2023 San Juan County WSU Master Gardeners
Gardening Workshop Series
Series price: $35 for all 8 presentations
Registration is closed.
Registration is closed.
Welcome to our Annual Gardening Workshop lecture series, held in October over two weeks and presented as Zoom webinars so that you can enjoy the lectures from the comfort of your home.
The series includes 8 one-hour presentations with additional time for questions and discussion. Our speakers are University professors, Extension educators, professional gardeners, and accomplished Master Gardeners who share their knowledge, experience, and beautiful photographs of plants, flowers, and garden insects.
Registered participants will be granted access to all recorded presentations for viewing until November 30, 2023. We'll send a link to the recording after each presentation. Please be advised that unforeseen technical difficulties may occur, so we can't guarantee a recording for each session.
The series includes 8 one-hour presentations with additional time for questions and discussion. Our speakers are University professors, Extension educators, professional gardeners, and accomplished Master Gardeners who share their knowledge, experience, and beautiful photographs of plants, flowers, and garden insects.
Registered participants will be granted access to all recorded presentations for viewing until November 30, 2023. We'll send a link to the recording after each presentation. Please be advised that unforeseen technical difficulties may occur, so we can't guarantee a recording for each session.
2023 Annual Gardening Workshop Schedule
TUESDAY OCTOBER 17
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12pm - 1:15 pm
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Nature’s Best Hope
Doug Tallamy, PhD Entomologist and Conservationist Recent headlines about global insect declines and three billion fewer birds in North America are a bleak reality check about how ineffective our current landscape designs have been at sustaining the plants and animals that sustain us. To create landscapes that enhance local ecosystems rather than degrade them, we must 1) remove the invasive plants on our property; and 2) add the native plant communities that sustain food webs, sequester carbon, maintain diverse native bee communities, and manage our watersheds. If we do this in half of the area now in lawn, we can create Homegrown National Park, a network of viable habitats throughout the U.S. that will provide vital corridors connecting the few natural areas that remain. This approach to conservation empowers everyone to play a significant role in the future of the natural world. It is also enormously restorative for those who take action.
Doug Tallamy is the T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 112 research publications and has taught insect related courses for 42 years. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His books include “Bringing Nature Home,” “The Living Landscape,” co-authored with Rick Darke, “Nature's Best Hope,” a New York Times Best Seller, “The Nature of Oaks,” winner of the American Horticultural Society’s 2022 book award. In 2021 he co-founded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari. His awards include recognition from The Garden Writer’s Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, Allegheny College, Ecoforesters, The Garden Club of America and The American Horticultural Association. See the Homegrown National Park website. |
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1:45pm - 3:00 pm
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The Allure of Roses: Sustainable Rose Growing
Elena Williams, Rosarian This program will cover organic rose growing starting with soil, then continue with pruning your existing roses, disease identification and disease resistant roses you can add to your garden.
Elena grows around 225 roses of all types in her Pacific Northwest garden, not far from Puget Sound. She is a Lifetime member of the American Rose Society, a Master Consulting Rosarian, and a Horticulture and Arrangement Judge. Three local rose societies count Elena as a member: Kitsap County Rose Society, Tacoma Rose Society and Seattle Rose Society. Her favorite parts of her rose hobby are arranging roses for shows and mentoring novices. |
THURSDAY OCTOBER 19
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12pm - 1:15 pm
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Alchemy and Composting: Demystifying and Simplifying Composting
Brian Schlaefli, WSU Master Gardener Compost is widely recognized for its many benefits. Garden centers and farm stores have sizable inventories for sale. But, why not make your own compost? Do you find the idea too daunting? Or, too perplexing? The truth is, you can do it! And you don’t need a chemistry degree to be successful! This presentation is geared to give you the basics to jump right in (figuratively, LOL) so that you can begin making your own compost tomorrow.
Brian’s first garden was a single bean plant that he grew under his sister’s bedroom window when he was about six years old. His passion to grow things lead him to earn a degree in Forest Management from Oregon State University. After graduation, his 37 year forestry career had him supervising the planting and nurturing of millions of trees on private forestland in Oregon and Washington. Along the way, he and his wife, Kathy, have enjoyed growing a garden and making compost together for many years. Now retired, they are both Master Gardeners and have recently moved to a small farm in Yamhill County, Oregon where they continue to garden and compost. They hope to teach their seven grandkids to do the same. |
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1:45pm - 3:00 pm
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Preserving the Pacific Madrone: Exploring Ecology, Cultivation, and Conservation of a Favorite Northwest Tree
Marianne Elliot, MS WSU Plant Pathologist Learn about the Pacific madrone (Arbutus menziesii), a beloved tree native to the Pacific Northwest. Explore topics including the madrone's ecology and geographical distribution, cultivation tips and maintenance, its relationship with pollinators and wildlife, and important considerations like diseases and the impact of climate change. Join us for a Q&A session where you can ask questions about madrone and learn ways to contribute to its preservation. Join the ArbutusARME at our website https://www.arbutusarme.org/, learn all about Pacific madrones and meet other madrone enthusiasts.
