Schedule

Optional Bus Tour - Christopher Farm and Gardens
Tour of this spectacular local garden includes transportation, lunch and optional gardening lectures.

Activities

• Conference Registration (Building #7-Fine Arts/Theatre)
• Bookworm Gardens Self-Guided Tour
• Visit Exhibitor Booths (Building #8 - PE Building)
• Silent Auction Bidding
• Brat Fry (Includes brats, German potato salad, baked beans, fresh veggies and dip, cheese slices and a beverage. Chicken breast and hamburgers available)

7:30 - 9:00 pm

Lots of Pots: Designing Container Plantings
Ray Rogers
Would you like to understand and apply the design elements behind beautifully designed container plantings? Gorgeous photos illustrate color, line, form, space, texture, and other factors that produce memorable pots. You too can create your own photo-worthy combinations without following someone else’s “recipes.”
Visit website.

Hearty and Healthy Continental Breakfast
Conference Registration (Building #7-Theatre Lobby)

Coleus: Red-Hot, Easy, and Versatile
Ray Rogers
Forget those dumpy little plants taking up space in shady spots or languishing as cuttings in jelly jars. Modern coleus take center stage in containers and gardens and can take the place of shrubs, flowering plants, and groundcovers. Eye-popping photos illustrate their seductive qualities and provide inspiration for garden usage.
Visit website.

Breakout Session I (select one)

Arranging Things You Take For Granted in Your Garden
Robert Derhammer (McGinley & Baker)
Enhancing nature through creative interpretation.  Bob takes flowers and greens you might find in your own backyard, and arranges them in a container you could have anywhere around your own home.  Nature provides us with so many elements to enjoy when we take time to notice them.  In combining some of nature’s gifts, with everyday man-made products, we can enjoy what the world around us offers outside on the inside as well.  Life is a gift and is all about memories.  Use the gifts nature gave us to create memories for yourself and your friends.

The Tale of Bookworm Gardens
Sandy Livermore (Bookworm Gardens)
Bookworm Gardens is a new two-acre garden based on children's literature currently under construction on a lovely site adjacent to UW Sheboygan. Based on 74 children's books, the garden creates a colorful, beautiful place that enhances literature, the natural world, and the imagination. Each whimsical garden features activity to simulate learning by observing, interacting, and doing, stimulating all the senses in a beautiful setting.

Organic Treatments to Control Insects
Phil Pellitteri
There are many new and some old remedies that can be used to help control insects. There are natural products that are not “organic” and natural remedies that have been shown to not be effective. We will talk about the products that are now in use to control insects without the use of synthetic pesticides, recent testing of organic products and how exactly many of the organic products work. 

New & Improved: Perennial Compulsion
Craig Harms (Restoration Gardens)
Come along on a journey through the botanical world exploring coral bells and coneflowers and their endless new introductions of varieties. Find out the latest inspirations in the botanical world starting from the ground up. Starting with perennials, shrub roses and new and noteworthy shrubs.

Breakout Session II (select one)

Trough Gardening
Gary Wittenbaugh
What is hypertufa? How is it made and used to construct a trough? What type of soil is correct and what plants should you use? What to do with the garden come winter? Learn the answer to these questions and more about this exciting type of gardening as you see a trough garden come to life right before your very eyes.

Tree Peonies: The Little Shrub with Big Flowers
Nate Bremer (Solaris Farm)
Tree Peonies, more accurately ‘shrub peonies’ are among the finest flowering plants available to gardeners today and may easily be grown in most of Wisconsin.  The plants possess flowers that appear to be from ‘another world’ and the colors range from white to lavender, red to yellow and every other color except true blue.  The plants have often received bad press (difficult to grow), but only require minimal care.  A Power Point slide show/discussion will bring this plant into the gardener’s dreams and plans. Nate will dispel some myths about growing these tremendously worthy plants and look at the wide range of varieties and forms available to the gardener today.  Getting to know this plant intimately will allow anyone to grow this plant successfully. If I were limited to one plant in my garden, it would be a tree peony.  Each season brings a change in the plant that can be beautiful, but intensely interesting. 

