BURLINGTON – The University of Vermont (UVM) Extension Master Gardener program will offer its annual conference on December 2, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., via Zoom. Anyone with an interest in gardening is invited to attend the event.
The conference theme, “Fostering Resilience in Our Gardens,” reflects on this year’s challenging growing season, including the late frost in May and July floods. It also looks to the future with ways gardeners can better weather interpersonal and gardening challenges.
Featured speakers include Matthew Wichrowski, who will kick off the conference by delving into the world of personal resilience through the lens of gardening. Wichrowski is a registered horticultural therapist and a clinical associate professor of rehabilitation medicine with New York University’s Langone Medical Center.
Alicia Wasula, a forensic meteorologist, will address how gardeners can prepare their gardens in the face of climate change. She is the owner/president of STM Weather, a meteorological firm in Troy, New York, that provides climatological analysis and weather preparedness plans.
UVM Extension Agronomist Heather Darby will give a presentation on the importance of building and maintaining soils for resilient gardens. Sarah Kingsley-Richards, the UVM Extension Pesticide Safety Education Program coordinator, will share information about biopesticides, an emerging component of integrated pest management to keep plants healthy and thriving.
Gardeners also may take part in an optional lunchtime session to exchange ideas, share successes and challenges from their growing season and discuss the morning’s presentations.
Registration is $40 per person before November 22, $55 after that date. Discounted rates are offered for UVM Extension Master Gardener and Vermont Master Composter volunteers. The fee includes access to the recorded presentations for 30 days after the conference.
For more information or to register, please visit the conference website at go.uvm.edu/2023gardeningconference. Registration closes on November 30.
The conference will be live captioned. If needing another disability-related accommodation to participate, contact Deb Heleba at [email protected] or (802) 656-1777 by November 22.
