Classes
HARLEQUIN’S GARDENS
4795 N. 26th St. Boulder, CO 80301
303-939-9403 www.harlequinsgardens.com
2013 CLASSES
In our classes you will learn more than information. Our teachers are people who have spent years honing their skills. Their experience in Colorado will help guide you to success. We are charging $15 for most classes to support our speakers and Harlequin’s educational direction. It is best to pre-register for these classes both in case they fill up or too few people register and we have to cancel the class. Pre-payment assures your place in the class.
3 ways to Register/Pre-register:
Register at the nursery any time we are open, but as far as possible in advance of the class you wish to attend. Pre-pay with cash or a check. In March we’re open from 9-5 on FRIDAYS, SATURDAYS & SUNDAYS. From April 1 through October 30 we are open EVERY DAY, 9 am to 5 pm (’til 6 on Thursdays).
By phone: Call 303-939-9403; Please spell your name, and supply your e-mail address and phone number, and list the titles and dates of the classes you wish to register for. We need your email address to contact you in case of class cancellation. Please follow up by mailing a check to Harlequin’s Gardens, 4795 N. 26th St, Boulder CO 80301, or bringing a check or cash. We do not accept credit or debit cards.
By mail: Mail a check, along with your name, e-mail address, phone number, and list of class titles and dates you are signing up for. Harlequin’s Gardens, 4795 N. 26th St. Boulder CO 80301
Classes are $15 (unless otherwise noted). Remember, we cannot accept debit or credit cards.
Sunday March 3, 1:30 pm: SEED-STARTING SUCCESS, with expert Janis Kieft of Botanical Interests Seed Co. Learn all the background and tips for getting good germination and a healthy start with seeds, indoors and out. $15
Saturday March 9, 2 pm: SECRETS for GROWING GREAT TOMATOES, with expert and tomato maven Carol O’Meara, Boulder County CSU Extension Agent and director of the Master Gardener program. Learn how to choose, feed, prune, support, trouble-shoot, etc. for the best and most delicious tomato crop you’ve ever grown. $15
Sunday March 10, 1:30 pm: BUILDING TOPSOIL & FERTILITY, with Mikl Brawner, owner of Harlequin’s Gardens. Learn how to support soil life, enrich poor soils and improve plant health and nutrition from the bottom up: composts, fertilizers, mulching, worms, deficiencies and tilth. $15
Saturday March 16, 1:30 pm: RAISING BACKYARD CHICKENS, with Tracey Parrish and Barbara Mueser. Learn how to select, purchase and care for a flock of chickens. Find out what they need and the benefits they provide. Tracey and Barbara are organic gardeners with long experience of keeping chickens and other domesticated fowl. $15
Sunday March 17, 1:30 pm: PLANTING by the MOON, with Mikl Brawner, owner of Harlequin’s Gardens. The moon and planets influence life on earth. Mikl has been planting by the Biodynamic Calendar for 20 years with great success. Be in sync with the cosmic rhythms. Biodynamic Calendars will be available. $15
Saturday March 23, 1:30 pm: SEED-STARTING SUCCESS, with expert Janis Kieft of Botanical Interests Seed Co. Learn all the background and tips for getting good germination and a healthy start with seeds, indoor and out. $15
Sunday March 24, 1:30 pm: SUCCESSION PLANTING, with local culinary gardening experts Mo McKenna & Tracey Parrish. Learn the techniques and timing to maximize the use of your garden space and keep your vegetable garden in continual production through the season(s). $15
Saturday March 30, 1:30 pm: GROWING VEGGIES & HERBS in CONTAINERS, with Ellen Dart. No garden? No problem! Ellen has perfected the growing of tomatoes, peppers, greens, and much more in Earth Boxes and other containers. Earth Boxes, pots, potting soil, fertilizers, seeds, etc. will be available for sale. $15
Sunday March 31, 1:30 pm: GETTING STARTED in VEGETABLE GARDENING, with culinary gardening expert/market farmer Mimi Yanus. If you are new to Colorado, or new to vegetable gardening, or have been unhappy with the results of your earlier attempts, this class is for you. Learn what you need to know to make your new organic vegetable garden successful, even bountiful, even in Colorado conditions! $15
