Master Gardener Speakers' Bureau - Adults
Vegetable Gardening
Backyard Food Production Are you interested in growing your own food, but not sure where to start? This introduction to backyard food production will walk you through the basics, including how to select a site for your garden, creating vegetable and herb gardens, adding fruits and nuts to your system, and the benefits of keeping small animals.
Edible Landscaping Do you like the idea of food production, but want to maintain aesthetics? It's very easy to integrate fruit, nut, and vegetable-producing plants and shrubs into your existing yard or garden without sacrificing the beauty of ornamentals. Join us for a discussion about how to ease - or leap - into the intriguing world of edible landscapes.
Extending
the Vegetable Growing Season
Grow More in Less Space: Intensive Vegetable Gardening** This
program is for you whether you have lots of space or are limited in where you
can create a garden. It will help you understand how to concentrate your
efforts to create an ideal plant environment giving you better yields and with
less labor.
Organic Gardening This presentation reviews the definition of organic gardening, organic labeling and various things to do to make your own organic garden.
Small Space Vegetable Gardening
Victory Gardens – 2 parts Part 1 details garden preparation. Part 2 gives an overview of planting and timing. Each is 45 minutes. Presentations can be combined or given separately.
Earth Day, Every Day
The American Chestnut: Its Past and Hope for the Future** This presentation highlights the history of the “Redwoods of the East” and will bring the audience up to date on the traditionalbreeding program being done by the American Chestnut Foundation in search of a blight-resistant tree.
A Day in the Fall, Setting the Stage For the Birds** A photogenic presentation from twilight to dusk of the feeding cycle of fall birds in a suburban setting.
A Day in the Spring, Setting the Stage For the Birds** A photogenic presentation from twilight to dusk of the feeding cycle of spring birds in a suburban setting.
A Day in the Winter, Setting the Stage For the Birds** A photogenic presentation from twilight to dusk of the feeding cycle of winter birds in a suburban setting.
Composting Turn garden and kitchen waste into black gold. Save landfill space by learning to recycle grass, branches, leaves, and more.
Vermicomposting: How You Can Compost Inside, Even During the Winter Whether you have a lot of land, or no land, whether you compost already or not, you can compost with worms. Learn how worms can eat your garbage, provide food for your potted plants, and be great companions for young and old alike!
Creating Backyard Wildlife Habitats Introducing the National Wildlife Federation’s Backyard Habitat program; focus on developing your outdoor space to be an oasis for birds, butterflies, wildlife, and, of course, humans.
Garden for Wildlife The garden is a place for creatures to live and work. Invite wildlife into your backyard by creating spaces for butterflies and birds to enjoy. One hour, with or without slides.
Garden Jeopardy!** Using the game show format, your group will be divided in two and then learn basic garden concepts like planting, pruning and pest care through questions and answers.
Green Gardening Green gardening minimizes damage to the environment and reduces waste of man-made and natural resources. This presentation sticks to the science and research provided by the Penn State Extension with a focus on basic principles that are easy for a home gardener to adopt. You will learn how to minimize disruption of native habitats, maximize soil quality, practice green pest management, and conserve water and fertilizers.
Raising Monarchs** These amazing insects are a jewel of the garden. Learn about their life and how easy it is to raise them in your backyard.
Spring Scenes from the Volga River in Northwest Russia** Take a cruise through famous historical sites, markets and villages and see interesting gardening practices usedin Northwest Russia.
Gardening in Tanzania, Africa Get a glimpse of gardening practices in small villages and coffee plantations in Tanzania. Presentation lasts 45 minutes. A 20-minute presentation on animals can be also be included.
Cruise the Nile, visit gardens and ancient temples Start at Cairo then cruise to Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Aswan, Pyramids, markets and agricultural sites.
Do-It-Yourself Garden Maintenance
Basic Shrub and Perennial Care
Pruning Landscape Trees and Shrubs* Learn the right techniques for pruning and shaping trees and shrubs. We’ll discuss various tools and learn when you can do-it-yourself and when a job needs to be turned over to the professionals.
Lehigh Valley Landscapes
Anything You Want to Know About Trees An Intternational Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist, and can give presentations on insects and diseases of trees, proper pruning of trees, how to identify defects in trees, how trees grow, how to identify species of trees and discuss City Ordinances for Shade Tree Commissions.
