Home and garden show set for Feb. 21-22 in Wichita Falls

Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu Contact: David Graf, 940-716-8610, cdgraf@ag.tamu.edu

WICHITA FALLS The Arts Alive 2015 Home and Garden Festival on Feb. 21-22 will be hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service office in Wichita County and the Wichita County Master Gardeners Association.

The annual home and garden show will be in the Ray Clymer Exhibit Hall, 1000 5th St. Admission is $7 per person or $5 in advance from local business supporters or Master Gardeners.

Vendor exhibits, seminars and demonstrations are scheduled from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Feb. 21 and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on Feb. 22. The program will benefit the Arts Council of Wichita Falls through the Kemp Center for the Arts.

The primary segment of the educational sessions will occur in the auditorium starting at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 21 with the following topics and speakers: Healthy Trees, Charlie Carr, Texas Tree Care certified arborist, Wichita Falls. Rainfall Alone, Paul Dowlearn, Wichita Valley Nursery, Wichita Falls. Rainwater for Life, Billy Kniffen, retired AgriLife Extension state water resource specialist in rainwater harvesting, Menard. Peytons Project, a non-profit organization for rattlesnake awareness, Tammy Reece, Wichita Falls.

Also, a special educational lineup, known as Challenge Sessions, will be held throughout the two-day event. These hour-long sessions will feature a variety of topics in an informal setting, where attendees may interact with speakers, said David Graf, AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Wichita County.

Challenge Sessions on Feb. 21 will be from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Morning sessions will include: Our Ecology; Backyard Hens, Chicks and Eggs; Farmyard Dairy Goats; Homemade Cheese and Soap; Converting to Native Landscape; Gardening with Rainwater; Gardening with Grandma; Home-Style Canning and More; and Lawn Restoration.

Educational sessions on Feb. 22 begin at 11:30 a.m. and end at 3:45 p.m.

Topics and speakers include: Peytons Project, Reece. Amazing Hummingbirds, Penny Miller, amateur birder, Wichita Falls. Spiders and Insects: The Good and the Bad, Dr. Roy Vogtsberger, Midwestern State University associate biology professor, Wichita Falls.

Challenge Sessions on Feb. 22 will run from 11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and the topics will be: Texas Quail Index, Feathered Friends, Peytons Project, Restoring Your Yard and Converting to Native Landscape.

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Home and garden show set for Feb. 21-22 in Wichita Falls