Mark your calendars and break out your shovels! The Spring Garden Market is coming to town. The market, held by the Penn State Master Gardeners of Butler County, will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at The Succop Conservancy on Airport Road, Penn Township.

For their fifth event, the Master Gardeners have planned the perfect day to get gardeners off to a great start. Workshops, plants and crafts for sale, Heritage School demonstrations, tasty treats and music, set amid the charm of The Conservancy are aimed to please.

Free workshops will provide ideas on enhancing home gardens and include presentations by two recently published authors. At 11 a.m., Jessica Walliser, co-author of "Grow Organic: Over 250 Tips and Ideas for Growing Flowers, Veggies, Lawns and More," will conduct Go Organic.

At noon, Master Gardener and herb expert Gerry Hall will lead a tour of the Succop Conservancy herb garden, demonstrating both herbs and an innovative re-use of the estate's former swimming pool.

At 1 p.m. Martha Oliver, who co-wrote "Heuchera, Tiarella and Heucherella: A Gardener's Guide," will talk about going native in Native Plants for the Garden.

At 2 p.m. local nursery owner, shrub and tree expert Bob Yates will conduct Pruning Walk-Around, a hands-on demonstration on keeping woody plants looking their best.

From 1 to 3 p.m., the Butler Faculty Jazz Trio will perform. Their first appearance at the Spring Garden Market is sponsored by Newhaven Court at Clearview and Farmers National Bank.

Each free workshop offers ideas and methods for the home gardener to incorporate in their own grounds.

Go Organic attendees will leave with a new understanding of the ease and convenience of organic growing. Dispelled will be the myth that organic gardening is difficult, time-consuming and requires significant effort over more conventional methods. Soil amendments and choosing plant varieties to help control insects without harmful chemicals will be covered.

During the Herb Garden Tour, gardeners can see for themselves what herbs do well in this area's growing zone and learn about how they can put their home-grown herbs to use.

At Native Plants for the Garden, home enthusiasts will learn which native plants will thrive in their home garden and how to place them. Pruning Walk-Around offers a first-hand look at what to do with shrubs and small trees to keep them healthy and looking their finest.

New to this year's market will be a booth and demonstrations by Butler County Community College's Heritage School at The Conservancy. The school offers adults both a unique learning experience and the opportunity to explore the music, crafts and close-to-nature lifestyle of their ancestors.

Workshop leader authors, along with their co-authors, will be on hand throughout the day to answer questions.

Jessica Walliser and Doug Oster, "The Organic Gardeners" on KDKA-AM Radio will be available to discuss Grow Organic: Over 250 Tips and Ideas for Growing Flowers, Veggies, Lawns and More, an informative, insightful guide to help gardeners to realize their organic gardening potential. Their program is on KDKA radio Sundays from 7 to 9 a.m.

Martha Oliver, along with co-author Charles Oliver, breeders of The Primrose Path™ perennials will be on hand to discuss "Heuchera, Tiarella and Heucherella: A Gardener's Guide." This book contains everything gardeners need to know to grow these appealing plants, how to prepare the soil, propagate and the best type for different kinds of gardens.

Walliser holds a bachelor's degree in horticulture from Penn State, where she specialized in ornamental horticulture. In addition to teaching programs at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, she speaks to gardening clubs and various public garden facilities in the eastern United States.

She and her husband call the 25-acre Muddy Paws Farm home. There, they grow organic produce, herbs and cut flowers for local farmer's markets and restaurants.

The Olivers own The Primrose Path, a small wholesale-only nursery in Scottdale. Well-known for hybridizing Heuchera, Heucherella and Tiarella, their new hybrids have showy flowers and gorgeous foliage. The Olivers' early crosses with Tiarella are the stock from which nearly all the new hybrids on the market have been derived.

In Spring Garden Market tradition, visitors can study and buy additions to their home gardens. They can make their choices from an array of perennials, herbs, roses, shrubs and small trees offered by market vendors.