Spring is right around the corner for the River Region and that means many good things are on the horizon:  warmer weather, brighter days, gentle breezes and the chance to reclaim the traditional Southern outdoor lifestyle!   Spring is the ideal time to rejuvenate not only ourselves after a long winter, but our landscapes as well.  During winter, garden beds and landscapes often goes neglected leaving them looking tired and sparse.  What’s the cure?  Receiving a healthy dose of inspiration and trusted expert advice from Southern Homes and Gardens during the Camellia Festival this weekend, February 17th – 19th, at the East Montgomery store location on Vaughn Road. Hours for the event are 8am – 6pm Friday and Saturday, February 17-18th and Noon until 5pm Sunday, February 19th. 

Attendees will enjoy free seminars at the Vaughn Rd.

The Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division (WFF) of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) is currently accepting applications through its Landowner Incentive Program (LIP) to continue longleaf pine restoration efforts in Alabama. The grant was awarded through a partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and will be made available to qualifying landowners for longleaf pine restoration on private lands.
 
Landowners are encouraged to submit applications to receive assistance with the site preparation, seedlings, planting, native grass restoration and/or exotic control costs. For landowners to be considered eligible to receive funding, the property must be within the historic range of longleaf pine in Alabama, or contain suitable soils to support longleaf pine.

The culinary invasion strikes Alabama again at the second annual food and drink festival, which starts tonight, November 11th. Celebrating fresh, local and seasonal Southern cuisine, the regional Farm-to-Fork Food Invasion will be in Hampstead, an internationally-recognized sustainable community in Montgomery, Ala. All proceeds from the weekend festivities help fund children’s educational programs at the Hampstead Institute’s non-profit community farms: Hampstead Farms and the new Hampstead Institute Downtown Farm. 

The invasion begins tonight at 7:00 p.m. with a private Pig Roast Preview Party featuring the culinary talents of Ham and High’s Chef Joe Wolfson, a Food & Wine People’s Best New Chef nominee and host of Montgomery’s first Outstanding in the Field dinner on Oct. 13, 2011.