2004 Raleigh Spring Swap

WHEN:

Saturday April 24th, 2004

Second Saturday after Easter Sunday, 10 days after average last frosts date

Shelter (1-B) is reserved from 10:00am til 1:00pm

Set-up starts at 10:00, Trading starts at 11:00, Eating starts at 12:00 noon

If someone shows up with a reservation we will have to move to another area, if not we can stay in the big shelter all afternoon if we like.

WHERE:

Same park as last year but in the large pavillion nearer the lake. This year we are in the front half right across from the bathroom - 1B. If no one else shows up with a reservation we can take over the whole pavillion (fits 200 people).

Lake Benson Park - Garner NC

Garner is 10 minutes south of downtown Raleigh. Lake Benson is on the south side of Garner between Old Stage Road and Benson Road (Hwy 50). The only entrance to the park is off Buffalo Road on the north side of the lake. An easy way to get there from the Beltline south of downtown Raleigh:

Take exit #299 off of I-40 (Beltline, either inner or outer), this will be marked for Person Street and Hammond Road (same street, two names), head south away from Raleigh (turn right from outer Beltline, left from inner Beltline). This road becomes Timber Drive in Garner, there is no sign telling you when you cross into Garner. Youll know youÂre there when you cross through Hwy 70 (Target/Home Depot/Krogers) stay on Timber Drive south through Garner. Take Timber Drive all the way to Aversboro Road (LoweÂs Foods) and turn right. Travel down Aversboro Road which becomes Buffalo Road and look for the small blue Park sign on your left just after the church. Go through the park all the way to the large pavillion at the end of this drive.

If you use Mapquest, type in Lake Benson Park, Garner NC 27529 and it usually sends you to a neighborhood that is a few miles away from the park. If you use the promt arrows to scroll the scene back to the left you will eventually see the Lake and maybe the park entrance road.

WHO:

The Spring Swap is open to anyone interested in gardening. All rules are posted on GardenWeb only. It is fine by me to drag along any friend, neighbor or total stranger as long as they are interested in gardening and participating in the swap. There are few rules and the atmosphere is more social than business-like. Be flexible. The Spring Swap will not be advertised or promoted outside of GardenWeb. There is no contact person to deal with outsiders questions. If your garden club or organization wants information they have to get it from GardenWeb (last year I spent quite a bit of time answering questions over the phone to various organizations only to have none of them show up at the event). Attendees who arrive without anything to trade will still be allowed to participate but there may be restrictions, everything depends on how many people show up and whatÂs available for trading.

WHAT:

Bring anything you want to trade - seeds, seedlings, raw cuttings, rooted cuttings, perennials, annuals, tropicals, houseplants, natives, books, crafts, tools and supplies. If enough stuff shows up for trade we will sepparate out different categories and run sepparate trades (outdoor live plants first; seeds, supplies, books and houseplants second). Keep in mind that seeds and houseplants were slow movers in last years swap. If you have something of high value that you want to offer only as a special trade you need to keep it in your car and trade it sepparately from the main trade, same goes for private trades arranged on your own. Anything brought into the shelter will be included in the main trade, if it means a lot to you, trade it privately from your car. You cannot conduct business inside the park, no money for plants, only trading allowed.