Ryan Schrader, a fourth-year agricultural and environmental plant sciences major, tending plants in the campus greenhouse. He is one of five students involved in the Tomato Spectacular student enterprise.
More than 75 different types of tomato plants will be available at Cal Poly’s annual Tomato Spectacular plant sale from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 1-2 and April 15-16, at the Horticulture Unit near the Poly Plant Shop.
Brandywine, Early Girl, Kellogg’s Breakfast, Vintage Wine, and a selection of cherry tomato plants, including Nature’s Bites, are some of the unique cultivars that will be available during the student-run enterprise project, one of several such hands-on courses offered by the university’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. This year, the program is directed by a team of five students who have grown more than 3,000 tomato plants from seed to provide home gardeners with quality plants that will produce fresh tomatoes throughout summer. Students began seeding the plants in early February and have tended to them in the campus greenhouses. The plants cost $8 and are available on a first-come, first-served basis — with no holds or reservations made in advance. Customers are encouraged to bring boxes and/or wagons to transport plants to their vehicles. The sale takes place at the Environmental Horticultural Sciences Building (No. 48) on Via Carta Road off Highland Drive. Parking will be provided for free in lot H14. For more information, follow Cal Poly Tomato Spectacular on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CalPolyTomatoSpectacular and Instagram at www.instagram.com/calpolytomatospectacular.
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Updated date and time. The Los Osos Valley Garden Club March Zoom Program is “How to Grow Tomatoes Easily” presented by Dave Freed, “The Tomato Guy” on Saturday, March 29 from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m..
Tomatoes are probably the most popular garden vegetable grown and not always the most easily grown. Freed will show how to do it. We are located in a cooler coastal climate and will need to be aware of this, but there is no reason why we can’t grow tomatoes to their full potential. According to Dave, “If you don’t have a ‘green thumb,’ I’ll give you one.”
He will show participants what specific soils to use, what tomatoes to plant, when to plant, which fertilizers to use, and how to easily take care of those tomatoes whether grown in containers, raised beds or backyard dirt.
Join the Zoom meeting at https://bit.ly/3pAKlts. Meeting ID: 753 644 4586. Passcode: LOVGC.
The Annual Cayucos Dog Parade returns on Saturday, April 16. Meet at the Cayucos Pier at noon. This event is sponsored by the Mutt Mitt Project of the Lioness Club of Cayucos. Bonnets and costumes on dogs and their owners are encouraged but not required. The event is free but the Club is asking for donations of $1/dog and $1/person to assist in the Mutt Mitt program of supplying “poop bags” to 50 dispensers throughout the streets and beaches of Cayucos. Last year the project supplied over 300,000 bags in an effort to keep the community free of dog waste. No prizes, no judging just a fun community event for dogs and their owners. Free photo booth, raffle baskets and commemorative t-shirts will be available.
Art Center Morro Bay, 835 Main St, Morro Bay, presents “Love: Open Hearts, Open Minds” April 7 – May 23
Love has been the inspiration for the creation of more great art than any other human emotion. How do you depict love? How do you convey its complexity and intensity?
Encompassing divine and mortal love, chaste and unchaste, love is what we seek above all. Love breeds compassion, intimacy, fear, longing, jealousy, change, unquestionable certainty, delusion, beauty, darkness and connects to the very core of the human condition. We can be euphoric, drunk and ecstatic in love.
Art speaks many languages of love – gently, slowly, kindly, playfully or critically and violently This exhibit will examine love as the greatest mystery of all.
“Love, Open Heart, Open Minds” will be on display in the main gallery concurrent with “Convergence, Wax on the Water” on display in the Virginia Russell gallery upstairs, from April 7 through May 23. This event is free and open to the public. Art Center Morro Bay is open daily from 12 p.m. – 4 p.m. There is a reception on April 10 from 2 to 4 p.m.
For more information, contact 805-772-2504 or www.artcentermorrobay.org.
The return of The Reboot • Storytelling ReImagined makes a comeback with a season of live performance storytelling in Top Dog Coffee’s enchanted garden theater under the stars. The Reboot is a curated show featuring seasoned and first-time tellers sharing true tales around the unique theme for that month (always on 4th Fridays and always free). Outdoor garden seating in the fresh spring air! Just dress warm, bring a blanket (they’ll have extras on hand) and a cozy friend or two. Top Dog’s tasty treats and hot drinks will warm you through and through.
