To submit a garden-related public event for the e-gardens calendar, please e-mail details to events@sperrygardens.com. Deadline is the 15th of the month prior to the event date.

Austin/Travis County
Enjoy the Texas Folklife Yard Show exhibit at Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Sept. 4 through Dec. 5. You’ll see a spirit house by Vince Hannemann and other yard creations by Texans, both in the garden and in the Education Center. Visit www.wildflower.org.

Attend the 10th annual Texas Plant Conservation Conference, Sept. 15-17, at Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Find full program information and registration materials at http://wildflower.org/tpcc_program/.

Corpus Christi
Enjoy the final days of the Fourth Annual Flamingo Fandango at the South Texas Botanical Gardens and Nature Center, now through Labor Day. More than 200 pink plastic flamingos, including many custom-costumed birds designed by area artists and residents, will provide color and photo fun for visitors. Summer hours are 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Visit www.stxbot.org/index.htm for details.

Mark your calendar for the Wildscape Workshop and Native Plant Sale at the South Texas Botanical Gardens and Nature Center on Saturday, Oct. 2, 9:15 a.m. – 3 p.m. The workshop will be taught by members of the Native Plant Society of South Texas. Includes tours of Butterfly, Hummingbird, Tree and Wildscape Gardens, and the Bird and Butterfly Nature Trail. Native plants will be for sale. Fee of $15 ($12.50 members) includes snacks. Call 361-852-7875 or visit www.stxbot.org

Dallas and Collin County
Enjoy a Texas Country Labor Day Concert and Picnic at the Dallas Arboretum, Sept. 6, 6 – 9 p.m. Deryl Dodd and the Homesick Cowboys perform from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Food, including barbecue, available for purchase. Tickets: $20 adult ($15 member), $10 child. Visit www.dallasarboretum.org/special_events/deryl_dodd.htm.

Order your spring-blooming bulbs, now through Oct. 4, from the Collin County Master Gardeners. For the seventh year, the group offers “Bulbs for North Texas Landscapes,” including tried-and-true heritage bulbs that will thrive, and sometimes multiply, in the difficult soils and climate extremes of North Texas. For a color brochure and order form, visit http://ccmgatx.org/Association/bulbsale.asp.

Attend free Water-Wise Landscape Seminars sponsored by Dallas Water Utilities, City of Dallas Stormwater Management at Mountain View College on Saturday, Sept. 11. Landscape designer and author Bonnie Reese will be the speaker at both sessions: “Water-Wise Landscape Design 101,” 9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., and “Fantastic Plants for North Texas,” 1:30 - 5 p.m. The first 100 attendees at each session will receive a copy of Ms. Reese’s book, Common-Sense Landscaping. Workshop location is the Mountain View College Performance Hall, 4849 W. Illinois Ave., Dallas. Space is limited, so please register online at www.SaveDallasWater.com or call 214- 670-3155.

Attend the third annual Dallas Green Festival, a day of inspiration, fun and education at Texas Discovery Gardens, Saturday, Sept. 18.  There will be green demonstrations on composting, organic gardening, recycling, rainwater collection and sustainable energy.  A kid’s zone will offer projects like terrariums and bird feeders, plus face painters and more. An adventure zone will feature a zip line and a rock-climbing wall, and an artist’s walk will be filled with work made from recycled materials. Includes musical entertainment, food, and Texas Discovery Gardens' first-ever Smart Car Butterfly Rally. Details at http://texasdiscoverygardens.org/.

See the only pumpkin village in the world during Autumn at the Arboretum: The Great Pumpkin Festival at the Dallas Arboretum, Sept. 18 – Nov. 14. The gardens will be filled with more than 25,000 pumpkins and 150,000 fall-blooming flowers and grasses. Find details at www.dallasarboretum.org.

Check the website of Texas Discovery Gardens for special pricing, exhibits and hours during the State Fair of Texas, Sept. 24 - Oct. 17:
http://texasdiscoverygardens.org/visitors_and_events.php

Denton
Sign up now for the Native Plant Society of Texas Symposium 2010, a how-to-create sustainable landscapes educational event, Oct. 7 – 10, at Texas Woman's University. Nationally recognized keynote speakers J. David Bamberger, Jill Nokes and Dr. David Tallamy will deliver practical advice and information on how to make a positive environmental impact on your yard and your local Texas ecosystem. A diverse selection of how-to-do-it guided field trips, workshops with experts, and garden tours will demonstrate how native plant communities can help conserve water, save money and preserve natural habitat. Sign up on-line at www.npsot.org/symposium2010, phone 830-997-9272, or e-mail symposium2010@npsot.org.

