OUT FRONT IN THE GARDEN Hats off to spring, birdhouses with a purpose, and azaleas

THEY'RE THE TOPS

Camille Waters (r) and friend and fitness trainer Shana Ross model chapeaux for the festive hat contest during Lettuce Have a Grand Picnic on March 30. Waters, whose pioneering vegetarian Natural Child restaurant was a '70s landmark, organizes the annual epicurean feast at her garden at 610 Jackson Hill at Blossom. Tickets for the 1-4 p.m. event are $25, and proceeds benefit Chef's Collaborative and Urban Harvest. Twelve local chefs will prepare dishes using the heirloom lettuces and salad greens cultivated by Waters on four inner-city lots. More info: Urban Harvest at 713/880-5540 or Camille@lettucelady.com.

A VERY, VERY, VERY FINE HOUSE

Kiki Neumann is building birdhouses again.

After a cancer diagnosis last fall and a double mastectomy, she has returned to crafting her distinctive avian abodes from recycled materials. To celebrate her victory over breast cancer, Neumann now makes birdhouses adorned with wings and pink ribbons stenciled on the roof. "Getting a mammogram every year is the reason that I can hammer and nail with such enthusiasm," Neumann says. "I only hope that others will get their mammograms, no matter what family history they have. My cancer came out of the blue sky."

The winged houses are available for $29 at Inside/Outside in the Heights (510 West 18th; 713/869-6911) or through her business, Mother's Old Fencepost (281/289-2893; www.mothersoldfencepost.com). Neumann will donate a portion of proceeds to Houston health clinics and mammogram providers.

"I cannot sit back quietly watching as more and more women are getting this disease," Neumann says. "They might find out too late. I know that early detection saved my life so that I can make these simple reminders for others."

OUT IN THE YARD

The Garden and Yard Society has encouraged GLBT green thumbs since 1996. With the perfect acronym GAYS, the group meets on the first Friday of the month at a member's home, local nursery, or other garden spot. One of the GAYS members, Terry Gordon Smith, designed and maintains the cottage garden at the Omega House hospice. In March, Joann Trial will give a presentation on propagating rain lilies. To reach GAYS, call 713/661-6378 or 713/863-1066.

ON THE TRAIL

The historic grounds at Bayou Bend Collection & Gardens are one of stops on the annual Azalea Trail tour of landscapes abloom with Houston's signature flower. Perched above Buffalo Bayou, the 14 acres of flowering and woodland gardens were established in the 1920s by arts patron and philanthropist Ima Hogg. Her home is now the American decorative arts wing of the Museum of Fine Arts. The other six stops along the March 1-2 and March 8­-9 Azalea Trail include Rienzi, the museum's center for European decorative arts, just across the bayou. Tickets for all seven stops are $20. Proceeds benefit civic projects of the River Oaks Garden Club.

If you have any comments about this article, please email them to letters@outsmartmagazine.com.