🌱 Grow Local: Topeka Common Ground’s 2026 Garden Conference
9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. | Saturday, February 28, 2026
Washburn Tech Conference Center
(5724 SW Huntoon St., Topeka, KS)
Registration fee: $25 (includes snacks)
Keynote speaker: Will Nagengast from Seeds from Italy
Join gardeners of all experience levels for a practical, half-day conference focused on real-world gardening knowledge and community connection. You’ll hear from local speakers on topics like:
- Growing lesser-known or culturally significant vegetables
- Starting home or community gardens
- Hugelkultur and low-maintenance soil-building
- Preserving, donating, and using your harvest
- Edible native plants
- Volunteer engagement in community garden spaces
Schedule overview:
- 8:30 a.m. – Check-in Opens
- 9:00 a.m. – Welcome & Keynote”Le Bizzarre: Growing Unique Vegetables from Italy and Beyond”, Will Nagengast, Seeds from Italy
- 10:00 – 10:45 a.m. – Breakout Sessions
- Starting a New Home or Community Garden: Tips for Success
Barbara LaClair, Topeka Common Ground OR - Hugelkulture – Water, Soil, and Beauty
Amber Thumann, Kansas Permaculture Institute
- Starting a New Home or Community Garden: Tips for Success
- 10:55 – 11:40 – Breakout Sessions
- Growing a Native Food Forest
Kevin Siek, Shawnee County Extension Master Gardeners OR - Building Volunteer Networks
Jenna Gorton, United Way of Kaw Valley
- Growing a Native Food Forest
- 11:55 – 12:50 – You Grew It! Now What To Do With It? Making the Most of Your Garden HarvestCarrie Riordan, Shawnee County Extension Master Gardeners
- 12:40 p.m. – 1:30 pm. Closing Group Activity & Door Prize Raffle Door Prize Raffle
Plus: Vendor/resource tables, snack breaks, and a closing door prize raffle and group activity!
🗓️ Register by February 23