CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. -- Saturdays in the Garden, Monticello's annual series of gardening lectures, horticultural workshops, and natural history walks, is returning for its 19th year.
The schedule for the season, which begins March 15 and continues through November, includes workshops on such topics as propagating trees and shrubs, making cider, growing edible plants, and arranging flowers; walks focusing on spring wildflowers, birds, and ferns; and tastings of tomatoes, summer fruits, and apples.
These Saturday morning programs will be conducted by members of the Monticello staff -- including Peter Hatch, the director of gardens and grounds, and Peggy Cornett, director of the Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants -- and guest experts. Fees are charged and reservations are required for most sessions.
The opening program will be an apple grafting workshop with noted nurseryman Tom Burford, to begin at 9:30 a.m. on March 15 at Tufton Farm, located on Milton Road (Route 732) just east of its intersection with Route 53. Participants in this two-hour workshop are advised to bring a thin-bladed pocketknife and a pair of hand pruners.
The second session will be a workshop on starting a vineyard with celebrated winemaker Gabriele Rausse, Monticello's associate director of gardens and grounds. The program will begin at 9:30 a.m. on March 22 at the Garden Shop at Monticello, which is located in the main visitor parking area near the ticket office.
The third session will deal with pruning and propagating historic roses. Conducted by Center for Historic Plants horticulturist Dennis Whetzel, this workshop will start at 9:30 a.m. on March 29 at Tufton Farm.
The fee for each of these programs is $10.
Reservations for all Saturdays in the Garden sessions can be made by calling (434) 984-9822, and reserved tickets can be purchased online through the Web site monticello.org (credit card required).
A free Saturdays in the Garden schedule with detailed descriptions of all the sessions can be obtained by calling (434) 984-9822, sending an e-mail to publicaffairs@monticello.org, or writing to: Saturdays in the Garden, Monticello, P.O. Box 217, Charlottesville, Va. 22902.
