Behnke Nurseries: Beltsville

Winter/Spring 2008 Lecture Series

Saturdays at 1:00pm in Beltsville,
Call 301-937-1100 to register

Seminars are FREE, unless otherwise noted

       

March 22

#S10    Building a Butterfly Garden

            Carol Allen, Horticulturist      

Butterflies are the angels of the insect world. Attract butterflies to your garden with the proper selection of plants for adults and larvae alike.

           

March 29

#S11    Maintaining the Perennial Garden

            Martha Pindale, Horticulturist           

Get the most from your perennials: keep them shorter and fuller, stagger the blooming period, and encourage rebloom by selective pruning. Learn about watering and fertilizing. Get answers to all your perennial questions!      

                  SPECIAL SUNDAY SEMINAR
                  March 30,  1pm
                  The Best Plants and Tips for a Colorful Garden Year Round with Andre Viette
                  Legendary Plantsman & Radio Personality

A free-form presentation which will include topics such as: new garden products; low-maintenance plants; soil preparation; and new cultivars.
Plants discussed will be primarily perennials.   

   

April 05

#S12    Book signing!  Conifers for the Home Landscape

            Dr Richard Bitner, Author

The author of Conifers for Gardens: An Illustrated Encyclopedia will help you make wise choices when adding conifers to your home landscape. Learn the historical use of conifers, their use and misuse today, and the best of the commercially available conifers for our area.

           

April 12

#S13    Herbs to Delight the Taste Buds

            Cindy Brown, Assistant Director, and Horticulturist in charge of the 
            Epicurean Collection Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, VA

Grow herbs but seldom use them? Cindy Brown will demonstrate how varying herb combinations evoke different regional flavors when used to season a simple hummus dip. Learn both to grow and use herbs in this popular demonstration and lecture.

           

April 19

#S14    Book/DVD signing!     Pruning Matters: The Formula for Pruning Mastery

            Fran West, Master Pruner

Pruning a tree or shrub can rejuvenate it and make it much more attractive. Simplifying a complex subject, Fran makes pruning easy for the homeowner. She will show her favorite pruning tools, and teach a few easy-to-apply rules for pruning decisions. Rain or shine; dress for the weather!

            Pre-registration essential; Class limited to 45  

April 26

#S15    Designing with Native Plants

            David Culp, Sunny Border Nurseries 

World-class gardener David Culp will feature his favorite native plants, and show you how to combine them with exotic plants and other native plants for stunning combinations. Presentation will deal primarily with perennials.

           

May 03

#S16    Easy Care Roses

            David Kinderdine, Velvet Touch Rose Service

Roses are one of our most popular plants. Find out the best varieties for your landscape.

           

May 10

#S17    Reliable Summer-Blooming Perennials

            Larry Hurley, Behnke Nurseries Perennial Buyer

Buy now, bloom later! Most folks buy plants in bloom, which means their gardens tend to be showiest in late spring. Extend your garden display with summer bloomers-available now but not yet in color.

           

May 17

#S18    Hostas: Bold Foliage for the Shade Garden

            Randy Best, Mister Hosta, Behnke Nurseries Staff      

Hosta breeders have been busy! Big leaves, small leaves, leaves       
with hints of orange and stems of red. Randy will present his favorites of the new hostas, the old reliables, and tell you his secrets for growing spectacular plants.

           

May 24

#S19    Hosting the Potomac Bonsai Society:   Potomac Bonsai Society Auction Local Bonsai collectors offer plants at this society fund-raising auction. Meeting and auction open to the public. 10 am – 12 pm

May 31

#S20    Field Trip through Behnke Nurseries, Beltsville

            Behnke Nurseries Staff

Spend an hour walking through Behnke Nurseries with our staff. We will split into groups of about a dozen each. Each group will be led by one of our perennial or woody plant experts. We will walk through the sales area, pointing out our favorites, explaining their features and needs, and answering questions. Rain or shine; dress for the weather.          

Here is our Seminar Schedule in PDF format:  handout2008pdfversion.pdf
Here is the same Seminar Schedule in MS Word .doc format: seminarlistforweb2008.doc

Heres a couple links to download Behnkes Weekly Sminar Schedule. We will have an online version on our new website at Behnkes.Com soon. For the moment Behnkes.Com is under construction but look for a new design and format very soon.

Here is our Seminar Schedule in PDF format:  handout2008pdfversion.pdf

Here is the same Seminar Schedule in MS Word .doc format: seminarlistforweb2008.doc

Saturday March 1st, 2008 - 1:00 pm at our Beltsville Store. 

DOO: the Right Thing. Organic Products and How They Work
Bob Peterson, Cockadoodle DOO Organic Lawn and Garden Products

 Everyone wants to go Organic. Learn about organic products for lawn and garden care and how they work to build healthy soil and improve your plant’s tolerance of insect and disease problems. There is an alternative to harsh chemical fertilizers and herbicides!  Make your garden a safer place for your kids and pets.

Right Click and “Save As” To Download Behnkes Seminar Schedule In PDF Format  Behnke-Seminars-2008.pdf

Coming Up: Saturday, February 16^th, 2008 - 1:00 pm at Beltsville:

Behnke Nurseries’ Chairman of the Board, John Peter Thompson shares his years of gardening experience.  Having grown up at the nursery at Beltsville, he learned first-hand from his Grandfather Albert Behnke about “the right tool for the job.”  John is a nationally known speaker on invasive plant and environmental issues and his presentations are always opinionated and entertaining.

“Getting Ready for Spring: Everything you Need to Grow”

The tools and techniques to get your garden ready in the “off season.”  A good garden begins with  good soil, and the right tools make gardening a pleasure, not a chore. If you don’t know a tree spade from a pitchfork, then this is the talk for you.

Right Click and “Save As” To Download Behnkes Seminar Schedule In PDF Format  Behnke-Seminars-2008.pdf

Saturday, February 9

12:30 pm “meet and greet” followed by Lecture at 1:00:  Meet members of the National Capital Area Daylily Society. The group is hosting today’s lecturer. The pre-lecture “meet and greet” is a terrific opportunity to find out more about these terrific perennials.

1:00 pm Natural Resource Manager Rob Gibbs of the MNCPPC will talk about outwitting or tolerating Deer.   “Managing Deer In the Home Garden”:  Not in My Back Yard! Deer love daylilies and most other plants. Learn the most effective ways of encouraging deer to browse in someone else’s garden. Repellents, fencing and deer resistant plants will be covered.

Right Click and “Save As” To Download Behnkes Seminar Schedule In PDF Format  Behnke-Seminars-2008.pdf