Friday, March 8, 2024 Schedule
Growing the Ultimate Flower Garden
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Speaker: Jenny Rose Carey is a renowned gardener, educator, historian, and author, and the former senior director at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's Meadowbrook Farm in Jenkintown. She previously worked at Temple University for over a decade, first as an adjunct professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture and then as director of the Ambler Arboretum. She is an avid hands-on gardener who has gardened in both England and the United States. Jenny Rose and her gardens have been featured on the PBS series The Victory Garden, in the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Philadelphia Inquirer, PHS's GROW magazine, and The Pennsylvania Gardener. Jenny has recently published two books, Glorious Shade, and The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Guide.
Presentation: Flowers are an integral part of a garden that is pollinator-friendly and enjoyable for the gardener. In this lecture renowned gardener Jenny Rose Carey takes you through the process of identifying and arranging flowering plants that suit your needs and those of the wildlife that inhabit your garden. Learn how to make your own Flower Wish List for the four flowery seasons and come away with practical hints for growing more flowers. The lecture is based on Jenny Rose’s book for Timber Press called ‘The Ultimate Flower Gardener’s Guide.'
Erdenheim Farm: Centuries of Farming at the Edge of Philadelphia
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Speaker: Dan Lurie has been the Farm Manager at Erdenheim Farm since 2015. As a graduate of Swarthmore College, working at the farm represented a return to the Philadelphia area after spending 18 years living in California, where he was initially a Horticulturist before managing large estates and properties. Dan is passionate about Erdenheim Farm and enjoys managing its myriad operations and programs, taking particular interest in the farm's livestock guardian dogs and rare goats.
Presentation: Listen in to an overview of the history and current operations of Erdenheim Farm, an active working farm dating to the days of William Penn. Touching the northwest corner of Philadelphia, Erdenheim Farm encompasses 470 acres and is home to 560 animals- cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys, chickens, and horses. In addition to producing beef, lamb, eggs, honey, fruit, and produce, Erdenheim Farm is also home to the Erdenheim Farm Foundation, which offers classes, limited public tours, and a farm camp. This presentation by the Farm Manager will cover the farm's history and preservation and go into detail about its programs, animals, sustainability, and more.
The Hidden History of Burpee
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Speaker: George Ball, Chairman, W. Atlee Burpee Company, apprenticed in Costa Rica with the legendary plant and seed grower, breeder, and explorer Claude Hope. He spent his later career managing the global flower breeding and sales company Pan American Seed in Illinois, California, and the UK while he developed innovative cultivars such as the first pink hypoestes, Think Pink, and the first large-flowered and long-stemmed anemone, Mona Lisa. In 1991, Ball purchased iconic garden seed and plant giant W. Atlee Burpee & Company. He has donated tons of vegetable seeds to Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, and the Middle East. The Burpee Foundation was established in 2003 by George Ball when he became the sole owner of W. Atlee Burpee Company. The innovative and iconic American horticultural company whose beautiful mail-order catalogs, along with Sears Roebuck’s, were the mainstays of American farms and homes during the late 19th through the mid-20th centuries.
Presentation: Mr. George Ball will describe and discuss each step of Burpee’s growth from a fine pigeon and poultry store on Church Street in 1875 to the world’s largest seed company at 18th & Hunting Park Avenue in 1896, and will trace its evolution throughout our nation’s life through the lenses of both a domesticated plant’s life as well as that of its owners. Having colleagues and friends among the Burpee family and staff, and the privilege of owning the legendary Burpee Company for the past 33 years, Mr. Ball knows its entire history, having himself grown up in the seed industry and started working in it at the age of 12.
