How does your garden grow? If the answer is, "What garden?" or, "Who has the time or the space?" check out the Heard Natural Science Museum's "The Contained Gardener" class at 10 a.m. July 5. Bring a pot or jug or whatever you want to grow your posy in, preferably no bigger than 21 inches in diameter (so you can pick it up when it's full of wet soil). The Heard people will supply the plants, soil, stuff and know-how needed to make you a successful pot gardener. The class lasts an hour or more depending on how quick you are. Admission is $40 for members or $45 for non-members. The Heard Natural Science Museum is located in McKinney at One Nature Place. Call 972-562-5566. --Jim Schutze
7/4
Keep on Truckin'
"Big wheels, big trucks, big action!" That's how the Extreme Monster Truck Nationals coming to the Texas Motor Speedway is being described! We love all three of those things! Everything is bigger in Texas! Don't mess with Texas! Know what else shouldn't be messed with? Bigfoot! The monster truck named Bigfoot, of course, not the mysterious creature of lore! Well, step off the yeti, too! Anyway, we'd love to use that booming-voice cliché of "Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!" here, but the nationals aren't happening on a Sunday! It's this Friday and Saturday instead! Hey, two days are better than one! Sylvester Stallone never made a movie about monster trucks! Why not? He should have after Over the Top! It would have been awesome! Maybe Vin Diesel will! The speedway is at 3601 S. Highway 114 in Justin! Call 817-215-8500! --Matt Hursh
7/4
Flame Throwers
Have you ever taken the family out for a Fourth of July fireworks show and felt a bit underwhelmed? Does a massive array of explosions in the sky fail to pique your short-attention-spanned son's interest? Then the Bud Light Night of Fire should fulfill your family's needs for adrenaline-heavy patriotism. Head to the Texas Motorplex, 7500 W. Highway 287 in Ennis, this Fourth for a night of NHRA antics and racing. Motor stunts for the night will include car jumping by Tommy "Trubble" McTague, four-jet dragsters that create towers of flames and wheelie-popping PT Cruisers. Worry not, purists, as a fireworks display will be on hand to render the Motorplex's air even less breathable. Call Ticketmaster at 214-373-8000. --Sam Machkovech