For the fifth consecutive year, BBG will hold its annual Spring Plant Sale at the former Bruno’s Supermarket at Colonial Brookwood Village. The sale, slated for April 16-18, expects to attract more than 7,000 people browsing well over 85,000 plants for sale.
Last year’s event was a noteworthy one, bringing in more than $265,000 for the Gardens’ many programs.
The three-day sale is free and open to the public, with many plants starting at just $2. According to BBG Executive Director Fred Spicer, gardeners will have more choices this year, too.
“I’m especially excited about the 2010 Spring Plant Sale because throughout most plant groups, we’ll have more cool and underused plants than in any previous year,” he said.
Each year, Spicer, along with the sale committee, selects a special plant to feature as that year’s Signature Plant. In the spotlight this year is the SunPatiens, a new impatiens hybrid selected for its heat tolerance, brilliant colors and nearly continuous flowering. SunPatiens thrive in sunnier locations than do traditional impatiens, although they do require some shade in this area’s climate.
The weekend-long event kicks off Thurs., April 15, at 5 p.m. with the Brio Preview Party and the Members-Only Sale at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $45 in advance and $50 at the door for the event, which gives guests a chance to shop early and take home the best-looking and rarest plants available at the sale. Guests will also enjoy food by Brio Tuscan Grille, wine and a free SunPatiens.
Public sale hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 16, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 17 and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 18.
For more information about the Spring Plant Sale or to purchase tickets to the Brio Preview Party, contact Shelly McCarty, special events coordinator, at 414-3965 or [email protected]. More information is available online at www.bbgardens.org/springplantsale.
Birmingham Botanical Gardens contains more than 25 unique gardens, 30-plus works of original outdoor sculpture and miles of serene paths. The Gardens features the largest public horticulture library in the U.S., conservatories, a wildflower garden, two rose gardens, the Southern Living garden and the Japanese Gardens with a traditionally crafted tea house.
Education programs run year round, and more than 10,000 school children enjoy free science-curriculum based field trips annually. The Gardens is open daily, offering free admission to more than 350,000 yearly visitors.
