Linn County Master Gardeners are among several organizations offering spring plant sales in Eastern Iowa. (photo/Cindy Hadish)

Linn County Master Gardeners are among several groups offering spring plant sales in Eastern Iowa in 2015. (photo/Cindy Hadish)

This spring, it seemed like it might have been safe to plant earlier than usual, and then we get hit with a few nights of frost warnings.

So, at least I don’t feel too far behind.

If you’re eager to get your hands in the dirt, you’re in luck. Plant sales are kicking off this weekend, starting in Iowa City and continuing through the end of May. Check out the list and if you know of others, add a comment, below!

Backyard Abundance Plant Sale

The fifth annual Backyard Abundance plant sale fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday, April 25, 2015, from 9:00 am to 11:30 am at the Iowa City Recreation Center, 220 South Gilbert Street in Iowa City. Knowledgeable gardeners will be on hand to help people choose from a wide variety of berry shrubs, vegetables, herbs and native plants. Vendors will sell mushroom kits, willow basketry, herbal remedies and plant stands. Proceeds help fund free educational yard tours and environmental presentations in Johnson County.

The fundraiser features healthy plants grown locally and organically. Visitors can buy tomatoes, peppers, kale, cabbage, broccoli and many other vegetables and herbs. Berry bushes will also be for sale: blueberry, raspberry, blackberry, aronia berry, jostaberry and gooseberry. All plants were carefully selected to maximize yield, resist diseases and thrive in Iowa weather.

Several local vendors will attend, selling mushroom kits, fresh mushrooms, nature-based gifts, and herbal remedies. Snacks made from locally grown, organic ingredients will be available.

The event is in partnership with Iowa City Parks and Recreation. For more information visit www.BackyardAbundance.org or call 319-325-6810.

Indian Creek Nature Center, Spring Plant Sale

9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, May 2, 2015

The Nature Center Guild is ready to fill your yard and garden with a variety of beautiful wildflowers, hostas, geraniums, perennials and prairie plants at their annual Spring Plant Sale.

Select beautiful hanging baskets and planters or choose individual plants to create your own masterpiece. You’ll also find all sorts of fruits and vegetables ready to transplant into your garden.

Gardening experts are on hand to answer your questions and make suggestions about what plants will work best for your individual situation. And if you’re looking for garden art and accessories, vendors are ready to provide unique and attractive pieces to help you create a charming garden showcase in your yard.

The Cedar Valley Iris and Daylily Society (CVIDS) is having their Spring plant sale at Discovery Park Shelter #1 in Muscatine, Iowa, Saturday, May 9, from 9 am to noon. This is a great chance to pick up some very nice registered hybrid daylilies and iris as well as some perennial plants. More information available at cvids.org.

Brucemore Plant Sale & Mother’s Day Potting Activity
When: Sat May 09, 9:00am – 12:00pm
Where: Brucemore (Lord & Burnham Greenhouse)

Take home a treasure from Brucemore’s 1915 Lord & Burnham greenhouse at the annual Brucemore Plant Sale on Saturday, May 9 from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.

Children are invited to create the perfect Mother’s Day gift by decorating a potted plant.
Several plants seen in Brucemore’s formal garden will be available for sale, including annuals, perennials, and hanging baskets.
A variety of herbs will also be available, including basil, thyme, and rosemary.
Plant Sale prices range from $2.50 to $50.00 with all the proceeds benefiting garden and landscape rehabilitation projects at Brucemore.
The garden staff will be available to provide expert advice on the selection, placement, and care of plants.
The Plant Sale will be located around the 1915 Lord & Burnham Greenhouse.

Green Scene’s 39th Plant Sale takes place Saturday, May 9 from 9-12pm or until sold out.

Location: Cattle Congress Ag Bldg., 257 Ansborough Ave, Waterloo, Iowa

The 2015 GREEN Garden Fair Number 45!

