My Gardening Workshops - Let's Get Together!
I love to share practical gardening tips that I have gleaned over the years as a greenhouse operator, perennial grower, and from my own personal garden, which is a laboratory of sorts.
Here is a list of available workshops that I would be delighted to share with your garden or horticulture club, friend group, or other gathering.
Not finding a topic that fits? Please contact me and I can create one to fit your needs!
Workshop Topics
How to Create a Thriving Pollinator Garden
Pollinators play a critical role in our world and over the past decade some of them, like bees, have had a hard time.
This session will zero in on how to create a garden that encourages pollinators and provides a safe environment for them.
Topics included in this seminar:
- What are Pollinators?
- Who are the Pollinators?
- 6 Ways to Attract Pollinators to a Garden
- Providing a Full Season of Flowers
- Providing Flowers with Vibrant Hues
- Providing Flowers that are Easily Accessible
- Providing a Variety of Fragrances
- Providing a Water Source
- Providing a Pesticide Free Landscape
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
All About Raised Bed Gardening
Raised Bed Gardening is a trend that began over 20 years ago that has become a gardening institution.
This workshop explores the whole spectrum of Raised Bed Gardening and how raised beds will work the best for you in your gardening space. Themes include:
- Why Raised Beds are so Amazing
- Where and When to Use Raised Gardens
- When Not to Use Raised Beds
- Design Ideas for Raised Bed Gardens
- 3 Things to Know before Planting a Raised Garden
- TENDing and Maintaining Your Raised Bed
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Setting Up Your Perennial Garden for Growing Success from Spring to Fall
Perennial Gardening is an art and perennial plants behave differently than annual plants.
We will talk about all the aspects of Perennial Gardening, from spring through fall, into winter and to the next spring. Winter is a gardening season of sorts, too.
Some of the topics included in this comprehensive presentation are:
- Perennial Garden Planning
- Spring Garden Prep
- When to Decide that a Perennial is Really not Coming Back
- Perennial Seasons of Bloom
- Great Perennial Performers for the Sunny and Shady Zone 3-4 Garden
- Impressive but Unknown Perennials for the Zone 3-4 Garden
- Fall Garden Prep
- Winter Gardening
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Practical Tips for Starting Plants from Seed
Seeding and germination are topics close to Sharon’s heart. She was responsible for all the seeding and monitoring of the germination chamber in her 2-acre greenhouse facility during the 20+ years she owned her greenhouse.
This session focuses on the essence of seeding at home for healthy seedlings to be ready at the right time for the spring garden with the following topics:
- Planning your Seedling schedule
o How to Figure out When it’s the Right Time to Sow
o A Guide to When to Sow Flowers, Vegetables, Herbs Indoors - Seed Sources and How to Store Seeds to Protect their Viability
- How to Determine Seeding Depth
- When to Cover and Uncover a Seed After Sowing
- Growing Seedlings: Heat, Humidity, Light, Watering, and Fertilizer
- When to Use Grow Lights
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Container Planting: How to Plan, Design, Plant, and Care for Containers
Gardening in pots and containers is a popular gardening trend that is versatile and filled with limitless possibilities.
Lean into this presentation to unlock the secrets to growing amazing planters and hanging baskets.
Topics that will be covered include:
- 4 Things to Know Before you Plant a Container
- How to Design a Container Planting
- How to Decide on Colours for a Container Planting
- Why Soil is so Important
- Planting Techniques
- Container Maintenance
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
How to Master the Shade Garden – There is Life after Shade!
Shade gardens, with their low light and high humidity issues, are often a mystery for gardeners. Let the perplexity end here!
We will unwind the riddle of shade gardens, covering topics like:
- Why Shade is so Tricky
- Shade Garden Planning
- Annuals and Perennials that Love the Shade
- How to Care for Shade Garden Plants
- Shade Garden Maintenance
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Vegetable Gardening 101
Food gardening is an art and a science that is regaining its popularity.
Vegetable gardening has always been a part of Sharon’s life as she learned at the heels of the master gardener, her father, Charlie.
The basics of vegetable gardening will be covered from seeding to harvest and will include the following topics:
- Vegetable Garden Planning
- Square Foot Gardening
- Companion planting
- Seeding vegetables
- Vegetables that Transplant Poorly
- Warm Crop Vegetables
- Cool Crop Vegetables
- Growing Peppers, Cucumbers, and Tomatoes
- Strategies of a Seasoned Gardener
- Vegetable Garden Maintenance Tips
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Layers of Landscaping – How to Organize Your Landscape Project
Gardens and Landscapes are an ever-morphing entity – it’s almost as if they were living things.
Landscaping doesn’t happen all at once, it is more of a process than a one-and-done project.
This session will break down landscaping into 5 broad steps to make it systematic and methodical.
