Gardening | notebook
Plants and markets
• Fresh Friday Night Farmer's Market, 5 to 9 p.m. Friday at Railroad Square in downtown New Port Richey (on Nebraska Avenue between Grand Boulevard and Adams Street). Food trucks will make their debut at the market, parked on Missouri Avenue at Cavalaire Square. Vendors will sell produce, plants and specialty foods such as fish, meats, cheeses, bakery items, jellies and jams, honey, nuts, coffee and ethnic foods. This seasonal market will continue every Friday until April 26. For information, visit www.nprmainstreet.com.
• Longleaf Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday in downtown Longleaf, off Starkey Boulevard and State Road 54, New Port Richey.
• Suncoast Co-op offers fresh, locally grown, chemical-free produce. Register online at suncoastcoop.locallygrown.net to place your order; orders may be picked up from noon to 2 p.m. Saturdays at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, 4131 Madison St., New Port Richey. The Suncoast Cafe, open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays at the ReStore, serves locally roasted organic coffee, homemade teas and baked goods.
• Baker House plant sale and open house, 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday and the third Saturday of the month, October through May. The historic Baker House is at 5744 Moog Road, behind Centennial Park Branch Library. Plants for sale by Elfers Centennial Garden Club. For information, call (727) 372-9954.
• Hernando County Farmers Market runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays at 2450 U.S. 19, Spring Hill.
• Spring Hill Garden Club's Plant Nursery is open from 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays and Mondays at 1489 Parker Ave., off Spring Hill Drive (four-tenths of a mile from U.S. 19). Local plants for sale; people may also visit the nearby Nature Coast Botanical Gardens, the "best kept secret in Hernando County," which is open daily from sunup to sundown. For information, call (352) 683-9933 or visit www.naturecoastgardens.com.
Seminars
• Common Garden Insects, 10:30 a.m. April 24 at the Spring Hill Branch Library, 9220 Spring Hill Drive. It is unrealistic and even unwise to strive for an insect-free yard. Learn which bugs are helpful in keeping other pests in check, and learn how to identify and control insect populations in your garden. No registration necessary. Sponsored by Hernando County Extension Services. For information, call Sylvia Durell at (352) 540-6230.
• Bats: Creatures of the Night Garden, 10 a.m. April 27 at Home Depot, 10017 U.S. 19, Port Richey. Learn how to welcome insect-eating bats into your garden by providing food, water and shelter. Call Pasco County Cooperative Extension at (352) 518-0156.
• Plant Propagation Made Easy, 5:30 p.m. April 29 at Hernando County Extension Services, 1653 Blaise Drive, Brooksville. This program will demonstrate the secrets of growing plants from cuttings, seeds and division. No registration required. For information, contact urban horticulture agent Jim Moll at (352) 754-4433.
• Rain Gardens, 9 to 11 a.m. May 4 at Pasco County Extension, Clayton Hall, 36702 State Road 52, Dade City. Design ideas, information on what plants work best and ideas for where to create a rain garden in your landscape. This free seminar is taught by a local Master Gardener. Call Pasco County Cooperative Extension at (352) 518-0156.
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Explore all your optionsCelebrate Earth Day
• New Port Richey: Vendors showcase the wide array of earth-friendly businesses and organizations in the west Pasco area at the New Port Richey Environmental Committee celebration from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday in the courtyard between City Hall and New Port Richey Public Library on Main Street. For more information, contact Kacey Atkinson at (727) 809-2306 or by email at kaceyatkinson84@gmail.com.
• Spring Hill: The Spring Hill Garden Club and the Hernando Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society will hold an Earth Day celebration from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday in the Nature Coast Botanical Gardens, 1489 Parker Ave. in Spring Hill. Master gardener Rita Grant will talk about "Wildlife in Your Landscape," while Florida-friendly landscaping coordinator Sylvia Durell will discuss "Gardeners and the Gift of Water." Tours of the botanical gardens will be available; and Brownies from Girl Scout Troop 317 will plant marigolds. No admission fee, but donations are greatly appreciated. Call (352) 683-9933 or visit www.naturecoastgardens. com.
• Crews Lake Park: Join the Pasco County Cooperative Extension at Earth Day, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 27 at Crews Lake Park, 16739 Crews Lake Drive, Shady Hills. The Extension will offer gardening activities for kids and adults, rain barrel workshops at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and the worm composting workshop at noon. Pre-registration required for workshops. $10 per rain barrel; 1 per household limit. For more information or to register, call (352) 518-0156.