MG College 2007 Classes, Workshops, & Seminars

TUESDAY, JUNE 19

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAINING

1:00 – 5:00 PM CONCURRENT LEADERSHIP SESSIONS

1) Policy Overview for Newcomers. This session should be attended by any new Extension agents, coordinators (paid or volunteer) or unit or association leaders not familiar with the basic policies of the VCE MG program. This information serves as the foundation for how your local MG unit operates and functions within the context of Virginia Cooperative Extension. Bring your office copy of the Coordinator Manual with you and if you don’t have one, electronic copies will be available to those needing a copy. Be prepared to take notes and ask questions!

2) Advanced Policy Discussion. This session is for the perennial Agent, Coordinator, and Unit/Association Leader who has previously attended the Policy Overview session. Join this facilitated session and dive deep into topics such as the pros and cons of MG associations, firing volunteers, what to do when MGs or MG teams go astray, EEO compliance, MG Stewards – where do they fit in? and more. This session requires active participation. The results of this session will help to enhance the Virginia Master Gardener program.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAINING

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM LEADERSHIP SESSIONS Today we will spend our time covering three major topics: Getting the Attention You are Due for your Efforts (incorporating program evaluation into your projects), Diversity, and Leadership Styles. All three sessions will be participatory. Be prepared to share ideas, experiences, successes, and failures. Each session will be lead or facilitated by a knowledgeable expert. You will get practical advice, training, and tools to more effectively lead your local VCE MG unit.

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM WATER STEWARDS TRAINING Get an overview of the Water Stewards program and the long-term expectations. Also, hear from a variety of experts on selected topics from the Water Steward training module. You must be authorized by your local Extension agent to enroll in this specialized training. There is an additional $75 training fee for this class. $50 for a Water Stewards Training Manual and $25 Registration fee. Visit Advanced Master Gardener or VMGA - MG College for additional information.

THURSDAY, JUNE 21

TOURS

12:00 – 5:00 PM

1) Healing Garden Project with Diane Relf, Professor Emeritus of the VT Department of Horticulture. Work with our very own internationally known expert in therapeutic horticulture as you assist in installing a healing garden. Learn while you contribute to the healing of our VT and Blacksburg communities in light of the April 16 tragedy.

2) Rain Garden Installation (required for Water Stewards) Get hands-on experience in installing a homeowner sized rain garden. You work alongside academic and practicing experts and be able to glean from their knowledge and real-life experience of installing and maintaining rain gardens.

3) Full Circle Organic Farm $15. Limit of 20. Would you like to visit a local farm that is fully powered by solar energy? Committed to and practicing sustainable agriculture? Incorporates draft horses in their farming operation, and runs a successful honor system community produce stand! If so, hop in a van and join Dennis Dove & Tenley Weaver for an afternoon on their farm in beautiful Floyd County.

4) Granny Janney's & Wildwood Farms $10 fee. Limit of 20. Take a scenic ride to Floyd, VA and enjoy an afternoon perusing Granny Janney’s hosta choices. Listen to Jan Coartney talk about the ins and outs of hostas and how to successfully grow and care for them. Then hop back in the van for a short drive on down the road for an amazing tour of a local daylily farm showcasing hundreds of varieities. Learn from Judy Bowman as she imparts her daylily knowledge to you!

5) Chateau Morrisette $15 fee. Limit of 30. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains and open year round, Chateau Morrisette offers an elegant old world atmosphere. You’ll enjoy a short tour of the facilities and spend time in their tasting room sampling 8 to 10 of their wine selections. You’ll receive a souvenir tasting glass to remember your experience. Chateau Morrisette is truly one of Southwest Virginia’s premier destination points! You must be 21 to participate, so bring your driver license to prove you are of age! Château Morrisette Winery

6) Private Garden Tours with Delbert Jones, VCE MG Volunteer in the New River Valley. $10 fee. Limit of 30. Join Mr. Jones for a tour of some of the most spectacular private gardens in the New River Valley. You must ride in one of the vans and no tailgaters allowed! (If you have been on this tour before, please be considerate of others who have not and give them an opportunity to register for this limited tour.)