Marianne Elliott is s a plant pathology researcher at Washington State University, Puyallup Research and Extension Center and co-founder of ArbutusARME. She specializes in disease management for woody plants in nurseries, landscapes, and forests. |
TUESDAY OCTOBER 24
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12pm - 1:15 pm
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Meadowcraft: The Alchemy and Science of Creating Native Wildflower Meadows
Eric Lee-Mader, MS Insect Ecologist with the Xerces Society hile the Pacific Northwest is famous for vast forested landscapes, expansive, sunny wildflower meadows once occupied tens of thousands of acres in a thin linear band extending from British Columbia to Northern California. Largely erased from contemporary memory, these regional “prairies” were biologically supercharged with pollinators and grassland birds, aesthetically captivating, and they were a primary source of staple human foods. This workshop will excavate some of that history and present contemporary models for meadow restoration – including in rural, residential, and urban landscapes – locations where meadows are actively replacing lawns and bringing life back to biological wastelands.
Eric Lee-Mader is an insect ecologist with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a principal at Northwest Meadowscapes, and author of various books, including the recently released “The Milkweed Lands" (Storey Publishing). He is based in Port Townsend and farms on Whidbey Island. See the Northwest Meadowscapes website. |
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1:45pm - 3:00 pm
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Creating Meadows Roundtable
Panelists In this session we’ll take a closer look at different approaches for creating and restoring native meadows in the Salish Sea region. Four experts will share the details of their meadow-making projects from a variety of settings including lawns, rooftops, natural areas, and public spaces. Learn what’s worked for them (as well as what hasn’t) and gain tips and inspiration for your own project.
Panelists:
Eliza Habegger manages the Salish Seeds Project native plant nursery for the San Juan County Land Bank. A partnership between the Land Bank and the San Juan Preservation Trust, the Salish Seeds Project produces plants and seeds of species native to meadows, Garry oak habitats, and coastal grasslands. Eliza holds a B.A. in Biology/Botany from Cornell University. Prior to joining the Land Bank in 2003, she was employed at The Nature Conservancy and the New York Botanical Garden. She lives with her husband and son on San Juan Island, where she tends an ever-expanding garden and orchard, messes around with art, and builds sheds. The Salish Seeds Project and Eliza’s role: https://sjclandbank.org/the-salish-seeds-project-bringing-back-island-wildflowers/ Eric Lee-Mader is an insect ecologist with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a principal at Northwest Meadowscapes, and author of various books, including the recently released “The Milkweed Lands" (Storey Publishing). He is based in Port Townsend and farms on Whidbey Island. Jenny Harris is the founder of Catkin Garden Design. Her work embodies ecological garden design, horticultural consultation, plant procurement and hands-on teaching of appropriate methods for gardeners and gardens in the San Juan Islands and others in or near the Salish Sea of the Pacific Northwest. Jenny grew up in an old garden in the foothills of the coast range of California where she ran wild with overgrown wisteria and old roses. She studied horticulture and gardening in the late 80’s through a long defunct program at UCSC that was on the forefront of appropriate horticulture at the time. Jenny is also a WSU Master Gardener. Sam has a diverse background including horticulture, rare plant species restoration and forestry consulting in the San Juans. Sam earned her Master of Science degree from the University of Washington in 2008 with a focus in soil science, forest ecology, and the restoration of rare plants in prairie habitats. Sam is the founder of Field & Fern which was created in January of 2020 to address the need for a greater understanding of the unique natural landscapes of the San Juan Islands. Their mission is to provide landowners and other current island dwellers with a deeper knowledge of the native species that also call this place home. |
THURSDAY OCTOBER 26
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12pm - 1:15 pm
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What Gardeners Should Know About Plant Disease and Diagnosis
Cassandra Bates, MS WSU Plant Pathologist The myriad diseases of Pacific Northwest plants will be explored. Questions, observations and environmental factors as diagnostic tools will be discussed to enable you to diagnose plant disease.
Cassandra Bates runs the WSU Plant Disease Diagnostic Clinic in Pullman where she encounters a wide variety of plant disease, disorders, and pests. She graduated from Michigan State University with a MS in Entomology/Nematology where her research focused on trap crop systems for the control of soybean cyst, sugar beet cyst, and root-lesion nematodes. She served as the education coordinator for the North Central Plant Diagnostic Network in Michigan. She joined the WSU Plant Pathology Department in 2022 as the diagnostician and manager of the Plant Pest Diagnostic Clinic. |
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1:45pm - 3:00 pm
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Kitchen Garden Design
Debby Hatch, Gardener and Blogger Using photos from fourteen kitchen gardens, this presentation will highlight key features of kitchen garden designs. Entry gates, planting beds, and structures like greenhouses and berry houses take as many forms as there are gardeners, and all inspire us with their function and creativity.
Debby Hatch has grown a four-season kitchen garden for thirty years on Lopez Island. She writes the blog Lopez Island Kitchen Gardens (https://lopezislandkitchengardens.com). |