The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook Book Signing at Plant-O-Rama

The 18^th Annual Plant-O-Rama Horticultural Trade Show & Symposium is produced by the Metro Hort Group – an Association of Horticultural Professionals in the New York City Tri-State Region. 

Plant-O-Rama has long been considered the crown jewel of horticultural events – bringing together horticultural and gardening professionals, garden designers, plant enthusiasts, urban farmers and agriculturists - to learn from the Horticulture leaders who speak and lecture at the all-day symposium.

Plus there are the authors’ talks and book signings – which is where I come in! 

I am thrilled and honored to be invited to participate in this year’s Plant-O-Rama Authors book talks and book signings with my book, The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook.

goo.gl/0Moqvo  

I am eager to see my former Brooklyn Botanic Garden family – I was privileged to work at the Garden as Director of Communications for many glorious years.

I also can’t wait to spend time with my Metro Hort and plant friends, especially – (and in no particular order…)

Bob Hyland – a dedicated and respected plantsman, garden designer and former vice president of horticulture at BBG.

Bob was the genius who created the dreamy Bluebell Wood at the Garden. Today, the more than 45,000 Hyacinthoides hispanics 'Excelsior' bloom under the oak, birch, and beech trees, there. It is a favorite site of many romantic, heart-clutching visitors and lovers, not to mention a favorite site for filming glamorous, otherworldly TV shows, movies, and videos. 

I remember one memorable shoot when musician Dave Matthews shot his “Dream Girl” video with - who else? Julia Roberts as his Dream Girl.   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4bFX1ZEKyA  

(As an aside, at that time, Julia lived upstairs from us in our Manhattan apartment building -- she moved on. The day of the video shoot she brought the twins with her - so it seemed a truly serendipitous "moment” given all that beauty and good karma...)

The morning of the shoot was all misty and mysterious making it all that much more magical…

Bob moved to Portland, Oregon and is now the owner of Hyland Garden Design & Contained Exuberance http://www.hylandgardendesign.com

Ken Druse, panel moderator, is a garden communicator extraordinaire, garden photographer, writer and author – with – what is it -- more than 16 books in his portfolio now?? 

For a full listing and link to buy Ken’s books:

goo.gl/K5BnBT

His iTunes radio podcast, Real Dirt covers the world of gardens, featuring interviews with intriguing and visionary garden luminaries, notables and artists -- including, ahem, me! http://www.kendruse.typepad.com (scroll down a few)

Ken is a horticulturist, a sustainable garden lover and a BIG promoter and mentor to young professionals in the green industry. 

At the same time, Ken is a generous networker and has been ever so good to me this way too – looking to make the garden and plant connections that will benefit the entire horticulture community. 

I am proud to say I've been a card-carrying member of the Ken Druse fan club since forever! 

https://www.facebook.com/ken.druse

Ken is a nice garden sprite... and a true Hort Hero.  

Speaking of Hort Heroes, there is the inimitable Charles Yurgalevitch, Director School of Professional Horticulture, The New York Botanical Garden. 

And as part of Metro Hort’s Board of Directors, Charles serves as Secretary.  

Charles is tireless in his devotion to the hort students  -- always looking to educate and showcase the next-generation of green industry environmentalists and professionals. 

Plus Charles is a foodie!

And I am keen to reconnect with fellow author, Marta McDowell, who I met on the Metro Hort’s tour of Greenwood Gardens early last fall. 

There was the group of us “training” it from NYC to the nearby train station in Short Hills, in the Garden State – not far from Marta’s home and she was kind enough to give some of us a lift in her “garden express!” 

At that time she told me about her upcoming book and I warmed to the charming subject immediately. 

Now her book is out and is a big success: Beatrix Potter’s Gardening Life, The Plants and Places That Inspired the Classic Children’s Tale

My garden writer friend, Anne Raver wrote about Marta’s book in a recent NY Times article too. 

Here is a whimsical video about the book:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlCldbhsl8w&feature=youtu.be

I don’t yet know the other authors but I am very much looking forward to meeting them and learning about their plant and garden books.

