We are offering many programs for 2008. Notice our new programs for the upcoming year. Programs are generally 90 minutes long including a question & answer session. However, the length of our programs can be customized to fit your needs.

Please notice the programs offered for children. Master Gardeners who work with children have been screened by DCFS and want to share their love of gardening and the natural world with kids.

Master Gardeners' calendars fill up fast. To ensure a program is available on the date you want, call as soon as possible.

I would love to learn more about your group and help you choose a program. Please call or e-mail me to schedule a program. You may also download a request form and fax or mail to me. I look forward to hearing from you.

Barbara Bates, Horticulture Educator

630-584-6166 ext. 21/bbates@uiuc.edu

Trees and Shrubs

Selecting Trees & Shrubs

Trees and shrubs are the backbone of a well-landscaped garden. Their shapes, colors, flowers and fruits change with the seasons providing beauty throughout the year. Learn how to select the proper trees and shrubs for specific sites. This class is very popular with new homeowners.

Trees & Shrubs–Grow Native!

With proper selection, native trees and shrubs can provide low-maintenance, easy-care beauty, and add Midwestern ambience to the landscape. Learn how to choose the right plant for the right place.

Flowering Trees & Shrubs

Many believe spring is the season for flowering woody plants, but many will bloom in the summer and fall; some even bloom in early or late winter. This class will present how to choose plants so the garden will have trees and shrubs blooming year round.

NEW! Dwarf & Unusual Landscape Conifers

Dwarf conifers come in many different sizes, colors, and forms. This class will introduce your audience to interesting and unique varieties and show how to use them in the landscape.

Planting Trees Properly

Research has revealed that incorrect planting is causing the premature death of trees. Let a Master Gardener explain the newest methods of planting. Also included will be information about tree selection and after-planting care.

Annuals, Perennials, & Flowering Bulbs

Underused Annuals

Annuals are the answer for a riot of color all season long. Each year new annuals are introduced, but there are many annuals that are unfortunately overlooked. A Master Gardener will reintroduce your group to some annuals that are sure to become favorites.

NEW! Summer Flowering Bulbs

Blooms from bulbs don't have to end with fading tulips. There are many bulbs that contribute dazzling flowers and foliage in the summer garden. Learn how to care for these bulb beauties and perfect perennial companions.

Tulips, Daffodils, and Beyond!

If a garden BURSTING with springtime color is the goal, bulbs are the answer. A Master Gardener will present information about the different types of bulbs, planting and care instructions, and how to use them in the landscape.

NEW! Shade Gardening

Discover the blessings of shade gardening. The program begins with discussion about the different types of shade, special care needed when gardening in the shade, and how to select annuals, perennials, bulbs, groundcovers, and woody plants that will shine in the shade garden.

Groundcovers: The Answer to Low-Maintenance Gardens

Learn the many benefits of using groundcovers in the landscape including using less water and fertilizer and spending less time mowing while gardening in challenging landscape areas. Traditional varieties of groundcovers will be discussed and perennials not normally considered as groundcovers will be introduced.

Seasons of Blooms with Perennials

Perennials bloom their hearts out with minimal care. Your audience will learn how, with proper planning, their perennial borders can be full of color and texture beginning in March and continuing to November.

PrairieScapes–Grow Native!

Discover the advantages of using prairie plants in the home landscape. Learn how to incorporate prairie plants into an existing garden, the fundamentals of starting a new prairie bed, why prairie plants have survived for 8,500 years, and how to be a part of preserving Illinois heritage.

Ornamental Grasses–Grasses with Gusto!

Ornamental grasses provide interesting color, texture, and form in the landscape. This class will study the growth habits, design features, and life cycles of ornamental grasses and discuss how to incorporate these versatile plants into your garden.

Fantastic Foliage

If you think only of flowers for summer garden color, think again. Let us show your audience how and when to use a whole palette of leaf colors in the garden for show-stopping, season-long interest.

NEW! Fall Color in the Landscape

Think cooler temperatures and shorter days mean an end to color in the garden? With proper planning and plant selection, fall can be a glorious time in the landscape. Your group will learn how to keep their gardens full of color with trees, shrubs, perennials, and annuals.

Gardening for Butterflies & Birds

Attracting Butterflies to the Garden

Butterflies add beauty and surprise to the garden. Your group will learn how they can design their gardens to attract these "flying flowers." Information on butterflies found in northern Illinois will also be presented. This is a very popular class–book early.

NEW! Grow Your Own Birdhouses

University of Illinois Extension Kane County Master Gardeners will show you how to make your own birdhouses with information on seed selection, trellising, tips and tricks of growing, possible pests or diseases, and harvesting of gourds.

Gardening for the Table

Herbs for the Garden and Kitchen

Herbs are a healthy way to introduce new flavors into your diet, new fragrances into your home and add texture to your gardens. This class will discuss growing, collecting and preserving techniques for all kinds of herbs and offer suggestions for using herbs in cooking. This is one of our most popular, most highly-attended programs. Reserve a date for your program today!

Eat What You Grow!

Feed your whole family the fruits and vegetables they like from your own garden. From site preparation (size, location and soil) through the harvest, a Master Gardener will give your audience the tips and tricks to successful growing.

