Green thumbs teach at Springs Preserve

You don't have to be Henry David Thoreau to learn from nature.

The Gardens at the Springs Preserve offers classes year-around to help amateur gardeners and frustrated homeowners alike learn how to plant in the desert soil, maintain those plants and save water by choosing the right plant. There also are landscape design classes, a Web site and events to help get answers to questions no matter how simple or complex, said Denise McConnell, education coordinator for the gardens.

Both new residents and Las Vegas natives have trouble growing their favorite plants in the desert.

"They try their tried and true way of gardening. They come to us wanting to know what grows here and what they're doing wrong," McConnell said. "The soils here are hard to grow things in without additional help from us."

The gardens have been in existence for 21 years, originally billed as the Kiwanis Water Conservation Garden. In 1991, the Las Vegas Valley Water District took over the gardens, remodeled and reopened as the Desert Demonstration Garden. A year ago, the garden became a part of the Las Vegas Springs Preserve, a park preserving the springs and way of life of the first settlers in Las Vegas.

The Las Vegas Springs Preserve is set to open in 2006. The opening will allow the gardens to expand and provide more programs than the 100-plus classes offered there this year.

The recent drought, and the program offering rebates to customers of the Southern Nevada Water Authority who want to convert to desert landscaping, has made the landscape design workshops the most popular ones. At least 50 percent of household water use comes from outside the home and that number rises to 90 percent during the summer. Water-saving landscape starts with the design, McConnell said.

Drip and spray irrigation workshops and how to build solar screens also work their way into the curriculum.

"If they're saving those cooling costs, they're saving water," McConnell said. "It takes a lot of power to pump water. They work hand in hand."

Moving into the fall, hands-on workshops on pruning and tours of the gardens to talk about the importance of birds to the Las Vegas Valley as well as the types of trees that can blossom in the desert are available. Those topics have subtopics to cover such as pruning a rose bush versus pruning a tree.

Three-hour teachers' workshops, also open to the public, train residents to give guided tours of the gardens. And for those starting at the bottom, recycling and composting courses also are available.

Ongoing groups for children, such as the 4H Gardening Club and the Junior Master Gardener Program, are popular and are usually full. Sign-ups for these classes are held at the beginning of every school semester. The next time children can sign up for the classes is January.

"We're busy, but we love it," McConnell said. "We're really proud of it."

The Springs Preserve Web site extends the education to include a searchable database of plants, trees and shrubs, a calendar of events and an area where residents can ask the experts questions. The site was revamped about four months ago.

"It's a pretty comprehensive program, really," McConnell said. "It's pretty multifaceted."

The gardens' next big event is the Day with the Experts Oct. 16 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Gardens at the Springs Preserve, 3701 W. Alta Drive. Approximately 30 instructors from the community, along with plant sellers, conservation specialists, the Tortoise Group and other outdoor civic organizations will be on hand at about 40 booths.

Residents don't have to take a class or attend an event to reap the benefits of the gardens. Specialists are at the visitors center daily to answer questions or make a diagnosis on a sick plant. For ideas, a stroll through the gardens also can help gardeners decide which plants will look the best in their yards.

"Many of the plants are in their mature size," McConnell said. "You can see these plants and see what they actually look like. It's hard to tell in a container. The garden changes every season."

The Gardens at the Springs Preserve is open daily, except major holidays, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. All classes and information is free.

Those interested can call 258-3205 or visit the Web site at www.springspreserve.com.


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