Betty Shelley
November 4, 2024
Reducing waste to help our planet
Betty Shelley and her husband, Jon, have produced just one 32-gallon can of garbage per year since 2006. She finds waste reduction to be a creative and empowering way to reduce her impact on the planet’s climate and resources. She is the founder of Reduce Your Waste Project which offers “Less is More: Getting to One Can of Garbage a Year” classes on reducing resource waste (reduceyourwasteproject.com). Betty and Jon were featured in The Oregonian in 2013 as well as in numerous other publications.
Betty is an Agent of Change, a Master Recycler and a former Recycling Information Specialist for Metro Regional Government in Portland, Oregon. For Metro, she was often featured on AM/Northwest, addressing Reducing, Reusing and Recycling. She has also been interviewed for KINK Radio’s Talking Trash podcast, the Portland Sustainability Podcast and The Portland Cool Podcast. In addition, Betty is a quarterly contributor to The Green Living Journal. A member of Northwest Earth Institute since 1994, Betty was honored with the NW Earth Institute Founders Award in 2013, recognizing her vast contributions to both Northwest Earth Institute and sustainability education and practice more broadly.
December’s Green Party
December 2, 2024
Another EGC tradition, the Green Party celebrates the Winter season by bringing together a wide variety of greens that can be crafted into indoor and outdoor decorations while enjoying the company of others.
Linda Beutler
January 6, 2025 – via Zoom
Clematis expert speaks about the Queen of Vines.
Jo Wakelin
February 3, 2025 – via Zoom
New Zealand gardener speaks about her spectacular
drought tolerant garden.
Dave Eckert
March 3, 2025
Salem gardener extraordinaire speaks about his and
his wife, Pat’s, stunning garden.
James Cassidy
April 7, 2025
OSU soil expert speaks about our garden’s soil.
Lawrence Birch
May 5, 2025
Medicinal herbs.
The May program concludes with our Spring Plant Exchange.
2023-24 Speakers
Janet Magedanz – November 6, 2023
“Year-Round Pollinator Plants: What to Grow for a 4-Season Blooming Garden.”
Janet Magedanz is a Benton County Master Gardener and past-President of the Evening Garden Club. As a long-time gardener with a mature garden, she has considered the challenge to introduce “natives” to her landscape. This is her response to that challenge. She knew that non-natives are also attractive to pollinators so her presentation will provide planting ideas with bulbs, annuals, perennials, and shrubs – both native and non-native – to keep you happy with blooms all year AND keep the pollinators happy.
Richie Steffen – January 8, 2024 – zoom only
“The Beauty of Ferns in the Garden.” Few people have a passion for plants or an excitement about gardening more than Richie Steffen. Richie is the executive director for the Elisabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden, overseeing the development of the garden, its programs, and the rare plant collections. His expertise comes from over thirty-five years of experience in the horticultural field, with the last 24 years spent at the Miller Garden. Ferns have become a specialty for him, and he maintains extensive collections at the Miller Garden and his home garden. He has traveled to Europe, Japan, Chile, New Zealand and Costa Rica as well as numerous trips around the US studying ferns and other plants. He is active in the gardening community and is currently past president of the Hardy Fern Foundation and the Northwest Horticultural Society. A noted lecturer, writer and photographer, Richie is the co-author of the “Plant Lover’s Guide to Ferns” with his friend and fern mentor Sue Olsen
Eileen Stark – February 5, 2024 – zoom only
“Native by Design: Choosing Plants For Biodiversity.” Eileen Stark is a Portland-based ecological landscape designer, consultant, author, and photographer. Her academic background includes studies in biology, wildlife ecology and landscape design. A deeply committed conservationist, she strives to create awareness of the myriad creatures with which we share this fragile planet.
Her book, Real Gardens Grow Natives: Design, Plant, and Enjoy a Healthy Northwest Garden, isa passionate guide to gardening for both biodiversity and beauty using animal-friendly landscaping methods. Visit her website at realgardensgrownatives.com.
Sharon Knight and Dana Hughes – March 4, 2024 – in person
“Adaptive Gardening.” Dana is a Physical Therapist, Orthopedic Certified Specialist at Sweetgrass Physical Therapy & Wellness and Sharon is an eclectic expert at Garland Nursery with knowledge about bugs, pathogens, perrenials and everything in between. Together, they will present a program about adaptive gardening. This will include discussion of making small changes in gardening habits to accommodate the gardener’s physical needs – be that with adapting tools, techniques commonly used in gardening, or taking time to be mindful of changing abilities.
Signe Danler, Owen Dell, Alan Shay and Jeff Copes – April 1, 2024 – in person
“By Design – Landscaping Panel Discussion.” With expertise from the EGC and Home Grown Gardens Nursery, this panel of professionals are prepared to answer your plant and landscaping questions. Prior to the meeting, members will be encouraged to submit questions to get the ball rolling. Questions will also be taken from the floor. Come down the garden path with us!
Janet Throop – May 6, 2024 – in person
“Edible Gardens for All Seasons.” Throughout the year Janet spends much time nurturing her large and lush yard full of flowers, fruit trees, berries, and vegetables. For over thirty years she has been an active Benton County Master Gardener. She is a keen observer of the natural world and encourages all to be mindful of the earth and our impact upon it. We are in for a treat to learn how to grow edibles year-round.