Horticultural Demonstrations
The Garden Expo day will include a series of horticultural demonstrations. Expo participants will select two of the four offerings described below.
Caleb Goosen, MOFGA Limitations to Consider When Planning A Garden
You may have enough space for your garden, but do you have the right conditions? Caleb will talk about the importance of considering light, drainage, and soil composition when planning a garden so that plants will be lush and healthy.
Caleb is the Organic Crop and Production Specialist at Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA.). He works with farmers to develop soil and pest management plans, crop rotations using green manures and helps solve disease and insect problems.
Josh Hixson, Former Head Chef/Owner 40 Paper Making Sauces with Fresh Garden Herbs
Josh will show you how to make delicious sauces with herbs from your garden that will enliven summer dishes and draw people back to your table. Possibilities include pesto, chimichurri, chermoula, and Green Goddess dressing.
Josh worked in restaurants in Nashville, Boston and New York. In 2002 he moved to Maine to start a family. For the past twenty years, Josh has been deeply entrenched in the local food scene. Currently, he has stepped away from restaurants and now enjoys cooking for his wife and teenage boys.
Blake Sanburn, Landscape Architect Making Bouquets with Flowers, Herbs, and Veggies
Blake Sanborn is an award-winning landscape architecture leader with over 17 years of experience at AECOM designing and implementing community-serving open spaces throughout California and beyond. Blake brings a focus on design excellence to landscape architecture studios in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle. In addition, Blake is proud to volunteer on the NCC Executive Committee of the American Society of Landscape Architects where he is active in the Stewardship and Sustainability committee.
While trained as a landscape architect, Blake Sanborn applies many of the same design principles to floristry. He’s eager to share his process through the live tutorial so that you too may bring the outside in.
John Fromer, Merryspring Nature Center Planning a Kitchen Garden
Wouldn’t it be nice to step outside your back door and pick the parsley you need to finish your dish, pluck some fresh, sun-warmed tomatoes for a salad, or eat peas right out of the pod? John will show you how to plan your kitchen garden that will produce vegetables and herbs to be enjoyed well into the fall.
John Fromer has been a Master Gardener for twenty-six years. He offers classes on gardening topics at the Midcoast School of Technology and Merrysprings Nature Center. Currently, Fromer is the Program Director and a trustee at Merryspring He provides educational outreach to approximately 1,200 students and hundreds of adults and gives talks to garden clubs and other organizations in Maine.