The Literary Gardener – May 2018

“On a day – alack the day! –
Love, whose month is ever May,
Spied a blossom passing fair
Playing in the wanton air.”
William Shakespeare, “Love’s Labor’s Lost,” Act IV, Scene 3

This scene in Shakespeare’s comedy involves King Ferdinand and his three attending lords reading aloud poems they have written to their love interests. This verse is from Dumaine’s sonnet for Maria, one of three ladies-in-waiting to the visiting Princess of France (the king’s heartthrob).

The problem is that the king and his men have forsworn romantic pleasures for three years. The nobles are supposed to be studying, not writing love poetry, and Dumaine’s “fair blossom” is definitely off limits.

Thank goodness this is not the case for blossoms spied at the upcoming Spring Garden Fair, an annual event that thousands of local gardeners count on to kick-off their growing season. You’ll find a plethora of plants at the fair—vegetables, herbs, flowers, trees—and a plant-sitting and carryout service is available to support unrestrained indulgence.

Hosted by the Jackson County Master Gardener Association in support of the OSU Extension Service’s Master Gardener program, the 39th Spring Garden Fair will take place Saturday, May 5, from 9:00am to 5:00pm, and Sunday, May 6, from 10:00am to 4:00pm, at the Jackson County Expo, 1 Peninger Road, Central Point. Admission to the fair is $3 for fairgoers 15 and older. For more information, see the JCMGA website at www.jacksoncountymga.org.

The garden fair features more than 100 exhibitors, a plant clinic for garden problem-solving, free well water nitrate testing, gardening books, children’s activities, raffles and food for purchase. Free 15 to 20-minute gardening demonstrations include discussions about growing pollinator gardens, gardening in deer country, soil and soil amendments, gardening in raised beds and other topics.

Be sure to stop by the booths of these businesses in Jacksonville and/or owned by Jacksonville residents: Alison’s Garden, Auntie Mama Cookies, Blue Door Garden Store, English Lavender Farm and Klamath Siskiyou Native Seeds.

Also check-out all of the vegetable and flower offerings at the Jackson County Master Gardener Association booths. The Spring Garden Fair is the top fundraiser for JCMGA, and your purchases at the JCMGA plant booths support Master Gardener programs and events in the Rogue Valley.

In my last column (March 2018), I wrote about the Shakespeare garden I’m planting at historical Hanley Farm. The “Bard’s Garden” will consist of five garden tableaux featuring the plants mentioned in some of Shakespeare’s plays: Hamlet, A Winter’s Tale, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Love’s Labor’s Lost.

If you would like to tour the garden and learn more about the flowers and plants of Shakespeare, come visit on Sunday, May 27, between 10:00am and 2:00pm. I’ll be there to show you around and talk about all of the plants in the Love’s Labor’s Lost Knot Garden. Hanley Farm is located at 1053 Hanley Road, just a few miles outside of Jacksonville. I hope to see you there!