Time to Start the Planning

The season of spring cleaning and fertilizing is fast approaching. And lucky for you, the Home and Garden Show will soon be here; bringing with it loads of enthusiastic experts, who will offer tons of advice for your spring and summer projects. So break out those "honey-do" lists and grab your pads and pencils for 15 of the most highly informative seminars this side of the Mississippi. The following highlights are intended to stir the imagination and increase the motivation...

...You do not want to miss Carrie Blair's talk on choosing trees and shrubs. Blair does not have a related business, but what she does have is a tremendous amount of passion and knowledge for her topic.

"I want to educate people about the balance between a home garden and wildlife," said Blair, a former horse trainer and riding instructor who now primarily earns her living by giving Tai Chi lessons and massages. "Many people move to this area to better enjoy nature and then they inadvertently do things to their property that discourages wildlife," Blair said.

Even though her knowledge stems largely from a hobby, Blair's resume is quite extensive: as the current President of the Piedmont chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society, she has taught classes at the Smithsonian Naturalist Center in Leesburg and for master gardener workshops in Warrenton. And she has led many nature hikes for organizations such as the Friends of Bull Run Mountain and the University of Virginia's State Arboretum in Boyce. She also was a major contributor to the "Trees of Old Town" guide book that outlines the various tree species in Warrenton. And currently she is part of a group that is trying to gain a Tree Town U.S.A. designation for Warrenton that will allow it to receive funding for special projects.