Gardening Symposium
2023 Massachusetts Gardening Symposium
“Inspiration for Next Year’s Garden”
Saturday, September 23, 2023, 8:00 AM - 3:45 PM
Bentley University, LaCava Conference Center
Waltham, Massachusetts
Conveniently located just 3.5 miles off Route 95/128
Who should attend? In keeping with the MMGA’s mission to educate both our Master Gardeners and the public about gardening and horticulture, we welcome all gardeners, novices to experts, including Green Industry professionals. Will this be your first MA Gardening Symposium or your 7th? Are you coming with a carload of friends or making it a “me day”? No matter - you’ll find our attendees warm, welcoming, and fun.
What’s included:
One-hour lectures by four acclaimed horticulturists/designers/authors
Light morning buffet; boxed lunch
Garden Marketplace featuring local nurseries and artisans
Book signing table, Gardeners’ Choice raffle, door prizes, and a small thank you gift at day's end
Ample time to visit with new and existing friends
ATTENTION Master Gardeners: The MMGA Education Committee has approved the Gardening Symposium for a total of 4 hours of Continuing Education credit (1 hour per lecture).
GUEST SPEAKERS AND TOPICS
Just as our gardens are a journey, not a destination, so too is the Symposium; and we are always looking for ways to improve. We’re excited this year to bring you so many speakers and topics that deliver on what past attendees have told us they like most about the Symposium.
Lectures are most relevant, you’ve said, when speakers understand the delights and disappointments of gardening in the Northeast. Ta-dah! One of our 2023 presenters hales from right here in MA; two are from NY State; and one is from Maryland. All have strong New England connections.
At the end of the Symposium you want to come away with ideas you can put to use not just for next year but in some cases right now, this very fall. All of our 2023 speakers are hands-on practitioners. And, yes, there will be lots of how-to’s and handouts.
You appreciate suggestions for dealing with day-to-day challenges, like drought and marauding herbivores. Check out 2023 speaker Jen Kettell’s “Camel’s Garden” talk and Nancy Lawson’s presentation on “Hungry Mammals.”
Your garden is your happy place, you’ve said. Beautiful, of course, but also purposeful. Learn from speaker Veronica Tyson-Strait how your retreat can nourish both body and spirit and from Rebecca McMackin how you can manage your garden to better support our ecosystem.
Please join us on September 23. We hope you enjoy this year’s very special speakers and topics.
Jen Kettell
MA Certified Horticulturist, ISA Master Arborist, consultant
“A Camel’s Garden: Drought Tolerant Plants for a Changing Climate”
When the dog days of summer hit, many of us are faced with drought conditions and water bans that limit our ability to water our lush gardens. We find ourselves carefully monitoring the water level in rain barrels and hoping for the next rainfall. What if we started to incorporate plants that simply need less water? In this lecture, respected local arborist Jen Kettell will share the effects of drought on our woody plants and describe how plants adapt to deal with drought. Most importantly, you will LEARN ABOUT a new palette of trees and shrubs that will decrease your water use while increasing species diversity and beauty in your home landscape.
Nancy Lawson
“The Humane Gardener,” book author, Master Naturalist, habitat consultant
“Gardening Among Hungry Mammals: Strategies for Coexisting with our Wild Neighbors”
It’s hard to imagine, but white-tailed deer once were nearly extinct in dozens of states. Their abundance now puts them at odds with most gardeners, who become frustrated by the ineffectiveness of conventional and labor-intensive methods of protecting our gardens. When you add to the mix resident rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, moles and groundhogs, many gardeners are ready to throw in the trowel! Based on an understanding of plant resistance and tolerance strategies as well as animal behaviors and natural histories, acclaimed author Nancy Lawson will show how to create resilient gardens that also support an abundance of life in our home habitats. LEARN HOW a combination of strategies can help you trade resistance for peaceful coexistence.
Rebecca McMackin
Former Director of Horticulture, Brooklyn Bridge Park; Loeb Fellow, Harvard Graduate School of Design
“Adventures in Ecological Horticulture”
Habitat stewardship is a vital component of creating enduring and ecologically healthy landscapes. But traditional landscaping practices rarely take biodiversity into consideration, and there is a dearth of effective guidelines to inform this goal. For ecological horticulturist Rebecca McMackin cultivating habitat is central to landscape management. In her 10 years as Director of Horticulture at New York’s Brooklyn Bridge Park, Rebecca oversaw 85 acres of diverse, organic landscapes, all managed to support birds, butterflies, and soil microorganisms. LEARN HOW to use ecological insight and experimentation to develop new management strategies – and why careful observation and documentation of the insects, birds, and other wildlife in our gardens is crucial to their success
Veronica Tyson-Strait
Horticulture Manager, Randall’s Island Park Alliance, NY; landscape designer
“The Cottage Garden Redux: Spaces That Nourish and Charm”
Since the pandemic, growing sun-kissed tomatoes and crispy greens has become the dream of numerous ornamental gardeners. Some of us have even contemplated becoming farmers. We need spaces that nourish our bodies while uplifting our spirits and providing ecological benefits. We want all this in often-limited space or with insufficient sunlight. Hear from horticulturist Veronica Tyson-Strait how to update and modify an existing garden or create a new space that can bring together and satisfy all these needs and wants. LEARN HOW to transform a space into an intimate sanctuary and habitat…and create structures, edible and ornamental plant palettes, and cottage garden elements that add beauty and seasonality while inspiring a deeper connection to the earth.
PRICING
Early Bird registration through July 15, 2023, 11:59:59 PM: $80.00 per person
Regular price July 16-September 7, 2023: $95.00 per person
Registration closes on September 7, 2023, at 5:00 PM ET or as soon as we reach capacity.
In past years we have filled up early. We encourage you to sign up soon.
Refund requests accepted through September 7, 2023, at 11:59:59 PM.
The Symposium is always more fun with friends, so invite others to join you. You can view, download and print our flyer by clicking here.
If you would like to register and pay for guests, please complete a separate online registration form for each person. Fill out the first page of the online form using the guest's name, email address, street address, lunch selection, etc. On the second page of the form, use your own personal payment information. If you are registering multiple guests, please use a different email address for each person.
QUESTIONS?
Click here for our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
Your question may already have been asked and answered.
Still have questions?
Email us at SympInfo@MassMasterGardeners.org
Header photo courtesy of Rebecca McMackin.
Ms. Lawson's photo portrait by Jennifer Heffner.