Join Us for the Plant Select Landscape Professional Conference: September 11, 2024
August 3rd, 2024
Registration for this event has closed. To learn about future events, please sign up for our monthly e-newsletter. Thanks for your interest!
Green industry professionals… please join us on Wednesday, Sept. 11 as we look to the future—with new design styles, new trees, new sustainability practices and new friends! ISA CEUs will be available. Registration ends Tuesday, Sept. 3.
This year’s talks include:
- Making money-making crevice gardens with Kenton Seth, owner of Paintbrush Gardens, LLC and co-author of The Crevice Garden
- Design, installation and management of meadow garden systems with Bryan Fischer of The Gardens on Spring Creek
- Sustainable landscape design considerations with Marissa Sterrett of Denver Botanic Gardens
- Resources for sustainable landscapes with CSU Extension’s Deryn Davidson
- Building a resilient urban canopy: Strategies for tree selection and site design along the Front Range with Freddie Haberecht of the City of Fort Collins
- How a tree comes to market (and how to get the trees you want) with Eric Blewitt, a Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
Please scroll down for details on each of these talks and speakers.
See the full event schedule here >
2024 event highlights
This conference is designed for:
Green industry professionals, including but not limited to landscape architects, landscape designers, project managers, arborists, municipalities and more… If you typically attend ProGreen or a similar type of event, you’re a great fit!
One-day event:
Wednesday, September 11, 2024
8:15 am – 4 pm
Location:
Colorado State University
Lory Student Center Theatre
1101 Center Avenue Mall
Fort Collins, CO 80521
Parking lots and directions (local parking lots typically charge $2/hour) >
Price:
$55 + $5.54 Eventbrite fee
(Includes a light lunch)
Registration for this event has closed.
Big thanks to our sponsors!
More on the presentations and speakers:
Making Money-making Crevice Gardens
Join Kenton Seth to learn the nitty gritty of making a crevice garden as a landscape professional, from client communication, to staging, to design.
About the speaker:
Kenton Seth, known as “the crevice garden guy,” is exploring the full breadth of possibilities of rock garden design by trying new things in public and private gardens across the U.S. and overseas. He has built dozens of these rock gardens from back patios to public parks. He’s co-authored a book on the subject to permanently empower the gardening world with this beautiful, versatile and powerful plant-growing system. At home, he’s dedicated himself to native plant work in his water-scarce region by making unirrigated native gardens and meadows as paintbrushgardens.com.
An unrestrained plant whore, he hunts seed from his home desert-steppe to that of Turkey, growing them in his own backyard nursery to supply his projects. He shares everything he learns on his blog: kentonjseth.blogspot.com
Design, Installation and Management of Meadow Garden Systems
Meadow gardens have been a topic of growing interest, particularly as alternative to traditional lawns, yet regional guidance for such gardens can be tough to find. Bryan will discuss design, installation and management of these garden systems, drawing upon his work designing, installing, and managing the half-acre Prairie Gardens at Gardens on Spring Creek in Fort Collins. Bryan will also incorporate lessons learned and how he managed them while installing a second meadow garden at his home and touch on broader concepts relevant to plants from the prairie ecosystem.
About the speaker:
Bryan Fischer is Curator of Plant Collections for the Gardens on Spring Creek in Fort Collins, Colorado. Bryan designed, installed and maintains a half-acre, stylized Prairie Garden, a project that was recently featured in the international garden design book “Visionary: Gardens and Landscapes for Our Future” by Claire Takacs and Giacomo Guzzon. He also cares for a half-acre Rock Garden and manages plant collections at the institution.
Outside of his day job, Bryan is collaborating with Lauren Springer to co-author a book on gardening with native plants, and he writes a monthly column for Fine Gardening Online.
Sustainable Landscape Design Considerations
As low-water landscaping and non-functional turf conversion become mainstream, how we approach landscape design is shifting to accommodate functional goals. Many practitioners see the beauty and value in a low-water, biodiverse, naturalized, native plant-rich landscapes, but some consumers still have hesitations around adopting this style of design. Marissa will discuss landscape design considerations that support the goals of sustainable landscapes while addressing popular concerns.
About the speaker:
Marissa Sterrett is the Manager of Sustainable Landscape Services in the Horticulture Department at the Denver Botanic Gardens. She focuses on creating landscape designs that increase biodiversity by using native plant species as well as plant species that are adapted to our region from similar climates. Through her designs, Marissa aims to create habitat, increase pollinator visits, reduce the reliance on water, fertilizer and maintenance, while creating showy, attractive landscapes throughout all four seasons.
Marissa is currently developing a Green Infrastructure program to address challenges related to achieving long-term success of the urban tree canopy here in Denver. She also is developing a thorough lawn conversion program, aiming to make lawn conversion simpler and much more cost-effective. Marissa has been designing landscapes along the Front Range for over 25 years and aims to support people and the environment through design.
Resources for Sustainable Landscapes
About the speaker:
Deryn Davidson is the Sustainable Landscape Specialist for CSU Extension. She graduated from CSU with a B.S. in Horticulture and later went on to earn a MLA from the University of Arizona.
Deryn’s work with CSU Extension includes providing consultation and education to horticulture clients and supporting public and private efforts to create more sustainable and resilient landscapes across the state.
Building a Resilient Urban Canopy: Strategies for Tree Selection and Site Design Along the Front Range
As cities continue to grow, trees are increasingly vital for making urban spaces livable. Understanding the urban ecosystem and the critical role that trees play are essential for optimizing site design. We’ll explore the reasons, methods, best practices and recommended trees for establishing a resilient and diverse urban canopy along the Front Range amid a changing climate.
About the speaker:
Freddie Haberecht is an urban forester and certified arborist working for the City of Fort Collins to enhance the quality of life in urban spaces. A graduate of Colorado State University with a degree in Ecosystem Science and Sustainability and pursuing a PhD in Bioagricultural Sciences, Freddie combines an academic background focused on urban ecology with a deep-rooted passion for trees.
How a Tree Comes to Market (and How to Get the Trees You Want)
In order to create diverse urban forests along the Front Range, it’s critical for landscape professionals, nurseries and growers to communicate and collaborate. We’ll dive into the issues around supply chain availability, and you’ll discover strategies to get ahead in the ordering process for successful planting projects.
About the speaker:
Eric Blewitt is a Colorado Certified Nursery Professional and has spent the last 7 years as a wholesale nursery account manager supplying landscape professionals with high-quality and Colorado-responsible plants. He has a passion for horticulture and a strong desire to help the green industry become more resilient and innovative in an ever-changing world.
