What: 24th annual Orchard in Bloom. In honor of the 90th anniversary of The Orchard School, the theme is Growing to Learn. Proceeds benefit the school and Indy Parks. The unique partnership between The Orchard School and Indy Parks has raised more than $1 million in the last decade to support outdoor education at Orchard and Indy Parks. Holliday Park, specifically, has received $200,000 for new and innovative outdoor educational programs for all of Central Indiana which have touched the lives of hundreds of area children in public and private schools, as well as their families and senior citizens. The Orchard School’s Outdoor Education Coordinator Diana Shellhaas is the 2013 Honorary Chairperson. The truly amazing thing about this event is the work and spirit of the volunteers, including parents and community members. It’s a massive undertaking and one done extremely well.

Landscape designer Gus Lemcke incorporated Orchard in Bloom's 2012 edible theme into his tabletop arrangement. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

When: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday, May 3 and Saturday, May 4; 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, May 5, 2013. Preview Party, 6 to 8:30 p.m., Thursday, May 2, 2013.

Where: Holliday Park, 64th Street and Spring Mill Road, Indianapolis. No parking allowed in park or vicinity. Free parking and shuttle service at Second Presbyterian Church, 7700 N. Meridian St.

Admission: $10 in advance, available at Marsh Supermarkets, The National Bank of Indianapolis branches, The Orchard School and the Holliday Park Nature Center. Tickets are $12 at the gate the days of the show. A three-day ticket is $15. Children 14 and under are free.

Speakers: Garden and Natural Living Symposium, includes Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp, the Hoosier Gardener, who will speak about edible landscapes (times to be announced). Other seminars and demonstrations by landscapers, green-living experts, garden specialists and more.

Other info:

‡The Garden Pavilion showcases innovative gardens, featuring edible landscapes, created by renowned local landscape designers. Their theme this year for landscapers is “Growing to Learn” in honor of The Orchard School’s 90^th anniversary.

Microgardens feature landscape ideas for smaller spaces.

Garden and Natural Living Symposium speakers and events will occur throughout the weekend and will feature landscape specialists, green-living experts, and garden specialists.

The annual Containers In Bloom competition is back and puts garden club experts, individuals and students to task in a container gardening competition.

The Exhibition Tents delight shoppers with more than 100 local and regional vendors, selling handcrafted tools, garden furniture, herbs, blooming plants and flowers, artwork and more. Look for featured vendors offering products made from repurposed or recycled goods.

The Children’s Area offers outdoor fun to entertain and enlighten the younger set. Kids can grow their own salad, plant a pizza garden, or simply play in the kids’ tent.

The Garden Café offers tasty meals and snacks and will feature natural and organic products.

The Planting of the Orchard Arboretum, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., April 26, Arbor Day, The Orchard School.

Chef Showdown, May 2, during the Orchard In Bloom Preview Party

Run for the Bloom, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. May 5, The Orchard School.

Featured artist: Douglas David, owner of Douglas David Cottage.

Sponsors: The Bank of Indianapolis, Indy Parks and The Orchard School.

Among garden writers and others in the green industry, there’s an ongoing discussion about whether to use botanical names when talking about plants. Some think it is off-putting and others think it helps consumers make the right plant selection.

Way back when I first started writing about gardening, a reader sent me a question about a snowball bush. I answered it as if it were a hydrangea, which is what we called a snowball bush when I was growing up. Well, a snowball bush also is a viburnum, which several readers subsequently pointed out with letters stuffed with clippings from plant catalogs.

About the same time, Jan Glimn Lacy, a noted, local botanical illustrator, chided me for not using the botanical names. Using them would add more specificity and a sense of professionalism to the columns, she said. I’ve been using the Latin names ever since.

These names help guide us when purchasing plants. For instance, ‘Cinnamon Snow’ hellebore (Helleborus ballardiae) tells us precisely which lenten rose we are talking about. Or, it pays to know that the southern magnolia (M. grandiflora) is not reliably winter hardy in central Indiana, but the sweetbay magnolia (M. virginiana) is.