Sun. April 7, 10 am: INTRO to BACKYARD BEEKEEPING with Julie Finley Ridinger & Kristina Williams. Thinking about keeping bees to pollinate your garden and produce some honey? Learn about honeybee behavior, culture and requirements, basics of how to manage a colony, plants that support honeybees, and visit a natural top-bar hive. Wild solitary (non-colonizing) bees are extremely important pollinators as well; learn about our native wild bees and how to support and encourage them in your garden. Julie directed the beekeeping program at Growing Gardens for many years, and Kristina is an entymologist and wild bee expert. Together they buzz with 15+ years of experience. $15
Sun. April 7, 1:30 pm: BUILDING TOPSOIL & FERTILITY with Mikl Brawner. Learn how to support soil life, enrich poor soils and improve plant health and nutrition from the bottom up: composts, fertilizers, mulching, worms, deficiencies and tilth. Mikl is founder and co-owner of Harlequin’s Gardens, and has been studying soil biology for years. $15
Sat. April 13, 10 am: DO-IT-YOURSELF DRIP IRRIGATION with Alison Peck. Drip irrigation can be easy! It is a key part of most water conserving landscapes, but it can be intimidating. Come learn a simple, easy to design and install system which Alison has been using for years, plus new efficient sprinklers Save money, save water, reduce weeds and have healthier plants. Alison Peck is a Landscape Designer specializing in xeriscapes, native plant landscapes and other earth-friendly landscapes. She owns Matrix Gardens, which has been designing and installing sustainable landscapes in Boulder Valley for 25 years. $15
Sat. April 13, 1:30 pm: GROWING VEGGIES & HERBS in CONTAINERS with Ellen Dart. Longtime Boulder vegetable gardener Ellen Dart moved her gardening efforts into containers to protect her efforts from two rambunctious new puppies. She grows at least $900 worth of food and herbs a year in Earth Boxes, window boxes & pots. She will share the simple methods for success she has learned for growing greens, lettuce, tomatoes, herbs, and more. Earth Boxes and other containers, as well as seeds, potting soils and organic fertilizers are available for sale at the nursery. One of our most popular classes! $15
Sun. April 14, 10 am: RAISED-BED GARDENING 101 with Bryant Mason. Raised beds are a neat, compact, well-drained and good-looking option for productive home-scale vegetable gardening. Bryant will provide a thorough, step-by-step presentation of how to start an easy raised bed vegetable garden. Topics covered will include: soil development, planting timing, fertilizing, weeding, watering, harvesting, recommended crops. Bryant Mason is the founder of The Urban Farm Co. of Colorado $15
Sun. April 14, 1:30 pm: SUCCESSFUL LOW-WATER LANDSCAPING with Mikl Brawner. Our region seems to be getting hotter and drier, and we will have to adapt our gardens to the ‘new normal’. Gardening with less water is not that hard if you know how. There are tricks that will improve your success. Mikl Brawner is founder and co-owner of Harlequin’s Gardens. Mikl’s xeriscape experience of over 25 years has taught him tricks that will cost you a lot less than it cost him. $15
Sat. April 20, 10 am: PASSIVE RAINWATER ‘HARVESTING’ with Jason Gerhardt. In this class we will cover the legal issues of water harvesting in Colorado and focus on what we can do to benefit from the free rain from the sky. Harvesting water in the soil, instead of in cisterns, helps us make the best possible use of our precious rainwater and can lead to sustainably lush gardens uncommon in our semi-arid climate. Jason currently teaches a permaculture program for Naropa University and instructs in numerous workshops and courses annually. He practices ecological design professionally as Real Earth Design. $15
