Design & Beyond 

Save the date!  January 24, 2026

Summit County Master Gardeners cordially invite you to attend

DESIGN & BEYOND 2026

When: Saturday, January 24, 2026

Time: Doors open at 8:00am

Keynote Speaker Program begins at 9:00am

program ends at 4:00pm

Where: St. George Orthodox Church Family Center

Address: 3204 Ridgewood Road, Fairlawn, Ohio 44333

Cost: $65

Keynote Speaker:  Eva Monheim

Eva Monheim is a speaker, garden coach, author, ISA Certified Arborist® (International Society of Arboriculture), an award-winning educator, and a faculty member at Longwood Gardens for the Professional Horticulture Program and Continuing Education Department. She was an assistant professor at Temple University, where she taught thirteen different subjects to undergraduate and graduate students in horticulture and landscape architecture.

Monheim’s other endeavors are the award-winning The Plant a Trillion Trees Podcast, which is heard in over 110 countries. She is the author of Shrubs & Hedges: Discover, Grow, and Care for the World’s Most Popular Plants, which was nominated by The Council on Botanical & Horticultural Libraries for outstanding contributions to the literature of horticulture. Monheim is co-principal of Verdant Earth Educators, LLC (VEE), a company that writes educational documents and standards, SOPs, landscape management plans, and trains professionals in the green industry. Monheim is also an accomplished artist and Reiki Master Teacher.

Eva will be giving two presentations:

1. Selecting Shrubs for Four Seasons of Interest. This program gives great ideas for the four season landscape which includes attracting birds and pollinators, interesting bark and bloom, and fruiting shrubs too! There is nothing better than maximizing the landscape year round.

2. Aspect and Form-A Partnership in Design. Location, location, location can determine how much energy you use in your home by the aspect or position of your landscape plantings. Plants can be used as wind blocks and cooling agents for reducing energy usage and creating new microclimates for other species to survive. This is a wonderful presentation for city or country dwellers.

Jason Veil

Jason Veil received a B.S. in Urban and Community Forestry from Penn State University in 2001. After 12 years in wholesale nursery production and sales, he earned an M.S. in Plant Curation from the University of Delaware in 2015. Before coming to Ohio, he served as Director of Horticulture at The Trustees–a non-profit organization in Massachusetts dedicated to preserving historic properties, gardens, and natural areas. Since 2018 he has served as Curator of Secrest Arboretum, where he is responsible for managing a diverse collection of horticulturally-relevant trees, shrubs, and perennials. He and his awesome team are dedicated to maximizing the Arboretum’s value to students, researchers, the Green Industry, and the public.

Jason’s topic will be Popularity, Puffery, and Performance: Evaluating Panicle Hydrangeas at Secrest Arboretum. Over the last two decades, the number of Hydrangea paniculata cultivars on the market has exploded. Gardeners who once had only a few varieties from which to choose now encounter dozens of trademarked cultivars both online and at the nursery. This presentation will explore an ongoing 5-year trial at Secrest Arboretum to determine the top performing panicle hydrangeas for our area.

Bill Barger

Bill Barger, a member of the American Conifer Society, will be sharing his extensive knowledge and experience with conifers and dwarf and unusual ornamental trees and shrubs.