Annual greenhouse conference scheduled in Juneau

Submitted by Debbie Carter
Phone: 907-474-5406
02/19/10

The annual Alaska Greenhouse and Nursery Conference will take place in Juneau for the first time Feb. 25-26.

Conference organizer Darren Snyder, agriculture and horticulture agent for the Cooperative Extension Service in Juneau, said the 29th annual conference will highlight topics of interest to Southeast, but will touch on many issues relevant to commercial greenhouse operators and landscapers, and others interested in getting into business. Snyder said the conference also will provide opportunities for businesses to network with other businesses, researchers and supporting agencies.

Session topics will include using native plants, market gardening, topsoils, slugs and snails, low-maintenance landscaping, and using high tunnels, hoop houses and retractable roofs to improve field production. Featured speaker John Peter Thompson, a sustainable horticulture advocate and longtime Maryland nurseryman, will talk about sustainable landscaping.

Several afternoon sessions Feb. 26 will focus on invasive species. Snyder notes that invasives are a concern in Southeast because the region is a gateway to Alaska. Several invasive species have already been introduced to the region and the concern is that incoming visitors, gardeners and horticulture industry professionals, or ballast water from barges and ships, could inadvertently introduce aggressive invasive species and supplant native plants and animals.

A Southeast gardening workshop Feb. 27, which is geared to home gardeners, will follow the conference. A complete agenda and registration form for the conference and the gardening workshop is available at www.uaf.edu/ces. Preregistration is requested.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Darren Snyder, Extension agriculture and horticulture agent, at 907-796-6281 or via e-mail at dgsnyder@alaska.edu.

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/2-19-10/157-10