Looking forward to spring
The History
Inspired by a gardening symposium at Winterthur, the Master Gardeners of Mercer County held their first symposium in 2008. Since then, it has continued through 2024 with exception for the COVID years 2020-2022. Registration is open to the public and almost 300 people attend.
The Speakers
The Symposium speakers are shown most recent first; click on the Year column header to show them in order from 2008-2024. Learn more about them through the links in the right column.
| Year | The Speakers | Symposium Themes & Speakers' Topics | More about the Speakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | March 16, 2024: Cultivating Community | ||
| 2024 | Teri Speight | Growing Community Through Gardening | Cottage in the Court |
| 2024 | Gary Johnson | Root Systems: The Forgotten 50% | Root Systems: The Forgotten 50% |
| 2024 | Jenny Rose Carey | Customizing Your Seasonal Flower Garden | Northview Gardens |
| 2024 | Douglas Tallamy | Homegrown National Park | Doug Tallamy's Hub ⏤ Homegrown National Park |
| 2023 | March 11, 2023: Back to the Future | ||
| 2023 | Karen Chapman | Design Dilemmas & Savvy Solutions | Le Jardinet |
| 2023 | Joseph Tychonievich | How Genetic Engineering Works | Joseph Tychonievich's Gardens Website |
| 2023 | Suzanne Wainwright-Evans | Biological Controls Beyond Ladybugs | Buglady |
| 2019 | March 16, 2019: Return to Our Roots | ||
| 2019 | Roy Diblik | The Art of Developing Perennial Plant Patterns | Northwind Perennial Farm |
| 2019 | Anthony Aiello | The Five W’s of Plant Exploration—Who, What, Where, When and Why | Cultivating Beauty |
| 2019 | Holly Shimizu | How Climate Change Will Affect Our Gardens | Holly Shimizu's Website |
| 2019 | Brie Arthur | The Foodscape Revolution | Brie Grows |
| 2018 | March 24, 2018: Insights and Inspirations | ||
| 2018 | Joe Lamp'l | Gardening to Weather Any Storm | Joe Lamp'l's Website |
| 2018 | Gretchen LeBuhn | Using Gardens for Pollinator Conservation | LeBuhn Lab |
| 2018 | Lee Reich | Fearless Pruning | Lee Reich's Website |
| 2018 | Paul Zammit | Creative Containers: The Appeal, The Potential, and The Possiblities | Paul Zammit's Website |
| 2017 | March 11, 2017: Refresh, Renew, Restore | ||
| 2017 | Tony Avent | Landscaping in Drifts of One | Plant Delights |
| 2017 | Ruth Rogers Clausen | A Glorious Last Hurrah! | Ruth Rogers Clausen Books on Amazon |
| 2017 | Ken Druse | The New Shade Garden: Creating a Lush Oasis in the Age of a Challenging Climate | Ken Druse's Website |
| 2017 | Don Leopold | Creating and Restoring Sustainable Landscapes with Native Plants and Natural Plant Communities | Leopold ⏤ SUNY Environmental Science & Forestry |
| 2016 | March 12, 2016: Changing Conversations in the Garden | ||
| 2016 | Thomas Rainer | Planting in a Post-Wild World: Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes | Thomas Rainer's Grounded Design Website |
| 2016 | Linda Chalker-Scott | The Informed Gardener—Dare to be Heretical! | Garden Professors |
| 2016 | Whitney Cranshaw | Gardening for Insects—or Not! | Whitney Cranshaw ⏤ CSU Agricultural Sciences Website |
| 2015 | March 21, 2015: Bringing Life to the Garden | ||
| 2015 | Elizabeth Murray | Living Life in Full Bloom | Elizabeth Murray's Website |
| 2015 | Kelly Norris | Dig This: Stylish Gardening for Savvy Gardeners | Kelly Norris's Website |
| 2015 | Mike Raupp | How bugs make the world go around | Bug of the Week |
| 2015 | Janet Mucunovich & Steven Nikkila | Simplify to keep on growing | Janet Mucunovich ⏤ Garden A-Z |
| 2014 | March 15, 2014: Gardening by Design | ||
| 2014 | David Culp | The Layered Garden | David Culp's Website |
| 2014 | Lynden Miller | Parks, Plants and People: Beautifying the Urban Landscape | Linden Miller ⏤ Public Garden Savior |
| 2014 | Dan Benarcik | Display Techniques of the Pros that can be Applied to the Home Landscape | Dan Benarcik's Website |
| 2013 | March 16, 2013: Gardening for the Future | ||
| 2013 | Michael Dirr | ⏤ In Praise of Noble Trees ⏤ Adventures in Breeding Hydrangeas & Viburnums: Respect the Tried & True While Embracing the New | Michael Dirr ⏤ Department of Horiculture, University of Georgia Michael Dirr's Books on Amazon Michael Dirr's Blog ⏤ HMI Website |
| 2013 | Heidi Hesselein | Enriching Your Garden with a Plethora of Perennials | Pleasant Run Nursery |
| 2012 | March 17, 2012: Garden Scents and Sensibility | ||
| 2012 | Ken Druse | Natural Companions | Ken Druse's Website |
| 2012 | Tovah Martin | Trowels and Tomorrow: Garden Stewardship | Tovah Martin's Website |
| 2012 | William Cullina | Botany of Design | William Cullina ⏤ U Penn's Morris Arboretum |
| 2012 | Barry Glick | Wonders of the Wild | Barry Glick's Sunshine Farm & Gardens Website |
| 2011 | March 26, 2011: Come Garden With Me | ||
| 2011 | Margaret Roach | Making a Garden for 365 Days | A Way to Garden |
| 2011 | Joe Eck | Our Life in Gardens | Joe Eck's ⏤ NYT Book Review |
| 2011 | Rob Cardillo | Lies, Deceit, and Distractions: The Art of Garden Photography | Rob Cardillo's Website |
| 2010 | March 13, 2010: Passion for Gardening | ||
| 2010 | C. Colston Burrell | The Sustainable Garden: Magic or Myth | Colston Burrell's Website |
| 2010 | Carol Reese | Special Effects in the Landscape | Carol Reese ⏤ All the Dirt on Gardening |
| 2010 | Jerry Fritz | Cool Combinations: Add Drama to the Garden | Fritz Garden Design |
| 2009 | March 21, 2009: Spring into Responsible Gardening! | ||
| 2009 | Rick Darke | Livable Landscapes for a Changing Environment | Rick Darke's Website |
| 2009 | Doug Tallamy | Bringing Nature Home | Homegrown National Park |
| 2009 | Stephanie Cohen | Native Perennial Plants: Sustainable, Colorful and Wonderful! | Stephanie Cohen ⏤ Direct Native Plants |
| 2008 | March 15, 2008: Responsible Gardening with Pizzazz! | ||
| 2008 | Allan Armitage | Native Plants are also for Gardeners | Allan Armitage's Website |
| 2008 | Erica Glasener | On the Road with A Gardener’s Diary | Erica Glasener ⏤ Joe Lamp'l's Website |
| 2008 | Stephen Scanniello | Bring Your Roses Into the Garden | Stephen Scanniello's Website |