September General Meeting: Guest Speaker Jeff Mason, "30 Years on a Sand Dune"

Jeff will ask us to imagine the excitement of moving to the property that will become a dream garden, putting that first shovel in the ground, and discovering that you have just moved on to a 2-acre sand pile! His presentation explores the trials and tribulations, successes and failures of creating a great garden on dry sand. From the un-watered Xeric garden to the increasing amounts of dry shade, a vast array of perennials, shrubs, and annuals have been successfully cultivated under these tough conditions. In a talk that is part biographical, part technical, and part inspirational, Jeff will share techniques for site preparation, plant selection, as well as “right plant, right place” planting schemes.

Jeff is the owner of Mason House Gardens, a specialty plant nursery growing uncommon perennials, specialty annuals, heirloom vegetables, and tropical plants for containers and houseplants. He has dedicated his life to the cultivation, production and promotion of plants and gardens through lecturing to garden clubs, horticultural societies, and master gardener groups, teaching at George Brown College, hosting a community access garden tv show and co-hosting “Let’s Get Growing” a live call-in radio show. Currently, he is hosting a regular live gardening series on Facebook and Youtube. He also inspires avid gardeners by hosting garden tours to UK and European gardens. This is Jeff's third presentation to our society.

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All general meetings begin with a welcome and general announcements, which precede introduction of the guest speaker. 

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Members: Instructions for participation in this virtual and in-person event will be emailed to members twice - once on the Friday prior to the meeting, and again on Monday. Instructions are also available by logging into our site and checking the "members-only" version of this event. 

Visitors: Guests are welcome to participate in this virtual and in-person event at a nominal fee of $5.00 Instructions for participation will be emailed to non-society members who complete the registration process prior to the event start time.

About In-Person Attendance at the McConaghy Centre: 

• Doors to the auditorium open at 7 pm 
• The meeting begins promptly at 7:30 pm
• Please bring a mug or cup if you would like hot coffee or tea
• All attendees are encouraged to register online for inclusion in door prize draws
• Masks are not required, but are encouraged