Presentations!
In the ‘Brig’ there will be presentations held throughout the day in all four classrooms.
Join famous garden authors Ciscoe Morris,
Linda Chalker-Scott,
Marty Wingate,
Arthur Lee Jacobson and others.
Jim Trainer -
Trees and Creatures
Wedgewood Room 12:30 - 1:30
Jim Trainer is a nationally known Community Forester and an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist. He has performed tree related work for over 30 years.
Jim is the owner and operator of Treez, Inc. specializing in preserving and enhancing the environment through reforestation, restoration and natural resource management. Jim has distributed and planted more than 920,000 trees.
Come learn about the trees and creatures of our forests. Tree and creature identification, sounds, where they live and their habitat.
Bess Bronstein -
How to Prune Trees
Garden Room 10:00 -12:00
Bess Bronstein is an ISA Certified Arborist, TRACE Certified Tree Risk Assessor, and serves as a Regional Education Coordinator for the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. Bess is an instructor for the Edmonds Community College horticulture program, and also teaches public and professional horticulture courses throughout the Puget Sound area. She has been involved in the local gardening community as an arborist, landscaper, designer and educator for over 20 years.
Learn how to keep your trees healthy and safe through proper pruning. Topics covered include tree biology, pruning basics, and specialized pruning techniques.
Sam Benowitz -
Fruit Trees for the Northwest
Garden Room 2:30-3:15
Sam Benowitz is an original member of Tilth, and the founder and owner of Raintree Nursery. He has been supplying Pacific Northwest gardeners with appropriate edible plants for the last 35 years, in an effort to make our region more self sufficient and sustainable.
Yes you can successfully grow fruit trees in Western Washington! Learn what Sam has found to be the most flavorful and disease resistant trees, from common fruits to the unusual.
Rita Moore -
Gardening With Native Plants
Native Plants 10:00-10:45
Rita is an active member of the Washington Native Plant Society and the National Wildlife Federation, and is involved in community restoration and the improvement of habitat and the environment in the City of Seattle and beyond.
What are native plants? Why should we garden with natives? How do they work best in the urban garden?
Emily Bishton -
Wildlife Friendly Gardening
Wedgewood Room 2:30-3:15
Emily Bishton is a landscape designer and educator who specializes in creating wildlife-friendly and child-friendly gardens. She has designed public and private gardens in the Seattle area since 1997. Emily is also an environmental educator for Seattle Tilth, the Green Gardening Program, Seattle Public Utilities' Natural Yard Care Neighborhoods Program, and directs the Magnuson Park Jr. Nature Explorers program.
The beauty of songbirds, butterflies, and beneficial insects is ample reason to create a wildlife-friendly garden, but there’s so much more to the picture! When you provide good habitat for birds and beneficial insects, they will in turn provide you with natural pest and weed control, increasing your garden’s health.
Arthur Lee Jacobsen -
Trees of Seattle
Viewridge Room 10:00-10:45
Arthur Lee Jacobson, a lifelong Seattle resident, is a professional plant expert, passionate and knowledgeable about both wild and cultivated greenery. He wrote the book Trees of Seattle, among others.
No city has more different kinds of trees than Seattle: over 1,400 named kinds grow within the city limits, excluding numerous species found only in Washington Park Arboretum. In this talk, meet our natives, including remnant old-growth timber of grand size; and a vast array of colorful foreign trees that flourish here: redwoods, flowering cherries, elms, eucalyptus and the like.
Ciscoe Morris -
The Best Trees for Northwest Gardens and How to Care for Them
Viewridge Room 11:30-12:15
Ciscoe is host of the show, ‘Gardening with Ciscoe’, every Saturday on KING5. His humorous and informational radio call in show, ‘Gardening with Ciscoe’, can be heard every Saturday morning on 710 KIRO. In addition, Ciscoe has co-authored two books. His newest book ‘Ask Ciscoe’ is among the top selling garden books nationwide. You can read Ciscoe’s ‘To Do’ column every week in the Saturday Gardening Section in the Seattle P-I.
Ciscoe will share his knowledge learned from years of planting and caring for trees, including both his favorites and trees to be avoided, as well as how to care for them to keep them attractive and healthy for years to come.
Marty Wingate -
Top 10 Small Trees
Viewridge Room 1:00-1:45
Marty Wingate is a Seattle-based writer and speaker about gardens and travel.
Her features appear every Thursday in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. She is the author of three books, including Big Ideas for Northwest Small Gardens. She also writes for national magazines, including Fine Gardening, The American Gardener, and Country Gardens.
Don’t have much of a yard? Don’t worry; there are trees to fit any space in your garden! Marty discusses her favorite small trees for urban gardens.
Linda Chalker-Scott -
Killing with kindness: how we enable trees to their ultimate demise
Viewridge Room 3:00-3:45
Professor of Horticulture at WSU, and Director of the Master Gardener program for Washington State, Dr. Chalker-Scott brings scientific research to the average gardener with her “Horticultural Myths” for MasterGardener Magazine, and her new book, “The Informed Gardener.”
Though we have the best of intentions, inappropriate and unsustainable management practices ultimately hurt, rather than help, our urban trees. This seminar will present and dissect five common myths associated with tree installation and aftercare. Handouts will be provided, and questions are always welcome!
Liesl Zappler -
Sustainable landscaping practices
Garden Room 12:45-1:45
Liesl Zappler has been organically gardening for 15 years. She has worked as a Gardener for the UW, Port of Seattle, Seattle School District, and has been the Head Groundskeeper at Lake WA Technical College for 2 years. She has also served on the Board of Seattle Tilth, and serves as the Public Member on the WA Pesticide Incident and Tracking panel.
The workshop will cover landscape design, tools, and techniques for sustainable maintenance practices. Mulches, soils, and alternatives to pesticides will also be discussed.
Matt Mega -
Trees and Birds: What’s the Connection?
Wedgewood Room 11:15 - 12:00
Matt Mega is Director of Conservation at Seattle Audubon. Throughout the U.S., the Audubon Society strives to protect and restore habitat for birds and other wildlife.
Make your backyard a bird habitat! Learn about what birds need to thrive in the urban forest, from tall trees to short shrubs, and everything in between. The basics of bird feeding, nest box placement, and more, will also be covered.
Hawthorn Hill Room -
Kids’ activities all day.
Mathew's Beach Room -
Hispanic Outreach, learn about trees, and have fun too! All day.