Garden Hotline Classes and Events

Come join us for a class, or peruse an information table and ask us your gardening questions. We are out and about in King County all year-round sharing natural gardening advice and resources. Call or email to ask questions about any event.

APRIL

Edibles in the Landscape

Thursday April 18, 2024  1 pm – 2 pm

King County Library – Renton

100 Mill Avenue S. Renton, WA 98057

Urban spaces can be limited for edible gardens and impacted by shade from buildings and mature trees. This workshop will cover site assessment for gardeners interested in adding edible plants to their landscape. Plant placement and plant care will be addressed and ideas for integrating edible plants into the ornamental landscape will be covered.

Please register: Renton Library 

Basics of Vegetable Gardening

Friday April 19, 2024 11 am – 12:30 pm

King County Library – Des Moines 

21620 11th Avenue S. Des Moines, WA 98198

Want to grow your own food but don’t know where to begin? Learn the basics from the Tilth Alliance! An expert on gardening will teach you how to start and care for your garden so you can eat fresh, healthy food. 

Please register. Walk-ins are welcomed if space permits – Des Moines Library

Composting at Home

Tuesday April 23, 2024  1-2:30 pm

King County Library – Southcenter

1386 Southcenter Mall  Tukwila, WA 98188

The foundation of a beautiful and healthy garden is good soil. Adding compost to your garden enriches the soil and provides the nutrients your plants need to grow well and produce good vegetables, flowers, herbs and healthy shrubs. The compost pile is really a small ecosystem teeming with life. This workshop will teach you about the different methods of food and yard waste composting, the soil food web, what materials to add and which to avoid and why compost is important.

Please register: Southcenter Library

Container Gardening 101

Wednesday April 24, 2024  6-7:30 pm

King County Library – Covington

27100 164th Avenue SE  Covington, WA 98042

Get the basics of container growing for your apartment or small spaces with expert help. Learn about the best potting soil, plant varieties and container choices for edible, herbal and flowering plants you can enjoy or even harvest for dinner. Take home a small container to get you started.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Covington Library.

Please register – Covington Library link coming soon

Container Gardening 101

Friday April 26, 2024  2:30 – 4 pm

King County Library – Black Diamond

24707 Roberts Drive   Black Diamond, WA 98010

Get the basics of container growing for your apartment or small spaces with expert help. Learn about the best potting soil, plant varieties and container choices for edible, herbal and flowering plants you can enjoy or even harvest for dinner. Take home a small container to get you started.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Black Diamond Library.

Please register – Black Diamond Library

MAY

Your Vegetable Garden as Backyard Habitat

Monday May 6, 2024 11 am – 12 pm

King County Library – Renton Highlands

2801 NE 10th. St. Renton, WA 98056

Even a vegetable garden can be viewed as habitat in your landscape. Learn about the smaller scale of nesting and feeding sites for the insects and small animals in your garden. This will help you build a community of plants that attract pollinators to make your garden more productive and engage beneficial insects and birds to help with pest management. Reducing pesticide use will help too – learn how to establish a thriving natural habitat in your vegetable garden using flowers, herbs and vegetables and fruits themselves.

Please register. Renton Highlands Library

Composting at Home

Tuesday May 9, 2024  1-2:30 pm

King County Library – Renton

100 Mill Avenue S. Renton, WA 98057

The foundation of a beautiful and healthy garden is good soil. Adding compost to your garden enriches the soil and provides the nutrients your plants need to grow well and produce good vegetables, flowers, herbs and healthy shrubs. The compost pile is really a small ecosystem teeming with life. This workshop will teach you about the different methods of food and yard waste composting, the soil food web, what materials to add and which to avoid and why compost is important.

Please register: Renton Library

AKIN Community Resource Fair

Friday May 10, 2024 2 – 4 pm

12360 Lake City Way NE Seattle, WA 98125

Come meet us in person at a resource fair for the Lake City community and get to know AKIN and what their organization is doing to support families in the area. Children’s Home Society of Washington and Childhaven merged their work and are now AKIN. Hosted in their brand new building in the heart of Lake City in Seattle. Bring your gardening questions!

No Registration Needed – AKIN

Container Gardening 101

Saturday May 11, 2024  11:00 am –  12:30 pm

King County Library – Kingsgate

12315 NE 143rd Street  Kirkland, WA 98034

Get the basics of container growing for your apartment or small spaces with expert help. Learn about the best potting soil, plant varieties and container choices for edible, herbal and flowering plants you can enjoy or even harvest for dinner. Take home a small container to get you started.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Kingsgate Library.

