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Kids only day camp (9 AM - 3 PM) for grades 2-6. Explore the five Mediterranean climates of the world (California, South Africa, Chile, and the Mediterranean) through exciting and fun hands-on outdoor activities. We will be using hikes, gardening, art, photography, dance, cooking classes, geography, and animal study to learn about our dependence on plants to provide the air we breathe, food to build strong bodies, fuel to keep us warm, the wood to build our living spaces and fibers for our clothes, books, and tents—all designed to keep the kids tantalized and interested. As we learn about what people eat in each of the Mediterranean areas, we will cook the food and enjoy it each day for lunch.

June 12 A Day At the Garden with Dad Children and their parents will learn the basics of composting and how to make worm boxes for their home gardens.

Fingerpickin’ Good

Some music makes you feel, some makes you think, and some music is just for the fun of it. This concert will get to all those places in the space of this performance. Local finger-style guitarists Dorian Michael, Tim Pacheco, and Martin Paris will each play individual sets at the Acoustic Guitar Concert on Sunday, May 16 at 5 p.m. at the Botanical Garden. Each musician is unique, drawing from different musical influences from The Doors, to The Doobie Brothers, and The Kingston Trio. Dorian describes his solo music as “contemporary traditional” drawing from his interest in many styles of music. Tim’s music evokes “deep, basic, clear emotion” in the vane of Windham Hill, while Martin has wows audiences with his lively “alternate tunings.” This eclectic, something-for-everyone acoustic guitar concert is just one of many fun, outdoor events at the Botanical Garden to remind people to honor and preserve our connection with nature. Refreshments served. No host bar.

Seating is limited, so reserve early. Entry is $12 for members and
$15 for non-members.

There will be a docent-led tour, 4 PM,
concert follows at 5 PM.

The San Luis Obispo Botanical proudly presents Connections with Nature: Eco-Art in the Garden co-sponsored by Frame Works. Curator Sara Egerer has selected artwork made of various reclaimed materials, featuring work by Jack Biesek, Carol Paulsen, Stephen Plowman, Larry Le Brane, and other local artists.

Explore sculpture in the beautiful natural setting of the Preview Garden and Oak Glen Pavilion during the Opening Reception on Friday, March 19th from 4:00-7:30 p.m. Meet the artists and enjoy nature, art, wine, light refreshments, docent tours, a scavenger hunt, and children’s activities.

To make reservations please call SLOBG (805) 541-1400 ext. 305. $10 General Donation, $8 SLOBG Members, entry is free for children and those who purchase a SLOBG Membership. Guests may also pay at the door. Show runs through April 16th.

Photo: “Moving Through Space” by Larry Le Brane

You will be saying ‘Yes I Can’ after spending time with Brenda Hock at the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden during one of her upcoming canning classes.  Participants will learn canning basics and take home three canning creations in these informal, educational classes. The adult canning classes run 2-5 p.m. on Thursday, April 22 featuring berry margarita jam, green beans, and pepper jelly. Each class is $35 per person including the price of cans and canning materials. For more information, please contact Dave at (805) 541-1400 ext. 304 or dsetterlund@slobg.org. 

You will not want to miss this slide show and talk. A UCCE Master Gardener review said, “this presentation was superb, very articulate, interesting, humorous and enthusiastic...Great speaker, beautiful photos, relevant subject...great slideshow—I didn't want it to end…”

Two different presentations will be made by Debra who will be selling and signing her books and CDs following her talk.

            Sun., April 11, 2 PM, “Succulents to Enhance Your Outdoor Living Spaces,”
            San Luis Obispo City/County Library, 995 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo
            Tues., April 13, 7 PM, “Dramatic Gardens of Colorful, Easy-care Succulents,”
            San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden in the Oak Glen Pavilion.

Presentations are sponsored by Timber Press, Cal Poly Ornamental Horticulture Department, Grow, the Nursery at Moonstone Gardens and the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden.

California's native bees are different from honeybees. They don't live in hives and don't produce honey but they are star pollinators – especially for our native plants. Marissa Ponder of UC Berkeley will familiarize us with California's native bees and their habits, and she will tell us how to make our gardens friendly to native pollinators.

