Gardening For Food, Flowers & Fun 2022 - Saturday, March 5, 2022 9:00 am- Noon
Presented by University of Illinois Extension and Winnebago County Master Gardeners at NIU Rockford, 8500 East State Street, Rockford, Illinois.
University of Illinois Extension is pleased to announce that Gardening for Food, Flowers & Fun returns as an in-person event to offer you gardening tips for the growing season. Join us for this early rite of spring - an educational venture presenting fresh horticultural ideas, insights and techniques. $10 cost includes admission to all 3 sessions. Please register early as we are limiting the number of seats this year.
Session I: "Patterns in Nature that Inspire Japanese Garden Design" by Tim Gruner, Garden Curator - Anderson Japanese Gardens
Join Tim as he shares a very brief history of Anderson Japanese Gardens, then reveals some of the patterns in nature that inspire Japanese garden design. Included will be some of techniques for integrating the garden and architecture into one cohesive space.
Session II-A "Strawberries on the Small Scale" by Extension Educator, Grant McCarty.
Strawberries can be a great addition to grow for your family. While traditionally these fruits have been grown as perennials, there are annual strawberries that can be easily grown in a single-season alongside your vegetables. This course will walk through the basics of successfully deciding on your berries, setting up your patch, and managing them through the season.
Session II-B "Container Vegetable Gardening 101" by Grant McCarty, Small Foods & Local Farms Educator - University of Illinois Extension
If you have limited space or wanting to reduce the size of your vegetable garden, container gardening can be a great direction to go. With many different shapes and sizes, it can be difficult to determine what you can grow and what you cannot grow. In this quick course, we’ll look at the basics of container vegetable gardening, discuss the different containers available, and cover some of the main vegetables that would be suitable for containers.
Session III: "Cheerful Cutting Gardens" by Sam Burbach, Director of Education & Programming - Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden
Studies have proven that flowers make people happy, especially though receiving them. Growing flowers that are meant for cutting can be fun and easy to incorporate into your garden, and you'll be spreading home-grown joy in no time! Learn what plants produce great (and abundant) flowers for cutting and tips on harvesting and designing your flowers,
Silent Auction will be held.
In an effort to offer local, in-person programming, this event has been modified to keep you safe while attending. Masks are required to be worn at all times. Participants will be socially distanced. Hand sanitizing stations will be available. No food or drink will be served.
Registration and Check-in: 8:30 a.m.
Session I: 9:00-10:00 a. m.
Session II-A: 10:00-10:30 a.m.
Session II-B: 10:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Session III: 11:00 a.m. - Noon
