Sunday, April 3, 2011

To do: Visit the Brooklyn Botanic Garden...or take a class!

I took a gardening class at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden today.  It was fabulous.  I didn't learn much BUT I got very inspired to plant some flowers and tons of herbs + veggies this summer at my house out east.
The few things that I did learn however were actually very important and a good start for this warm spring season that is upon us...
1.)  ALL soil should be tested for lead.  Especially if you've got lil ones who will be helping you out in the garden (I cannot wait to get LM out there!!).  Supposedly it's easy to find local spots to send a package of your dirt for testing.
2.)  If you're a gardening amateur like myself, you should start your project with wheatgrass.  It looks pretty (I'm going to be using tons of it for a party that I've got coming up in a couple of weeks...) and is very easy to grow!  Well so you think...I shouldn't talk because I haven't seen any buds yet.  But it's great practice and perfect for planting indoors while the weather is still cool.
Tip that I learned: try to plant with your kids if they are a bit older and want to help out.  A darling idea especially for Easter is to use egg shells as the base for your soil.  Here's a quick how to if you want to give this a try...
I am going to use this as inspiration to make the place cards for my Passover dinner...too cute!
Here's a quick snapshot of a flower that I found beautiful while walking through the green house at the end of the class...
And here's a shot of greenery growing out of onions that were planted directly into soil.  Very cool and they told me that kids at the garden did this!  Another crafty idea for some spring fun...
I highly suggest checking out this gorgeous garden - it's worth paying a visit too...or taking a class.

Brooklyn Botanical Garden
900 Washington Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11225

2 train 3 train B train Q train 4 train 5 train S train
B or Q to Prospect Park
2 or 3 to Eastern Parkway