Saturday,May 9, 2015,
9 – 11:30 a.m. at
Carver-Hawkwye Arena, Iowa City

Our forty-fifth annual fair will offer sunny perennials, shade perennials, hostas, trees and shrubs, and shade groundcovers, along with t-shirts, totes, and wonderful ideas for your garden patio. Once again, Mother’s Day falls on the day after the fair (May 10), and we will be selling special gifts of herb gardens in Mexican clay pots.
All Garden Fair offerings—choice, hardy plants that will survive Iowa’s weather— have been grown in our experienced gardeners’ own yards. Choose from thousands of plants set out on tables that extend halfway around Carver-Hawkeye Arena. As you come in the front doors, grab a box or two and begin collecting treasures. Remember that you can always store your boxes of plants with the Plant Sitters (we will have two Plant Sitter areas–one at either end of the plant sale) while you continue to shop and choose more! We even have volunteers who will help you carry everything out to your car.
Booths are marked by colorful hanging banners. At the north end of Carver-Hawkeye Arena will be the Trees, Shrubs, and Vines booth. Next come the Sunny Perennials. Working your way to the south end of the arena, you will find the Special Gifts table, then Hostas, and, finally, Shade Companion Plants and Groundcovers. Cashier tables and check-out will be at both the north and south ends of the sale. We will also have an area near the front doors where you can sit and visit with friends or just relax with something to eat or drink after a successful shopping trip. We are pleased to announce that Java House will be supplying our Garden Fair Café this year with their special rolls, coffee, and juice.

This year, the fair will again sell Sally Lindberg–designed t-shirts and tote bags, as well as Terra Latches for hanging clay pots from fences and posts. And the special Mother’s Day gifts of clay-pot herb gardens will be fragrant with basil, rosemary, sage, and thyme.
On hand to answer questions on woodland management, tree pruning, wildlife, or gardening will be experts including Superintendent of Iowa City Parks and Forestry Zac Hall, Master Gardeners of Johnson County, DNR District Forester Mark Vitosh, representatives from the Iowa City Landfill and from Johnson County’s Bur Oak Land Trust, along with Mike Moran from Iowa City Parks and Recreation, and naturalist Brad Freidhof from Kent Park. Project GREEN volunteers will staff each booth and can answer specific questions about their plants. Mike Moran and Laura Hawks will be available to talk about Terry Trueblood Park and the newly renovated Ashton House; both of these exciting additions to our area are supported by Project GREEN funds.

There is no admission charge, and parking in nearby university lots is free.

Harshbarger Hosta Society Hosta Sale

8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, May 16, by the Noelridge Hosta Shade Garden, Collins Road and Council Street NE, Cedar Rapids

Master Gardener Spring Plant Sale

Linn County Extension, 383 Collins Road NE, Cedar Rapids

Saturday, May 16, 8 am to Noon

As always, pick plants for your garden from many kinds of perennials (both for sun and or shade), and many varieties of hosta and daylilies, also wildflowers, groundcovers, ornamental grasses, annuals and more.  These plants come from our Master Gardeners’ gardens and greenhouse, where they were carefully dug and potted, and tenderly taken care of until the sale day.  Best of all, they are priced for anyone who likes a bargain. Take Master Gardener plants home, grow them and enjoy them for years to come.  In addition, a variety of vegetables, including heirloom tomatoes, will be available.

Master Gardeners will help you in choosing the plants just right for you and will answer your gardening questions.

Friends of Hickory Hill Park Monarch Madness & Plant Sale

When: Saturday, May 30, and Sunday, May 31, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day.

Where: E. Bloomington Street, Iowa City, IA (map) The sale is held in the South Shelter of Hickory Hill Park. The entrance is the far end of East Bloomington Street in Iowa City.

Description: Monarch Madness will feature live milkweed plants for sale to home gardeners. We will offer the usual array of prairie and other donated plants, including a number that encourage monarchs. Donations go to park stewardship and conservation projects.