1:30 – 5:00 PM

1) From the Farm to the Home: Composting at its Best. Join Bill Davis a VCE MG from Washington County as he gives you a tour of the composting operation at the Virginia Tech Dairy Farm. Learn about the unique step he developed while working with composting researchers at VT. You’ll see first hand the full-scale operation and see how commercial composting operations create the final product many of you use in your own home landscapes and gardens.

2) Smithfield Plantation. $5. Limit of 30. Receive a guided tour of this historic homestead that dates back to the late 1700s. Take a stroll through the restored historic garden. Smithfield Plantation.

3) Kentland Farms with Ron Morse, Professor Emeritus of the VT Department of Horticulture. $5. Limit of 20. Be intrigued as Dr. Morse demonstrates and discusses his life-long research area of no-till organic alternative techniques that are used on farm scale operations but could be adapted for the home gardener.

4) Urban Hort Center $5. Limit of 20. Receive a guided tour by VT researchers as they discuss the exciting work they have in progress at the Urban Hort Center. Learn about WoodGro©, a new cutting-edge growing media that may revolutionize the container plant industry. See roots developing underground with the mini rhizotron. Get a glimpse of some new plants being developed through the Beautiful Gardens© program before they are released to the public.

5) Hahn Hort Gardens, Pavilion & Greenhouse. Join Stephanie Huckestein, Director of Educational Outreach, in the garden as she guides you through this year’s themes and updates you on what is taking place at the Hahn Horticulture Garden. Also get a behind-the-scenes look at the Horticulture Department’s greenhouses and tour the Peggy Lee Hahn Pavilion.

6) Micropropagation Lab (Section 1) Suzanne Piovanno, Lab Specialist. $12 lab fee. Limit of 15. Learn about tissue culture techniques and micropropagate a few plants (this year it will be Boston Ferns) to take home. You will get to take home a couple of bonus plants too!

7) To Turf or Not To Turf? That is the Question $5. Limit of 20. In spring 2007 Virginia Tech will convert 13 areas of campus, totaling just over 35 acres, from regularly maintained turf grass lawn to low maintenance native grass meadows and wildflowers. Be one of the first to get a tour of three of these sites. You will be lead by a group of experts including a landscape architect, turf expert, and soils expert. Once that part of the tour is complete, hop in a van and ride over to the turf trial plots and see what is going on with Virginia turf.

8) National Weather Service $5. Limit of 20. Ever wonder about where those extreme weather advisories come from or who decides to release them? Meet some of the folks responsible for Extreme Weather Advisories and see the facilities in which they work.

9) VT Labs: Insect ID & Soils. Ever wonder who processes soil or insect samples sent to the on-campus labs? You have an opportunity to meet the folks that process samples and see first-hand the facilities where your samples are analyzed.

3:00 – 5:00 PM

1) Insect Walk with Eric Day, Manager of the VT Insect Lab, will give a campus walk identifying insects of concern as well as beneficials. This activity will occur rain or shine and requires a great deal of walking. Wear suitable clothing and appropriate footwear. Limit of 15.

3:30 – 5:00 PM

1) Micropropagation Lab (Section 2) Suzanne Piovanno, Lab Specialist. $12 lab fee. Limit of 15. Learn about tissue culture techniques and micropropagate a few plants (this year it will be Boston Ferns) to take home. You will get to take home a couple of bonus plants too!

FRIDAY, JUNE 22

KEYNOTE SESSIONS

8:30 AM – 12:00 PM 8:30 – 9:00 AM Welcome Addresses from Dean Sharron Quisenberry, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences and Jerzy Nowak, Horticulture Department Head.

9:00 – 9:30 AM Operation Rejuvenation - Restoring Mississippi's Coastal MG Programs Lelia Kelly, Consumer Hort Specialist for the state of Mississippi and Homer Richardson, VP for Mississippi Master Gardener Association

9:30 – 10:30 AM The Voyages of Captain John Smith (required for Water Stewards) Kent Mountford

10:30 – 11:00 AM BREAK

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM Responsible Irrigation Practices (with a view on pesticide alternatives) (required for Water Stewards) Andy Hankins

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

1:30 – 3:00 PM 1) Advanced Hypertufa Tom Teates, VCE MG Volunteer in the New River Valley. $10 lab fee. Limit of 22. This popular class is being taken to the next level this year. Participants will be given an advanced training in hypertufa. Construct a piece to take home with you but watch and learn how to build larger pieces. This session runs from 1:30-5:00.

