MSU Extension Master Gardener Program

Master Gardener Conference attendees have access to all keynote sessions and registered breakouts/workshops.

Session A - Friday, August 23: 12:45-1:45 p.m.

Let's Talk Tomatoes: America's Favorite Fruit

Partnering with SNAP-Ed to support food and nutrition security through edible gardening

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education, or SNAP-Ed, is a federally funded program implemented throughout the state by MSU Extension professionals in coordination with community partners. SNAP-Ed focuses on supporting food security, promoting healthy eating habits, physically active lifestyles and engaging partners to build healthier communities. This session aims to provide an overview of the SNAP-Ed program in Michigan and highlight opportunities where Extension Master Garden volunteers can offer their expertise in supporting the success of garden-based education and edible gardening projects.

Regenerative Agriculture: Growing a Sustainable School & Community

Attendees will learn about the multi-level effort that Interlochen's regenerative agriculture program and sustainability department has developed since 2017. In this program, high school students at the institution utilize community service and a regenerative agricultural science class to interact with local schools, the cafeteria, local food pantry, community volunteers, and public classes to grow together. Follow the school's 7-year journey to sustainability, earning the 2019 lifetime achievement recognition award, Green Ribbon School Award, from the US Department of Education. Learn about Interlochen's commitment to growing food through regenerative practices with the natural landscape. Through the use of pollinator gardens, native perennials, orchards, permaculture, raised beds, hoophouses, an apiary, greenhouse, aquaponics, and an outdoor educational learning pavilion and outdoor kitchen, Interlochen has become a hub of learning, growing, gathering, and sharing. With the role of students nestled at the heart of all programming, place-based learning drives a rich and biodiverse curriculum for students to fall in love with nature and science. With robust community programming - extending to community partnerships, volunteers, community service, and outreach, Interlochen demonstrates a deep commitment to sustainability and education. Attendees will learn about Interlochen's grant funding resources and tips for winning over administrative support!

Trash Talk: Plastic Pollution in the Great Lakes

Marine debris is anything human-made that can end up – intentionally or unintentionally – in our rivers, lakes, and ocean. This session explores plastic pollution in the Great Lakes and prevention strategies. Complex problems, like marine debris, require all of us working together!

Unique Flora of GTRLC Nature Preserves

The Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy (GTRLC) has protected over 47,000 acres of significant natural, scenic, and farm land and over 155 miles of shoreline in its 5-county service region since 1991.  Among these protected lands are 80 nature preserves and natural areas open to the public. These natural lands are home to many unique flora and fauna of northwest lower Michigan.  Understanding the biodiversity of nature preserves informs thoughtful trail design, restoration, engagement, and stewardship of these amazing places. As part of this presentation, Angie will highlight some of the unique and high conservation value plant species found on GTRLC-protected lands open to the public, as well as sharing opportunities to learn more, such as community science, native plant greenhouse volunteer efforts, and more.

Session B - Friday, August 23: 2-3 p.m.

Bioengineering: Advanced Options for Healthier Shorelines

You may be familiar with the negative impacts of shoreline development on water quality and know that naturalizing shorelines can mitigate some of those impacts. In this talk, you will learn several approaches to shoreline protection and restoration that are also beneficial for our lakes. We will discuss how to figure out which method is right for a particular shoreline and the how to choose native plants that will stabilize eroding shorelines and increase their resilience. We will also cover helpful resources that can help you design your own shoreline restoration project.

Compost 101 - A Compost Deep Dive

In this hour long presentation, Eliza will teach the basics of backyard composting and worm composting methods. We will explore methods of building bins, microbiology of compost organisms, explore how to troubleshoot your compost pile and more. This presentation is a sample of what one can learn by taking the newly revised Master Composter course through MSU Extension. After this session you will leave informed on how to begin composting at home and empower others to compost as well.

Growing Greener Schools: Resources to Support Youth Programming

Join Michigan’s statewide Environmental Education Coordinator to learn how your time as a Master Gardener volunteer can contribute to advancing sustainability in Michigan schools and youth programs.  Learn about resources from EGLE’s Lending Program that can support your own youth programming, and find out how your current volunteer work may help schools achieve Michigan Green School certification.

