10:00 am  Welcome

Speaker: Deb Heleba. We will get settled for our day together and go over what to expect. 

10:10 am  From Campus to Community

Speaker: Lindy Prokopy. We will kick off the conference with a welcome from the new Dean of the University of Vermont College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Dr. Linda Prokopy.

10:30 am  Garden Season Look Back

Speaker: Ann Hazelrigg. Join UVM Extension plant pathologist Dr. Ann Hazelrigg for an engaging look back at this year’s garden season. From unexpected weather conditions to lessons learned, we’ll explore what thrived, what struggled, and how gardeners across Vermont tackled common plant diseases and insect challenges.

11:15 am  Research Update: Jumping Worms

Speaker: Maryam Nouri-Aiin. Dr. Nouri-Aiin is an entomologist and soil ecologist at UVM who works at the intersection of biological control, microbial ecology, and invasive species dynamics. She will provide the latest research results on her ongoing investigations of invasive jumping worms.

12:00 pm  Lunch Break

12:30 pm  Garden Table Talks

Join small groups of fellow gardeners for relaxed, roundtable-style conversations. It’s a chance to share insights, swap stories, and connect more deeply with others who care about growing community—one conversation at a time.

Topics include:

• Composting
• Forest pests
• Effective tabling
• Pollinator gardens
• Wellness gardening
• Volunteering FAQs

1:30 pm  Research Update: Legumes

Speaker: Eric Bishop von Wettberg. UVM evolutionary ecologist Dr. von Wettberg will share his reasearch on evolutionary ecology and population genetics of legumes--chickpea, lentils, fenugreek, fava beans--and forages. His team studies wild relatives of crops to breed better crops, conserve crop genetic resources, and build resilience to climate change into agricultural systems. 

2:15 pm  Research Update

3:00 pm  Adjourn

Registration Fees

The registration fee covers your cost to participate in the live broadcast of the conference as outlined in the agenda below, plus access to recordings of the presentations after the conference until the end of 2025.

Conference rate: $40 per person.

Discounted Rate for Active Volunteers

We are offering a discounted registration rate of $20 per volunteer for active UVM Extension Master Gardener (EMG) and Vermont Master Composter (VMC) Volunteers and Interns. This rate is available to volunteers and interns who have donated volunteer hours to our program in 2025. Please use the discount code provided to active volunteers via email.

Location

The conference will be held online over Zoom. You will receive the Zoom link and other conference information on November 21, 2025.

Accommodations

Thanks to Interpreter Services provided by the UVM Center for Academic Success, conference presentations will be live captioned. To request a disability-related accommodation to participate in this program, please contact Deb Heleba at debra.heleba@uvm.edu or 802-656-1777.

Refund Policy

Cancellation requests must be made in writing to University Event Services registration team at eventregistration@uvm.edu. Requests made by November 20, 2025, will receive a refund minus a $5 cancellation fee. No refunds are available after the close of registration at midnight ET on November 20, 2025.

UVM Extension Master Gardener & Composter Hours

Certified UVM Extension Master Gardener and Vermont Master Composter volunteers may claim Continuing Education hours for this conference. For volunteers who lead small group sessions, we will provide your registration at no cost and you may earn volunteer hours for your time leading the session.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact Deb Heleba by email at debra.heleba@uvm.edu or phone at 802-656-1777.