Sat. April 20, 1:30 pm: MAKING your GARDEN / LANDSCAPE TRULY SUSTAINABLE with Alison Peck. Our gardens can be a vibrant contribution to the earth’s health, rather than consumers of resources and toxic chemicals. We will look at alternative materials and designs which can at least ‘do no harm’, and explore ways in which our gardens and landscapes can be actively beneficial to the web of life. Alison Peck has been working towards sustainable landscaping and living for 25 years, and the ideas and information presented are based on her 25+ years experience designing and installing landscapes. $15
Sun. April 21, 10:00 am: SUCCESSFUL HOME COMPOSTING with Mikl Brawner. How to turn waste into wealth by cultivating soil microorganisms. Nature does the work if you know how to lend a hand. In this class you will learn what works in our climate, and what doesn’t. Mikl has been composting for 30 years. $15
Sun. April 21, 1:30 pm: FEARLESS PRUNING in the ROSE GARDEN with Eve Reshetnik Brawner (Rain/Snow date: Sun. 4/28, 1:30 pm)
Don’t be intimidated by your roses! Learn when, why and how to prune hardy roses and climbers, and return to your garden armed with knowledge, confidence, and the right tools to prune properly for the most rewarding results. Discussion & hands-on demonstration & practice. Wear long pants, long sleeves, gloves, & hat. Eve Reshetnik Brawner is co-owner of Harlequin’s Gardens and is respected as a rose expert on the Front Range. She has been growing and pruning hardy roses in Colorado for more than 20 years. $15
Sat. April 27, 10 am: BERRIES & SMALL FRUITS for COLORADO with Mikl Brawner. Small fruits are delicious, high in antioxidants and vitamins, take up less space & bear sooner than trees: strawberries, currants, raspberries, grapes, gooseberries. The best varieties for CO. & how to grow them. $15
Sat. April 27, 1:30 pm: GARDENING for BEES, BIRDS & WILDLIFE with Alison Peck. You’ll discover many new friends when you invite birds, bees, butterflies and even snakes and toads into your garden. Learn easy ways to provide food and shelter for wildlife, how to include plants that are particularly important for wildlife, and how to discourage ‘urban wildlife’, such as deer, skunks and raccoons. Alison Peck is a Landscape Designer specializing in xeriscapes, native plant landscapes and other earth-friendly landscapes. She owns Matrix Gardens, which has been designing and installing landscapes in Boulder Valley for 25 years. $15
Sun. April 28, 10 am: PERMACULTURE: WHAT THE HECK IS IT? with Lynn Duguay. Find out why permaculture is growing by leaps and bounds, how it extends far beyond gardening, how you can benefit from it. We’ll look at practical, sustainable strategies for home and community resilience, how to improve our soils, some simple water harvesting ideas and more! Lynne duGuay is a certified Advanced Permaculture Designer and is currently facilitating the 8-month permaculture certification course in Boulder. $15
Saturday May 11, 10 am: EDIBLE LANDSCAPING with Alison Peck Learn how to grow fruits, nuts, vegetables, vines and herbs in your yard, beautifully. Learn which plants are the most successful and how to integrate them into your landscape. Alison has been designing edible landscapes for 25 years; she owns Matrix Gardens landscaping. $15
Saturday May 11, 1:30 pm: HANDS-ON CONTAINER PLANTING with HG staff Judy Whitfield & Elaine Walker. Come spend the afternoon learning step-by step how to put together a beautiful and successful planter for your balcony, patio, doorstep, window or garden, using ornamentals and/or vegetables and herbs. We will help you choose from our excellent selection of planters of all sizes, materials, designs and prices (or bring your own), and our unique and wonderful selection of plants appropriate for your site conditions, your container and your aesthetics. We will help you assemble them in the right potting soil and best arrangement, so you can take home a completed planter for yourself or (hint, hint) for a fantastic, personal Mothers Day gift. Bring a trowel and gardening gloves or buy them here. Limited enrollment! $15 plus the materials you choose.
