Nearly three decades of great gardening advice
Every year between January and March, the Jefferson County Master Gardener Foundation and WSU Jefferson County Extension sponsor a lecture series featuring well-known gardeners, authors and subject matter experts on a variety of gardening subjects.
All sessions are held in-person from 10 a.m.–12 p.m. at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds. There is plenty of free parking at this venue.
The 2027 Series is Happening!
We’ve done it again: lined up six great speakers who will bring hope and inspiration to gardeners through the darkest time of the year. Tickets will go on sale on Monday, December 7.
Watch this space for more information!
2027 Presenters
Every year when the days are at their shortest, the weather looks the bleakest, and die-hard gardeners are out shoveling compost in the mud, wondering if the sun will EVER shine again, the Jefferson County Master Gardener Foundation hosts the annual Yard and Garden Speaker Series. This year is the 28th time we have offered the lecture series!
Presentations will take place on six consecutive Saturdays from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.: January 9, 16, 23 and 30, and February 6 and 13.
May this year’s offerings from authors, gardeners, horticulturists and wildlife experts serve to enlighten and inspire you through the winter months. Below are brief bios of our 2027 speakers. Scroll to the bottom for the schedule and details about each presentation.
Color In and Out of the Garden
Lorene Forkner
Lorene is an author and speaker whose work centers on exploring the wonders of the natural world. She writes a weekly gardening column for Pacific NW Magazine in The Seattle Times and is the author of numerous gardening titles, including Grow Great Vegetables in Washington and Color In and Out of the Garden.
A Convenient Truth: The Art of Composting for the Home and Community Gardener
Don Krafft
Don is a WSU Island County Master Gardener and former Master Composter with extensive experience in soil health, composting, and pest management. He manages composting systems at home and at the South Whidbey Tilth Community Garden, where he actively demonstrates and promotes sustainable gardening techniques.
More Than Pollination: Hymenoptera as Matchmakers, Engineers, Regulators & Life-Givers
Alex Wilson
Alex was trained through Oregon State University-Extension Services, Master Melittologist Program, Alex is a Port Angeles based bee lover, volunteering for the State’s WA Bee Atlas to collect and catalogue native bees. He has helped discover new bee species to the State of Washington, as well as document important plant and nesting associations. He is a Development and Fundraising professional, supporting non-profits.
Grow Your Own Cut Flower Garden
Sarah Nayani
Sarah is a cut flower grower and gardener in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, where she grows thousands of stems each year at her small city home. For several years she designed florals for weddings and events, using as many of her homegrown flowers and those from other local growers as possible. She’s reclaimed her cutting garden as a source of joy and beauty, to bring fresh flowers into her home and give to her friends and family, and provide habitat and food for local pollinators.
Growing Blueberries on the Olympic Peninsula
Janet Aubin
Janet, the co-owner of Stellar J Farm, is a blueberry enthusiast with 18 years of experience developing and cultivating berries, vegetables and poultry in Chimacum. Janet grew up on the
Olympic Peninsula and studied Biology in Minnesota before returning to the area. She values the opportunity to steward working-land as part of a larger landscape of conservation and loves growing food for our community.
Planting for Birds: Creating Bird-Friendly Habitat in the Pacific Northwest
Dr. Jackie Canterbury
Jackie is an ornithologist who worked as a US Forest Service biologist in the Tongass National Forest in southeastern Alaska, and taught at Sheridan College in Sheridan, Wyoming, and Nebraska Wesleyan University in Nebraska. Jackie serves on the board of several conservation organizations, including the Audubon Society where she’s been working on establishing regional Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and the Habitat Heroes program which provides people with the resources to create bird habitat in their own backyards.
Schedule and Presentation Details
January 9
Speaker: Lorene Forkner
Lecture title: “Color In and Out of the Garden”
Description: Lorene, an author and speaker, will share tips on using color — one of nature’s most sophisticated tools to capture the attention of all living creatures — to create pleasing palettes in the garden and enhance everyday life.
January 16
Speaker: Don Krafft
Lecture title: “A Convenient Truth: The Art of Composting for the Home and Community Gardener”
Description: Don is a WSU Island County Master Gardener and former Master Composter who will delve into the many benefits of composting and provide a clear step-by-step process for attendees to set up their own system.
January 23
Speaker: Alex Wilson
Lecture title: “More Than Pollination: Hymenoptera as Matchmakers, Engineers, Regulators & Life-Givers”
Description: This joyful introduction opens the garden gate to the wider, wilder world of Hymenoptera: the insect order that includes bees, wasps, ants, and sawflies. Alex will introduce us to flower matchmakers, soil-moving engineers, sharp-eyed regulators of invertebrate populations, and hungry little life-givers that turn leaves into food for birds, spiders, predatory insects, and the larger garden food web. Expect close-up photographs, surprising stories, affectionate appreciation for insects that are easy to overlook, and a gentle reconsideration of a few six-legged neighbors. The goal is to see the garden more fully: as a busy, intimate, beautifully messy, and endlessly fascinating living community.
January 30
Speaker: Sarah Nayani
Lecture title: “Grow Your Own Cut Flower Garden”
Description: Sarah is a cut flower grower and gardener in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, where she grows thousands of stems each year at her small city home. The founder of Grow Girl Seattle, Sarah will share her ideas for planning, cultivating and maintaining a year-round cutting garden, and providing habitat and food for local pollinators.
February 6
Speaker: Janet Aubin
Lecture title: “Growing Blueberries on the Olympic Peninsula”
Description: Janet is one of the farmers at Stellar J Farm, a 33-acre organic farm along Chimacum Creek. She will share her enthusiasm for growing blueberries — which she clams may be the best in the world — the fundamentals of how to grow them, what makes them a uniquely challenging crop, and techniques to help your patch thrive.
February 13
Speaker: Dr. Jackie Canterbury
Lecture title: “Planting for Birds: Creating Bird-Friendly Habitat in the Pacific Northwest”
Description: Jackie is an ornithologist who serves on the board of several conservation organizations, including the Audubon Society. A former US Forest Service biologist and college professor whose PhD work focused on the Yellow-breasted Chat, Jackie will reveal how to support birds year-round in our backyards by selecting native plants, considering our garden as a whole, and making choices that result in creating a healthy, biodiverse habitat for birds and other wildlife. .