Listen to Michele’s message “Bee aware, bee concerned, and bee a friend to pollinators!” as she describes the best ways we can improve our outdoor spaces to attract pollinators. Whether or not you already have an existing garden or are in the planning stages, Michele will offer practical advice to entice pollinators to your garden.

Michele is an award-winning certified Master Flower Show Judge and Past State President of the New Hampshire Garden Clubs. She has also served on the Board of the National Garden Clubs Inc.as the Endangered Species Chairman.

Beautiful blooms can be found at the local supermarket or the farmers market just waiting for you to bring them home to enhance your surroundings. Join Sue Redden as she shows you how to take these cut flowers and turn them easily and simply into lovely ways to adorn your tables for family and friends or to just enjoy them yourself!

Sue Redden is an Accredited-Master Judge for National Garden Clubs and Flower Show Schools Chairman for Rhode Island Federation of Garden Clubs, Inc.

Three designers! Three containers! All green floral material! Ready, Set, Go!

Three talented designers are all competing to make the best and most creative use of the floral materials that they have been given. They only have thirty minutes to create their designs before being given the opportunity to explain their thoughts behind their choices. You the audience may vote for your favorite by applause. Join us for our version of the “Chopped Challenge!”

Managing the gardens year-round at Blithewold is not enough to keep this gardener content. It takes a garden of her own! Gail Read believes that gardens are essential to our well being and can trace her interest in gardening back to her teenage years when she began growing her own flowers. She will share her vast knowledge of plants and growing practices through a presentation of beautiful photographs of gardens.

Gail Read is a Certified Horticulturist and is the Gardens and Greenhouse Manager at Blithewold. Gail holds degrees from both Stockbridge School of Agriculture at UMass Amherst and URI. Gail teaches classes, lectures, writes, and photographs flowers.

Want to learn about easy-to-grow roses beyond Knock-Outs? Will Radler, hybridizer of the famous Knock-Out roses, has also created numerous other low maintenance, disease resistant roses. Many of these varieties are introduced in Mike and Angelina Chute’s program, “Radler Roses: Knock-Outs & Beyond,” developed with input and collaboration from Will Radler.

This PowerPoint program includes Radler’s many shrub and climbing varieties as well as his new Champion series of sustainable roses. From the fragrant Fruity Petals to his soaring Highwire Flyer, these additional Radler roses, beyond Knock-Outs, are roses that everyone can grow in their home gardens.

Mike & Angelina will be available to sign copies of their books, Rose Gardening Season by Season: A Journal for Passionate Gardeners as well as Roses for New England: A Guide to Sustainable Rose Gardening after the program.

Celebrate Spring with four award-winning Rhode Island Federation of Garden Club floral designers. Be amazed as these talented designers create works of art to decorate your home. Decide for yourself which designer makes the best and most creative use of the floral materials they have been given.

A container garden can be as simple as a centerpiece for your patio table or it may be a dramatic urn that steals the show. Blakely Szosz has been the head gardener for Rhode Island Country Club for the past 12 years. She graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in 1991 and, having fallen in love with Rhode Island, has been putting down roots here ever since. She is past President of the Barrington Land Conservation Trust and Barrington Garden Club and she currently serves as President of Rhode Island Federation of Garden Clubs. Her specialty is container gardening as she considers it to be the finishing touch- or jewelry- to any well-designed landscape.

Pollinators are everywhere and play an important role in our lives and habitats, from pollinating the foods that we eat to initiating the development of the seeds that ensure the survival of native plants. Warren Leach will review pollinator needs and offer a selection of ornamental trees, shrubs, perennials, and vines with flowering characteristics that will benefit pollinators.

Warren Leach is a passionate plant collector and landscape horticulturist. Warren has won many awards in his field and lectures and teaches both on the local and national level. He is the co-owner of Tranquil Lake Nursery growing day-lilies, iris, and distinctive perennials and woody plants.