Summer is for cycling barefoot, eating ice cream for dinner and sipping Pimms Cups on a blanket under the stars.

For more favourite summertime pastimes, read on:

Craigleigh Gardens reminds me of a communal garden in London. It’s lovely, romantic, and the perfect spot for you, your lovey dove and a book of Rossetti poetry.

Who wants to toil away at a desk when you can hook up atop the roof garden at 401 Richmond. It’s an urban oasis with eye-popping cityscapes.

Toronto is aplenty with charming patios, and the one at Tati sees us weekly. I love to sit under that fabulous old Manitoba maple with a bowl of moules and a glass of rosé.

It’s hard leave the farmers' market at Brickworks without a belly full of cherries, cheeses and JK’s famous fries. Bring an appetite and lots of shopping bags.

Museums are a cool escape on crazy hot days. My daughter’s a fan of the aquarium at the ROM (some fish are as intricate as an Etro print) and I like the Galleria Italia at the AGO. —Athena Tsavliris

You’ve had success with tulips and even conquered your fear of pruning the rose bush. But when it comes to growing tomatoes, carrots or cucumbers, your green thumb is nowhere to be found.

Release your inner gardening goddess with tips from the City Farmer: Adventures in Urban Food Growing. The humorous new book by Toronto author Lorraine Johnson will show you how to grow radishes on your rooftop and tomatoes on the balcony. What could be fresher for the summer than a salad of your own making?

Now all that’s left to do is sit back with a glass of white and enjoy the fruits of your labour.

$14.40 at Amazon.ca

The book launch for City Farmer: Adventures in Urban Food Growing is tomorrow at Wychwood Barns (6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.), www.torontoartscape.on.ca

Who cares if it’s a tiny window box or a sprawling country pile—we can all find a home for our very own veggie garden.

In celebration of Earth Week, Zorn Agnatic and Helen Mills from Green Gardeners Community Collaborative will teach us how to create the perfect space for cultivating our potatoes, radishes and runner beans.

Packed with earth-friendly tips for a beautiful garden or container installation on your roof, deck or balcony, this crash course is ideal for both green thumbs and novices alike.

You’ll be dishing out your homegrown dauphinoise in no time.

April 23, 7 p.m., free; Big Carrot, 348 Danforth Ave., Toronto, 416-466-2129, www.thebigcarrot.ca

The city can be a noisy place for us all, so when we need to shut down, tune out and escape the cacophony here’s where we go:

The DeGasperis Conservatory
A gorgeous oasis to sit in the sun and take in some eye-popping architecture. It’s hard to find so take some breadcrumbs along to help you find your way out. 585 University Ave. 4th Floor, Clinical Services Building, Toronto General Hospital.

401 Richmond Roof Garden
A tranquil Eden nestled atop of one of the city’s beloved art institutions. 401 Richmond St. W. (at Spadina Ave.)

Philosopher’s Walk
This leafy promenade is a great place to get away from Bloor St. bustle. SW corner of Bloor St. & Avenue Rd.

Winston Churchill Park
A dog walkers heaven, this is one of our favourite Toronto parks. Corner of St. Clair and Spadina Ave.

Ward Island
For a shift in pace and perspective, hop on the boat to sleepy Ward Island and take in Toronto from a far. The Toronto Ferry Docks, Bay St. and Queens Quay (just west of the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel).