4 Great Seminar Stages!

Visit any of our four seminar stages for instruction and information on dozens of interesting & entertaining topics!

More speakers & times coming soon!

The Home Stage
Searching for the latest trends in building, renovation and interior design?  This stage has it all, with the areas leading designers and builders showing you how to get the most out of your home.

The Cooking Stage
Create Super Salads with Bob Garlough of the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education!

The Garden Stage
Offering tips and tricks on flower gardening maintenence and design, sponsored by the Capital Area Landscape and Nursery Association, and featuring a wide array of experts!

Stiles Landscape & Supply Stage
Back for another year, Stiles Landscape & Supply will teach you how to build & maintain small water gardens, or install a concrete retaining wall.

J Schwanke

J Schwanke's love of Flowers began at birth during a Snowstorm at a State Flower Convention in Nebraska. J’s career grew and blossomed… as he joined his family’s Flower business: Green’s Greenhouses Inc. in 1976 and directed the Flower Shop and Garden Center operations starting in 1981. J is a member of the American Academy of Floriculture, the American Institute of Floral Designers, and the Professional Floral Communicators International and the National Speakers Association.

 In 1994 J began an independent career as a flower design consultant, Flower Industry Spokesperson and the foremost Flower Design Expert in the American flower industry. As the HOST of the World’s First Web Broadcast Flower Design Show: JTV! Offering Flower Enthusiasts everywhere the opportunity to have FUN with Flowers and J all the time! J’s Passion for Flowers is far reaching and Infectious. He gives Flower demonstrations in every state in the Union, Canada, and throughout Europe. Critics, sponsors and Flower loving attendees agree J is one of the most sought after experts in the World of Flowers.

Fun With Flowers and J!

Chef Angus Campbell

A City and Guilds Master Craftsmen, with over 29 years of experience, Chef Angus Campbell was born and raised on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. Beginning his professional career, Chef Campbell worked at the Bahamas Hotel Training College where he became the Department Chair for their Culinary Arts Department before moving to Grand Rapids where he currently teaches in the Culinary Arts program as Chef-Instructor in the Heritage Restaurant for lunch service.

Chef Campbell currently teaches at the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education at Grand Rapids Community College.  Along with a program for enrolled students, the department offers nearly forty seminar-styled cooking classes annually to the general public through their Institute for Culinary Enthusiasts (click the link for topics and registration information), with 6 different classes running in March 2008.  He is also co-author of the best seller Modern Garde Manger, selected as the IACP Award Winner for 2007 in the Technical Reference Category.  

Cooking Stage Seminars

Schedule coming soon...

Trey Rogers - The Lawn Geek

The author of “LAWN GEEK: Tips and Tricks for the Ultimate Turf From the Guru of Grass,” which was released in 2007, Trey Rogers - the Yard Doctor - has made professional appearances on radio and television stations nationwide, passing along yard care tips that save time and money.

Rogers earned the nicknames "Sultan of Sod" and "God of Grass" when he led a research team that helped perfect the growing of indoor grass for the 1994 World Cup soccer competition at the Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan. He also serves as a professor of Turfgrass Science at MSU and is Briggs & Stratton’s homeowner answer man when it comes to lawns and yards. He answers hundreds of questions submitted each year on the Web site www.YardDoctor.com

Rogers first brushed up against his future career as a teenager – his parents made him mow the lawn. It was while working as a golf course groundskeeper in his hometown of Fort Smith, Ark., that he became fascinated with turf grass science. He went on to earn his doctorate in agronomy from Penn State University in 1988.

As the Yard Doctor, Rogers is able to share his expertise with homeowners from Grass Valley, Calif., to Plant City, Fla., and everywhere in between. He says nothing brings him more satisfaction than the sight of a healthy, well-groomed lawn.

Lawn Care the Lawn Geek Way

Trey Rogers - The Lawn Geek - shares the secrets to a healthy, fabulous lawn you can be proud of!

On the Garden Stage
Times Coming Soon...