Registration

Conference Location: Kenosha County Center, 19600 75th Street, Bristol, WI 53104

Registration Fee:

• Early Bird (before Feb 27th 2026): $50 per person
• Regular Registration (Feb 28th – March 16th 2026): $60 per person

Registration Forms:

• Online Registration: Eventbrite Payment Site (Processing Fee: $5.20 per ticket)
• Mail-In Registration: Fill out the Spring into Gardening Conference 2026 Registration Form and mail-in the check (details in the brochure)
• Registration Deadline: March 16th, 2026
• Weather Advisory: In case of inclement weather, the conference will be held as a Zoom webinar. Details and access links will be shared via email if this change occurs.

Lunch Menu:

Conference Agenda

Date: March 21st, 2026	Time	Agenda	Presentation Topic, Descriptions & Handout
	8.30 A.M. – 9.30 A.M.	Registration, Raffle, Book Table, Refreshments (Lobby)
	9.30 A.M. – 10.30 A.M.	Keynote: Nina Kozial (Hearing Room)	Grow a Cook’s Garden:  Discover the joys of growing organic fresh vegetables and herbs in the ground and in pots. Nina will cover plant selection, soil, potting methods, pest protection, extending crops into fall, and food prep ideas.
Break (Raffle, Book Table, Refreshments – Lobby)
	11.00 A.M. – 12.00 P.M.	Breakout Session 1: PJ Liesch	Habitats for Native Insects: With roughly 20,000 insect species in Wisconsin, these creatures are always nearby. Insects also provide critical ecosystem services, by serving as pollinators, predators, parasites, and decomposers. In this talk, we’ll take a closer look at ways to provide habitats for insects in our yards and the landscape around us.
		Breakout Session 2: Nina Kozial	The Gardener as Artist:  Thinking outside the Phlox, coloring outside the lines. Yes, you ARE an artist in your garden. This program looks at public and private gardens – from quirky and magical to the elegant and innovative (and their creators) and the plants and garden art within them. If you need inspiration, this is for you.
Break ( Lunch, Raffle Prizes, Book Table – Lobby)
	1.00 P.M. – 2.00 P.M.	Keynote: Brian Hudelson, PJ Liesch, & Vijai Pandian	Ask the Experts:  Got questions about your garden? We’ve got answers! Join us for an interactive Q&A session where you can ask about everything from trees and shrubs to vegetables, ornamentals, and lawns. Wondering how to fight plant diseases, deal with pesky insects, or choose the perfect plants for your home? Our panel of seasoned experts is ready to share practical tips and insider advice to keep your garden healthy and beautiful. Don’t miss this chance to grow your knowledge—and your garden!
Break (Refreshments – Lobby)
	2.15 P.M. – 3.15 P.M.	Breakout Session 1: Brian Hudelson	Dealing with Common Diseases:  Come learn about common methods you can use in your garden to help prevent diseases and reduce their impact when diseases do occur.
		Breakout Session 2: Vijai Pandian and Jayne Herring	Growing and Cooking Sweet Potatoes:  Sweet potatoes are one of the ultimate superfoods—and surprisingly easy to grow! Learn simple techniques to start sweet potatoes indoors, transplant them to raised beds or garden soil, choose the best varieties, and know exactly when to harvest for peak flavor. Then, bring your harvest to the table! Chef Jayne will teach you how to turn these nutritious gems into simple, delicious recipes that everyone will love.

Speaker Bios

1. Nina Kozial is a horticulturist and garden writer who tends plants on a deer-infested acre about 40 miles from Chicago. She wrote garden articles for the Chicago Tribune for 22 years as well as for many magazines. She taught at the Chicago Botanic Garden since 1998 and writes the Garden’s monthly “Smart Gardener” feature.

2. Brian Hudelson is affectionately known as “Dr. Death” because of his love of plant diseases.  Brian received his BS in Botany, Bacteriology and Molecular Biology, MS in Biometry and PhD in Plant Pathology from the UW-Madison, and in 1998, became the director of the Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic (PDDC).  The PDDC (part of the Department of Plant Pathology in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension) provides expertise in diagnosing plant diseases, and information on plant diseases and their control to a wide range of clientele throughout the state of Wisconsin.  For more information on Brian and the PDDC, check out the PDDC website at http://pddc.wisc.edu.  You can also follow the PDDC on Facebook and Twitter @UWPDDC.  .

3. Patrick (PJ) Liesch is an Extension entomologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a science communicator, and the director of the UW Insect Diagnostic Lab.  PJ provides entomology-related outreach throughout the state of Wisconsin and beyond, including regular appearances on Wisconsin Public Radio.  He also teaches advanced insect taxonomy at UW-Madison.  He can be found on Bluesky and Instagram as @WisconsinBugGuy.

4. Jayne Herring, current president of the Racine Kenosha Master Gardener Association, is the retired director of Marketing at Gateway Technical College. She currently teaches fused glass workshops. She enjoys growing vegetables and finding easy ways to prepare them for meals.

5. Vijai Pandian is the horticulture educator for Kenosha and Racine Counties. His outreach program focuses on urban horticulture and Green Industry education and conducts horticulture research trials at Kenosha County.

Sponsors

Thank You To Our Sponsors!

Wisconsin Master Gardeners Association