Colonial Herbs Travel back to the early days of our country to discover how herbs were used in everyday life. 45 minutes long
Comforting the Dementia Patient through Gardening** This is about the long range planning (years) of a garden for a patient with dementia. Considering patient’s mobility, sensory limitations, seasonal changes, caregivers limitation and minimize dangers.
Covering
Ground with Groundcovers*
Creating Habitat Within Native Plant Gardens Native plant gardens can be used to attract a wide variety of wildlife species to your yard. Birds, as well as butterflies and other fascinating insects are fun to learn about and to photograph amongst your plants.
Flowering Trees: The Good, the Bad and the Scabby Some common flowering trees are good, some have problems, and there are a host of lesser-known flowering trees that could be used more often. Visuals of common disease and insect problems.
Focus on Foliage: Shape, Texture and Color in Garden Design**
Hardy Flowers for Winter and Early Spring**
Healing Gardens**
Native Plants* What does “native” mean and why is it important in the landscape? Through pictures and plants, learn more about natives and howto bring them into your backyard. One hour, with or without slides. Exploring and showing plants and botanical symbolism in the Bible and other religions.
Quintessential English Garden
Roses** This presentation can cover both the history and care of roses.
Scented Geraniums
Shade Gardening*
Shady Secrets** Gardening in the shade can be a challenge. It’s important to learn the different degrees of shade to know which plants are appropriate in different situations. Sometimes even varieties of mosses can be a lovely and useful choice.
Water Coloring: Aquatic Gardening Plants and their Adaptations Learn about the joys of aquatic gardening, plant selections and plant adaptations to the water environment.
Water Gardening Basics*
Why Not Bamboo?** Learn about bamboo that does not bring horror and fear to gardeners and their neighbors. Discover the many different types, colors and shapes of bamboo that will flourish in the Lehigh Valley, along with how to plant and control it. Perhaps this most utilitarian plant will become of your favorites, too.
Challenging Solutions
Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs** What a nuisance! But is that all? Do they damage ornamental plants? Crops? Which ones and how? What can be done to control them?
Common Landscape Pests** How to identify common landscape pests and how and when to control them.
Dealing with Deer in the Landscape* How to deal with deer when they are nibbling on or destroying your landscape. We start with some simple deterrents and work up to more sophisticated tactics.
Dealing with Animal Pests* A slide presentation that discusses different types of animal pests and how to recognize there damage, as well as the different controls you can use in these situations.
Defensive Gardening Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that relies on a combination of common sense practices. IPM is not a single pest control method, but rather a series of pest management evaluations, decisions and controls.
Emerald Ash Borer** Are we going to lose all of our ash trees now, too? Is ash an endangered species? The emerald ash borer – what it’s doing, where it’s going, what it could do, and how you can help.
Invasive Exotic Insects** We’re hearing more and more about invasive organisms from other countries becoming established in the United States. Which of them should we be looking out for, and what should we do when we think we’ve found one?
Native Alternatives to Invasive Garden Plants: Perennials**
Native Alternatives to Invasive Garden Plants: Trees and Shrubs**
Pennsylvania's Most Unwanted: Invasive Plants in the Landscape What we plant can have a profound effect on the ability of our land to support native wildlife. Plants that have escaped into the wild have displaced native species causing loss of habitat for wildlife. Pennsylvania’s most notorious invasive plant species and ways to rid them from the landscape are discussed.
Rain Gardens** Learn how to create a rain garden to intercept stormwater runoff.
Tracking Climate Change through Bloom Times A discussion of using phenology in the garden to help us understand the impacts of climate change. The talk includes some history of phenology which includes records of Asian cherry trees going back 1,000 years, and historic records of gardeners in Europe, and folks like Jefferson, Thoreau, and Leopold. The audience will learn how to get involved in the Eastern Pennsylvania Phenology Project.
West Nile Virus and Mosquito Control Around the Home
Hands-On Gardening
Kissing Balls or Boxwood Trees…a long-lasting holiday ornament Demonstration on making that romantic holiday item…the Kissing Ball. Boxwood trees…demonstration of a tabletop tree using fruits, nuts and ribbons.
Making Holiday Wreaths Create your own live wreath using greens and natural materials from nature. Also, transform that “faux” wreath into a beautiful keepsake using recycled materials.
*Slide Show Available
**PowerPoint Presentation