Go Green with Rain Gardens!
Sharon Morrisey
Are you interested in providing habitat for birds, butterflies and beneficial insects? Enhancing the beauty of your yard?  Protecting streams and rivers from pollutants? Protecting your community from flooding and drainage problems? For a practical "how to" guide to rain gardens, this session is for you.

Kitchen Gardening: Heirloom Vegetables & Consumer Trends
Craig Harms (Restoration Gardens)
The National Gardening Association reported that nationally 43 million households planted an edible garden in 2009, up 19% from 2008. The ‘slow food’ movement has encouraged more families and foodies to support local farmers and eat seasonally. Find out some fresh ideas on heirloom vegetables and the local food movement.

Lunch (Salad with preferred greens and toppings, make your own subs, chips and cookies)

Silent auction ends at 1:00 pm

Breakout Session III (select one)

The Buzz on Bees 
Phil Pellitteri
Colony collapse disorder, parasitic mites, foul broad, loss of native pollinators, bumblebee disease- there are many ongoing issues and problems that face our native and domestic bees. There are over 2,800 species of bees in the US that help us grown our gardens. We will discuss the ongoing research and problems and challenges that face honey bees, bumble bees and other native bees in the upper Midwest.

Vegetable Gardening in Small Spaces
Patti Nagai
There is always room for a vegetable garden; whether you have only a balcony, patio or small yard - you can find room for vegetables. Patti Nagai will show you how to make the most of your available space to grow healthy and tasty vegetables.

Gardening with Conifers
Gary Wittenbaugh
Here’s your invitation to a whole New World of gardening. The Conifer story is fascinating and   unique. See how the color, texture and form of conifers add year around beauty and contrast to gardens and landscapes. Fast growers screen your space, tiny buns add unusual shapes and textures, and distinctive forms make living sculptures. Come and explore the world of conifers with us.

The Art of Garden Photography
Donna Krishen
Learn how to take your garden photography from simple snapshots to works of art. Whether you shoot digital or film, use a compact camera or SLR, Donna will offer tips to improve your photos. To get the most out of the information presented, you may want to consider bringing your camera and manual to the session.

Breakout Session IV(select one)

Japanese Gardening in the Midwest
Patti Nagai
The concepts behind Japanese gardens may seem incredibly foreign to Midwestern gardeners, but the elements are simple and easily adaptable to our local spaces. Are you looking for a peaceful place in your garden space? Would you like to learn more about which plants "make" a Japanese garden? Patti Nagai will tell you a little about her experience in Japan and how the Japanese gardens in our area are so inspirational and educational.

Custom Garden Designing - Slide Presentation
Mike Beeck (Otter Creek Landscape/The Wreath Factory)
Create a custom garden with a focus on your personal style. Learn how to define your wants and needs. Analyze your soil and light conditions. Tackle grades and water runoff. Reduce the need for maintenance by grouping plants and amenities that are like-minded. Create ambiance with the use of music, lighting, water features and furnishings.

Culinary Herbs from Seed to Salad
Linda Goodine
Learn the basics of growing and using 20+ culinary herbs. The discussion will focus on starting herbs from seed or cuttings, herb habits, companion planting with herbs in the vegetable garden, and the harvest and use of each herb.  Mature herb plants will be used to take you on a sensory herbal journey intertwined with herbal folklore and sage advice. Handouts will include recipes, charts, and resource lists.

Carnivores in the Garden
Tom Krischan
Learn how to grow carnivorous plants in your garden. The presentation will explore the beauty and variety of this unique class of plants. It will teach you the technique of constructing an artificial bog and establishing a year round special habitat for growing temperate carnivorous plants. Also discover how to move your semi-tropical carnivorous houseplants outdoors for a much needed summer vacation. The talk will discuss the types of carnivorous plants that are available, selection guidelines, growing conditions, overwintering, light and watering, care and feeding, pest cures, and more.