Gardening for Food, Flowers & Fun

2026 Rockford
Gardening for Food, Flowers, and Fun
Event Date(s)
Event Time
-
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Location
NIU Rockford Conference Center
Event Fee
$20.00
County
Winnebago
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Gardening For Food, Flowers & Fun 2026 - 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, March 14, 2026
Presented by University of Illinois Extension and Winnebago County Master Gardeners at NIU Rockford Conference Center, 8500 East State Street, Rockford, Illinois.
 
Illinois Extension is pleased to announce Gardening for Food, Flowers & Fun, an event offering gardening tips for the growing season. Join us for this early rite of spring - an educational venture presenting fresh horticultural ideas, insights, and techniques. The $20 cost includes admission to the keynote and two breakout sessions.

The Day

8:30 a.m. Registration (coffee and light refreshments will be available)
9:00 a.m. Welcome, Margaret Larson, County Director
9:15 to 10:15 a.m. Gardening in a Changing World: planning now for your garden’s future David McKinney, Curator of Collections and Grounds, Iowa Arboretum
10:25 to 11:25 a.m. BREAKOUT SESSION I: Choose one of the following:
  • Raised Bed Gardening Joan Burden, Master Gardener, University of Illinois Extension
  • Beyond the Bees: an up-close look at many of the other important creatures involved in pollination David McKinney, Curator of Collections and Grounds, Iowa Arboretum
  • Happy Houseplants 101: Make and Take Vicki Hubbard, Pepper Creek -$15 cost
 11:35 to 12:35 p.m. BREAKOUT SESSION II: Choose one of the following: 
  • The Joy of Growing Your Own Food Julie Thomas, Master Gardener, University of Illinois Extension
  • Myth Busting Nature 2.0 Connie McIntosh, Master Naturalist, Illinois Extension
  • Inside the Moonlight Garden at Midway Village Fiona Fordyce (Master Gardener), Kathy Crandall (Master Naturalist), Greg McQueary, Moonlight Garden Volunteers, University of Illinois Extension and Midway Village

We will hold a silent auction and have a book/magazine giveaway. Donations are always appreciated.
If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate, please contact
Erin Garner
Keywords
Master Gardeners
Gardening
Vegetable Gardening
Houseplants
Horticulture
Program Areas
Horticulture

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