Fernwood's Spring Garden Symposium

Designs with Purpose: The People and Plants Behind Them. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) February 09, 2012 - Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve announces the line-up of award-winning speakers and authors for its Annual Spring Garden Symposium on Saturday, March 24. These speakers show us how they use their artistic instincts, environmental consciousness, and knowledge of great plants to create garden designs with social significance.

Janet Marinelli is the principal of her own firm, Blue Crocus Consulting, a consultant to public gardens around the globe, and a prolific author. As a former director of interpretation and publishing at Brooklyn Botanic Garden for more than sixtyeen years, Marinelli has been at the forefront of the sustainability revolution that is transforming landscapes and buildings. She has been called "an ecological and horticultural visionary." Marinelli has written three books: Stalking the Wild Amaranth: Gardening in the Age of Extinction, Plant, and The Climate Conscious Gardener, and she is a columnist for Public Garden, the publication of the American Public Gardens Association. She has received numerous awards, including the American Public Garden Association's 2010 Award of Merit and the American Horticultural Society's American Gardener Award for making a "significant contribution to horticulture."

Marinelli will take you on a whirlwind tour of the history of landscape design, explore discoveries on the frontiers of science, and show how every gardener can harness nature's power to create a sustainable landscape that helps repair the tattered web of life.

Bob Hyland is an accomplished plantsman who spent 25 years at public gardens including Brooklyn Botanic Garden, San Francisco Botanical Garden, and Longwood Gardens. Hyland developed and managed Loomis Creek Nursery in Hudson, New
York, from 2002 to 2010. He has a design and consulting business in Portland, Oregon, and has designed public and private gardens, including Martha Stewart's, and has appeard on The Martha Stewart Show.

Hyland will speak about how well-chosen plants are the heart and soul of "good" garden design. With new plants hitting the market at record speed, how do gardeners choose wisely and develop an adventurous, sustainable personal style?

With his award-winning work in botanic gardens and arboreta, landscape architect Gary Smith masterly blends artistry with sustainability. Author, artist, and landscape architect, Smith celebrates the connections between people and plants, combining art and horticulture to explore ecological design and artistic abstraction. Smith's work can be enjoyed at Longwood Gardens, Ladybird Johnson's Wildflower Center, and Garden in the Woods. His garden of fairies and woodland spirits a Winterthur offers a blend of fantasy, imagination, and horticulture. While visiting Fernwood, Smith will offer his assistance in the design of its new Children's Nature Adventure Garden. Smith received both a Gold Medal and an Award of Distinction from the Association of Professional Landscape Designers. He released From Art to Landscape: Unleashing Creativity in Garden Design in 2010.

In Smith's presentation, you will learn some simple graphic techniques that unleash the artist within yourself to make meaningful gardens that express the relationship between the site and your own creative spirit.

The symposium qualifies for three Michigan Master Gardener continuing education credits. Lunch is included. Fee $120 (Members $100). Register by March 22.

Fernwood recently launched an all new, redesigned website featuring an easy-to-use, online registration for Fernwood classes and events. Stephen Antisdel, manager of Precept Partners, the website's developers adds, "Not only is
registration easy, but the new Fernwood website uses the latest technology to insure the security and safety of all transactions on the site."

About Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve

Fernwood is a favorite of all who love nature-flora and fauna. Call 269.695.6491 to confirm status of classes. Fernwood is located near Buchanan, Michigan, at 13988 Range Line Road, Niles. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and Sunday from noon to 5:00 pm. The Fernwood Café winter hours are Tuesday through Sunday, noon to 3:00 pm. Fernwood is closed on Monday.

About Precept Partners

Precept Partners develop and manage the design, implementation and marketing of industry leading websites serving clients in retail, manufacturing, professional services and non-profit sectors. Client awards include the Inc. 500, Internet Retailer 500, The Webby, and the Top 100 Best Retail Websites Award, with recognition in The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Inc. Magazine, NPR, Internet Retailer, and other national media outlets.

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