The University of Idaho Plant and Soil Science Club (PSSC) will offer two informational sessions about plant care and plant-potting workshop for Moms’ Weekend.
These Informational sessions are free for Greenthumb 101 at 10 a.m. and Greenthumb 201 at 1 p.m. Saturday in Sixth Street Greenhouse.
“We want to make sure that the information they’re not charged for, it is just to help them become better growers of plants,” PSSC vice president Jennifer Chan said.
Each seminar outlines different information on plants. Greenthumb 101 gives an overview of plant care, including how to transplant and how to take care of specific types of plants, Chan said. She said the second session goes into more detail about plant diseases and potential pests.
Chan said the workshops can be helpful not only for first-time growers, but also for knowledgeable gardeners.
“I still find it a valuable thing to come to the Greenthumb 101 in order to broaden their knowledge, and if not, they can also add to the session so we can potentially incorporate their information in our future Greenthumb events,” she said.
Unlike the informational sessions, the plant-potting workshop has limited space. PSSC faculty adviser Bob Tripepi said with 25 to 30 spots offered, the event sells out almost every year. Online spots were available to reserve this year and sold out over a week in advance. However, Tripepi said if the weather is nice, they may accept more people the day of the events and have some people outside.
Chan said the event is so popular the UI Alumni Association considered not putting a cap on it. The workshop costs $25 per hanging basket or centerpiece potted, and is one of PSSC’s fundraisers.
Tripepi said this is the fourth year the event has been offered.
He said it began with a club member, Trey Mallory, who was also involved in the UI Alumni Association, who asked the club whether they would like to host a Moms’ Weekend event.
“(Mallory) said they were kind of looking for activities for Moms’ Weekend and thought this might be a real good match,” Tripepi said. “So that’s where it all started.”
Chan said the purpose of PSSC for her is to educate members on how to take care of plants and they can educate others, which is what the Greenthumb sessions do.
Tripepi said members of the club come from different departments, and students are welcome to join their meetings at 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays in the head greenhouse on Sixth Street.
Tripepi said PSSC also sells succulents and bedding plants throughout the year, including selling poinsettias during the Christmas season. He said they will sell bedding plants during dead week at the Sixth Street Greenhouse. The money from these fundraisers are used for service events and charities, as well as food at PSSC meetings and a scholarship for an active PSSC member, Tripepi said.
Nina Rydalch can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @NinaRobin7