UP Smart Gardening Conference
Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026
Northern Michigan University Conference & Event Services
1401 Presque Isle Ave., Ballroom IV, Marquette, MI 49855
8 - a.m. ET Registration & Vendor Marketplace Open
9 - 9:30 a.m. ET Welcome & 'Smart' Fall Tips
9:45 a.m. - noon ET Smart Gardening Presentations
12 noon - 1:30 p.m. ET Buffet Lunch
1:30 - 3:45 p.m. ET Smart Gardening Presentations
3:45 - 4 p.m. ET Final Words/Wrap Up - Evaluation & Door Prizes
Cost: Early registration fee of $40.00 per participant
Normal registration fee of $50.00 from Sept. 5-9
No walk-ins
(Includes lunch, refreshments, door prizes, handouts)
Smart Gardening Techniques to improve soil, eradicate invasive plants, decrease runoff with raingardens, and battle climate change
Creating Healthy Soils - Dig into Permaculture for Improvements in your Yard and Gardens
Keats Dormont, Partridge Creek Farm Education Coordinator
Healthy soil means more than do they contain enough nutrients for your plants. Explore how you can work with nature to improve your soil by applying permaculture principles that build healthy and more resilient plants from the ground up. Keats will share practices you can implement for more garden and yard success.
Be 'Smart'er than Invasive Plants - Proper Identification and Removal Strategies are Key for Success
Elliot Nelson, Michigan Sea Grant Educator, Michigan State University Extension
What does invasive mean? Discover resources to help you properly identify an invasive species. Do you need to report them? How do you prevent, control and/or remove invasive species? Elliot will explore some popular terrestrial and aquatic species within MI and provide guidance for these questions and more. Learn how to do your part in helping to eradicate invasive species.
Rain Gardening 101 - Learn the Basics of How these Gardens Help the Environment and Wet Areas
Superior Watershed Staff
Discover how rain gardens work to soak up runoff water, reduce pollution, and benefit insects and other wildlife. Explore the steps required in designing your own rain garden to create 'green spaces' that are 'smart' for the environment.
Global to Local: Climate Change Responses and Solutions for Michigan's Upper Peninsula
Dr. Sarah A. Green, Professor Emerita, Michigan Technological University, Extension Master Gardener Trainee
The climate crisis is global. Climate policy moves through the labyrinthian processes of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the annual COP meetings. Meanwhile, the electrification of global energy systems is showing the way to stabilize the climate. Gardeners have several tools to track changes to their local climates, and through smart forest and soil management (and electrification) can contribute to solutions.
Cancellation Policy: Sorry, no refunds, but substitutions are allowed and encouraged. This event will not be canceled due to inclement weather unless the facility closes.
Special Needs: Please contact Rebecca Krans, kransr@msu.edu, at least 2 weeks prior to the event if you have special needs.
Registration for UP Smart Gardening Conference is open.
Registration closes at 11:59 p.m. ET on September 9, 2026.
Accommodations
Michigan State University Extension programs, services events, and materials are open to all without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, age, height, weight, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, or veteran status. Accommodations for persons with disabilities may be requested by contacting the event contact two weeks prior to the start of the event. Requests received after this date will be honored whenever possible.
Contact Information
For questions about the UP Smart Gardening Conference, contact Rebecca Krans at kransr@msu.edu or Elizabeth Slajus at slajusel@msu.edu.