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All aboard! It’s Train Day at Maple Rock Gardens


The trains will be running at Maple Rock Gardens on Saturday. (Courtesy Maple Rock Gardens)


Whimsical railway comes to life at famous gardens



When Scott Paris bought Maple Rock Gardens, the unique Penryn property came with one especially whimsical feature: About 1,000 feet of miniature train tracks.

Miniature trains were a hobby of the gardens’ original owners, Frank and Ruby Andrews. Besides its famous formal gardens and working farm, Maple Rock Gardens boasts one of the largest garden railroads in Northern California.

The little rails wind through several of the terraced garden “rooms,” past forests of bonsai trees, around boulders and over meandering streams. The magic of this Lilliputian railway system really comes to life when trains are running. Saturday, Sept. 15, see them in action during “Train Day at Maple Rock Gardens.”

Presented by the Sacramento Valley Garden Railway Society, Train Day will feature live steam engines on the little track as well as its radio-controlled Maple Rock Railway special.

According to the railway society, the current aluminum track layout was built by Earl Martin. “The era is 1930s in California’s Gold Country and represents a small narrow gauge railway serving a gold mine, a logging operation, two visually separated small towns and a mountain lodge,” the society said in its Maple Rock snapshot.

Paris, owner of High Hand Nursery and Conservatory, made several improvements along the rail line to make viewing better and more comfortable for guests. That included adding 30 tons of rock and more dwarf landscaping. The railway is adjacent to picnic areas and overlooks Maple Rock’s massive lavender fields, orchards and farm crops.

Guests are invited to picnic on site as well as tour the rest of Maple Rock Gardens and enjoy live music while train watching. Food and drink will be available for purchase.

Wear comfortable shoes and stroll through the terraced property, considered among the finest private gardens in Northern California.

Train Day is 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Admission is $10; children age 12 and under admitted free. Maple Rock Gardens is located at 100 Clark Tunnel Road, Penryn. Tickets are available online at
www.highhand.com .





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Garden Checklist for week of May 5

Survey your garden after the May 4 rainstorm. Heavy rain and gusty winds can break the neck of large flowers such as roses. Also:

* Keep an eye on new transplants or seedlings; they could take a pounding from the rain.

* Watch out for powdery mildew. Warmth following moist conditions can cause this fungal disease to “bloom,” too. If you see a leaf that looks like it’s dusted with powdered sugar, snip it off.

* After the storm, start setting out tomato transplants, but wait on the peppers and eggplants (they want warmer nights). Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, radishes and squash.

* Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias. Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.

* Don’t wait; plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

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