Category: Conference History

International Master Gardener Conferences ~ Past, Present and Future

The 2017 International Master Gardener Conference, with the theme ‘Follow the Oregon Trail to Great Gardening‘,  will mark the 30th year and the 15th biennial gathering of this remarkable event.  But, did you know that 2017 will mark the second time that the conference has been hosted in Portland?  In 1989, the Oregon State University Extension Master Gardener Program (under the direction of Ray and Jan McNeilan) hosted the second national gathering of Master Gardeners at the Red Lion in Portland, Oregon.  I believe that the conference was renamed the International Master Gardener Conference by 1991 ~ although I could be wrong.

If you have more details on the evolution of the conference, please share!  I’ve become a Master Gardener history buff, and love seeing how the program and the conference have grown and evolved over the years.

What I have found on the history of the event is listed below, together with a few photos from IMGCs I have attended (2009, 2011 and 2013).

2015 International Master Gardener Conference

2015: Horticultural Horizons in the Heartland, September 22-25, 2015 in Council Bluffs, Iowa

Previous International Master Gardener Conferences

2013:  Flowers, Fjords & Friends, September 7-14, 2013, an Alaskan cruise from Seattle

Cruising Glacier Bay during the 2017 IMGC cruise to Alaska.
Cruising Glacier Bay during the 2013 IMGC cruise to Alaska.
Touring gardens managed by the Alaska Master Gardeners in Sitka.
Touring gardens managed by the Alaska Master Gardeners in Sitka.

 

I have Siberian Huskies, and couldn't help but stop and pet these Malamutes while visiting Ketchikan.
I have Siberian Huskies, and couldn’t help but stop and pet these Malamutes while visiting Ketchikan.

2011:  Color it Green In a Wild & Wonderful Way, October 11-14, 2011 in Charleston, West Virginia

Oregon Master Gardener Betty F. up on stage (4th from left) during the 2011 IMGC.
Oregon Master Gardener Betty F. up on stage (4th from left) during the 2011 IMGC.

 

A street scene from Charleston, during a break in the 2011 IMGC.
A street scene from Charleston, during a break in the 2011 IMGC.
There was a fire drill during the 2011 IMGC! A great reminder that sometimes things don't go as planned.
There was a fire drill during the 2011 IMGC! A great reminder that sometimes things don’t go as planned.

2009:  “New Frontiers” in Horticulture and Gardening, March 22-26 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

At a behind the scenes tour of the Bellagio gardens at the 2009 IMGC in Las Vegas, NV.
At a behind the scenes tour of the Bellagio gardens at the 2009 IMGC in Las Vegas, NV.

2007:  Celebrate Gardening in the Natural State, May 2-5 in Little Rock, Arkansas.

2005:  100 Years of Gardening on the Canadian Prairies, June 24-27 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

2003:  Celebrate Gardening in the Ohio River Valley, June 18-21 in the Cincinnati, OH/Northern Kentucky area.

2001:  The Magic of Gardening, May 29-June 1 at Walt Disney World® Resort in Orlando, Florida

1999:  World of Gardening, August 19-22 in San Antonio, TX

1997:  July 15-19 in Sacramento, CA

1995:  Gardening Under the Northern Lights, July 22-26 in Saskatoon, Canada

1993:  Gardening for a Better World, August 12-15 in San Antonio, TX

1991:  Gardening Tools of Another Kind, September 24-27 in Detroit, MI

1989:  An On-Growing Experience, October 11-14 in Portland, OR

1987:  Capitol Gardening, October 7-10 in Washington DC