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Maine School Garden Network

General Admission

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Supporter Ticket

Maine School Garden Network&rsquo;s 2026 Annual Meeting Be our guest for an afternoon and evening&nbsp;as we wrap up 2026! Take part in engaging workshops (2.5 contact hours), connect with the school garden community over a shared potluck meal, and hear highlights from the year in our annual report. We&rsquo;ll also have fun door prizes to round out the event! Join us for an inspiring afternoon exploring how school gardens can be beautiful, meaningful spaces that nurture both people and the planet. During our themed annual meeting &quot;Where Beauty Meets Purpose&quot;, we&rsquo;ll consider how thoughtful garden design can create opportunities for hands-on learning, support biodiversity, build resilience, and strengthen connections between students, schools, and their communities. Come share ideas, learn from one another, and discover ways to create school gardens that are not only productive, but places of beauty, curiosity, and belonging. Agenda: <ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">2:00 pm: Guest Arrival, light snacks</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">2:30 pm:&nbsp;Tour of the NEW Ledge and Meadow Garden</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">3:45 pm: Little World and Big Lessons: Succulent Gardens in the Classroom</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">5:00 pm:&nbsp;Potluck dinner and Educator Advisory Group (EAG) meet-up&nbsp;<ul fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Guests are invited to bring a dish</li></ul></li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">5:40 pm: Highlights from the Year: Annual Report</li><li fr-original-style="" style="box-sizing: inherit;">6:15 pm:&nbsp;Amazing door prizes and goodbyes</li></ul> Workshop Descriptions: 1. Garden Tour: New Ledge and Meadow Garden Description:&nbsp;&nbsp;We will discuss the organization&#39;s experience re-designing an aging garden and the successes and learning areas of working on such a large project with garden history, working with landscape architects, building meaningful collections, construction, and plant health.&nbsp; Presenter:&nbsp;Delaney Pitman Presenter Bio:&nbsp;Delaney has her Bachelor&#39;s Degree in Environmental Biology and Ecology from Western Colorado University where she discovered her passion for plants and the importance of conservation. She had done vegetation monitoring and invasive species research with the Bureau of Land Management, before focusing more on the horticultural side of plants by attending the New York Botanical Garden&#39;s School of Professional Horticulture. After two years at NYBG, she began working at CMBG as a Horticulturist. She later took on the role of Conservation Specialist, working with the PSC Department to grow wild collected seeds for our living collections and for in-situ population augmentation. 2. Little World and Big Lessons: Succulent Gardens in the Classroom Description:&nbsp;Discover how succulents can bring hands-on learning to life! In this interactive session, participants will learn about succulents and their unique growing needs, explore ways to integrate succulent cultivation and care into classroom lessons, and create their own mini succulent potted garden to take home. Come grow a little world while discovering the big learning opportunities plants can offer! Presenters:Beth Jarvis and Erika Huber Presenter Bios:Erika Huber is the Youth Education Manager at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens where she has worked since 2012. She holds a B.S. in Forestry from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a Master&#39;s in Horticulture from Kansas State University. She started working in the field of environmental education over 20 years ago and has been fortunate to continue connecting children with nature since that time, through school, community and public garden programming. Beth Jarvis has been educating children about the natural world for more than 20 years. Though a majority of that time was spent as a classroom teacher, she is now a Youth and Family Programs Educator at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. There she utilizes her classroom experience to lead the summer camp programming and to facilitate and support natural history and gardening education at the local schools.

Maine School Garden Network’s 2026 Annual Meeting Be our guest for an afternoon and evening as we wrap up 2026! Take part in engaging workshops (2.5 contact hours), connect with the school garden community over a shared potluck meal, and hear highlights from the year in our annual report. We’ll also have fun door prizes to round out the event! Join us for an inspiring afternoon exploring how school gardens can be beautiful, meaningful spaces that nurture both people and the planet. During our themed annual meeting "Where Beauty Meets Purpose", we’ll consider how thoughtful garden design can create opportunities for hands-on learning, support biodiversity, build resilience, and strengthen connections between students, schools, and their communities. Come share ideas, learn from one another, and discover ways to create school gardens that are not only productive, but places of beauty, curiosity, and belonging. Agenda: <ul><li>2:00 pm: Guest Arrival, light snacks</li><li>2:30 pm: Tour of the NEW Ledge and Meadow Garden</li><li>3:45 pm: Little World and Big Lessons: Succulent Gardens in the Classroom</li><li>5:00 pm: Potluck dinner and Educator Advisory Group (EAG) meet-up <ul><li>Guests are invited to bring a dish</li></ul></li><li>5:40 pm: Highlights from the Year: Annual Report</li><li>6:15 pm: Amazing door prizes and goodbyes</li></ul> Workshop Descriptions: 1. Garden Tour: New Ledge and Meadow Garden Description:  We will discuss the organization's experience re-designing an aging garden and the successes and learning areas of working on such a large project with garden history, working with landscape architects, building meaningful collections, construction, and plant health.  Presenter: Delaney Pitman Presenter Bio: Delaney has her Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Biology and Ecology from Western Colorado University where she discovered her passion for plants and the importance of conservation. She had done vegetation monitoring and invasive species research with the Bureau of Land Management, before focusing more on the horticultural side of plants by attending the New York Botanical Garden's School of Professional Horticulture. After two years at NYBG, she began working at CMBG as a Horticulturist. She later took on the role of Conservation Specialist, working with the PSC Department to grow wild collected seeds for our living collections and for in-situ population augmentation. 2. Little World and Big Lessons: Succulent Gardens in the Classroom Description: Discover how succulents can bring hands-on learning to life! In this interactive session, participants will learn about succulents and their unique growing needs, explore ways to integrate succulent cultivation and care into classroom lessons, and create their own mini succulent potted garden to take home. Come grow a little world while discovering the big learning opportunities plants can offer! Presenters:Beth Jarvis and Erika Huber Presenter Bios:Erika Huber is the Youth Education Manager at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens where she has worked since 2012. She holds a B.S. in Forestry from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a Master's in Horticulture from Kansas State University. She started working in the field of environmental education over 20 years ago and has been fortunate to continue connecting children with nature since that time, through school, community and public garden programming. Beth Jarvis has been educating children about the natural world for more than 20 years. Though a majority of that time was spent as a classroom teacher, she is now a Youth and Family Programs Educator at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. There she utilizes her classroom experience to lead the summer camp programming and to facilitate and support natural history and gardening education at the local schools.

Maine School Garden Network

MSGN Annual Meeting 2026

105 Botanical Gdns Dr

General Admission

Free

Supporter Ticket

$10