Join us May 2nd and 3rd, 2023! Leadership Training will be held on the 1st.
Registration will open on March 20, 2023.
We will be VIRTUAL! Surveys showed that our Extension Master Gardeners prefer the online option with the ability to see all sessions at their leisure at a later date without having to choose one over another.
Being virtual also allows us to bring you more great speakers for a lower cost. We have a fantastic line up of KEYNOTE SPEAKERS and around 35 incredible breakouts!
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:
JOE LAMP’L – Growing a Greener World – Behind the Scenes
In this inspiring and motivational session, Joe draws on his extensive travel across America to produce and host his Emmy award-winning national public television series Growing a Greener World®. With an extensive collection of stories over 150 episodes, through beautiful high-definition video and award-winning photography, you’ll meet some of the most fascinating people, see some of the most interesting places and discover organizations doing great things for the planet, all with an emphasis on gardening and a common thread that will empower each of us to advance the cause of these gardening heroes in our own communities.
SARA DYKMAN – FOLLOWING THE MONARCHS
Sara Dykman is a field biologist from Kansas, focusing primarily on amphibian research. Sara embarked on a 10,201 journey from Canada to Mexico, alongside the monarch butterfly to observe and study their migration and bring awareness to the plight on the monarch butterfly. Sara will share her experiences and adventures and provide information on protecting and preserving this pollinator’s survival.
DOUG TALLAMY – NATURE’S BEST HOPE
Tallamy is a professor in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored eighty research articles and has taught Insect Taxonomy, Behavioral Ecology, Humans and Nature, and other courses for thirty-two years. In his latest book, Nature’s Best Hope, Tallamy shows how homeowners can turn their yards into conservation corridors that provide wildlife habitats. Tallamy will discuss simple steps that each of us can- and must- take to reverse declining biodiversity and will explain why we are nature’s best hope.
SARA LEWIS – CONSERVING THE JEWELS OF THE NIGHT
Dr. Sara Lewis is a Professor of Biology at Tufts University and world-renowned firefly expert. Sara and her students have researched the luminous lives of fireflies for nearly three decades. Learn how these “silent sparks” illuminate the night, the dos and don’ts of firefly observation, how to take good firefly photos, femme fatales, pink glowworms, secret languages, artificial lights, and how you can ensure our nights stay aglow with these beloved beetles.
BREAKOUTS:
• Opening a Can of Worms
• Drought-Proofing Your Landscape
• Bee Colony Collapse
• Horticulture Therapy
• Hügelkultur
• Garden Photography
• Hot, hot, hot! Growing Peppers
• Bats
• Organics
• Soil Health and Fertility
• Planting for Year-Round Color
• Hummingbirds
• Growing Unusual Fruits
• Growing Houseplants
• And much more!