2) BMPs for Lawn & Turf (required for Water Stewards) Mike Goatley, Extension Turf Grass Specialist will talk about turf management from a water quality perspective. This will touch on water-wise gardening but from a turf perspective.

3) Hardscapes at Home Limit of 20. Nathaniel Haile, proprietor of Haile Landscape Design, will do a 3 hour session on incorporating hardscapes into your home landscape. This session runs from 1:30-5:00.

4) Water Gardens Limit of 30. Keith Folsom, proprietor of Springdale Water Gardens, will do a 3 hour session on incorporating water gardens into your home landscape. This sessions runs from 1:30-5:00.

5) Tree Walk with Alex Niemiera, Associate Professor, Dept of Horticulture. Limit of 25. Take a tree walk with a horticulture bent as Alex guides you to some of the common and more unusual tree specimens on campus. Be prepared rain or shine and wear comfortable walking shoes.

6) Floral Arranging Alan McDaniel, Associate Professor, Dept. of Horticulture. $10. Limit of 27.Come learn the basics of floral design and take home your own unique and special arrangement of fresh flowers.

7) Human Insect Pests Dini Miller, Urban Entomology Specialist, will discuss pertinent issues around some of the most common pests humans battle. Included in the talk will be ticks, mosquitos, bees & wasps, and the ever-popular and highly publicized bed bugs.

8) Insect ID -- True Bugs Peter Warren, Extension Agent, Environmental Horticulture. Limit of 20.Peter will teach the basics of insect ID and then spend the rest of the session focusing on True Bugs. This session runs from 1:30-5:00.

9) Tree Walk with Jay Stipes, Professor Emeritus, VT Department of Plant Pathology, Physiology, & Weed Science. Limit of 25. See trees from a forest pathologist’s point of view as Dr. Stipes shares his wealth of knowledge about trees and tree health. Be prepared rain or shine and wear comfortable walking shoes.

10) Home Irrigation Systems Andy Hankins, Extension Specialist from Virginia State University, will teach a hands-on class on constructing a home irrigation system.

11) Rain Garden Plant Selection Mike Andruczyk, Extension Agent and author of the recent Rain Garden Plant Selection Extension publication will teach a class on how to successfully select plants for your rain garden.

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

3:30 – 5:00 PM 1) Advanced Hypertufa (cont)

2) Hardscapes (cont.)

3) Water Gardens (cont.)

4) Insect ID (cont.) 5) Tree Walk with Alex Niemiera, Associate Professor, Dept of Horticulture. Limit of 25. Take a tree walk with a horticulture bent as Alex guides you to some of the common and more unusual tree specimens on campus. Be prepared rain or shine and wear comfortable walking shoes.

6) Pet Friendly Gardens Blair Meldrum, Coordinator, Diagnostic Toxicology Laboratory & Professor of Veterinary Toxicology, Department of Biomedical Sciences & Pathobiology in the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Meldrum will give an in depth presentation on common plants that are toxic to pets and then provide tips on how to deal with animals that have ingested toxic plant materials.

7) Phytoremediation in the Landscape (required for Water Stewards) Limit of 40. Bonnie Appleton, Extension Specialist from the Hampton Roads Ag Research and Extension Center, will talk about some exciting new work in cleaning up storm-water runoff using aquatic and terrestrial vegetation.

8) What's All the Buzz? -- Bee Keeping Lisa Burley, Graduate Student in the VT Entomology Department. Honey bees are important as pollinators in our home gardens. Learn about a increasingly popular hobby as Lisa discusses the art of beekeeping. She will talk about the important aspects and considerations for starting and keeping an active hive.

9) More than Something Good to Eat: Herbs Barbara Brawley, VCE MG volunteer from Virginia Beach will impart her years of experience to you as she talks about cultivating herbs at home for culinary and landscape use.

10) This is not a drill -- extreme weather advisories Phil Hysell, Warning Coordination Meteorologist with the National Weather Service will provide an overview of the organization, including a detailed look at their watch, warning and advisory program. You will also be shown cloud features that will help you determine what type of weather will be approaching, which is taken from the basic SKYWARN class used to train official NWS weather spotters. Finally, the popular topic of climate change will be discussed.

