FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 5, 2021
Media Contact:
Gina Hyams, PR Consultant
413-464-2851
[email protected]
Spencertown, New York– Spencertown Academy Arts Center launches the 2021 Hidden Gardens Virtual Lecture Series with a talk by Master Gardener Mary Ann Iaccino titled “Why Start Plants From Seed?” on Sunday March 21 at 1:00pm via Zoom. The lecture will be about an hour, followed by a Q&A with participants. Tickets are $10. To register, please see www.spencertownacademy.org.
“The pandemic created a booming interest in home gardening—from ‘Victory Gardens’ to growing vegetables in pots on rooftops. In our area, fenced vegetable gardens and raised beds cropped up everywhere last year,” says Madaline Sparks, Academy board member and co-chair of Hidden Gardens. It looks like the trend will continue, so we want to offer a little help to those who are trying for the first time or just want a refresher about starting plants from seed.”
“Starting your own vegetables and flowers from seed can be an economical way to fill garden space and enjoy a much wider variety of plants than you could find in any nursery,” says Iaccino. “There’s nothing more fun and hopeful than planning one’s summer garden when it’s still bitter cold outside.”
This lecture will cover getting a handle on where to start, and pin down the information found on seed packets and in catalogs. It will also investigate how to meet environmental conditions that are needed for seed germination at home and go through the process of starting seeds to transplanting strong seedlings into the garden.
Iaccino has been in the education field as a high school biology teacher, a museum educator, and as an adult education instructor. She started as a Master Gardener Volunteer in the 1990s when she lived in Dutchess County. After moving back home to the Hudson area in 2005, she joined the Master Gardener Volunteers of Columbia-Greene counties participating in presenting programs and workshops.
Additional topics and dates will be announced soon. The annual Hidden Garden Tour will take place on August 28, 2021 and, in addition to properties with beautiful landscapes and flower gardens, will feature various vegetable gardens.
Founded in 1972, Spencertown Academy Arts Center is a cultural center and community resource serving Columbia County, the Berkshires, and the Capital region. Housed in a landmark 1847 Greek Revival schoolhouse, the Academy is located at 790 State Route 203 in Spencertown, New York. For more information, please contact [email protected].
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