Fort Worth
See art work exhibited in the halls of the Garden Center of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden during “Art in the Garden.” Sept. 10-12. More than 30 artists will display oils, watercolors, sculpture, photography and jewelry. Friday, noon – 7 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. Visit www.fwbg.org/calendar.php.

Shop the Fort Worth Cactus and Succulent Society’s plant show and sale at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden Sept. 17 -18. Find thousands of rare plants not usually seen in the North Texas area, and benefit from expert advice on plant care. Friday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. No admission charge. For information, call 817-283-6867.

Shop for irises and daylilies at the Iris Society Sale on Saturday, Sept. 25, at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Talk with the experts about the best ways to maximize growth and blooming of these colorful flowers.

Mark your calendar for the Fall Plant Sale at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, Oct. 9, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Houston and Harris County
Sign up for the “Herbal Teas” class at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, Sept. 11, 1-4 p.m. Dr. Mark Vorderbruggen, research chemist and explorer, will include recipes and techniques for brewing. Fee: $40 ($25 members). See details at http://houstonarboretum.org/herbalteas.asp or call 713-681-8433.

Learn “All About Hummingbirds” during a two-part class at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, Sept. 15 and Sept. 18. Bill Eley, program director of the arboretum, who has more than 30 years of experience birding the Gulf Coast, Mexico, and South America, is the instructor. The Wednesday session, 7 – 9 p.m., will be followed by a Saturday field trip, 9 – 11 a.m., to observe hummingbirds at the height of their fall migration. Visit http://houstonarboretum.org/hummingbirds.asp or phone 713-681-8433.

Join the Lunch Bunch at Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens for “Fall Vegetable Gardens,” Wednesday, Sept. 8, noon – 2 p.m. Brent Moon, manager of the City of Houston Urban Gardens Program, is the presenter. Please call ahead for reservations, 281-442-8731.
 
Nacogdoches
Enjoy the September lecture in the Stephen F. Austin Mast Arboretum Les Reeves Lecture Series on Thursday, Sept. 16, 7 – 8:30 p.m., when Jenks Farmer of Moore Farms/Lushlife Nurseries presents “It’s Crinum Time Again.” The monthly lectures are held on the third Thursday of each month in room 110 of the Stephen F. Austin State University Agriculture Building on Wilson drive (between the Art Building and the intramural fields). No charge; refreshments are served before the talk, and a plant raffle is held afterwards. For more information, contact Greg Grant at 936-468-1863 or grantdamon@sfasu.edu.

See original Texas “green houses” and their gardens, on a tour of two historic Shelby County dogtrot houses, Saturday, Sept. 11, 9 a.m. – noon. The homes belonged to the grandparents (and great-great grandparents) of Stephen F. Austin State University research associate Greg Grant, co-author of Home Landscaping – Texas and The Southern Heirloom Garden. Ticket price ($30; $25 SFA Gardens members) includes transportation from the SFA Mast Arboretum. To register, call 936-468-1832 or e-mail erodewald@sfasu.edu.

Mark your calendar for the annual Fabulous Fall Festival plant sale at Stephen F. Austin State University’s Mast Arboretum, Saturday, Oct. 2, 9 a.m. - 2 p.m., in the lower arboretum parking lot at 1924 Wilson Drive. A wide variety of hard-to-find, “Texas tough” plants will be available, including proven perennials and Texas natives. This year’s sale will feature the rare Mexican sugar maple (Acer skutchii), an SFA Gardens exclusive, and some of the better-performing and hard-to- find azaleas. The event benefits the SFA Mast Arboretum, Pineywoods Native Plant Center, Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden, and educational programs hosted at the gardens. Arrive early and bring a wagon. For more information and a list of plants for sale, call 936-468-4404, or visit http://arboretum.sfasu.edu and click on upcoming events.

Waco and Woodway
Mark your calendar for a free Children’s Garden Fair at the Carleen Bright Arboretum on Oct. 17, 2-5 p.m. Activities in this free event include a scavenger hunt, leaf rubbing, bird walk, insect identification, and more! The Bright Arboretum is located at 9001 Bosque Blvd. in Woodway. For more information, call 254-399-9204 or e-mail arboretum@woodway-texas.com.