SCHEDULE 8:30 9:25 Registration, Refreshments Auditorium/Exhibit Hall 9:30 Welcome Auditorium/Exhibit Hall 9:40 Soil Care Panel attendees From B&GC front entrance begin walk to Doyle Center 10:00 11:15 Concurrent Workshops I A. Soil Care Panel Doyle Center Atrium B. Practical Pest Management Conference Room C. Indoor Seed Starting adult Science Room D. Composting 101 Teen Study Room E. Youth workshop Teen Café F. Community Gardening Panel Art Room Part I Engagement G. Food Demonstration Auditorium Kitchen 11:15 11:55 Exhibits & Networking Auditorium/Exhibit Hall 11:45 Soil Care Panel attendees From B&GC front entrance begin walk to Doyle Center 12:00 1:15 Concurrent Workshops II A. Soil Care Panel Doyle Center Atrium B. Practical Pest Management Conference Room C. Indoor Seed Starting youth Science Room D. Accessible Raised Bed Building Green Room (behind gymnasium) E. Community Gardening Panel Art Room Part II Management F. Food Demonstration Auditorium Kitchen 1:15 2:15 After Events A. Growing Places Open House Conference Room Luncheon (Registration Required) B. Doyle Property Walking Tour Universally Accessible Trail Loop approx. 1.5 miles flat walking
EXHIBITS Growing Places The Trustees of Reservations The Boys & Girls Club of Fitchburg and Leominster Seed Swap Bring seeds to share and get first pick! First hour open to gardeners with saved seeds only. Open to all at 9:30AM. Featuring seeds from High Mowing Seed Co., Seed Savers Exchange, NESeed and more! Roots Natural Foods Featuring fresh, green smoothies! Kitchen Scrap Gardening Don t throw it away grow it again! Learn to grow fresh greens and more from common produce scraps. Happy Chicken Factory Featuring the Happy Chicken Tractor portable chicken coop!
WORKSHOPS & PRESENTERS Soil Care Panel Moderators: Janet O Brien, Program Manager, Growing Places (AM session) Chris Piccone, Biology Professor, Fitchburg State University (PM session) Panelists: Jeremy Dick, Superintendent Boston Mgmt. Unit, The Trustees of Reservations; former Director of Property and Horticulture, Boston Natural Areas Network Alton Stoney Stone, Registered Prof. Engineer and Licensed Soil Evaluator, Alton Engineering Maureen Halligan, Farmer, Highland Farms, Lunenburg Rachel Donnelly, Student, Clark University Description: One of the most common questions we at Growing Places hear from gardeners is What should I do to take care of my garden soil? The truth is, there s a lot of debate in the agricultural world about this very matter. Sifting through the often complicated information available, determining what s best and what works on the small home garden scale can be a daunting task. So we invited four of our knowledgeable friends to share their thoughts with you. We warn you don t expect to receive one clear set of instructions. It s more likely you ll receive four, but we hope this discussion will shed some light on the major points of debate so that you can make the best soil care decisions for you and your garden. Practical Pest Management Instructors: Connie Grabowy, Volunteer Teaching Garden Guru, Growing Places; lifelong vegetable gardener Gaynor Bigelbach, Volunteer Mentor On Call, Growing Places; avid gardener and pest management enthusiast Description: If you ve ever tried to find organic methods for dealing with the usual pests and disease suspects that plague your home garden, you ve probably been frustrated by suggestions targeted at commercial farmers. Plant a trap crop! Rotate your brassicas to a plot several acres away! Introduce a natural predator! For most small-space home gardeners, these suggestions are, if not impossible, impractical or ineffective. Join us as we discuss some of the most common pests and diseases urban home gardeners face in this region and talk about the most effective organic methods for managing them. We welcome you to come and share your own experiences, too! Indoor Seed Starting (Adults) Instructors: Luci Simmons, Volunteer Teaching Garden Guru, Growing Places; experienced home gardener Description: Are you ready to take your gardening up a notch this year, but aren t sure what to try next? If you have a sunny window, indoor seed starting could be your next experiment. In this workshop, we ll review the basic steps for growing your own transplants from seed this spring, including the materials you need, how to determine what to grow and when to start them, and some tips and tricks for not breaking the bank to do it!
