PORT ANGELES — Nationally recognized gardening expert Ed Hume will be the keynote speaker at Clallam County Master Gardeners’s two-day gardening conference Oct. 24-25.
The third annual Fall Gardening Conference will be from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. both days in the Vern Burton Community Center, 308 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles.
Early registration will continue through Thursday.
The cost for the two-day conference is $66, and $38 for one day.
The registration fee includes lunch.
After Thursday, the cost will be $71 for two days, and $43 for one day.
Registrations will be accepted during the conference, but no lunch is guaranteed.
The conference is designed to offer information and assistance for gardeners — and those who would like to be gardeners — about a variety of aspects of gardening, including how to enjoy fall gardens, and to prepare gardens for the winter to be ready for spring.
Food preservation
A new aspect of this year’s conference will be a series of sessions on food preservation, scheduled for both days, said Muriel Nesbitt, Clallam County Washington State University Master Gardener Program coordinator.
“This will provide information on how to keep some of that delicious fruit and vegetable harvest to enjoy throughout the winter and spring,” Nesbitt said.
Vendors will sell gardening products from booths open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days.
Hume will present “Northwest Fall Gardening Ideas” at 3 p.m. Oct. 24.
His weekly television show, “Gardening in America,” is shown on KONG-TV in Seattle.
His 10 a.m. Saturday radio show, “Ask the Expert,” airs on KOMO-1000 AM.
His family-owned company in Puyallap, Ed Hume Seed Company, features seeds that are specially selected for short season and cool climate areas such as that on the Olympic Peninsula.
He is a member of the Garden Writers Association Hall of Fame. Copies of his books will be available at the conference at reduced price, including his latest book, Gardening with Ed Hume; Northwest Gardening Made Easy.
Also on Oct. 24 will be several workshops. They are “Honey Bees and Other Pollinators,” “Growing Vegetables for Pennies,” “Friendly Living with Fish and Wildlife;” and “Garden Ponds and Water Features.”
The lineup on Oct. 25 will be “Savory Herbs – Garlic and Other Favorites,” “Planting for Slope Stabilization and Erosion Control,” “Fruit Tree Pests,” “Sustainable Gardening with Native Plants,” and a chef’s demonstration of fall vegetable cooking.
Andrew May of Port Angeles will close the conference on at 3 p.m. Oct. 25 with his presentation “Making Your Winter Garden Beautiful.”
May, the owner of Mayflower Landscaping, writes the weekly column, “A Growing Concern,” for the Peninsula Daily News, and often teaches horticultural classes through Peninsula College.
Register at the WSU Extension office in the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St., Suite 15, Port Angeles, or download the registration form from clallam.wsu.edu/mg.
For more information, phone 360-417-2279.
