During Agricultural Progress Days, Aug. 13-15, the Yard and Garden area allows visitors to tour demonstration gardens and learn about native plants, soil health, plant establishment, composting and enhancing home gardens to attract pollinators. Photo by Michael Houts, College of Agricultural Sciences. All rights reserved.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Need some expert gardening advice? Experts from Penn State's College of Agriculture will be available to consult in the yard and garden area during Ag Progress Days, Aug. 13-15.
Experts will include Penn State Master Gardeners, Extension educators, and experts in horticulture, entomology and plant pathology. Master Gardeners from across the state will answer landscaping and garden questions at the “Ask a Master Gardener” table.
Exhibition Garden
Visitors can tour the demonstration garden and learn about native plants, soil health, plant establishment, composting, improving home gardens to attract pollinators, etc. Centre County Master Gardeners will also be on hand at the demonstration garden to answer questions.
These gardens are filled with flowers and plants that attract numerous native bees, butterflies and other pollinators. Penn State Master Gardeners worked with horticulture professors to create and nurture the gardens, located on the 11th Street end of the showgrounds. By showcasing the beauty that comes from providing food and habitat for pollinators, the team hopes to address population declines and help pollinators thrive.
Additionally, visitors can explore the butterfly house and learn about pollinators and the plants that attract them, while young people can visit the Youth Activities Tent.
Bees and Pollinators
The Bee Tent, located next to the raised bed garden, features observation hives, beekeeping equipment and information about Pennsylvania's native bees. Experts are on hand to provide instruction and answer questions.
The exhibit provides information about the biology of more than 400 honeybee species in Pennsylvania, highlighting their diverse lifestyles, feeding habits, habitats and nesting behaviors, how honeybees support agricultural crops in Pennsylvania and information about honeybee ecology, evolution and biodiversity research from the lab of Associate Professor of Entomology Margarita Lopez Uribe.
Penn State Extension Master Gardeners are collaborating with the Lopez Uribe Lab on a multiyear effort to better understand native bee populations in Pennsylvania. This community science project leverages Master Gardeners' interest in pollinators while providing advanced training in protocols used to collect, pin, label and identify native bees. Learn more about this collaboration and join us for a presentation at 10:30 a.m. each day in the Agriculture Exhibit Theater. You can also learn about Penn State's Center for Pollinator Research.
Vegetables and flowers
A nearby vegetable tent will display various potato varieties and freshly dug tubers growing in the soil in the potato fields. The exhibit is aimed at both potato farmers and backyard gardeners, and questions about potato growing are welcome. Potato enthusiasts can see Pennsylvania-grown potato varieties, including new varieties.
A visit to the yard and garden area will also provide an opportunity to learn about cut flowers, a growing interest among home gardeners and commercial growers. Demonstrations will focus on how to use cut flowers to create different styles of floral arrangements and corsages, how to use floral tools, and tips on how to care for cut flowers in the garden.
Presentations will be given on topics such as floral arranging, composting, soil testing, growing vegetables in containers and building raised flower beds.
Scheduled presentations in the Yard & Garden area
Tuesday, August 13
10:00 AM: Native Plants 11:00 AM: Floral Arranging 1:00 PM: Garden Bingo 2:00 PM: Watch out for boxwood longhorn beetles 3:00 PM: Create your own cut flower garden: native and perennial plants to grow at home or on your farm 4:00 PM: Pollinator Walk
Wednesday, August 14
10:00 AM: Create your own cut flower garden: native and perennial plants to grow at home or on the farm 11:00 AM: Composting 101 1:00 PM: Growing vegetables in containers 2:00 PM: Soil testing: digging deeper 3:00 PM: Floral arranging 4:00 PM: Pollinator walk
Thursday, August 15
10:00 AM: Soil test: digging deeper 11:00 AM: Building mound beds 1:00 PM: Pollinator walk
About Ag Progress Days
Ag Progress Days, hosted by Penn State's College of Agriculture, will be held at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center in Rock Springs, nine miles southwest of State College on U.S. Highway 45. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 13, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Aug. 14 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 15. Admission and parking are free.
For more information, visit the Ag Progress Days website. X (formerly Twitter) users can find and share information about the event using the hashtag #agprogressdays. The event can also be found on Facebook (@AgProgressDays).