A common concern among gardeners is how to pronounce the scientific names. Fine Gardening magazine has an audio pronunciation guide for dozens of plants and Dave’s Garden Botanary, an online botanical dictionary. Of course, there are botany dictionaries and pronunciation guides of the book type, too.

Most of all, don’t worry if you don’t know how to pronounce the words. Make a list of the plants’ common and scientific names, if you have them. Use the list when shopping at garden centers or online retailers.

And, even when you know the botanical name, there may be different ways to pronounce it. Clem’-a-tis may be the preferred pronunciation for clematis, but there are many, many of us who say cle-ma’-tis.

Bi-color Blue Senette cineraria. Photo courtesy Senette/Suntory.

Celebrate spring and plant up a pot of cool-season annuals.

You certainly can’t go wrong with pansies (Viola x wittrockiana). They are fragrant, colorful and easy to take care of. About the only requirement is to remove the flowers that have bloomed (called deadheading). Keep pansies evenly moist, but not wet. Pansies do best in full to part sun.

A stroll through garden centers in the last few days reveals more than pansies for the first pots of spring.

Snapshot Mix snapdragons. Photo courtesy All-America Selections.

Snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) come in lots of colors and sizes, from the dwarf Montego to towering Rocket. Snaps are a very cold tolerant annual, which have bloomed well into December in my garden. They are less tolerant of summer heat and may slow down during the hottest months. Snaps are great cut flowers. Deadheading encourages snaps to keep blooming. Plant in full sun or light shade. Snaps are easy to grow from seed.

Ranunculus is a tender, cool-season bulb that is prized for its long-stems, perfect for cutting. © CanStockPhoto/kavram

Ranunculus (R. asiaticus) is a tender bulb (actually a tuber) that can be found growing in individual pots or combination arrangements at garden centers. It tolerates low temperatures in the 20s. Flowers have densely packed, tissue paper-like petals in many colors. Ranunculus is prized, long-lasting cut flower. Adventurous gardeners can buy ranunculus tubers from garden centers, mail-order or online merchants, pot them up in February indoors and place in a sunny window. Transplant outdoors in spring.

Senetti cineraria (Pericallis x hybrida) has intensely colored, daisy-like flowers that cover a mound-growing plant that gets about 12 inches tall and wide. Senetti does well in full sun or light shade and it tolerates low temperatures to about 40 degrees F.

Martha Washington geranium. Photo courtesy Morguefile.com

Martha Washington geranium (Pelargonium domesticum) has frilly leaves and large flowers. This must have cool temperatures to set flower buds and to bloom. Place in full sun to light shade.

Walker's Low catmint. Photo courtesy Stephen Still/Perennial Plant Association

Season-long flowers, attractive gray-green foliage, fragrance and a forgiving nature equal high marks when it comes to catmint in the garden.

Thirty types of catmint (Nepeta) were grown and evaluated by the Chicago Botanic Garden from 1999 to 2006 in average conditions to mimic what the perennial likely will experience in the home garden. The plants got 10 hours of summer sun a day and were planted in well-drained, slightly alkaline (7.4 pH) soil that was amended with composted leaves. They were watered as needed, but not fertilized. There was little to no insect or disease problems.

The catmints were not routinely cut back after their first flush of flowers and most of them rebounded into more blooms within a few weeks. They also are fairly drought tolerant, once established. They do well in perennials beds, as a border or in rock gardens. They attract hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinating insects. Although a member of the mint family, most garden catmints are not considered invasive. True catmint (Nepeta cataria) can be invasive.

