Growing From Seed for the Landscape

In partnership with the Maine Landscape and Nursery Association, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens presents the Green Spotlight Series, featuring local and national researchers, instructors, and field professionals from the green industry discussing topics valuable to peer professionals.

Sowing native plants is becoming more and more popular, but what, when, and how to cultivate them remains an area of uncertainty. Leslie will discuss sowing native plants for a variety of successful landscape settings, including the methods and timing for sowing seeds that will lead to strong germination rates and long-term growth, from what and where we can sow outdoors in November to what should be sown indoors during February or March. Leslie’s knowledge about propagating native plants will be valuable to any landscape or nursery professional.

The variety of topics in Green Spotlight Series is designed for a diverse range of landscape-related professionals from nursery and lawn-care specialists to arborists, landscapers, gardeners, and landscape designers/architects. MELNA members are eligible for the CMBG member price and will earn recertification credits and several sessions will count toward the State of Maine's Pesticide License recertification. Please inquire regarding credit approval for all other network agencies.

Location: Online
Instructor: Leslie Duthie
Price: $10 / $15

Irrigation Management: Greenhouse & Nursery

Water management can impact plant health and nutrient management. Here, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of a variety of water management systems available at greenhouses and nurseries. We’ll also briefly cover new technologies for managing water. After the talk, participants are welcome to pose questions and share new ideas.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Stephanie Burnett
Price: $10 / $15

What is Natural Design?

True native design encompasses more than simply using native plants. Considering ecological process in the design, planting, and management of native landscapes may very well be the missing components. This presentation examines how alternative approaches on everything from selecting, arranging, and spacing plants to the simple act of weeding can yield a more easily maintained landscape, one that express the beauty and ecological richness of our native surroundings.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Larry Weaner
Price: $10 / $15

Water Management in Urban Landscapes

Managing hydrology in cities presents profound design challenges including: finding space for daylighting and unsealing of pavement; managing urban flooding from extreme precipitation events; and restoring surface and subsurface water quality. These challenges are increasingly complex, given climate change and global urbanization. Landscape professionals have the skills and knowledge needed to meet these challenges while, at the same time, bringing beauty and resilience to our cities.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Jack Ahern
Price: $10 / $15

Efficiency in Greenhouse Growing

This talk will cover the above-ground aspects of greenhouse production and how to make it more productive, efficient, and profitable. Jeff Marstaller, greenhouse grower and owner of solar-powered Cozy Acres in North Yarmouth, will share his experience and a variety operations factors to consider, such as location, resources, and business model. He will speak to a spectrum of subtopics including selection, timing and quantities of crops, potted plant production, processes, goals and expectations, and details of plant sales and distribution. Both the beginner and the experienced greenhouse grower will find a valuable chance to network and share knowledge among peers.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Jeff Marstaller
Price: $10 / $15

Natural Landscape Design

Monday, January 25, March 1, and Saturday, May 15 Join landscape designer Larry Weaner as he guides students through the step-by-step process of designing native, ecology-based landscapes for New England. Specifics will include site analysis, species selection and arrangement, and the creation of ecological, process-based management specifications. Techniques to artfully combine all of these considerations will be woven throughout the program.

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Location: Online / at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens 132 Botanical Gardens Drive, Boothbay
Instructor: Larry Weaner
Price: $225 / $275

Landscaping with Wild Edibles

Growing edibles, especially natives, is a practice gaining traction in New England’s landscape industry. Incorporating native and wild edible plants provides a number of benefits; it adds biodiversity to the landscape, and eating produce straight from the garden deepens a connection to nature. Andy Brand, the Gardens’ Curator of Living Collections, will discuss some of his favorite perennial native edibles, from the woody to the herbaceous, highlighting design applications for both function and beauty.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Andy Brand
Price: $10 / $15

Nature’s Best Hope: An Introduction

Global insect declines and three billion fewer birds in North America are a bleak reality check regarding the how poorly our current landscape designs sustain the plants and animals that sustain us. The good news is there are steps we can take. We are nature’s best hope, and Doug Tallamy will discuss simple actions each of us can—and must—take to reverse declining biodiversity.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Doug Tallamy
Price: $10 / $15

Fruit Vines and Strawberries: What’s New?

Vines, especially edible vines, have been designed into gardens for centuries as canopy, food, and privacy, adding contrast and dimension to any landscape setting. This presentation will discuss new and classic varieties, plus how to manage the grapes, hardy kiwis, strawberries, and hops that work well in Maine landscapes. David Handley, berry fruit specialist at Highmoor Farm, will discuss what's available and appropriate for different applications and review growth habits, flowering times, colors, and what varieties will provide fruit through much of the season.