• April 29 • Spring Fling! Stories about spur of the moment love and other blunders
No Reboot show in May
• June 24 • Friends in High Places – Stories about connections, rejections, and gatekeepers. True tales about calling in favors and getting over.
• July 29 • Busted! -– Stories about stellar detective work, following clues, getting caught red-handed, and tales from the apology zone.
• Aug 26 • Spin! – Stories about reframing, renaming and persuasion. Adventures in the art of stretching, scamming and weaving straw into gold.
• Sept 30 • Breaking the Code ¬¬– Stories about signals, symbols and secret communications. True tales about misreading, double meanings, being stumped and solving the puzzle.
• Oct 28 • Ghost in the Machine – Stories about our love-hate relationships with devices, both brainless and smart. True tales about powering up, unplugging, and being human in these digital times.
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Visit the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden for a weekend of Art, Plants, and Community on March 26 and 27 from 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. daily. This year’s Art in the Garden show is presented in collaboration with the SLO County Arts Council and the New Times. The show features a diverse selection of well-respected local artists, and will include jewelry, glass, paintings, ceramics, sculptures and more. Visitors will find art for the home and garden, unique gifts, as well as a blossoming arts community. Walk through the Oak Glen Pavilion and surrounding garden patios to be inspired and learn about the creative process from the artists themselves. All art will be for sale and a portion of all sales will benefit the SLO Botanical Garden. The Spring Plant Sale is happening in tandem with Art in the Garden. It’s the perfect time to add some new color to your garden! The Garden offers charismatic, colorful, and hearty plants that make a great statement without affecting your water bill. All the volunteer-grown plants will be available to the public. In addition to drought-tolerant and native plants, there will be Orchids for sale this year, in partnership with the Five Cities Orchid Society. Members Only: Shop from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on March 26 and save 15% all weekend. Become a SLOBG Member today and get a free plant when you join or renew.
Coalesce Bookstore invites everyone to a debut author book signing on March 26 from 1 to 3 p.m. “The Conjurer” is a debut historical fiction thriller by Nick Oliveri that follows the life of Mikalla, the Conjurer of the flourishing kingdom of Idaza. The adored Conjurer is the nation’s chief storyteller, and he weaves history and tales of Idaza to bring people together through common goals and ideals.
Mikalla’s perfect life is disrupted when the king commands him to deliver a deadly message that will inevitably end in bloodshed and war. Betrayal and murder wait in the wings for Mikalla in this tale of political charade and twisted schemes. The choices Mikalla makes as the Conjurer will change everything for the kingdom of Idaza.
Oliveri treasures the unique potential behind every person’s story and values sharing those tales with the world. Skilled at crafting sentences that bring his characters and narratives to life, he is passionate about the beauty of the written word. The Conjurer embodies his love of storytelling and the power our voices possess.
Originally from Massachusetts, Oliveri is a San Luis Obispo native and also the co-founder of Impact Snacks, a snack company dedicated to health and environmental sustainability. He loves wine, hockey, surfing, philosophy, art, and of course, reading and writing. Oliveri is currently working on his next novel.
Check out Birds with Tome Edell on Saturday, April 2 at 8:30 a.m. Edell has tracked San Luis Obispo County birds for over 40 years. He is an eBird reviewer, serves on the board of the Bay Foundation of Morro Bay, and leads offshore boat trips for the Morro Bay Winter Bird Festival. The walk takes place at Villa Creek, a prime location for bird watching with its natural habitats. Observe a wide variety of birds including waterfowl, ocean birds (grebes and cormorants), gulls, shorebirds (snowy plover), sparrows and finches, and learn about their behaviors – feeding, vocalizations, nesting and more. Trip distance will be about 1.5 miles, a moderate 2-hour hike. Reservations required. Group limited to 15. Send an email to: Hello@CayucosLandConservancy.org
Location: Villa Creek Pullout north of Cayucos on Hwy 1, south of Villa Creek Rd.
Bring binoculars and wear sturdy shoes.
Photo by Dr. Joel Germond
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