The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and the Harris County Master Gardeners are pleased to offer monthly lectures on various horticultural topics of interest while getting to know your county volunteers. At 11am, the Harris County Master Gardener meeting will cover volunteer updates. The monthly speaker will start at 11:30am each month.
We invite the public to attend these meetings to hear from gardening experts, volunteers, and AgriLife Extension Agents and specialists.
First Tuesday Monthly Lectures
Trini Mendenhall Community Center
1414 Wirt Road
Houston, TX 77055
First Tuesday of each month.
11:00 am
Directions
2026 First Tuesday Schedule
| January 6, 2026 |
“How to Create a Backyard Bird Habitat” |
Rich Edie Franchise Owner (Cypress and Memorial)Wild Birds Unlimited |
| February 3, 2026 |
“Going Beyond NPK – How to have the best plants for beauty and nutrition ever!” |
Mike Serant Owner and President Microlife |
| March 3, 2026 |
“Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service – Educational Programs: Community Impact and Outreach” |
David Wright Urban Program Director Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service |
| April 7, 2026 |
Annual Awards Luncheon |
(no speaker) |
| May 5, 2026 |
“Hibiscus: Care, Propagation and Hybridization” |
Marti and Greg Graves |
| June 2, 2026 |
“Houston Federation of Garden Clubs: History and Benefits” |
Jennifer Hydes President Houston Federation of Garden Clubs |
| July 7, 2026 |
“A Visit to the Chelsea Flower Show” |
Valerie Depew Harris County Master Gardener |
| August 4, 2026 |
“Mercer Botanic Center: Preserving the Past for the Future” |
Kari Hernandez Curator Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens |
| September 1, 2026 | TBD |
Brittani Flowers President and CEO Bayou Preservation Association, Inc |
| October 6, 2026 | TBD | |
| November 3, 2026 | TBD |
Genoa Friendship Garden |
| December 1, 2026 |
TBD
|
2025 First Tuesday Recordings
January
“Selecting, Planting, and Caring for Trees”
Stephanie Adams, PhD, ISA BCMA
Assistant Professor & Extension Tree and Landscape Plant Health Specialist
February
AgriLife Programs Update
Stephanie Gray
CEA- Horticulture (Commercial/Green Industry)
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
March
“Daylillies”
Lucia Hansen
Harris County Master Gardener
April
“MG Awards”
Harris County Master Gardeners
Recording not available
May
“Carothers Community Garden ”
Jesse Jones
President, Carothers Coastal Gardens
https://www.carothersgardens.org/
June
“McGovern Centennial Family Gardens”
Marisol Arteaga
Harris County Master Gardener
July
“The History of Genoa Friendship Gardens”
August
“Houston Botanic Garden”
September
“Fall Planted Gardens for Spring Blooms”
Alex Lekometros, Bungalow Blooms
October
“Houston’s Historic Gardens”
Bart Brechter
Garden Curator, Bayou Bend Collection & Gardens and Rienzi
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
November
“Composting Demonstration”
December
“Preparing our Lawns and Garden Landscapes for Winter and Early Spring”
2024 First Tuesday Recordings
January
“Citrus Problems in Texas: Update”
Janice Teas, Texas Dept. of Agriculture (2024-01-09)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
February
“Native Plants to the Rescue”
Jaime Gonzalez, The Nature Conservancy (2024-02-13)
https://prezi.com/view/
March
“AgriLife Extension Agents Give Annual Horticulture Interpretation Report”
Brandi Keller and Stephanie Gray (2024-03-21)
https://www.youtube.com/
April
“MG Awards “
Harris County Master Gardeners
Recording not available.
May
“Heirloom Bulbs: Forgotten Surprises : Naturalized Bulbs of Texas”
Jay White, Texas Gardener magazine (2024-05-08)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
June
“Natural Resource Conservation Service & Urban Agriculture”
Ms Latoya Irving, United State Department of Agriculture (2024-06-04)
Recording not available.
August
“Mycorrhizal Fungi: What they are and how they Participate in Plant Health”
Dr. Lisa Morano, University of Houston—Downtown (2024-08-06)
September
“12 Common Landscaping Mistakes … and How to Avoid Them!”
Skip Richter (2024-09-03)
2023 First Tuesday Recordings
June
“Invasive Species ID: Reporting & Management”
Ashley Morgan-Olvera, Texas Invasive Species Institute, Sam Houston State University (2023-06-06)
August
“What is OE: Protecting Monarch Butterflies”
Linda Pearson (2023-08-01)
September
“Companion Plants”
Angela Chandler, Harris County Master Gardener Association (Retired) (2023-09-05)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
October
“Weed Management”
Sherri Harrah, Plants for All Seasons (2023-10-03)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
November
“Trees and Tree Care”
Alexa Haass, Texas Master Gardener (2023-11-07)
Recording not available.
December
“Is Beekeeping Problematic”
Nicole Buergers, Bee2Bee Honey Collective (2023-12-05)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
2022 First Tuesday Recordings
February
“Citrus Problems in Texas: Citrus Greening”
Janis Teas
Texas Dept. of Agriculture
(2022-02-07)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
March
“Spring/Summer Lawn Preparations”
Michael Potter
Montgomery County Horticulture Agent
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
(2022-03-02)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
April
“Fabulous Figs: Fig Trees for Your Home”
Stephen Brueggerhoff
Galveston County Horticulture Agent
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
(2022-04-05)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
June
“Rainwater Harvesting”
Ra Shango
Omi Rain Tanks
(2022-06-15)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
July
“The Dirt on Soils, Part 2: Mulches”
John Ferguson, M.S., P.G.
(2022-07-05)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
August
“Worm for Composting: How to Create a Rich Soil Amendment for Your Garden”
Charlene Perry
Liberty Country Master Gardener
(2022-08-03)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
September
“A Simple Introduction to Roselle”
Kimberly Perry
Urban Harvest
(2022-09-08)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
October
“Bats in Our World”
—Texas Bat Facts & Bats in Our Area
Suzanne Jurek
Texas Master Naturalist
(2022-10-04)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
November
“Orchids”
Brandie Hill
Orchid Express & Leasing
(2022-11-07)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?