Marissa Ponder graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a B.S. in Conservation and Resource Studies. She has been working at the UC Berkeley College of Natural Resources' Urban Bee Laboratory for the past two years. She wrote her honors thesis on one of her favorite subjects; 'Urban Bee Gardens'.

Suggested donation: $4.00 for members, $5.00 for non-member. $2 parking fee collected by El Chorro Regional Park.

Succulents, Sisyrhnchium bellum, Nemesia capensis, Psorelea pinnata or the “grape soda” plant, and over a hundred other kinds of plants will be available at the Spring Plant Sale. All the plants we grow and sell are adapted to our Mediterranean climate requiring less water. This year plants will be placed throughout the Garden near their fully grown “moms” so that guests can visualize what the mature plant will look like in their own garden. The crowd favorite Murray Smith tomato is the only non-Mediterranean plant that we grow and sell, but it was developed by Dr. Howard Brown of Cal Poly specifically to do well in our local climate.

The Bay Osos Kiwanis will be barbequing hamburgers and hot dogs for sale from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. with proceeds going to the Botanical Garden.

Two docent garden tours 11:30 a.m. & 2:30 p.m.

11:30 Ron Kindig shows off plants from the Garden's book, 128 of Our Best. These attractive Mediterranean-climate adapted plants will help cut your water bill as well. Many of these plants are available at the plant sale.

2:30 Meg Crockett will show how to entice all those bees, butterflies, and birds into your garden.  What are they really looking for?  How you can you provide it?

$2 parking fee collected by El Chorro Regional Park.

Melinda has been the curator of the Australian Collections at the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum for 21 years. She has traveled and worked in Australia, helping to develop the Australian Garden at Cranbourne,  see www.rbg.vic.gov.au with the Royal Botanic Gardens at Melbourne, and has brought back plants and ideas to enrich the gardens at the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum. Melinda brings the artist’s perspective with her degree in art and her scientific approach from her degree in biology.

Free Docent Tour, 2:15 p.m. following presentation.

Meet at the Oak Glen Pavilion at 2:15 for a tour led by Docent Ken Levine. He will show off some of the stunning and unusual plants from the Mediterranean climate zones of Western and Southern Australia. These attractive and water-thrifty plants make delightful accents and/or dramatic focal points in your garden.

Gisele Schoniger, locally grown and raised horticulturist, will give an upbeat, educational
and entertaining talk sharing her wealth of gardening expertise and wisdom.

One of Gisele’s topics includes the great power of the mycorrhizal fungi. These miniscule fungi are critical ecologically to 95% of the world’s plants — they squeeze into tiny spaces and help the plant roots reach more carbohydrates, water and minerals. The roots make some of  the excess sugar available to the mycorrhiza. 

Ms. Schoniger will talk about “Breakthroughs in Natural & Organic Practices: Understanding the Importance of Mycorrhizal Fungi and Building the Microbial Life of Your Soil” and “Transitioning from Synthetics to Natural, Organic & Sustainable Practices.”

In her 30 years in the garden industry, Gisele has accumulated a wide range of experience and knowledge which she loves to share with gardeners and nongardeners alike. You will be in for a treat with this speaker. 

Gisele Schoniger is into saving the important things in life like the earth and the old red house at the end of Madonna Road where she grew up. Living in the old red house she developed a love of the pastures and woods behind there and graduated from Cal Poly, earning her degree in horticultural science.

Saturdays at the Garden, every second Saturday, 1 - 4 p.m.

All programs in the Oak Glen Pavilion unless otherwise stated. 
Cost for each program: $4.00 members, $5.00 non-members. Cost, subject to change.

Docent led tour, 2:15 p.m. following program

This tour provides inspiration for all of us finding the need to conserve critical water supplies. Docent Chris Manning shows readily available plants that survive with little or no water once established. Other water conserving measures will be shown, such as mulching, terracing, soil amendments, and an introduction to mycorizal fungi.

Jim Barnett, Johnny Mathis’ former pianist of 30 years, and vocalist
Deanna Delore will perform a one-night romantic evening of best loved songs on Friday, February 12, 2010 from 5 – 7 pm in the Oak Glen Pavilion, at the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden.

