GARDENING VEG OUT. Give yourself some free personal training by getting involved with Big Brothers/Big Sisters Organic Harvesters Hangout Project. The project promotes healthy eating and community camaraderie at the same time. Those interested in maintaining a small garden plot in the downtown area can call 624-2447 for information. BOTANICAL GARDENS. Summer hours at the Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon Way, are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily. The TBG nursery is closed until October, but many of the Gardens' regular attractions remain open throughout the season to offer heat-weary pueblo denizens with a cool desert oasis. Guided tours of the gardens are offered at 10 a.m. Wednesday and Saturday. Take an early morning bird walk with a docent-led Birds and Gardening tour at 9 a.m. Tuesday. Gardening for the Newcomer meets from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. the first Thursday and third Saturday of each month; and the Native Seeds/SEARCH mini-museum of ethnobotanical displays is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. Check your references at the TBG library, open from 1 to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Admission is $3, $2 for seniors, and free for children under 12. Call 326-9255 for information. PLANT OF THE MONTH. In case you hadn't noticed, we're in the middle of a drought. Scrap the irises and get back in touch with the native beauty of the Sonoran desert. The Arizona Nursery Association and Arizona Municipal Water Users Association have started a plant of the month program in order to meet the demand for more water-efficient plants. The June plant of the month is Hesperaloe. Visit your local participating nursery and ask for your free Plant of the Month brochure. TUCSON ORGANIC GARDENERS. Always wanted to have a heap and didn't know where to start? The Master Composters of the Tucson Organic Gardeners staff a compost maintenance site at the Tucson Botanical Gardens from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Saturday to answer all of your composting questions. Call the Compost Assistance Line at 798-6215; or call 883-0377 for information on monthly lectures. GARDEN DEMONSTRATIONS. Free one-hour demonstrations are offered at 9 a.m. Wednesdays through June 30 at the Extension Garden Center, 4210 N. Campbell Ave.; and at 1 p.m. Wednesdays at the Wilmot Library, 530 N. Wilmot Road. Call 628-5628 for information.

		© 1995-97 Tucson Weekly . Info Booth