Sorticulture is the mother of all plant shows

It’s gardeners gone wild.

Three days of art, music and green stuff.

Thousands will take over Legion Memorial Park for this weekend’s Sorticulture, Everett’s Garden Arts Festival.

Park the car and take the shuttle. Bring a shopping bag or a wagon to haul those great plant finds. Plan to spend the day, and a little or a lot of money.

Admission is free to this mother of all plant sales with display gardens, food, wine, live music and activities for the kids.

Grab some cash, because some vendors don’t take plastic. However, there is an ATM on site.

Here are some spending options:

Copper art: Mukilteo artists Justin Peterson and Roxann Van Wyk have been selling copper creations along with their arbors and trellises at Sorticulture for more than a dozen years.

Items range from $15 to several hundred. Popular picks are ceramic and copper flowers, $40.

“I started doing my own garden art because it was so expensive,” Van Wyk said. “I wanted to make some for myself, and then my friends and neighbors wanted to buy some. I started working with copper. I’m addicted to copper. I try to incorporate copper into everything I do.”

She got her start making jewelry for the body. This is jewelry for the yard.

Playhouses: How about a designer playhouse? Housing Hope is selling raffle tickets for $5 to win a colorful “Oh the Places You’ll Go” playhouse. Three other playhouses on display at Sorticulture will be up for auction at a Saturday evening ticketed event. The organization will have a booth selling doghouses, birdhouses and book houses. For more see www.housinghope.org.

Nature stuffies: These aren’t your ordinary stuffed critters. Snooter-doots are whimsical handcrafted art dolls inspired by nature, $30 to $60. New creatures this year include a mermaid, caterpillar, dancing hippo, panda bear and garden gnome. Snooter-ments are ornaments and charms in the shape of vegetables and bugs, $12. Check out more at www.snooter-doots.com.

Ah, lavender: Lather it on or drink it in. It’s good in everything from soap to coffee. Sachets range from $3 to $12. Bulk is $14 for 8 ounces. Other Sequim-grown lavender items are soap, candles, oil, syrups, tea, lemonade. Learn more at www.lavenderhillsfarm.com.

Wooden wonders: Open a cold one with Scrapwood Studio’s wall bottle openers, complete with jar to catch the cap. Themes include beach, car, sports and pub or custom order, $24. Other items from the Tulalip artist: Upcycled wood decor, signs or vases, $15. Miniature gardens, $35 to $150. Wood mushrooms, $3 and up. For more, go to www.scrapwoodstudio.com.

Diggin’ in: Diggit Garden Tools of Seattle makes weeding tools such as its design of a hori hori knife, $35; original Diggit dandelion weeder, $10, or $17 for stainless steel; and curved Diggit Duck tool designed to get in between bricks, $12. Go to www.diggitinc.com to learn more.

Another Washington company, Lowell’s Tools, invites previous customers to bring garden tools and grafting knives by their booth for a touch up; www.lowells-tools.com.

Decorate yourself: Magic Magpie Studio will adorn you with a detailed henna tattoo, $20 to $30. Learn more at www.magicmagpiestudio.com.

DYI art: ArtHouse Mosaic offers creative mosaic projects to make and take home, $5 to $25. For more check out www.arthousemosaicstudio.com.

Animal friends: Take home something furry. Everett Animal Shelter will have pets available for adoption.

If you go

Sorticulture runs Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Where: Legion Memorial Park, 145 Alverson Blvd., Everett.

When: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Admission is free. Dogs are allowed on leashes.

The only parking available at the park is for disabled parking permit-holders.

A bus runs every 15 to 20 minutes from Everett Community College’s North Broadway parking lot. Regular $1 fares apply. You can return in your car to the pick-up spot at the park to load your purchases.

Entertainment

Friday

10 to 10:45 a.m.: North Middle School Jazz Band
11 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Ivan Lee, acoustic fingerstyle and singer songwriter
1:15 to 3:15 p.m.: Hot Club Sandwich, gypsy jazz with everything on it
4 to 5 p.m.: Steve Smith: “Happy Hour with the Whistlin’ Gardener”
5:30 to 7:30 p.m.: Mark DuFresne Band, Americana roots steeped in blues

Saturday

10 to 11 a.m.: Peter Ali, American Indian flutist
11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.: Ali Marcus, folk singer
1 to 2:30 p.m.: Ciscoe Morris: “Design and Care of the Mixed Border” with Q&A session
1 to 3 p.m.: The Tarantellas, festive Italian musicians, strolling music
3 to 6 p.m.: Ranger &the Re-Arrangers, gypsy jazz/swing

Sunday