Growing Strawberries & Brambles

Your group can enjoy fresh strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries from their own gardens. The planting, care and maintenance, and pest control of strawberries and brambles will be discussed in this program.

Indoor Gardening

Be Happy & Healthy with Houseplants

Indoor plants can clean the air in the home or office making it more cozy and comfortable. A Master Gardener will share which plants are healthiest for you, and how to select and care for the right plant for your space.

Holiday Plant Care

Poinsettias, amaryllis, cyclamen, and other blooming plants provide welcome color during the winter. Let a Master Gardener show your group how to get the most from these and other gift plants.

Poinsettias: Bracts, Facts, & Fiction

This program celebrates this traditional holiday flowering plant. Its history and folklore will be discussed and photos of many varieties will be shown. Book this program early because Master Gardeners have limited availability in December and January.

Jump Start the Growing Season! - Starting from Seed

If your group wants to get a head start on the growing season, consider this program on seed starting. A Master Gardener will discuss the timing, seed selection, germination and seedling growth, and hardening off young plants before their permanent move outdoors. This program is available in January, February, and March only.

Seasonal Care of Lawn and Landscape

NEW! BodySmart Gardening

Gardening can be one of the most rewarding activities with fresh fruits and vegetables, flowers and expanses of lawns dotted with trees. But gardening can take a toll on the body, whether you are young or old. This program will give your group steps to make gardening more enjoyable. Topics will include the gardener's health, clothing, tools, and methods.

Waking Up the Garden

Learn the seasonal chores that should be done now to get your garden off to a good start. Topics covered will include planting seeds indoors and out, planting cool-season flowers, and seasonal lawn care, as well as watering, fertilizing, dividing, and pruning in the landscape.

Maintaining Perennials for Summer-Long Beauty

Let a Master Gardener share the techniques to keep the perennials in your gardens looking their best all summer long. Topics presented will include how to use perennials to their best advantage in your landscape, season-long maintenance, division, and more.

Putting the Garden to Bed

Learn the variety of end-of-the-season activities to tuck your garden in for its winter nap. Topics included are fertilization of lawns, trees and shrubs; watering and weed control; how to prepare perennials for winter; planting spring bulbs and storing summer bulbs; bringing in houseplants, and much more.

Pruning Basics

Geared to homeowners, this program covers the reasons for pruning, the correct time to prune, the types of pruning cuts, and how to make them.

Seasonal Care for Home Lawns

Do members of your group want the best-looking lawns in the neighborhood? We will teach the basic principles to have a beautiful, healthy lawn that resists both weeds and pests. There are presentations available for Spring Lawn Care, Summer Lawn Care, and Fall Lawn Care.

Lawn & Garden Weeds

Learn the different types, families, life cycles, and methods of control for common weeds in the lawn or garden.

Good Guys, Bad Buys–A Case of Whodunit

A garden is not just a collection of plants. It is a community of plants, animals, insects, and fungi! If we were to look closer, we would see a battle of survival–bug against bug, and plant against bug. Who will win? Let a Master Gardener show your group how to determine what is ailing their plants and how to recognize the good bugs from the bad bugs. Information on pest management options will also be presented.

Ornamental Vines

Viva Les Vines!

Vines provide vertical elements, grow in small spaces where a large shrub won't fit, and add unexpected highlights of color. A Master Gardener will share information about many types of annual and perennial vines with your audience.

Clever Clematis

From climbers to crawlers, the world of clematis is well worth exploring. These graceful, reliable, easy-care bloomers are so versatile–no garden is complete without one (or many).

Soil and Composting

The Dirt About Soil

Do you think the basics of good soil sound boring? The fact is nothing is more important to the success of a garden than healthy soil. Let a Master Gardener show your group how to enhance the health and fertility of their gardens by improving the "root" of its success.

Gardener's Gold

A Master Gardener will share the tips and tricks to making compost. Learn how to compost in the backyard using leaves, plant debris, kitchen waste, and lawn clippings. Your audience will be inspired to recycle yard waste instead of hauling it to the curb. In the fall, the class is called Falling Leaves–Treasure, Not Trash! and special emphasis is on leaf management.

Container Gardening

Containers with Fantastic Appeal!

Even a small patio or porch can boast a bounty of vegetables or a garden of flowers–in containers! A Master Gardener will unleash the imagination of your audience to this latest trend in gardening.

NEW! Revitalize Summer Containers

It is not unusual for containers to begin looking a little tired by mid-summer. Your group will learn the techniques to maintain or give new life to tired container plantings. Pinching, pruning, and replacing plants will be demonstrated in this hands-on class.

Programs for Children

Master Gardeners are delighted to present the following programs for children. Call for class descriptions or more information.

• Planting Petting Garden
• How Do Seeds Travel?
• An Insect Scavenger Hunt
• Worm Composting
• What Tree is This?
• Butterflies and Moths
• What is Pollination?

"Make and Take" Workshops

There's Worms in My Kitchen!

Kids love to watch worms eat kitchen scraps! They will learn about worms and how they work as nature's recyclers. Each child will make a simple worm bin to take home, or they can make one larger worm bin to keep in a classroom.

The Music of Bamboo

Kids learn about bamboo and see many products made from this cousin of our ornamental grasses. Each child will make a bamboo wind chime to take home.