Please register – Kingsgate Library

Right Plants for a Pacific Northwest Garden

Saturday May 18, 2024  12 – 1 pm

King County Library – Valley View

17850 Military Road S   Seatac, WA 98188

When adding trees, shrubs and other ornamentals to your garden, it’s important to use the “Right Plant-Right Place” decision making process. This workshop will teach you how to get to know your site, create a garden plan, choose appropriate plants, and give them a good start with proper planting and mulching techniques.

Please register: Valley View Library

Pollinators and Beneficial Insects

Tuesday May 21, 2024  6:30 – 7:30 pm

King County Library – Skyway

12601 76th Avenue S  Seattle, WA 98178

Let your garden visitors do some gardening for you! Most insects have some beneficial effect on your garden, helping to manage plant eating pests or pollinating flowering plants. Learn how to attract them to your garden. 

Please register: Skyway Library  link coming soon

Growing Oyster Mushrooms at Home 

THIS CLASS IS FULL – Join Waitlist at the registration link

Tuesday May 28, 2024  1-2:30 pm

King County Library – Southcenter

1386 Southcenter Mall Tukwila, WA 98188

Oyster mushrooms are easy to grow on your kitchen counter! Learn about the fabulous world of fungi including what benefits they have to a sustainable world. Make a kit to take home and sprout some you can eat! We bring the materials and teach you how to grow. 

Please register – Southcenter Library 

JUNE

Growing Oyster Mushrooms at Home

Saturday June 1, 2024 1 – 2:30 pm

Seattle Public Library – Greenwood

 8016 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98103

Oyster mushrooms are easy to grow on your kitchen counter! Learn about the fabulous world of fungi including what benefits they have to a sustainable world. Make a kit to take home and sprout some you can eat! We bring the materials and teach you how to grow. 

Please register – Greenwood Library (link coming soon)

Microgreens for the Space Challenged Gardener

Tuesday June 4, 2024  5:30 – 7 pm

King County Library – Lake Forest Park

17171 Bothell Way NE  Lake Forest Park, WA 98155

Microgreens are an excellent way to grow your own food even if you don’t have a garden. All you need is a container, some potting soil and a packet of fast-growing edible seeds. Learn about container choices, seeds and how to tend them for a delicious addition to your dinner salads or sandwiches.

Please register: Lake Forest Park Library 

Pollinators and Beneficial Insects

Thursday June 6, 2024  4-5 pm

King County Library – Kent

212 2nd Avenue N  Kent, WA 98032

Let your garden visitors do some gardening for you! Most insects have some beneficial effect, helping to manage plant-eating pests or pollinating flowering plants. Learn how to attract them to your garden.

Please register: Kent Library  link coming soon

Pollinators and Beneficial Insects

Saturday June 8, 2024  2-3 pm

King County Library – Des Moines

21620 11th Avenue S.  Des Moines, WA 98198

Let your garden visitors do some gardening for you! Most insects have some beneficial effect on your garden, helping to manage plant eating pests or pollinating flowering plants. Learn how to attract them to your garden. 

Please register: Des Moines Library

Your Vegetable Garden as Backyard Habitat

Saturday June 8, 2024  2 – 3:00 pm

King County Library – Skyway

12601 76th Avenue S  Seattle, WA 98178

Even a vegetable garden can be viewed as habitat in your landscape. Learn about the smaller scale of nesting and feeding sites for the insects and small animals in your garden. This will help you build a community of plants that attract pollinators to make your garden more productive and engage beneficial insects and birds to help with pest management. Reducing pesticide use will help too – learn how to establish a thriving natural habitat in your vegetable garden using flowers, herbs and vegetables and fruits themselves.

Please register. Skyway Library  link coming soon

Growing Oyster Mushrooms at Home

Tuesday June 11, 2024 6 – 7:30 pm

Seattle Public Library – Broadview

12755 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98133

Oyster mushrooms are easy to grow on your kitchen counter! Learn about the fabulous world of fungi including what benefits they have to a sustainable world. Make a kit to take home and sprout some you can eat! We bring the materials and teach you how to grow. 

Please register – Broadview Library (link coming soon)

Pollinators and Beneficial Insects

Wednesday June 12, 2024  5-7 pm

King County Library – Woodmont

26809 Pacific Highway S.  Des Moines, WA 98198

Let your garden visitors do some gardening for you! Most insects have some beneficial effect, helping to manage plant-eating pests or pollinating flowering plants. Learn how to attract them to your garden.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Woodmont Library.

Please register: Woodmont Library

Growing Houseplants Naturally

Wednesday June 12, 2024  5:30 – 7 pm

King County Library – Richmond Beach

19601 21st Avenue NW  Shoreline, WA 98177

Houseplants can help keep the air in your home free of contaminants, relax us and beautify our environment. Learn about best soil, pot, plant choices for your home and practice potting up small starts into a larger container to take home with you.  Buying small starts saves money and gives you the fun of growing plants in your home!