Catmint leaves have nepetalactone “an essential oil, which, when vaporized triggers a variety of behavioral responses in cats. The narcotic effect of catmint affects cats differently, causing them to become mellow, frisky or aggressive. Rubbing, licking or biting the leaves releases the vapors that produce the short-lived high, while eating the leaves may act as a sedative. By all accounts, true catnip, Nepeta cataria, is particularly intoxicating, but several other common catmints also attract cats,” wrote Richard G. Hawke, plant evaluation manager at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Twenty-two of the 30 catmints evaluated rated well in flower production, robust plant habits, good health and winter hardiness. Here’s a rundown of those with excellent performance:

‘Joanna Reed,’ has lavender-blue flowers and blooms from May through late October. It has dusty-green leaves and gets 24 inches tall and 48 inches wide. It “was one of the tidiest because its stems did not flop and new growth quickly concealed the declining flower stems.”

‘Six Hills Giant’ has gray-green foliage and lavender-blue flowers that bloom from early June into October. It gets about 30 inches tall and 48 inches wide.

‘Select Blue’ has lavender flowers and dusty-green leaves. It blooms from May into September and gets about 14 inches tall and 30 inches wide.

‘Walker’s Low’ has gray-green foliage and gets about 30 inches tall, 36 inches wide. Named by the Perennial Plant Association as its 2007 plant of the year, it has lavender-blue blooms from May through late September.

The checklist of things to do in the garden in April is posted.

Flower Carpet Coral rose. Photo courtesy Flower Carpet Roses

There still seems to be a lot of confusion about how to care for some of the newer roses in our landscapes.

Knock Out, Drift, Flower Carpet, Oso Easy, Storybook, Simplicity and several in the Easy Elegance series are shrub roses. Sometimes called landscape or ground cover roses, these are generally low maintenance plants, which are disease and insect resistant. The most questions are about pruning these roses.

“My Knock Out bushes have become quite large since planting about six years ago. How low should I trim them back? When is the right time to do this?,” writes reader G.R.

J.O. writes “I have two rose bushes which I have let get too tall and leggy.”

Most of the shrub roses can be cut back about as far as you would like. That can be one-third, one-half or down to about 10 or 12 inches from the ground. Pruning can be done to shape up the plant or to reduce its size. Always use sharp pruning tools.

“I suggest you prune when the forsythia start to bloom, which is usually around March or April,” writes Paul Zimmerman in Everyday Roses: How to Grow Knock Out and Other Easy-Care Garden Roses, published in February (Taunton Press, $22.95, paperback).

Start with removing any dead wood or crossed branches. Always cut back to healthy growth. Leaving spindly branches at the top means the flowering will not be a great, wrote Zimmerman, coordinator of the Biltmore International Rose Trials and an American Rose Society Certified Consulting Rosarian.

Zimmerman recommends applying an organic, time-release fertilizer in spring and late summer. Although roses do not need a lot of water, they do need a good deep soaking every week to 10 days. In my experience, irregular watering will disrupt the flowering process for a few weeks. Shrub roses generally flower for six weeks, rest for a couple of weeks, then start blooming again.

What: Elderberries, Fairies & Herbs,  spring symposium sponsored by the Herb Society of Central Indiana.

When: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 20, 2013.

Where: Hamilton County 4-H Fair Grounds, 2003 Pleasant St., Noblesville, Ind.

Admission: Cost $40, registration deadline April 13.

For more info: Herb Society of Central Indiana, (317) 251-6986.

Black Beauty elderberry (Sambucus). Elderberry is the 2013 Herb of the Year. Photo courtesy Proven Winners/ColorChoice Plants.

About the symposium:

Features Elderberry, the International Herb of the Year, with speaker Carolee Snyder of Carolee’s Herb Farm; Using Herbs to Create a Fairy Garden with Master Gardener Darlene Trusty; and Herbal Baskets with Mary Buckles of Prairie Home Herbs. Also, herbal treats, catered luncheon, silent auction, plants and herbal products.

What: The Indiana Garden School, sponsored by the Madison County Master Gardener Association.

When: 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT, Saturday, April 6, 2013, registration begins at 8 a.m.

