Local gardeners cultivate knowledge at first garden expo

The Dyer County High School FFA garden serves both as a classroom lab and a public garden. The pole bean teepee (upper left) was voted the most popular plant during the Northwest Tennessee Garden and Horticulture Expo earlier this month.

During the Northwest Tennessee Garden and Horticulture Expo, visitors used orange surveyors' flags to vote for their favorite plants in the Dyer County High School FFA garden.

Ordinary pole beans won the plant popularity contest. The vining vegetable was trained to climb cane poles arranged in a teepee shape.

Plant propagators stand shoulder to shoulder in a Dyer County High School greenhouse to make new plants from cuttings. The workshop was one of several programs offered earlier this month during the West Tennessee Garden and Horticulture Expo.

Flowers in full bloom rounded out the list of top 10 plants on July 18. They included (in order of popularity):

* Hibiscus, Luna Pink Swirl.

* Zinnia, Zowie! Yellow Flame.

Joyce Spindler prepares cuttings while Mary Beth Sheppard offers instruction sheets to persons participating in a propagation workshop. The Dyer County Master Gardeners presented the workshop earlier this month during the Northwest Tennessee Garden and Horticulture Expo at Dyer County High School.

* Zinnia, Big Red.

* Victoria Blue Salvia.

* Portulaca, Sundial Mix (Rose Moss).

* Ruellia, Mexican Petunia.

Local gardeners ask questions of Carol Reese (center), a UT Extension Service horticultural specialist. Reese offered her advice on plant selections in a talk titled 'Buy the Best, Avoid the Rest' during the Northwest Tennessee Garden ad Horticulture Expo at Dyer County High School this month.

* Gomphrena, Strawberry Fields.

* Petunia, Tidal Wave Purple.

* Evolvulus, Blue Daze.

In addition to voting for their favorite plants, garden expo visitors participated in eight educational sessions, got answers to their gardening questions and purchased new treasures for their gardens.

The garden expo was sponsored by the DCHS FFA in partnership with FFA alumni, the University of Tennessee Extension Service and the Dyer County Association of Tennessee Master Gardeners.

Alyce Jackson shows off the plants she created during a propagation workshop. She learned how to turn cut stems into new plants during the Northwest Tennessee Garden and Horticulture Expo at Dyer County High School. [Click to enlarge]

A total of 238 persons registered during the expo, but FFA Advisor Dan Smith said the actual count was much closer to 350 persons. That's "not bad for the first year," he said.

Smith and Dyer County Extension Director Tim Campbell both considered the expo a success and are looking forward to the second annual event next year.

"I heard many positive comments from attendees and vendors that the expo was a great activity and that they would look forward to coming back next year," Campbell said.

Campbell, who manned a diagnostic booth during the expo, said he answered questions about horticultural problems, plant diseases and insects throughout the six-hour expo.

Visitors were so enthralled by UT Extension Horticultural Specialist Carol Reese that they wouldn't let her quit talking. She offered her advice on which plants to buy and which ones to bypass. Her talk was scheduled to last one hour, but it stretched another 45 minutes or so.

Dr. David Mercker, an Extension forestry specialist, gave a program on "How Trees Live and Why They Die" - a topic that interested several homeowners after last winter's ice storm.

A number of Master Gardeners also shared their wisdom. Glynda Campbell discussed herbs; Lloyd Collier, backyard composting; Belinda Carroll, irises; Betty Stephens, butterflies; and Mary Beth Sheppard and Joyce Spindler, who organized a propagation workshop.

Although the garden expo lasted only one day, the FFA garden is open to the public year-round.

"It helps both the students and the community," Smith said. "The students who helped plan, plant and maintain (the garden) learn about the different cultivars or plants and how they are used in a real application, such as our garden. They also learn work ethic, responsibility and endurance, especially when it was so hot earlier. This is my lab that will be used in my classes this fall and spring. Students will evaluate plant performance and determine which plants performed the best in our area and plant zones. The students and community can also learn landscape design and new varieties that come available each year. (And we all can learn what works and what does not; as we are beginning to see some of this year's hottest plants are not performing well in our area.)"

The FFA garden is a work in progress. "We want to expand as time and money permits," Smith said. "We want to establish an oriental garden and include more 'themed' areas, but we will do that as time, money and other variables will allow.

"Our goal is to establish an All-American Selections Garden status and that may take up to three years. We want the students to grow the plant material, install the material into the garden and collect performance data. We would actually be performing the same procedures and data collection as universities and trial gardens across the country."