Please register: Richmond Beach Library

Edibles in the Landscape

Thursday June 13, 2024  6:30 – 7:30 pm

Seattle Public Library – Wallingford

1501 N. 45th St., Seattle, WA 98103

Urban spaces can be limited for edible gardens and impacted by shade from buildings and mature trees. This workshop will cover site assessment for gardeners interested in adding edible plants to their landscape. Plant placement and plant care will be addressed and ideas for integrating edible plants into the ornamental landscape will be covered.

Please register: Wallingford Library (link coming soon)

Worm Composting 101

Sunday June 16, 2024  2-3:30 pm

King County Library – Issaquah

10 Sunset Way Issaquah, WA 98027

The foundation of a beautiful and healthy garden is good soil. Adding compost to your garden enriches the soil and provides the nutrients your plants need to grow well and produce good vegetables, flowers, herbs and healthy shrubs. The compost pile is really a small ecosystem teeming with life. This workshop will teach you about the different methods of food and yard waste composting, the soil food web, what materials to add and which to avoid and why compost is important.

Please register: Issaquah Library

Growing Oyster Mushrooms at Home

Tuesday June 18, 2024 6 – 7:30 pm

Seattle Public Library – Wallingford

1501 N. 45th St., Seattle, WA 98103

Oyster mushrooms are easy to grow on your kitchen counter! Learn about the fabulous world of fungi including what benefits they have to a sustainable world. Make a kit to take home and sprout some you can eat! We bring the materials and teach you how to grow. 

Please register – Wallingford Library (link coming soon)

JULY

Container Gardening 101

Wednesday July 10, 2024  5-7 pm

King County Library – Woodmont

26809 Pacific Highway S.  Des Moines, WA 98198

Get the basics of container growing for your apartment or small spaces with expert help. Learn about the best potting soil, plant varieties and container choices for edible, herbal and flowering plants you can enjoy or even harvest for dinner. Take home a small container to get you started.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Woodmont Library.

Please register – Woodmont Library

Growing Herbs Naturally   

Thursday July 18, 2024  4-5 pm

King County Library – Kent  

212 2nd Ave. N  Kent, WA 98032

Get started seeding new plants in this hands-on workshop, learning how to choose the best herbs for you to grow. Explore annual, biennial and perennial varieties, best growing conditions, soil choices and pot sizes and plant some seeds for you to take home.

Please register. Kent Library – Link Coming Soon

Microgreens for the Space Challenged Gardener

Saturday July 20, 2024, 2024  2 – 3:30 pm

King County Library – Valley View

17850 Military Road S   Seatac, WA 98188

Microgreens are an excellent way to grow your own food even if you don’t have a garden. All you need is a container, some potting soil and a packet of fast-growing edible seeds. Learn about container choices, seeds and how to tend them for a delicious addition to your dinner salads or sandwiches.

Please register: Valley View Library 

AUGUST

Growing Houseplants Naturally

Thursday August 8, 2024  4-5 pm

King County Library – Kent  

212 2nd Ave. N  Kent, WA 98032

Houseplants can help keep the air in your home free of contaminants, relax us and beautify our environment. Learn about best soil, pot, plant choices for your home and practice potting up small starts into a larger container to take home with you.  Buying small starts saves money and gives you the fun of growing plants in your home!

Please register: Kent Library – Link Coming Soon

Composting at Home

Wednesday August 14, 2024  5-7 pm

King County Library – Woodmont

26809 Pacific Highway S.  Des Moines, WA 98198

The foundation of a beautiful and healthy garden is good soil. Adding compost to your garden enriches the soil and provides the nutrients your plants need to grow well and produce good vegetables, flowers, herbs and healthy shrubs. The compost pile is really a small ecosystem teeming with life. This workshop will teach you about the different methods of food and yard waste composting, the soil food web, what materials to add and which to avoid and why compost is important.

Please register: Woodmont Library

Composting at Home

Saturday August 17, 2024  2-3:30 pm

King County Library – Des Moines

21620 11th Avenue S.  Des Moines, WA 98198

The foundation of a beautiful and healthy garden is good soil. Adding compost to your garden enriches the soil and provides the nutrients your plants need to grow well and produce good vegetables, flowers, herbs and healthy shrubs. The compost pile is really a small ecosystem teeming with life. This workshop will teach you about the different methods of food and yard waste composting, the soil food web, what materials to add and which to avoid and why compost is important.

Please register: Des Moines Library