Where: Madison Park Church of God, 6077 Providence Drive, Anderson, Ind.

Admission: $30/individual; $40/family, includes lunch.

Contact: Steve Doty, jsdoty@indy.net, (317) 485-5593.

More info:

Keynote speaker is Joe Stasey, a Hamilton County Master Gardener and Tree Steward.  Roy Ballard, Hancock County Extension Educator, will cover vegetable gardening and gardening for pollination and Master Gardener Karen Lackey will teach how to cook what is harvested from the garden. Brian MacGowan will share his knowledge on wildlife backyard habitats and controlling wildlife damage around the yard. Diane Shafer will discuss some wildlife that she has rehabitated. Kevin Tungesvick will teach how to improve landscapes with wildflowers. Marion County Extension Educator Steve Mayer will talk about environmentally friendly lawns and how to get nine months of color with flowering trees and shrubs.

Raydon's Favorite aster got top marks in the Chicago Botanic Garden trial gardens. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

In its well-regarded plant evaluation program, the Chicago Botanic Garden trialed asters between 2003 and 2009 and recently released the findings.

Before we start with recommendations, a brief primer. Asters used to have the scientific name Aster, but plant-naming experts (called taxonomists) say that’s no longer the case. Today, we may find asters listed as Aster, Eurybia and Symphyotrichum, depending on their genetic makeup.

In the CBG trials, seven out of nearly 120 asters received five-star excellent ratings, garnered for the number of flowers, form and ability to withstand insects, diseases and drought. Most asters do best in full sun, moist well-drained soil. Some are tolerant of shade and dry conditions.

Here are the winners:

‘Jindai’ Aster tataricus spreads by underground stems, called rhizomes, to develop 32-inch wide colonies. It will get about 4 feet tall before its violet-blue flowers bloom in late September into late November or early December.

The species wood aster (Eurybia divaricata) and the cultivar ‘Eastern Star’ are among the few asters that tolerate shade ‘Eastern Star’ gets 21 inches tall with a 36-inch spread. The cultivar’s 1 ¼-inch white flowers are almost twice the size of the species. These bloom from late August into November.

‘Snow Flurry’ heath aster (Symphyotrichum ericoides) only gets 8 inches tall but has a 48-inch spread. “No description of the small white flowers does justice to the actual stunning floral display,” writes Richard Hawke, who oversees the CBG evaluations. ‘Snow Flurry’ is also tolerant of dry conditions.

The species of calico aster and the cultivar ‘Lady in Black’ (S. lateriflorum) have white flowers. The cultivar gets 34 inches tall and 50 inches wide with purple foliage.

My favorite is ‘Raydon’s Favorite’ (S. oblongifolium), a long-blooming cultivar of a native species. The lavender-blue flowers emerge in August and continue into November. This plant gets about 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide.

Second annual Sullivan Hardware Garden & Patio Show will be March 23 and 24, 2013 at 71st and Keystone. Learn about Big Grene Eggs, Fair Gardening, Edible Gardening, Shade Plants, Successful Container Gardening and more. The free seminars begin at 11 a.m. each day. the first 250 customers get a free pansy (perfect for planting in a pot now for spring color).

Here’s the schedule:

Saturday, March 23

11 a.m., Big Green Basics with Paul Schnieders and Dave Betz, kings in the outdoor cooking arena.

Noon, Fairy Gardening with Marilou Buddenbaum from Wildflowers and Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp.

1 p.m., Edible Gardening.

2 p.m., Lawns, Gardens and Useless Information with Dick Crum and Pat Sullivan.

3 p.m., Shade Plants with Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp.

Sunday, March 24

11 a.m., Breakfast on the Big Green Egg with Paul Schneiders and Dave Betz.

Noon, Successful Container Gardening with Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp.

1 p.m., Lawns, Gardens and Useless Information with Dick Crum and Pat Sullivan.

2 p.m., Shade Plants with Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp.

For more info: (317) 255-9230