With the new economy, many people are staying closer to home and spending more time in their garden, said Steve Jensen, who owns the local Branches Garden Center with his spouse, Sharon Jensen.

“People are gardening for the beauty of it,” said Steve Jensen. “They are integrating vegetables and fruit trees into the landscape.”

Gardening is simple, he said, “if people remember three things: Water, sun and food.”

Many gardeners forget the third one — food, he said.

“If you feed your plants, it will make a huge difference,” said Jensen. “With organic fertilizers, both plant and soil are fed.”

Such helpful information is the focus of Branches. “We want to make the new gardener successful,” said Jensen. He welcomes customers to wander about the center’s wide aisles and among colorful displays, and he encourages them to ask questions.

To further the customer’s gardening knowledge, Branches offers classes. Upcoming are beginner gardening (free) classes at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 18, and beginner bonsai (fee required) at 1 p.m. Sunday, April 19. For more information, call (253) 941-7705.

Branches has an entire section dedicated to bonsai trees and supplies. Customers will also find hundreds of varieties of perennials and many different types of Japanese maples. As the season progresses, the garden center also features hundreds of varieties of annuals from the usual to the not so common, said Jensen.

Branches also has a gift shop, which offers a wide selection of items — from hostess gifts and yard décor to gazing balls and soy candles.

With 10,000 square feet of covered space, Branches is located at the corner of South 320th Street and Military Road South, just east of I-5. The Jensens opened the garden center about a year ago after purchasing and renovating the former Kelly Gardens.

For more information, visit www.branchesgardencenter.com.

On Saturday, May 9 Branches will be a vendor at the Federal Way Farmers Market.