Topics covered include:
- Things to Know Before you Start Landscaping
- Easy Ways to Make a Flowerbed Where you Have Lawn
- Hard-Scaping
- Tree-Scaping
- Perennials
- Annuals
- Decorations
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Caring for Houseplants
Plants have a way of making us feel better, and houseplants have skyrocketed in popularity in the last two years.
This presentation digs into houseplant care, focuses in on some common houseplants and how to care for them so they will thrive.
Topics covered in this seminar:
- The Benefits of Growing Houseplants
- General Principles of Houseplant Care
- Caring for Common Houseplants:
- Succulents
- Orchids
- Ferns
- Amaryllis
- Spider Plants
- A Couple of Common Houseplant Pests and How to Deal with Them
- Aphids
- Fungus Gnats
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
What’s Bugging Your Garden?
Bugs and diseases are a reality of our gardening life, and there are good bugs and bad bugs. When they work together in harmony, it’s a beautiful thing!
This session will focus on common bugs in the zone 3-4 garden and how to deal with them, such as:
- Aphids
- Delphinium Worms
- Scarlet Lily Beetles
- Spittle Bugs
- Daylily Gall Midge
- Rose Worms
- Black Knot Fungus
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Gardening Trends and What’s New for This Year
Each gardening year has its own personality and staying on top of what’s happening or what’s new can be challenging.
This presentation highlights what is going on in horticulture related to:
- Sustainability & Stewardship
- Trends in Growing:
- Food
- Annual Flowers
- Perennial Flowers
- Pollinator Gardens
- Maximizing Small Growing Spaces
- Container Gardening
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
All Things Christmas From Fresh Greens to Poinsettias
There are a lot of moving parts during the Christmas holiday season.
This presentation touches on topics related to decorating for this festive time from how to choose fresh greens, to trees, and Poinsettias:
- How to Select, Use, and Care for Fresh Christmas Greenery
- How to Choose and Care for a Real Christmas Tree
- How to Care for Your Poinsettia in 3 Simple Steps
- How to Get Your Poinsettia to Rebloom and Stay Beautiful Year-Round
- How to Make a Christmas Wreath
- How to Make an Evergreen Garland
Workshop Length: 40 minutes – 1 hour, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $20 per person, minimum 10 people, Large Groups - please contact Sharon
Fresh Evergreen Wreath Making Workshop
Fresh evergreen wreaths are a hallmark of the Christmas holiday season.
Build your own fresh wreath to take home in this hands-on workshop. Sharon will guide the wreath construction with step-by-step instructions, they are easier than they look!
Handmade wreaths last longer because most of the fresh foliage is from local sources. Sharon also provides care tips to maximize the lifespan of your wreaths.
This is an ideal activity to ring in the holidays, so gather friends or co-workers, and plan a time of great bonding and fun.
And it’s a no-fuss activity for the organizers – Sharon provides all the materials for each person in the workshop.
Workshop Length: 1-1.5 hours, allowing time for questions and interaction
Cost: $35 per person
Minimum number of people: 10
Topics for Industry Conferences
Sharon comes from a rich gardening and greenhouse background and sharing her expertise to equip others is her passion.
After cultivating a tropical cut flower farm with her husband Dan Murphy on the island of St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, they joined the family greenhouse business for 20+ years.
Sharon and Dan put Dan’s MBA into motion as retail, marketing, and business strategists.
In addition to building the retail portion of the business, Sharon was the lead grower in perennial flower production and contributed to annual production.
Not finding a topic that fits? Contact Sharon and she can design one for you.
Winning Retail Strategies for a Great Customer Experience
In an industry that is competitive and crowded with comparable products, it can be challenging to set yourself apart. How can you develop retail and marketing strategies that differentiate you from the competition?
In this session, learn from veteran retail marketers. Sharon Wallish Murphy, and her husband, Dan Murphy, share their expertise of 20+ years of greenhouse retail marketing and set out tools you can use to differentiate yourself and how to create a shopping environment that will keep customers coming back.
In this session you will learn:
- How to Identify Your Uniqueness
- How to Create a Welcoming and Strategic Shopping Environment
- How to Care for Your customers
- How to Empower Your Sales Team to Enhance the Customer Experience
How to Plan and Grow a Successful Perennial Line
In a crowded growing season, cultivating perennials on location is often a sidebar or afterthought for greenhouse growers, but perennials are a dynamic backbone of ornamental gardens. Growing perennials on location offers several advantages to the retail grower.
In this session, learn from veteran perennial grower, Sharon Wallish Murphy, as she shares her expertise of 20+ years growing perennials for retail sales.
In this session, Sharon will share:
- Strategies on How to Plan a Balanced Perennial Line
- Different Perennial Propagation Strategies for Successful Growth
- Ideas for Merchandising Perennials to Increase Sales
Not finding the topic that you’re looking for? Contact me and I can custom make one for you!
- 780.904.3514
- gardeningwithsharon@gmail.com