The schedule for the Authors Talks is:

Author Talks and Book Signings

Lily-Pool Room 10am to noon and again from 1-3pm

Leeann Lavin, Hamptons and Long Island Homegrown Cookbook

Bill Logan, Air: The Restless Shaper of the World

Susanne Lucas, Bamboo

Marta McDowell, Beatrix Potter’s Gardening Life, The Plants and Places That Inspired the Classic Children’s Tale

Vincent Simeone, Grow More With Less: Sustainable Garden Methods

Here is the full listing of the day’s schedule and a link to purchase tickets:

January 28^th, 2014

9:00am to 4:00pm

Link to tickets:  brownpapertickets.com/event/515529

Full listing for the symposium and trade show: http://metrohort.org/index.php/archive/18th_annual_plant-o-rama/

Overview of Plant-O-Rama 2014

8:45 am: Welcome & Sponsor Acknowledgment

9:00 am NEW DIRECTIONS IN HORTICULTURE:


A layered look at plant and garden trends
David L. Culp, VP, Marketing & Sales, Sunny Border Nurseries, Kensington, CT Mr. Culp has his finger on the pulse of the nursery and horticulture industry, particularly perennial plants. Hear Dave interpret “where we’ve been & where we’re going.” What’s up with layered planting styles, container gardening, demand for multi-season garden shrubs, “green” and other trending garden colors, native plants, naturalistic planting methods, and more. Dave is author of the 2012 award- winning book The Layered Garden: Design Lessons for Year-Round Beauty from Brandywine Cottage. Copies of the book will be available for purchase and signing.

10:15 am WHAT WILL THE FUTURE OF HORTICULTURE LOOK LIKE?
Panel discussion moderated by Ken Druse, award-winning garden communicator, author and photographer
A group of young professionals give us a look into the future of horticulture in
a challenging, fast-changing world. Topics include soil consciousness, water, public gardens, education, growing food, climate change, technology, social media, and making a living in our profession. We hope the audience will participate with questions and comments.

Morning speakers focus on public horticulture, garden design & urban agriculture. Katherine Aul (partner, Staghorn Design Studio), Kristen DeSouza (superintendent, Allen C. Haskell Park), Rebecca McMackin (director of horticulture, Brooklyn Bridge Park), Kelly Norris (horticulture manager, Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, and co-owner of Rainbow Iris Farm), Gwen Schantz (chief operating officer, Brooklyn Grange)

AFTERNOON SYMPOSIUM SESSION (repeat of morning)

12:45 pm 2 pm
NEW DIRECTIONS IN HORTICULTURE: A layered look at plant and garden trends
DISCUSSION: What will the future of horticulture look like?
Afternoon speakers focus on nursery production and management, plants and
conservation & youth education. Jason Austin (nurseryman, RareFind Nursery), David Daley (Children’s Garden educator, Brooklyn Botanic Garden), Nate McCullin (horticulturalist and facilities coordinator, New England Wildflower Society/ Garden in the Woods), Rebecca McMackin (director of horticulture, Brooklyn Bridge Park), Kelly Norris (horticulture manager, Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, and co-owner of Rainbow Iris Farm)

3:30 pm

CLOSING RECEPTION & SILENT AUCTION RESULTS —BBG Palm House

Exhibits – Free Admission All Day!

8:30 a.m.–3 p.m.	Plant Catalog Display Members’ Room FREE! Take home 2014 plant and seed catalogs while supplies last.
9 a.m.–4 p.m.	Palm House Trade Show A Trade show with 50 exhibitors representing the NYC metro region’s premier specialty nurseries and wholesale growers, pottery distributors, horticultural suppliers, soil and compost companies, public gardens, and greening organizations. Exhibitor list in formation—check metrohort.org for updates.
10 a.m.–noon 1–3 p.m.	Author Talks and Book Signings Lily-Pool Room Leeann Lavin, Hamptons and Long Island Homegrown Cookbook Bill Logan, Air: The Restless Shaper of the World Susanne Lucas, Bamboo Marta McDowell, Beatrix Potter’s Gardening Life, The Plants and Places That Inspired the Classic Children’s Tale Vincent Simeone, Grow More With Less: Sustainable Garden Methods
11 a.m.–3:15 p.m.	Silent Auction Classroom 236 Bid on plants and horticultural items donated by Plant-O-Rama exhibitors and sponsors. Proceeds benefit Metro Hort Group programs.
3:30 p.m.	Closing Reception and Silent Auction Results Palm House
10 a.m.–4:30 p.m.	BBG Garden Shop The Garden Shop at BBG’s Visitor Center carries books, seeds, plants, tools, and gifts for gardeners and the home.
10 a.m.–3 p.m.	Terrace Café The Terrace Café offers a delicious winter menu of soups, sandwiches, desserts, and beverages in the lower level of the Steinhardt Conservatory.

