Seminars at The Maine Flower Show

The Maine Flower Show will be bursting with colorful display gardens for you to feast your eyes on, inspiring garden enthusiasts from near and far to plant something. But did you know? In addition to the beautiful display gardens, top horticultural experts will be giving free seminars on a variety of gardening topics. No advance sign up required – once you are at the show you can simply walk into a seminar until it is full! Check the complete schedule here, and read on for a small sampling of topics…

Mainely Ticks

Bob Maurais from Mainely Ticks will talk about deer ticks. Did you know that 75% of Lyme disease cases are contracted within 100 feet of the home? Join Bob for a timely discussion on how to better protect your family and pets from tick-borne diseases. Low-cost personal protection strategies, as well as landscape modifications will be discussed. Free, full-color tick identification cards will be given out at this seminar. You can also visit the Mainely Ticks website for more information.

Garden Club Federation of Maine

Suzanne Bushnell, president of the Garden Club Federation of Maine, will highlight the history of federated garden clubs in Maine. She’ll also show how their 2100+ members partner with local organizations to beautify communities educate the public on important environmental and conservation issues.

Resilient Seeds in a Changing Climate

Petra Page-Mann’s talk is called “Resilient Seeds in a Changing Climate.” Petra says: “We’ve lost over 80% of our agricultural genetic diversity in the last century and thriving in our changing climate demands diversity more than ever.” Come and learn about the most important seeds you can save for your own resilient garden. You can also find valuable information on her website, Fruition Seeds.

Barth Day Lilies

Jeff O’Donal will lead a discussion on the Barth Daylily, considered the longest continual hybrid daylily program in America. Dr. Joseph Barth was a pioneer hybridizer of tetraploid daylilies. His breeding lines have a high level of quality, producing daylilies known for their garden vigor, hardiness and beauty. Today, Dr.  Barth’s son, Nick, and his wife, Sandra, are carrying on his legacy of exceptional daylilies, working with the many fine remnants in his daylily garden to develop northern-bred, high performing daylilies. Jeff will look at resulting daylily varieties, introduce the very latest gems and show a collection of seedlings still being evaluated for possible introduction. He will also describe how O’Donal’s Nursery stepped in to save the Barth Daylily program when Fieldview Farm in Dresden decided to discontinue it in 2010.

So let’s dig into design, get our hands dirty, and learn about sustainable practices! You will discover new ways to transform your own space into an oasis bursting with life and color. Gardening enthusiasts wait for this opportunity all year long. Our seminars kick off just in time to initiate the growing season. Check out the complete schedule here, and plan to attend a talk that interests you!