Connecticut Flower & Garden Show
Connecticut Convention Center
Sat, Feb 25, 2017
11:00 AM- 4:30 PM
Our two-day educational seminar at the Connecticut Flower & Garden Show begins with four speakers on Saturday (described below), as well as four more the next day, Sunday, February 26. Click here to see Sunday's lineup of talks and be sure to visit us at Booth B in the landscape display area.
11:00 a.m.
Plants with Year-Round Appeal
Plants are often selected for a single attribute such as showy flowers or fruit or fall color and thus offer limited interest during the year. Discover an exciting collection of plants that will provide color and excitement in the garden throughout the year. Our speaker Andy Brand will discuss a range of trees, shrubs, and perennials that will not disappoint, regardless of the season.
Andy Brand is the nursery manager at Broken Arrow Nursery in Hamden, CT, which is considered to have one of the largest collections of mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) in the United States. An avid naturalist, Brand is also past president of the Connecticut Nursery and Landscape Association and a cofounder and past president of the Connecticut Butterfly Association. He has put his interest in native plants to use as a volunteer for the New England Plant Conservation Program, where he helps monitor historical sites of endangered native plants.
As a member of the Hamden Land Conservation Trust and the town’s Tree Commission, Brand works to protect Hamden’s open spaces and natural resources. He has spoken to groups throughout the northeast on a range of topics including native plants, new and unusual ornamentals, butterfly gardening, and the butterflies of Connecticut. In January 2014, Andy started a Facebook page, “Seeing Nature: Observations from New England,” which is dedicated to native flora and fauna. Brand is also a long-standing member of the New Haven Bird Club.
12:30 p.m.
EcoBeneficial Gardening 101: Boosting the Ecosystem in Your Own Yard
Even the most beautiful gardens are not always healthy ecosystems. Your yard is more than a combination of trees, shrubs and perennials—it’s a complex system where all living things are connected. Gardening with an ecosystem approach contributes to species diversity, attracting and supporting more birds, butterflies, pollinators, and beneficial insects. Speaker Kim Eierman explains how design choices, plant selection, and maintenance practices can make a substantial difference in creating a beautiful, healthy ecosystem filled with life.
Kim Eierman is an environmental horticulturist specializing in ecological landscapes and native plants. Based in New York, she teaches at the New York Botanical Garden, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Native Plant Center in Valhalla, Rutgers Home Gardeners School, and several other institutions. Kim is an active speaker nationwide on many ecological landscape topics, presenting for industry conferences, "green events," Master Gardener groups, garden clubs, nature centers, Audubon Society chapters, beekeeping groups, and other organizations interested in environmental improvements. Kim also provides horticultural consultation to homeowners and commercial clients. Read more at EcoBeneficial.com.
In addition to being a certified horticulturist through the American Society for Horticultural Science, Kim is a Master Gardener, Master Naturalist, accredited Organic Land Care Professional, member of the Native Plant Center’s steering committee, and member of the Garden Writers Association.
2:00 p.m.
Turning PRFCT: The Evolution and Adventures of a Rational Naturalist
Hear Edwina von Gal discuss how her passion for biodiversity and the lessons learned during a lifetime of designing and gardening led to the creation of The Perfect Earth Project, a rapidly expanding nonprofit organization promoting toxin-free land management around the world. Find out about the dangers of toxic lawn and garden chemicals and learn nature-based techniques that provide beautiful, safe results. Take action, right in your own yard, and explore the potential for an environmental gardening revolution.
Principal of her eponymous landscape design firm since 1984, Edwina von Gal has created landscapes with a focus on simplicity and sustainability for private and public clients around the world. Her work has been published in many major publications and her book Fresh Cuts won the Quill and Trowel award for garden writing in 1998. She has served on boards and committees for a number of horticultural organizations and is currently on the board of “What Is Missing,” Maya Lin’s multifaceted media artwork about the loss of biodiversity.
In 2002, von Gal went to Panama to design the park for the Biomuseo, the museum of biodiversity designed by Frank Gehry and then under construction in Panama City. She bought land there and stayed to found the Azuero Earth Project with like-minded friends and scientists, a process that convinced her to extend the toxin-free message to the United States. The Perfect Earth Project was launched in 2013 to promote toxin-free landscape management around the world. Most recently, von Gal was appointed a master teacher at the Conway School for the 2015-16 academic year. She is the Green Schools Alliance’s site and landscaping expert.
3:30 p.m.
All the Presidents’ Gardens: Madison’s Cabbages to Kennedy’s Roses
From the moment a spade first broke ground for the presidential mansion, the eighteen acres that surround the White House have been a backdrop to history. Wars, territorial expansion, economic booms and busts, the growth of agriculture and industry, the changing tides of taste and fashion—all have been mirrored in the lawns, trees, shrubs, and flower beds that serve as the nation's "First Garden." Hear garden historian Marta McDowell trace the story of how the White House grounds were conceived and how they have changed from administration to administration, from George Washington's obsession with collecting trees to Michelle Obama's kitchen garden. Find out how the White House grounds are a reflection of America's enthusiasms. Photo by Marco Ricca
Marta McDowell lives, gardens, and writes in Chatham, NJ. She writes and lectures on gardening topics and teaches landscape history and horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden, where she studied landscape design. She also consults for public gardens and private clients. Her particular interest is in authors and their gardens, the connection between the pen and the trowel. Her most recent book, All the Presidents' Gardens: Madison's Cabbages to Kennedy's Roses - How the White House Grounds Have Grown with America, was published by Timber Press in April 2016.
Location
The Connecticut Convention Center
100 Columbus Blvd.#400
Seminar Room #12
Hartford, CT 06103
Date and Time
Saturday, February 25, 2017
11:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
The Garden Conservancy will also have a table at the flower show on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24, and four additional speakers on Sunday, February 26.
Tickets
$18 Adults
$5 Children ages 5-12
Children under age 5 are free of charge.
Tickets will be available at the door on the day of the event.
For additional information about these talks, please call Jennifer Hausler at Garden Conservancy headquarters in New York at 845.424.6500, ext. 212 (M-F, 9-5 Eastern Time).
For information about the flower show, visit the Connecticut Flower & Garden Show website.