11) Tree Walk with Jay Stipes Professor Emeritus, VT Department of Plant Pathology, Physiology, & Weed Science. Limit of 25. See trees from a forest pathologist’s point of view as Dr. Stipes shares his wealth of knowledge about trees and tree health. Be prepared rain or shine and wear comfortable walking shoes.

12) Living Wreaths $20 lab fee. Limit 20. Sheri Dorn, Meadowbrook Gardens (and former VCE MG State Coordinator) will lead a hands-on session covering the methods, plant selection, and care of living wreaths.

SATURDAY, JUNE 23

KEYNOTE SESSIONS

8:30 AM – 12:00 PM 8:30 – 9:00 AM Door Prizes/Brag Awards VMGA

9:00 – 9:30 AM Special Presentations State Fair of VA and VMGA Endowment Committee

9:30 – 10:30 AM Protecting Water Quality with Landscape Design (required for Water Stewards) Laurie Fox

10:30 – 11:00 AM BREAK

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM Thinking Outside the Muffin: Bodacious Plants for Your Consideration Holly Scoggins. There are too many fantastic species that we overlook or are hard to find because garden centers think "they don't look good in the container". Dr. Scoggins presents fabulous annuals, perennials, and woody plants that you may not be familiar with or think you don't have room for. Techniques for subduing some to manageable size included!

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

1:30 – 3:00 PM 1) Snakes at Home & In the Garden Mike Clifford, retired Extension Agent and co-author of The Snakes of Virginia will help you become familiar and a little more comfortable with these common reptiles with which we share our gardens and home landscapes.

2) Zen and the Art of Perennial Maintenance Limit of 40. Holly Scoggins, Associate Professor and Director of the Hahn Horticulture Gardens. To deadhead or not to deadhead - that is the question! Dr. Scoggins. provides the answers in her usual straightforward yet slightly off-kilter approach (along with de-mystifying tips on maintaining perennials and woodies to get the most out of them!)

3) Extension Programming Pat Reilly, in Prince William County (required for Water Stewards; open to all Advanced MGs). Learn how to research community needs, determine appropriate teaching methods to meet needs, ensure staffing/resources, and plan for continual improvement. This session runs from 1:30-5:00.

4) Best Plants for VA Limit of 40. Richard Nunally, retired Extension Agent, author, and Richmond TV personality will share his ideas and knowledge on the best plants for Virginia Landscapes.

5) From Healing Landscapes to Therapeutic Gardening: Understanding the Role of Horticulture in Human Well-being Diane Relf, Professor Emeritus, VT Department of Horticulture. The goal of this presentation is to help Master Gardeners recognize that their efforts are as important for the social, psychological, and spiritual well-being of their community as they are for the environmental and economic benefits most often discussed by Extension and to stimulate ideas or activities they might pursue in this area.

6) Is there a Fungus Among Us? – Plant Diagnostics Limit of 40. Mike Likins, Extension Agent, Environmental Hort. Mike will take you through the process of proper plant diagnostics. Learn how to determine if a plant is being affected by a fungus, bacteria, or virus or if it is simply showing symptoms of an abiotic stressor.

7) Small Fruits – Blueberries Jeremy Pattison, Extension Specialist at the Southern Piedmont Ag Research and Extension Center, will talk about blueberries in the home landscape. He will go into great depth and detail about this popular landscape plant and fruit producer. This will be an advanced topic.

8) Lessons for Youth Gardens Sarah (Lineberger) Pounders, Editor of Kids Garden News for the National Gardening Association (and former VCE MG State Coordinator). Learn about sources for activities and lessons tied to national curriculum standards. Participate in a few hands-on examples from GrowLab and Math in the Garden.

9) Riparian Restoration Tess Wynn, VT professor in Biological Systems Engineering. Dr. Wynn will cover a variety of topics as they relate to restoring riparian areas and how and why riparian zones play a crucial role in maintaining water quality.

10) Plants of Jamestown Marion Lobstein, Professor at Northern Virginia Community College. Dr. Lobstein will guide you back in time to the days of John Smith and others present at the Jamestown landing and discuss plants of historical significance.