In early 2008, composer, arranger, and pianist Jim Barnett joined classically trained singer Deanna Delore to form piano/voice duo Nu Monet. Inspired by the artist Claude Monet’s unique approach to art, the two chose the name Nu Monet to reflect their unique approach to music. Nu Monet performances span a wide variety of musical genres, including tunes from the American songbook, show tunes, jazz standards, folk ballads, and arias from operas.

The music of Nu Monet is art, music, poetry and beauty all wrapped up in a beautiful package for the audience. Delicious food will be catered by Meagan Loring, making this is a perfect Valentine’s present for the one you love. 
Advance ticket sales are $25.00 or $28.50 at the door. Reserve ahead by calling
541-1400 x 305.

To light your heart on fire, you may send your check to: SLOBG, 3450 Dairy Creek Road, San Luis Obispo, CA  93405. For information, phone 541-1400 x 305.

San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden- Facebook

Happy 2010!  The Garden is off to a great start this new year with many new events and activities on the calendar.  In order to keep our members and the community more in touch with what is going on at the Garden and to increase our exposure both locally and throughout the world we have joined the social networking site Facebook.  If you are already on Facebook please search for us under “San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden” and become a “fan” of our page.

Not a member of Facebook? It is a free service that you can join by going to www.facebook.com.  Uncertain about joining Facebook and interested in learning more? Join us Tuesday February 2 at 1 pm, at the Oak Glen Pavilion for an “Introduction to Facebook” presentation by board members Eve Vigil and Helen Sipsas.  Learn how to create an account, set privacy settings, search for friends, post pictures and comments and become a fan of the Garden’s page.

We’re joining the many other botanical Gardens that already connect with people on Facebook such as the New York Botanical Garden, Missouri Botanical Garden, LA County Arboretum and so many more.  Facebook will be a fun and useful tool we can use to connect and grow the Garden’s community, which will in turn help us achieve our mission to honor and preserve our connection with nature. 

Eve and Helen

The San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden continues the “Saturday in the Garden” talks into the new year with plant geneticist Scott Trees. On Saturday, January 9, at 1:00 p.m., he will tell the audience how the development of new species and varieties of plants takes place.  Admission for the lecture is $4 for members of the Garden and $5 for non-members.  Following the speaker, a free docent-led tour of the Garden will be given.

Mr. Trees, who works for Ball Horticultural Company in Guadalupe, will discuss how  Ball decides the specifications for the new plant and how the company goes about collecting “germplasm” which is the breeding material used in the projects. He’ll give examples of new crops that have been developed in the past and talk about some of the goals for the future. For example, he is currently developing some ornamental and edible new crops for Ball with goals of sustainability, which includes drought tolerance and disease resistance. Searching the world for new plants to breed, Mr. Trees will have slides from his trips to Europe, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Scott Trees has worked in the ornamental plant breeding industry for more than 35 years and is associated with over 200 Ball patents on new varieties.  Some of his favorite new plants include Torch Gaillardias, Mystic Spires Salvia, Lucky Lantanas, Aztec and Wildfire Verbenas, Luminaire Snapdragons and Breathless Euphorbias.  He has a Ph.D in Plant Genetics from UC Davis.

San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden News PDF

Docent Tour
Docent Ron Kindig will stimulate your senses with the smells, textures, sights, and sounds of some of his favorite plants from our Garden that are in the Garden's publication, 128 of Our Best. A handout will give you a chance to choose some of these attractive plants for your home garden.

Garden Maintenance - every Tuesday:  9 am to 11 am

• Location: Preview Garden
• Event Summary: Get your fingers dirty! Plant, weed, mulch, and water under the supervision of Preview Garden Manager, Eve Vigil and Assistant Manager, Ellen Dollar

Plant Sale - every Tuesday:  9 am to 11 am (weather permitting)

• Location: Preview Garden Greenhouse
• Event Summary:  We sell plants grown at the greenhouse to the public.  The greenhouse is located at the botanical garden. This is a great opportunity for members to enhance their own gardens and support our effort to enlarge our Garden. Exact change, checks and Master Card and Visa are welcome.

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