The Isanti County Master Gardeners are excited to present Karl Foord from the University of Minnesota as the keynote speaker at this year’s “Burst Into Spring” horticultural event.
Registration for the March 12 event will include admittance to educational classes, door prizes, keynote morning donut-coffee and lunch is $25. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Armed Forces Reserve and Community Center in Cambridge.
Foord received his master’s degree in horticulture from Rutgers University, his Ph.D. in genetics from the University of California at Davis and a master’s in business administration in finance and entrepreneurship from the University of Minnesota. He has worked in the Minnesota Extension for the last 20 years, holding positions in Renville, Dakota and Hennepin counties. His present research concerns the role of native bees as pollinators in the production of fruit crops including apples, blueberries, strawberries and raspberries. An avid photographer, his present interest is capturing pollinators in flight.
Foord will present, “Getting to Know Insects (especially pollinators) as our Ecosystem Partners—Up Close and Personal.” He will talk about the part that pollinators play in the ecosystem in general and in human food production systems in particular. One of his career goals is to produce materials that permit people to see things that they cannot ordinarily see, given our limited visual systems.
Insects move fast, much faster in almost all things than we can see. Insects are for the most part quite small which increases the difficulty of observing their behavior so he has pursued observation via high speed, magnified video. Foord will present his videos that will show how the wings actually work; how insects groom themselves; how the insects feed on nectar and pollen; why some flowers are only available to certain insects; and some very interesting interactions between insects.
Attendees to the event will be amused and fascinated by these videos, which are opening the doors to perception. If you want to see some of the great theatre occurring in your garden, join Foord and the Master Gardeners at this year’s event.
Registration forms and more information can be found at www.isanticountymastergardeners.com or call the Extension Office at 763-689-1810.