Annual Wicker Park Plant Sale and Workshops May 1 and 2

Shoppers at the plant sale come in all ages.

Flowers, vegetables and herbs, some locally grown, will all be available during the May 1 and 2 Wicker Park Annual Plant Sale between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. in Wicker Park, rain or shine.  Three workshops will be held on Sat. only beginning at 10 a.m. in the Wicker Park Field House at 1425 N. Damen Ave.

Wicker Park Garden Club members including Our Urban Times' columnists Richard Tilley and Jim Angrabright will be on hand to answer questions and give plant selection assistance during both days.

Gardener Susan Fontana of Thinking Outside the Pot will begin the workshop series at 10 a.m. with a two hour  class focusing on container garden designing for all seasons.  Using design elements such as color, texture and height, Fontana does a lot of show and tell to illustrate the range of looks and uses for container gardening.  All things are fair in her designs be they foliage, flowers, herbs or vegetables.

Susan Fontana has no end of suggestions for container gardening.

The second workshop, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. addresses small space vegetable gardening and will be presented by Beth Botts, Editor of Chicagoland Gardening Magazine.  Choice of soils and fertilizers whether the plants are to be organically grown or not; crop rotation; and growing environment will all be covered .  Raised on Chicago's south side by an organic gardener, Botts grows her own tomatoes on a 3rd floor porch.

From 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Wicker Park Garden Club's Doug Wood will take the economy into consideration in "Designing on a Tight Budget." He will cover cost saving ways to start plants from seed; use of low cost ground cover as backdrop for splashes of dramatic color; ways to use perennials; and many more cost saving garden tips and tricks.

Perfect for shade, Begonias are only one of many plants that will be available.

All classes are $15 each and registration is required.  Workshops can be sold out so it is advisable to register by phone at 773.278.9075 or by email

This annual event is a fund raiser for the Wicker Park Garden Club, the organization that designs and maintains the 10,000 square feet of award winning gardens; holds lecture series; and conducts the Children's Park Kids Grow Program.  The two day event is presented in collaboration with the Chicago Park District.