Cincinnati Zoo Solar Panels

If you haven’t visited the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden recently, you may not know about one of its newest additions. A baby tiger? A baby elephant? Nope. The big news this past April was the arrival of one of the largest public urban solar displays in the country. 6,400 photovoltaic solar collection panels covers assembled 15-18′ above the parking lot now give cover to 800 of the 1000 parking spaces. The $11 million project is designed to produce 1.56 MW (megawatts) of power; about 20% of the zoo’s annual needs or enough to power 200 homes. It is a wonderful perk to be able to park your car in the shade!

Educational Opportunities

Thursday, September 15. DIAGNOSTIC WALK ABOUT  with Pam Bennett, OSU Extension. Cox Arboretum. 6-8 pm. Last Walk About of the season. Your chance to see what has been bugging your garden, connecting theory with practical applications in the garden, and learn from one of the best. Pam talk about what is happening around the state, and walk through the grounds to talk about what is happening in the  Dayton gardens/landscapes.

Saturday, September 17, 10 am. Knollwood Garden Center.  It’s time to begin preparing your houseplants and tropicals for the move indoors. Knollwood’s Barb Kedler will show you the steps to take for a smooth, bug- and stress-free transition. Continue your gardening through the fall & winter months with indoor combo pots & fun projects.

Saturday, September 24, 10 am & 11 am. Knollwood Garden Center.  Behind The Scenes with Poinsettias, Mums, and Propagation. Head to Knollwood’s growing facility in Beavercreek for a change in seasons: learn about the process it takes to grow beautiful poinsettias, how garden mums are grown outdoors for best results, and how propagation of succulents and coleus is done (definitely try this at home!) Space is limited, reservations required. 937-426-0861. Maps will be available in the week prior to the event.

Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 8-9. Knollwood Garden Center. Build your Own Scarecrow. Greene County Master Gardeners are helping with the family activity. Stop in Saturday (10-4) or Sunday (11-4) and build a funny scarecrow for the yard. Burlap head, straw, twine and a simple frame as well as a variety of clothes will be provided. Fee for supplies is $15, of which $10 goes directly to the Master Gardeners for their variety of community service projects.

Conservation Opportunities

Tuesday, September 13. Germantown – Ohio Prairie Seed Nursery 7745 Conservancy Road. 9 am-3 pm. Prairie seed harvest, plant shrub seedlings, clean up/weed nursery planting beds, open up pond/willow cut back…propagation, ID, and multitude of skill building opportunities. There will be a grill out for lunch…or bring a brown bag. Come for the morning, the afternoon, or stay all day.

Tuesday, September 20. Germantown Nature Center – 6910 Boomershine Road. 9 am – 2 pm.  A new installation Rain Garden needs some extra TLC in its early stages. Great time to learn about native plants, rain garden design, and of course…weed ID.

Sales Alerts

Grandma’s Gardens: Trees 25-40% off; perennials 30-50% off; 1-gallon mums 5/$35.

Knollwood Garden Center: Redeem your Bonus Bucks in September! Also, at least 20% off trees & shrubs; 50% off hostas; 40% off perennials; 25% off fountains.

Seibenthaler’s Garden Center: 61st Annual Tree & Nursery Sale exclusively at the Beavercreek Nursery & Garden Center on Sept 24th & 25th and Oct 1st and 2nd. Trees & shrubs will be up to 75% off.

Baker’s Acres: (25 miles NE of Columbus) Annual September sale. Sept 12–18: 30% off; Sept 19–25: 40% off; Sept 26–Oct 2: 50% off; Oct 3–9: 51% off. Includes most plants and soil products. All pottery is Buy One/Get One at Half Price (Of equal or lesser value) – excludes terra cotta pots. Tropicals, annuals and begonias are already 50% off. Sale does not include garden mums, pansies, fall combinations, fall vegetables, ornamental cabbage and kale or any other new fall crops.