This is a hands-on demonstration, so come prepared to get dirt (er soilless mix) under your nails and take home your own started seeds. Indoor Seed Starting (Youth) Instructors: Bob Mersereau, Garden Program Volunteer, Boys & Girls Club Description: Let us teach your young green thumbs how to start and care for some common crops (e.g., snap peas, cucumbers, or butternut squash) that can later be transplanted into the family vegetable patch. This is a hands-on demonstration, so youth should come prepared to get their hands dirty and take home their own started seeds. For added practice, youth will also start seeds to help supply the Boys & Girls Club gardening program for this spring! Community Gardening Panel, Part I: Engagement Moderator: Joanne Foster, Executive Director, Growing Places Panelists: Stacie Brimmage, UGROW Coordinator, Regional Environmental Council, Worcester Julia Sisson, Community Garden Coordinator, Mill City Grows, Lowell Community Gardeners from MCG- and REC-supported gardens Description: Join experienced community gardeners for a discussion of effective ways to rev up engagement in your garden! We ll discuss strategies for maintaining gardener interest and community partner relationships, ideas for hosting fun community-building or fundraising events and more. There will be time for questions, so come prepared with your community garden s biggest engagement challenge and hear from other local community gardeners about what works and what doesn t! Community Gardening Panel, Part II: Management Moderator: Joanne Foster, Executive Director, Growing Places Panelists: Stacie Brimmage, UGROW Coordinator, Regional Environmental Council, Worcester Julia Sisson, Community Garden Coordinator, Mill City Grows, Lowell Community Gardeners from MCG- and REC-supported gardens Description: Ask any garden coordinator: community gardening comes with some unique management issues. If your garden is struggling with issues of theft, vandalism, gardener conflict, site maintenance, or pest control, this is the place to discuss effective strategies for tackling them. Gardeners and garden coordinators are all welcome! Come talk with us and bring some great ideas back to your community to implement this spring. Let s Rot n Roll: Composting 101 Instructor: Chris Piccone, Biology Professor, Fitchburg State University Description: Composting doesn t have to be complicated! In fact, Mother Nature does it without our help all the time, but with a little know-how, we can speed up the process and take advantage of the wonderful soil conditioner it produces rich compost! Join us for a beginner composting workshop that will cover all the basics: what composting is and why it s important what you ll need to get started what you can compost and what you can t and how to troubleshoot common problems In an hour, you ll be ready to rot and roll! Happy Garden, Healthy Food Instructors: Kim Thomas, Board Member, Growing Places; Owner, Convenient Catering Norma Chanis, Volunteer, Growing Places; Instructor, Cooking Matters Description: A happy garden produces so much wonderful, healthy produce! What can you do with it all? This demonstration will feature inexpensive, seasonal, healthy snack and meal ideas you can use to keep gardener and family alike happy and healthy this growing season. Space is limited as this hands-on workshop will take place in the B&GC kitchen and provide tasting samples. Please contact Growing Places staff
(978.598.3723 x802 or staff@growingplaces.org) with questions regarding allergies. Youth workshop Instructor: Lisa Millette, Turtle Tree Seeds Description: To follow Build-a-Bed: Accessible Raised Bed Frame Building Demonstration Instructor: Janet O Brien, Program Manager, Growing Places Description: Growing Places has introduced a 2 -high accessible raised bed frame to its construction lineup: a hardwood 4 x8 frame with a composite decking seat affixed to the top. After two seasons of practice installing these beds, we want to share what we ve learned about materials, design and process with you. The workshop will be led by Growing Places Program Manager Janet O Brien (not a carpenter!) so whether you re a pro, a weekend woodworking warrior, or just want to see if this is a project that could work for your home, we encourage you to check it out. If Janet can do it, so can you!