Partnering with SNAP-Ed to support food and nutrition security through edible gardening

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education, or SNAP-Ed, is a federally funded program implemented throughout the state by MSU Extension professionals in coordination with community partners. SNAP-Ed focuses on supporting food security, promoting healthy eating habits, physically active lifestyles and engaging partners to build healthier communities. This session aims to provide an overview of the SNAP-Ed program in Michigan and highlight opportunities where Extension Master Garden volunteers can offer their expertise in supporting the success of garden-based education and edible gardening projects.

Trash Talk: Going green in Michigan

Every day we generate waste, but it doesn't always have to end up in a landfill. In this session, learn tips on how to host zero (or reduced) waste events along with other ways to sustainably manage waste as a resource!

Session C - Friday, August 23: 3:30-5 p.m.

Building Community: How Outdoor Play and Discovery in the Garden Improves Student Outcomes

The garden is not just a place for children to discover and wonder about the world around them. A conversation sparked by Bowers Farm Master Gardener volunteers led to a community-driven effort to design a natural play area focused on engaging kids and families of all ages. A place that provides children with endless hours of fun through exploration. Students, teachers, and parents joined in a collaborative design process to craft a vision of the new Children’s Discovery Garden at Bowers Farm. With help from our friends at MSU Children's Garden Curator Dr. Norm Lownds, and renowned Landscape Architect Micheal J. Dul from Birmingham, Michigan, a design was born. We are now ready to blossom from a design plan into reality: a hands-on, learning place for thousands of children each year. Free play and exploration provide children with opportunities to develop the physical and cognitive skills and self-confidence to meet many challenges that they may face in school and as they grow older.

How to Go Beyond Beauty in Your garden!

Going above and beyond current Michigan regulations, the Go Beyond Beauty program celebrates nurseries, landscape professionals and community organizations or members who choose to not sell or use high priority invasive plants for the betterment of local habitat. Learn about the most concerning landscape plants and what their native look-alikes are!

Lavender 101

Bill Mansfield, Owner, Lavender Hill Farm

Bill will provide an introduction to the operations of Lavender Hill Farm in Boyne City, it’s history, and production of value-added products.

MI Healthy Climate Plan & the MI Healthy Climate Corps

We'll discuss the State of Michigan's MI Healthy Climate Plan and the newly launched MI Healthy Climate Corps.
The MI Healthy Climate Plan lays out a pathway for Michigan to reach 100% carbon neutrality by 2050 to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis, create good-paying jobs, and build a healthier and more prosperous, equitable, and sustainable Michigan for all Michiganders. It has seven objectives:

• Mitigate the worst impacts of climate change
• Spur economic development and create good-paying jobs
• Protect and improve the health of Michiganders
• Position Michigan as a leader in climate action
• Protect our natural resources and wildlife
• Make Michigan energy independent
• Address environmental injustices

National Wildlife Eco-Green in Partnership with WJP Urban Farms

NWF Eco-Green is in its eighth year of supporting schools across Southeast Michigan, Norther Ohio and beyond that are making real change on their campuses to mitigate climate change through action-based Eco-Schools projects with the support of General Motors. Twenty schools are projected to reach 3,100 students with the support of 134 teachers and staff as they implement recycling, compost systems, rain gardens, native gardens, vegetable gardens, and design environmentally friendly homes and skateparks to name a few.

Safe and Sustainable – Get the Latest on Home Preserving Your Garden Produce

Has it been a while since you home preserved what you grow or are you looking for the latest information? In this session, we will explore up-to-date home food preservation methods and recipes to ensure the safety of the food you preserve. Leave with a plethora of food safety tips and connections to valuable Extension food safety resources so you know where to send community garden members and others you educate so they can learn more, too.

This session is only an hour long session and will conclude around 4:30 p.m.

Session D - Saturday, August 24: 10:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. 