SYMPOSIUM REGISTRATION
   REGISTER ONLINE to reserve seats:
      brownpapertickets.com/event/515529

Back to School with NYBG: Urban Transformations Landscape Design Portfolios Lecture Series

Urban Landscape (Photo courtesy NYBG)

Now in its 15th year, The New York Botanical Garden’s (NYBG) popular evening lecture series invites outstanding designers from around the world to discuss their favorite and signature landscape projects, providing insight into their working methods and design philosophies.

This year’s speakers, Christine Ten Eyck, Gilles Clément, and Mary Margaret Jones, share a focus on reclaiming and regenerating urban landscapes—both vast and intimate—from parking lots to public spaces to industrial waterfronts.

I have attended the Lectures  almost since the series was launched and before I ever walked through the golden door to a career in horticulture.

Back then, the Lectures were a transporting passport – a way to experience and learn about the ephemeral art of landscape design.

Guess what?  The Lectures are still transporting and educational! 

If anything, they’ve gotten better.

And now, many attend to also catch up with their Hort Tribe – cocktails or light supper bookending the Lecture as a way to chat about the past season’s designs, network and plant chat.

This year’s theme, Urban Transformations is particularly topical. 

While we all can’t work on the next High Line – we have to face it.  We are living in a world that is increasingly urban. 

I know that sounds like nails on a blackboard to gardeners and horticulturists but it’s true.  And in a good way.

So just as urban farming has captivated farmers and artisanal food makers, landscape architects and designers must lead the way and show how we can live in harmony with nature in a sustainable way, side by side with the urban landscape we’ve all had a hand in creating in one way or antoher. 

We just face new and/or different challenges. The Lecture Series will give you a jump start to creative design solutions.

(No need for that Magic 8 ball...)

When: Monday, Sept. 23, Tuesday, Oct. 22, Monday, Nov. 4

Monday, September 23^rd

 

Christine Ten Eyck

Christine Ten Eyck: Harsh Beauty— Designing the Urban Southwest

Based in Austin, Texas, Christine Ten Eyck works in the spirit of the Southwest to connect urban dwellers with nature through award–winning, transformative landscapes that celebrate regional culture, local species, and the ephemeral paths of water. In addition to her sustainable designs for corporate, university, botanical and private gardens, she will discuss The Capri Lounge in Marfa, Texas, where she converted a former parking lot into a garden, gathering place, and wildlife habitat, incorporating native grasslands and local materials from oil field pipes to farm fencing. 

Gilles Clement

Tuesday, October 22nd

Gilles Clément: The Planetary Garden: Paris and Beyond

Raised in the French countryside, Gilles Clément is a gardener, designer, botanist, ecologist, professor at the Versailles National School of Landscape Architecture, and provocative writer/philosopher. He creates gardens all over the world, most notably his landscapes along the Seine for the Parc André Citroën and Musée du Quai Branly. He has gained international attention for his innovative ideas on "Gardens in Movement"—fluid spaces where the designer aids nature rather than enacting rigid plans, "The Third Landscape"—gardens inspired by unlikely abandoned habitats where biodiversity thrives, and "The Planetary Garden"—where the gardener is nature's advocate, welcoming vagabond species from around the world.

Monday, November 4^th

Mary Margaret Jones: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park— Sustainable Renewal for the 21st Century

Mary Margaret Jones 

President of Hargreaves Associates, Mary Margaret Jones has served as senior principal on award–winning projects in the U.S. and abroad. The firm's work for the 2012 Olympic Park transformed a neglected post–industrial district in London's East End into Europe's largest urban park in 150 years. This innovative blueprint for sustainable city development combined traditional British park design—specifically Victorian and post–war pleasure gardens—with groundbreaking green technologies. Providing a stunning site for the Summer Games as well as an environmental legacy, including the largest wildflower ever planted in the U.K., the 247–acre project also restored the canalized River Lea into an attractive waterway. Jones will also discuss projects in New York City, Dallas, Houston, and Oklahoma City.

Where:  The series takes place at the New York Botanical Garden’s (NYBG) Midtown Education Center in Manhattan (20 West 44th Street) – 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Here’s a bonus:  

CEUs are available through AIA, APLD, and LA CES.

Learn more and register:

http://www.nybg.org/adulted/portfolios.php

Or call 800.322.NYBG (6924).

Each lecture: $25/$22
The series (142LAN801D): $68/$61 (Non-Member/Member)

Seating is limited, so please register early. Registration will be accepted at the door only if seating is available.