Speaker Series
Each year, Cloverleaf Garden Club hosts talented gardening, horticulture and other experts, promising to engage us, teach us and amuse us. From gardening myths to tips and tricks, from flowers to veggies, we work hard to showcase a variety of topics that will help you with your gardening dreams.
Presentations are on the third Wednesday of the month from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm at 1389 Cawthra Rd., Mississauga.
The balance of the 2024 speaker series will be in person only,
Tony Spencer
Wildscaping: Explorations in
Naturalistic Planting Design
Wednesday, October 16, 2024
7:30 pm
Wildscaping is about using plant-driven landscape design to create and sustain dynamic garden spaces, filled with beauty and wildlife, to rekindle our relationship to the natural world. Join writer and planting designer Tony Spencer for an encounter with some of the international designers, innovations, issues, and landscapes leading the way – along with a look at his own experimental design projects – to inspire garden-making with a sense of purpose on the wild side.
Tony Spencer is the Canadian writer, digital creator and planting designer behind The New Perennialist. He is recognized and published internationally in the world of naturalistic garden design. Known for his award-winnig blog, he also hosts The New Perennialist Talks, a webinar series featuring influential design innovators in the genre. In 2020, Tony won a top Landscape Design Honor Award in 2020 from the US-based Perennial Plant Association (PPA) and in 2023, he was named PPA Garden Media Promoter of the year. Day to day, Tony is a puckish ringleader for the naturalistic movement on social media with over 75k followers on his various channels. He travels extensively to gardens and symposiums in his primary role as a communicator, documenter and sharer of ideas for this movement.
Upcoming Speakers
Michael Erdman
How to Make Christmas
Themed Outdoor Decorations
Wednesday, November 20, 2024
7:30 pm
Kicking off the festive season, Michael Erdman, an RBG and Garden Club of Ontario certified floral judge, will be presenting us with a demonstration of creating Christmas themed outdoor decorations, Michael, who is himself an award winning floral designer (Canada Blooms, the CNE, and the Garden Clubs of Ontario Triennial Shows), will show us how to make a festive holiday urn and a decorative door swag with a special emphasis on using foraged greenery and natural materials from your garden.
Michael Erdman developed his keen interest in gardening and horticulture when he bought his first house in Toronto’s Riverdale neighbourhood in the late 80’s. Although his grandfathers in Waterloo had tutored him as a child in the culture of roses and growing vegetables, there was a long interlude between opportunities to get his hands dirty. With a blank slate of a yard at his new house and being a researcher by trade, Michael threw himself into learning about perennials, roses, shrubs and within a couple of years had no grass left in his yard. Without his knowledge, a friend entered him in a couple of garden contests, and in two years his garden won first prizes in the Riverdale ward and White Rose Nursery’s city-wide garden contest.
Moving to the Beach neighbourhood in the ‘90’s for more arable land, Michael co-authored books on perennial gardening and indoor gardening, and eventually became president of the Beach Garden Society. His Beach garden has been featured in local summer garden tours, and in numerous magazines, newspapers and TV programs. He tends hundreds of houseplants, including camellias and orchids. Always looking for new challenges, he completed the RBG and Garden Clubs of Ontario horticultural and floral design judging certification courses. Michael’s floral designs have won many awards at major juried shows such as Canada Blooms, the CNE, and the Garden up the Greater Toronto Bulb Society.
Past Speakers
Collin Pine
Book Talk : The Garden Next Door
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
Collin Pine dug into the germination story of The Garden Next Door, shares about the collaborative process of creating an award-winning book, and talks about how the power of storytelling can be used to ignite children’s love for local flora and fauna.
Catherine McGill
The Ground Gets Lower
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
"Ground gets Lower” Advice for all gardeners on how to stay gardening longer and maybe learn some new tricks on the way.
Aging, round, humour in a nutshell I was a chef for over 20 years, Blacksmith, Horse trainer, Riding instructor but the ones you want to know is my own Garden maintenance business for way too long, 40+ years and my clients are in majority, seniors,
Marie Decker
How to Grow and Care for Roses
Wednesday, June 19, 2024
Marie Decker introduced us to rose terminology and looked at some of the best roses we can choose based on colour, fragrance and type of rose, Included in the presentation will be rose culture, planting, growing, and pruning, along with insect pests, diseases and lots of pictures of beautiful roses..
Helen Battersby
The Gardens of Ireland
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
An eyeful of ideas with a side order of history in this inspiring armchair garden visit to the glorious Emerald Isle. From a Neolithic farm site on the scenic west coast to Victorian garden estates and the contemporary creations of siblings Jimi and June Blake, you’ll soon want to put Ireland on your bucket list.
Sean James
Good Enough To Eat
Living off YOUR Land
Wednesday, May 15, 2024
Join us for an informative presentation by Sean on the fundamental principles of growing food on your property. Sean will share creative solutions for city yards and discuss how to keep your garden ornamental while using edible natives and perennials to be eco-friendly.
Members Evening
Fall Festival
Wednesday, September 18, 2024
What an exciting evening we had filled with casual socializing and sharing our garden triumphs and challenges! Members brought their burning garden questions for the amazing Mississauga Master Gardeners. It was a night of sharing, celebrating, and having a blast with fellow gardening enthusiasts
No judging, just pure fun!