MONDAY, JANUARY 26, 2009
8:00 – 8:15          Gather, register, donuts & coffee
8:15 – 8:20          Welcome and Overview – Doug Warner, Marketing &
                           Inspection Supervisor Alaska Division of Agriculture
8:20 – 9:30          Weed/Pest Management & Cultural Practices – Piet Wierstra, Oregon
                           Perennial Company
9:30 – 10:15        West Coast Peony Operations Trip – Doug Warner & Richard Estelle,
                           Alaska Peony Growers Association Planning Committee, Palmer
10:15 – 10:30      Break
10:30 – 11:30      Marketing/Packhouse structure in NZ and Tasmania – Clay & Sue
                           Kent, Midnight Sun Peonies, Soldotna
11:30 – 12:00      Floor Discussion – Marketing/ Pack house structure for Alaska
12:00 – 1:15        Lunch – Sandwich, soup & salad, provided by hotel catering
1:15 – 2:15          Update from Pat Holloway, Professor of Horticulture, UAF
2:15 – 3:30          Harvesting, Storage & Packing – Piet Wierstra
3:30 – 3:45          Break (cookies and milk)
3:45 – 5:00          Weed/Pest Management & Cultural Practices –  Rita Jo Shoultz & Jan
                           Hanscom


TUESDAY, JANUARY 27, 2009
8:00 – 8:15           Gather, donuts & coffee
8:15 – 8:20           Welcome and Overview – Amy Pettit, Development Specialist, Alaska
                            Division of Agriculture
8:20 – 9:30           Selling & Marketing – Piet Wierstra
9:30 – 10:15         Harvesting, Storage, and Packing – Colleen James & Clay Kent
10:15 – 10:30       Break
10:30 – 11:30       Alaska Peony Growers Association talk time, forming an official
                            association, etc.
11:30 – 12:00       Conference wrap-up/ Discuss next steps – Doug Warner

Featured Speaker — Piet Wierstra
Piet was born and raised in the Netherlands and was part owner of a business growing tulips, lilies and iris.  In 1986, he moved to Oregon to work for Oregon Bulb Farms. It was there where he first came in contact and fell in love with peonies. In 1996, he started Oregon Perennial with his son. Part of their crop consists of peonies, which are grown for bare root division and cut flowers and sold to wholesalers and local nurseries.  Currently, he is president of the Pacific Northwest Peony Society. He loves collecting peony specimens and has quite the collection in his own garden.

Alaska Peony Growers Conference Sponsored by the  Alaska Division of Agriculture
 

TUESDAY, JANUARY 27
12:45 – 1:15          Registration
1:15 – 2:00            Making Anchorage’s City of Flowers, Steve Gray and Sandy Potvin,
                             Anchorage Parks & Recreation, Horticulture
2:00 – 2:45            Gardens by Design, Brenda Adams, Garden by Design, Homer
2:45 – 3:00            Polar Grower Trade Show introductions
3:00 – 3:30            Break (pretzels, popcorn, peanuts)
3:30 – 4:15            The Rise of Ornamental Invasives, John Peter Thompson, Behnke
                             Nurseries, Maryland
4:15 – 4:45            New Plans for Tackling Invasive Plants in Alaska, Gino Graziano,
                             Natural Resources Specialist, Alaska Division of Agriculture
4:45 – 5:00            Peony Growers trip to New Zealand – Rita Jo Shoultz, Fritz Creek
                             Gardens

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28
8:00 – 8:30          Registration
8:30 – 9:15          Shrubs & Trees for the Alaskan Landscape, Sally Koppenberg,
                           Stonehill Gardens, Palmer
9:15 – 10:00        Sustainable Landscaping, John Peter Thompson, Behnke Nurseries
10:00 – 10:15      Polar Grower Trade Show introductions
10:15 – 10:45      Break
10:45 – 11:30      Tree Defoliators & Other Insect Pests, Michael Rasy, Integrated Pest
                           Management Program, UAF Cooperative Extension Service
11:30 – 12:00      Green Infrastructure for Green Parks, Jeff Dillon, Urban Design, Parks
                           & Recreation Director, Anchorage
12:00 – 1:00        Lunch
1:00 – 1:30          Doing Business with Bush Alaska: Traditional Values, Contemporary
                           Issues, Bob Gorman, UAF Cooperative Extension Service, Sitka
1:30 – 2:00          New Marketing Opportunity for Garden Retailers: Garden Snaps Map,
                           Lynne Opstad & Anna Denis, Garden Snaps LLC, Anchorage
2:00 – 2:30          Marketing Update, Amy Pettit, Development Specialist, Alaska
                           Division of Agriculture
2:30 – 3:00          Break
3:00 – 3:30          Loan Programs to Help a Grower Get Started, Jeffrey T. Curry, USDA
                           Farm Service Agency, Palmer
3:30 – 4:15          Mycorrhizae: Nature’s 430 million year-old rule, Dr. Dave Ianson,
                           Palmer Soil & Water Conservation District
4:15 – 5:00          Alaskan Turf Fundamentals, Dr. Steve Brown, UAF Cooperative
                           Extension Service, Palmer

Featured Speaker — John Peter Thompson
John Peter is a sustainable horticulture advocate and environmental issues consultant. He grew up in the nursery industry in Beltsville Maryland where his family owns Behnke Nurseries, an 11 acre operation that includes two garden center locations. He is currently acting Vice Chair of the National Invasive Species Council Advisory Committee which advises department heads in Washington D.C. on invasive species. John Peter Thompson is also part of a national Sustainable Sites Initiative team which has recently drafted a comprehensive set of guidelines for sustainable landscape design, construction and maintenance (www.sustainablesites.org/report). John Peter’s blog on invasive plants can be seen at www.ipetrus.blogspot.com.
 

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON BOTH CONFERENCES, CLICK HERE