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Location: Online
Instructor: David Handley
Price: $10 / $15

Fruit Trees: Yielding Beauty and Flavor

Renae Moran, a fruit tree specialist at Highmoor Farm for UMaine Cooperative Extension, will discuss a selection of fruit trees for the home landscape, how much space they need, and the basics of espalier training for small spaces. Dwarf cherries, apples, and new peach varieties are just a few of the options to consider, all appropriate for a variety of landscape applications. Join us to learn more about, or to refresh and update, your fruit tree repertoire.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Renae Moran
Price: $10 / $15

Foundational Factors for Sustainable Turf

A sustainable and ecologically sound turf system succeeds when it is built on a foundation of sound agronomic practices matched to site characteristics and turf performance objectives. We will consider how factors such as aspect, light, soil condition and health, proximity to environmentally sensitive areas, and degree of turf maturity can inform decisions regarding implementation and timing of key cultural practices. In particular, we will examine the selection and establishment of appropriate turfgrass species and cultivars as an essential component of turf sustainability.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Mary Owen
Price: $10 / $15

Sow for the Future: Wild to Cultivated and Underused Edibles (Webinar)

What's the difference between a wild plant and a garden crop? MOFGA's organic crop specialist, Caleb Goossen, will speak about seed selection and seed saving, identify the differences between wild plants and modern hybrid cultivars, and the strengths and weaknesses that might influence your decision to grow these wild-to-domestic varieties. MOFGA's landscape coordinator, Jack Kertesz, will share some of his favorite underutilized edible annual and perennial plants to incorporate into a variety of gardens or naturalized into the landscape.

Location: Online
Instructor: Caleb Goossen
Price: $16 / $20

Establishing Trees in the Urban Landscape

Urban trees are indispensable in making our cities livable. In the past 15 years, researchers in urban forestry have developed methods of quantifying the ecosystem benefits provided by urban trees. In our increasingly paved cities, tree services are essential, as it has become clear that poor practices in tree selection and soil preparation have reduced the potential benefits of planting such trees. As our metropolitan areas are so heterogeneous, not all trees will do well in all sites. However, the most ubiquitous constraint to healthy, urban tree growth is soil compaction and limited accessible soil volume, leading to stunted trees that cannot withstand increasingly hot and dry summers. Fortunately, there are many practices that can overcome these challenges.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Nina Lauren Bassuk
Price: $10 / $15

Kitchen Garden Design: Plant Selection and Placement (Webinar)

Too often, gardeners rush to buy seeds and seedlings before considering placement, growth habit, and time of harvest. In this class, Ellen Ecker Ogden, author of The New Heirloom Garden, will take you through the process of selecting and growing plants from seed, the reasons to procure seedlings, and where in a garden plants perform best to yield successful, tasty produce, easy growth, and beauty. Discussion will include best varieties for flavor, fragrant and edible flowers, growing in succession, saving your own seed for the following year, and much more. Ellen Ecker Ogden's book will be available for purchase on-site at the Gardenshop at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.

Location: Online
Instructor: Ellen Ecker Ogden
Price: $34 / $40

Landscaping with Deer

Most Maine gardeners and general property owners have had to deal with deer venturing out of the wild and into the cultivated landscape. Deer are part of the ecology in Maine, but an increase in their populations, coupled with displacement of their habitat, have caused them to become a nuisance animal in residential garden settings. In this online lecture, landscape designer Cheryl Salatino will discuss design strategies, plant selection, and other deer deterrent and management methods to prevent your plant investments from being grazed upon.

Location: Online
Instructor: Cheryl Salatino
Price: $16 / $20

Fundamentals of Pruning (Webinar)

Learn the fundamentals of pruning in this online lecture and demonstration. Enjoy it as a refresher or, if new to it, gain the confidence to know what, how, and when to prune. Whether you’ve attempted to prune in the past with unsuccessful results, or you've been afraid to prune because you're not sure if you'll damage your plants, you’ll leave this lecture far more confident. We'll discuss appropriate tools, timing, goals, and techniques that will assist you in your pruning projects.

Location: Online
Instructor: Irene Barber
Price: $16 / $20

Gardening With Nature (SOLD OUT)

Anna Fialkoff, Program Manager at Wild Seed Project, will offer a virtual presentation explaining and featuring native plant selection and gardening practices to support and increase biodiversity whcih lead to beautiful gardens with minimal manual labor.

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Location: Online
Instructor: Anna Fialkoff
Price: $16 / $20