11) Turf Weed Walk Shawn Askew, Researcher and Extension Specialist in Turfgrass Weeds. Dr. Askew will take you outside and teach you about some of the more common turfgrass weeds and what can be done to control them.

12) Budding & Grafting $15 lab fee. Limit of 20. Alan McDaniel, Associate Professor, Department of Horticulture & Barry Robinson, Extension Agent, Environmental Horticulture. Learn and perform the basic techniques of grafting and budding. Take home a grafted fruit tree and the renowned pomato plant! This class runs from 1:30-5:00.

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

3:30 – 5:00 PM 1) Extension Programming (cont.)

2) Budding & Grafting (cont.)

3) Can you Can? -- the art of food preservation Joell Eiffert, Extension Lab Specialist & Renee Boyer, Extension Specialist both with the Food Science & Technology Department will cover the basics of food preservation including canning, freezing, and drying. They will also give you a wealth of resources on canning recipes, contacts within Extension for specific food preservation questions, and other helpful resources available to assist you with your food preservation needs. This session will be good for the new or amateur canner.

4) Natural Resource Aspects of Real Estate Aaron Doyle, Local Real Estate Agent. You hear about the “Value of the Landscape,” when we talk about Sustainable Landscape Management Objectives. Come learn more details about Green Real Estate and other aspects of natural resources and how they directly impact the value of property.

5) Fun with Plants $10 lab fee. Limit of 20. Diane Relf, Professor Emeritus, VT Department of Horticulture. Activities that lend themselves to working with people of all ages in organized teaching and treatment settings to help them become involved in the joys and benefits of gardening. Includes demonstrations and digital presentations and three hands-on activities: Plant Pets, Earth-in-a-Bottle, and Button Gardens. Participant must bring a 2 liter clear plastic drink bottle with label removed, all other materials and supplies will be provided.

6) Managing "Unwelcome" Wildlife in your Habitat at Home© Carol Heiser, Habitat Ed. Coordinator, VA Dept. of Game & Inland Fisheries. This session provides an overview of tips and techniques for handling "problem" wildlife that may visit or take up residence around your home and garden. Learn how to avoid making your yard an "attractive nuisance" and some positive control methods for deer, moles, voles, woodpeckers, raccoons, groundhogs and other common species. Participants will receive a packet of informative fact sheets and resources.

7) All in the Family -- Plant Family Characteristics Marion Lobstein, Professor at Northern Virginia Community College. Dr. Lobstein will approach plant ID from the family level and cover common features, traits, and characteristics of some common native plant families.

8) Aquatic Insects Peter Warren, Extension Agent. Peter will cover some common aquatic insects by talking about some of their distinguishing features, habitats, and life cycles.

9) Garden Folklore Laurie Clarkston, VCE MG in Stafford. Have you ever wondered about the source of plant wives’ tales, plant superstitions, and plant folktales? Join Laurie for an interesting session as she explores the folklore of several common plants that have been used for centuries for a variety of purposes.

10) Who'll Stop the Rain -- LID for Master Gardeners Frank Reilly, VCE MG, Prince William. This overview of LID techniques includes what Master Gardeners can (and should) recommend and implement on the home landscape level. Rain barrels, rain gardens, and much more!

11) Sustaining Youth Gardens Sarah (Lineberger) Pounders, Editor Kids Garden News for the National Gardening Association (and former VCE MG State Coordinator). Discuss steps for planning a sustainable youth garden program including creating partnerships, involving school personnel, fundraising, and implementing evaluation and promotion.

SUNDAY, JUNE 24

KEYNOTE SESSIONS

9:00 – 11:30 AM 9:00 – 10:00 AM Wonders of the World through a Gardener's Eye Diane Relf Since her retirement, spreading the message of healing through gardening has taken Diane and Dave to beautiful countries around the world. She will share some of the gardens and other glories of nature and people through images taken over the last three years in Holland, Japan, New Zealand, Ireland, Korea, Norway and Peru.

10:30 – 11:30 AM Garden Creatures from Mars -- a look at hardy aroids Tony Avent

12:00 – 2:00 PM Picnic, Plant Swap, Plant Sale

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