(Blog Sunday 5/3/2010)

Recap and What’s Coming: Saturday morning Liz and I visited “Herb Day” at the Sedgwick County Extension Service building. This annual event featured seminars about growing and cooking with herbs. In addition, there were vendors selling herb plants, herbal products and other gardening items. There was also a booth where Sedgwick County Extension Master Gardeners were available to provide information about a wide variety of gardening topics. Master Gardeners also held a plant sale and provided activities for kids. Needless to say, Liz and I left with a box full of herbs to be planted in our wildflower garden. As an added bonus, the Kansas Grown Farmers’ Market was in full swing outside the Education Building. While I attended a lecture on attracting butterflies, Liz toured the Farmers’ Market with the result that our dogs, Gracie and Rogan, got an unexpected treat of locally-made gourmet dog biscuits. The Kansas Farmers Markets website has a listing of markets for those seeking a farmers’ market close to home.

May 3-May 9, 2010: If you are looking do something to do, this week offers many, many choices.

The annual Wichita River Festival begins its ten-day run on Friday. This year’s Festival promises more activities than you can shake a stick at. There will be the annual Sundowner Parade plus entertainment, entertainment and more entertainment. There will also be a host of athletic contests, lots of food and two nights of fireworks. A schedule of events is posted on the Festival’s website to help you track all the events.

From Friday through the following Monday, the Dyck Arboretum is holding its FloraKansas Spring 2010 Sale. This is Kansas’ largest native plant sale offering a variety of wildflowers and grasses, many of which are rare in cultivation. If you are aiming to develop an interesting garden that doesn’t require a lot of maintenance to survive in the Kansas environment, you need to check out this sale. Sale hours are Friday (8:00 am to 7:00 pm), Saturday (8:00 am to 4:00 pm), Sunday (12:00 pm to 7:00 pm), and Monday (8:00 am to 6:00 pm).

If you are into hot air balloons, the Sunflower Balloon Fest is being held from Friday through Sunday. This event will be held at the Anthony airport. In addition to hot air balloons, there will be a parade, food, a car show and a motorcycle stunt show by Repeat Offenders. Balloon launch begins at 6:30 am each day. A schedule for other activities can be found on the Fest website.

Last, but not least, this week is First Friday! A schedule of this Friday’s performances can be found on the First Friday website.

The All About Wichita calendar lists a wide variety of additional events and exhibits.