NANPS ANNUAL PLANT SALE FUNDRAISER
Saturday, May 8, 2010
10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Who says you've made your flowerbed and now you'll have to lie in it?! The NANPS Annual Plant Sale has always been your gauge to the garden. Spring emergence is about two weeks earlier this year (The Scoop's marsh marigold blooms just opened). You now can see which plants survived and which ones went to the big compost in the sky. It takes the whole guess work out of your infill projects. Just plant yourself in the sale and we'll outfit you with the right choices for your garden. As they say, the only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it! Tempt yourself at the sale – impulse buying is condoned. Even if you don't have the space or the right conditions, maybe there is that special someone who needs a plant – mother? Mother's Day is the next day – perfect!

On hand will be two Master Gardeners - Jennifer Walton and Valerie Liney, plus Paul Heydon (Grow WILD!) and Ashley Baron (Native Plant Source) to field questions at the sale. Let the volunteers at the tables help you pick the proper plants for your situation. Browse the plant list online to get an idea. Prepare a shopping list this week, if you haven't done so already, but be prepared for the unexpected – limited numbers of some species and some new ones.

We're not pushing up daisies...we're pushing them out! Along with other members of the daisy/aster/sunflower family (Asteraceae), including ten species of goldenrod, there'll be many other families of plants represented. We have everything under the sun and in the shade, and everything in between. Peruse the tables for perennials, walk the woodlands for shrubs, trees and vines, check out the environmental displays, and take time to browse the books in the stacks.

Remember - this is our main fundraiser, but our prices are competitive. Good luck finding this kind of selection anywhere else! Our stock is locally sourced from highly ethical, native plant nurseries, NANPS inspected and with a goldenseal of approval. Native plant donations are always appreciated. Give them up to good homes and help raise funds for NANPS. Please remember to give them a name, first. Birth dates are optional.

Since this is a fundraiser, we will do our best to sell plants at the retail rate. Gamblers can take advantage and wait until the end of the day when they can adopt a green orphan tray consisting of 15 plants of choice selected from the unsold plants. NANPS doesn't make money on these discounted trays, so only a very few trays will be offered at a low price. You want NANPS to make lots of spendulees, so buy loads and then we won’t have to go this route.

In honour of our 25th Anniversary, orders totaling over $125 will receive a free ceramic Garden Sign: "Native Plants Live Here". All advance orders meeting this target are guaranteed a sign. A limited supply will also be available for sales of over $125 on May 8th. As a bonus, for those who ordered in advance, The Scoop will pick five trays at random and plant a coupon for a free plant ($5 value) courtesy of The Local Scoop’s second anniversary give-away. $5x5=$25. Happy 25th Anniversary NANPS!

Please pick up your orders pronto so NANPS Treesurer, Deb Dale, is not left holding the bag...er...box. She will be less inclined to hang onto your spring beauties, etc. as the clock ticks down and NANPS members are desperately eyeing the reserved spoils.

Special Request: Friday volunteers for Plant Sale urgently needed! Volunteers please contact plantsale@nanps.org; 416-631-4438 For details on these and other events - check the NANPS website.

Extra Special Request for information concerning Aletris farinosa - colic root. One of our members is looking for anyone who has an interest in propagating white colic root and research or research potential on any transplantation techniques, successes/failures. Any info or direction on this would be helpful. Please reply to Astrid M.

Events
Warning - dates in calendar are closer than they appear!

NANPS: Volunteer for restoration activities Saturday May 15 - Charlie Clifford Park/Grandview Park restoration days Contact: Greg Hagen land@nanps.org (416-631-4438)

Saturday May 22 Shining Tree Woods Join us for a look at spring wildflowers and a garlic mustard pull. Contact volunteer@nanps.org to register for car-pooling (drivers wanted!). Check the calendar for details.

High Park VSP Native Plant Sale
May 9 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Greenhouses

LEAF's 6th Annual Leslieville Tree Festival at Leslie Grove Park (Queen St. E. & Jones Ave.) on Saturday May 15 from 12-4 p.m.

LEAF's Fourth Annual Celebration Friday June 11 from 7-10 p.m. at the Artscape Wychwood Barns.
Tickets only $25.

Nature Walks and Workshops Get up close and personal with the natural world at Koffler Scientific Reserve at Jokers Hill. Our informal Nature Walks ramble through forest and field, guided by top experts from the University of Toronto. For a more intensive, hands-on learning experience, sign up for our day-long Natural History Workshops.

Botanical Art Courses
Focus on the beauty of natural botanical forms as you develop your art skills. Instruction in graphite, ink, coloured pencil and watercolour is given by the Chair of Botanical Artists of Canada, Nellie Sue Potter. Week-long summer intensive courses in June and July at Swansea Town Hall. Please register by May 15.
Botanical Art 101: June 21-25
Botanical Art with Coloured Pencils: July 5-9
Botanical Watercolour Technique: July 12-16
Full course listing

Last Saturday, while some NANPS members were revelling in the spring wildflowers in Shining Tree Woods and cursing & pulling invasive garlic mustard, The Scoop Investigative Team staked out Earl Bales Park for a tree planting event under the Trees Across Toronto program. After the copious speeches about increasing the urban forest canopy which had those of us in the know eye-rolling and tongue-biting, The Scoop shook hands with Mayor Miller and Director of Forestry, Richard Ubbens and discussed with them individually, the problem of defining shrubs and hedges as fences. Meanwhile, Deputy Mayor, mayoral hopeful and self-professed tree advocate, Joe Pantalone, managed to dash away unscathed, jump in a car and be spirited away to a candidate meeting at the Green Living Show. Two out of three ain't bad. The Scoop will push on...

Details and updates coming soon to The Local Scoop digs, including a synopsis of the pertinent info, where the designated Weed Inspectors are now, delegation decisions – Community Council vs. City Council, more revelations, etc.

The Scoop is proud to show off our new digs. Careful! Don't step on any plants.

The views expressed are of The Scoop and do not necessarily reflect The Local Scoop, its parent company (NANPS), subsidiaries, affiliates, verticals, hangers-on or even those of the Spokesplant.

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