Saturday May 18, 10 am: SEED-SAVING with Janis Kieft Learn how to save flower and veggie seeds from your garden. Topics include: isolation, selection, harvesting, seed storage, testing & more. You can develop strains that are best adapted to the particular conditions in your garden, ensure that you’ll have your favorite varieties even if they disappear from commerce, learn a little botany, and save money. Janis is a professional with 30 yrs experience. $15
Saturday May 18, 1:30 pm: BEST FRUIT TREES FOR COLORADO with Mikl Brawner Learn which varieties are successful here, which are not, and which are good flavored: Apples, Cherries, Plums, Pears, Peaches, and learn how to care for them. Mikl’s 1st orchard was in 1976. $15
Sunday May 19, 10 am: EDIBLE WEEDS & WILD MEDICINALS with herbalist Ann Drucker. A hands-on herb class in the field: forage, taste, learn, make wild pesto & healing vinegar. Ann has over 20 years experience teaching herbal healing in her joyful, experiential way. One of our most popular and fun classes! $15
Sunday May 19, 1:30 pm: SECRETS OF VEGGIE GARDENING IN THE MOUNTAINS with Stephen Sherman Learn how to deal with mountain soils, shorter seasons and wildlife for bountiful harvests. Steve has been soil-building and growing gardens in the foothills for 23 years $15
Saturday June 1, 10 am: GARDENING in CLAY SOILS with Alison Peck. Clay soils can be a challenge for the gardener. Come learn techniques for working with clay soils and the plants that thrive in them, from vegetables to perennials, shrubs and trees. Alison Peck of Matrix Gardens is an award-winning landscape designer who has gardened and landscaped in foothills clay soils for three decades, so she feels your pain and she can help you make it all better. $15
Saturday June 1, 1:30 pm: GARDENING at HIGH ALTITUDE with Diane Badertscher Gardening above 6000’ has its own challenges. There are certain plants and certain strategies that can improve your successes. Diane lives and gardens at 8000’ and can help you. $15
Sunday June 2, 10 am: MAKE YOUR OWN HYPER-TUFA TROUGH PLANTER with Tamara Winter. Dress to get dirty, particle mask, rubber gloves, bandana; forms provided or bring one. These planters are ideal for alpine treasures, cacti & succulents etc.; $25 includes materials for 1 trough; pre-register
Sunday June 2, 1:30 pm: A GARDEN FOR COLORADO CONDITIONS: Tour our most recent demonstration garden with Harlequin’s Gardens owners Eve & Mikl Brawner. We will discuss the soil preparation, the native and non-native shrubs, trees and perennials we planted, and how the garden survived in spite of having been planted in the heat of 2011 and 2012. $15
Saturday June 8, 1:30 pm: SEASON EXTENDING for YEAR-ROUND HARVESTS with Eric Johnson .Learn how to grow veggies thru the winter w/o extra heat & with low-tech solutions. Eric has studied horticulture and has 20 years experience, gardening & experimenting $15
Sunday June 9, 1:30 pm: EVE’S TOP 40 FRAGRANT ROSES with Eve Brawner, co-owner of Harlequin’s Gardens. A nose-on class. The enchanting fragrances of roses have been lost in many modern varieties. Eve will bring in samples and share her long experience searching out the truly fragrant varieties, heirloom and modern. $15
Saturday June 15, 10 am: MEDICINALS AS ORNAMENTALS in a XERISCAPE GARDEN. Join Leslie Lewis, herbalist and gardener par excellence for a detailed tour of her beautiful and successful low-water front yard in which most of the plants function both as colorful ornamentals and as medicinal herbs that she uses to make effective herbal home remedies. Be prepared to be surprised and learn a lot! Old-Town Longmont location. $15
Saturday June 22, 1:30 pm: ORGANIC STRATEGIES for GRASSHOPPER CONTROL with Mikl Brawner. There’s no perfect solution to stopping grasshoppers, but there are non-toxic methods to significantly reduce their damage. $15
Sat. Aug. 10, 1:30 p.m: PRUNING for STRENGTH, HEALTH & BEAUTY (offered again on Sun. 8/25) Mikl Brawner will give a talk and demonstration. Learn to train young trees, to restructure shrubs and trees broken by storms, to prune roses. Mikl has 35 years experience in pruning. $15
Sat. Aug 17, 1:30 pm: HOW TO ESTABLISH a MEADOW of Colorado-adapted grasses and wildflowers from seed. Darren Klotz has completed over 1100 seeding and erosion control projects, consulting on organic turf fertilization, now with Rocky Mt. Bio Products $15 (Harlequin’s Gardens is carrying 5 kinds of Meadow Mixes and EZ Mulch)
Sun. Aug. 25, 1:30 p.m.: PRUNING for STRENGTH, HEALTH & BEAUTY with Mikl Brawner (this is a REPEAT of the August 10th class) $15
Sat. Sept. 7, 10 am to 1 pm: 3rd Annual TASTE of TOMATO (see our Events Listings)
Sat. Sept. 21, 1:30 p.m.: LOW-TECH GREENHOUSE DESIGN & OPERATION with Mikl Brawner of Harlequin’s Gardens Mikl has been researching, building and using simple greenhouses for 20 years. This class will focus on 5 designs on site at the nursery. $15