your own low-tech methods with minimal equipment. Mushrooms and mushroom kits will be available for purchase after the lecture. Chris Swinson is the CFO (Chief Fungal Officer) of Mycophile's Garden in Grand Rapids. When he's not growing and harvesting mushrooms, he is selling at local markets and conducting classes.
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Chef Val Presents: Stuffed Portobello Mushroom Cooking Class on ZOOM Via Zoom Wednesday, April 12, at 6:30 pmLearn how to make this healthy & flavorful springtime dish featuring whole grain quinoa. Chef Val, presenting from her own kitchen, will walk you though all of the steps, share nutritional information, and answer your questions. Her recipe is vegan, plant-based, gluten free, organic, sugar free, and absolutely delicious! You will receive the Zoom link when you register.
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It's April! Time to start seeds! Tomatoes are the #1 vegetable/fruit grown in America! Our seed library has a great selection of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Tomato seedlings are fast-growing and starting them at the beginning of April still allows plenty of time to have them ready to plant outdoors at the end of May or beginning of June. Crops that can be planted outdoors in April and early May to beat the heat also need to be seeded now. This includes lettuce and other hardy greens and brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower). Visit the seed library for a great selection of free seeds for these items and more. Click Here for a seed-starting timetable for our area. One Seed, One State: This year the MI Seed Library Network has chosen 'Grand Rapids' lettuce as the seed that will be distributed through seed libraries all over Michigan! Visit LTPL for your One Seed, One State seeds.
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The mission of the seed library is to promote gardening and encourage sustainability through seed saving. The seeds are available at no cost to you. Although it is not required, we hope that you will attempt to save seeds from your crops and return them to the seed library to help keep it self-sustaining. First time users of the Seed Library need to register. You may do so with this form or in-person at the seed library. Once you have registered, you log your initials and number of packets taken on the clipboard. The clipboard and instructions are on top of the Seed Library cabinet. Gardening handouts are available at the Seed Library and also on the LTPL Grows Webpage, along with informative videos!
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In April: - Start seeds indoors for tomatoes, annual flowers and herbs that need 8 weeks of growing before our frost-free date at the end of May. Also start additional greens and brassicas for transplanting out in early May.
- By mid-April we can usually work the soil enough to direct-sow cold-hardy vegetables outdoors like radishes, turnips, peas, scallions, spinach, lettuce, chard, bak choi, broccoli raab, and kohlrabi. By late April you can plant carrots, beets, and parsnips. Be prepared to cover any of the above if severe low temperatures are predicted.
- Transplant out onions and other alliums, broccoli, cabbage, pansies, violas, and hardy greens like kale and collards that you started indoors. Harden them off before planting by gradually introducing them to outdoor life.
- Visit the LTPL Seed library and check for seeds you might need. New seeds will be added weekly through April and beyond!
- Continue clean-up of perennial beds, cutting down the seed stalks you left for the winter birds, picking up sticks and debris, adding mulch where needed. Refrain from disturbing the soil and mulch too much since some of the overwintering beneficial insects might not yet have emerged.
- Information and online resources for starting and saving seed can be found on the LTPL website.
Click Here for a seed-starting timetable for our area Find additional resources for seed saving here:
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Also available as an audiobook at LTPL.
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Find more information on LTPL Grows and other resources!
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Visit and "like" for gardening news, tips and upcoming events.
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