Creating bee nesting structures for your gardens and landscapes

Numerous species of bees and some other beneficial insects will readily use man-made structures and spaces for nesting sites. Suggested materials and simple construction methods will be shown. Materials and finished "bee hotels" will be on hand for participants to examine.

Reflections from the 2024 MSU EMG International Trip to Western Canada

Join MSU Extension Educators and MSU Extension Master Gardeners just one month after they have returned from an MSU EMG Study Abroad Trip to Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. This is a group presentation highlighting what volunteers and staff learned about sustainability in the forested mountains, agricultural settings and urban green spaces of this region, as well as what they learned from the people who live there, such as foresters, agricultural growers, First Nation members, Canadian Master Gardeners and university and public garden professionals. If you never travelled as an MSU EMG on an international trip - join us to learn about the experience from those who just returned, what they learned and how you can get involved in future ones.

Seed Saving 101

Learn how to save the seeds from your flowers, vegetables and herbs to use them for next year in this informative program with author and seed farmer Bevin Cohen. Using a combination of engaging demonstrations, discussion, and lecture, Bevin will guide you through multiple seed saving techniques so you are able to use your harvest to have seeds for next year's gardens. Learn the difference between heirloom, hybrid, and GMO seeds; gather the equipment you'll need for successful seed harvesting; and discover why this traditional practice is still so valuable today!

When Trees Move to Florida: Helping Michigan’s Woody Plants Thrive in the Face of Climate Change

Brent Crain, Consumer Horticulture Educator, MSU Extension 

Michigan trees and shrubs are well adapted to yesterday’s climate and face distinct threats to their health and survival in the face of climate change. We’ll discuss what happens to woody plants both inside (physiological adaptation) and outside (phenotypic plasticity) in response to environmental stressors. We’ll also look at ways we can give our woody friends a fighting chance, and maybe, just maybe, help them thrive where they are planted.

Session E - Saturday, August 24: 2:15-3:15 p.m.

Bonsai is a Verb!

Bonsai is one of the world's oldest, slowest, and most spectacular performing arts. Bonsai is an action more than a result. Over nearly 2,000 years, many cultures have infused bonsai through artistic re-imagination and nuanced horticultural finesse. Bonsai's trajectory is bright and exciting in America. We're fortunate in our Great Lakes region not only to have vibrant bonsai societies, but to be present for the incremental gifting of one of the most important private bonsai collections in North America to the UM Matthaei Botanical Gardens. This session centers on the Melvyn C. Goldstein Bonsai Garden and its (when completed) nearly 200 new-to-us trees. Many are likely centenarians. Lets slip 'behind the stage curtain' to see these quietly commanding individuals that uphold standards of excellence and dance at the pinnacle where values, meaning and beauty meet.

Friends or Foe? Companion planting in the vegetable garden

Would you like to learn more about companion planting? What exactly is it? Do some plants 'like' each other more than others? Can you use this principle to be more successful with vegetables, herbs, and flowers? We will provide examples of different cultural companion planting uses. Attend this session to learn the what, why, and how of companion planting.

Michigan's Natural Garden: Native Plants and Design for Your Backyard

Are you thinking about introducing native plants to your home garden? What exactly are native plants anyway? In this short course, we will think about how we define native plants and learn about the benefits of introducing native plants to your landscape. We will also talk about how to choose the right plants for your yard and how they can complement an old or new design.

Plant galls and other deformities caused by insects and mites

Many hundreds of insect and mite species induce special growths of plant tissue at their feeding sites. These growths are called galls, erineum patches, curls or witches brooms depending on the shape and location of the deformities. Many galls have a very striking appearance, but most are of little importance to plant health. The basics of gall formation and the life histories of the causal insects and mites will be presented.

Supporting and Protecting Pollinators

Learn about different pollinators in Michigan, the issues they’re facing, and what people can do to help keep them healthy.

Trees ranges predicted to shift as the climate changes

As the climate warms and weather patterns shift, local conditions in forested ecosystems will also change and may affect the site suitability for some tree species. At this talk, we will discuss predicted conditions and which tree species are expected to gain or lose habitat in future years.