Distinguished garden writers, renowned landscape professionals, master gardeners, local chefs and the Show’s talented exhibitors will share their expertise at the 2012 Boston Flower & Garden Show in a full program of daily lectures, how-to demos, floral arranging workshops, children’s activities and cooking demonstrations. New this year: the After Work Urban Gardening Series at 6:00pm, Wednesday-Saturday, offers quick tips on beautifying small-space gardens and increasing the urban harvest.

An exciting schedule of speakers is being finalized. All programs are complimentary unless otherwise indicated.

John Gidding, Host of HGTV's Curb Appeal: The Block

Celebrity Guest : Meet HGTV star John Gidding, host of Curb Appeal: The Block, when he visits the Show on Friday, March 16, to demonstrate easy gardening makeovers.

Paul Tukey & Victoria Rowell

Love Your Lawn Again: Paul Tukey and Victoria Rowell introduce their new book, Tag, Toss & Run: 40 Classic Lawn Gameson Sunday, March 18 from 3:30 to 5:00pm. For the last five years, Tukey has focused his energies on teaching about growing lawns naturally through the SafeLawn Foundation. In his new book, co-authored by actress and best-selling author Victoria Rowell, Tukey shares his desire to inspire people to use - rather than just look at - their lawns. Meet Paul and Victoria and get re-acquainted with the joy of old-time-y family lawn games like bocce and croquet and maybe learn a few new ones, too!

Learn the Value of Curb Appeal Upgrades : Local real estate professionals will offer landscape staging tips and estimate the true value of specific landscape upgrades.

Hone Your "Garden to the Table" Culinary Skills : Local chefs will transform easily-grown produce and herbs into impressive, party-staging appetizers for your next backyard bash.

2012 Schedule Preview

Here is the complete list of 2012 Lecture and Demo Stage programming:

Wednesday, March 14

10:00 AM Demo: Invasive Plants: Identifying & Removing from the Home Garden, Ted Elliman, New England Wild Flower Society

10:30 AM Lecture: Passion for Peonies, Kathleen Gagan, Peony’s Envy

11:00 AM Demo: Designing English Container Gardens, John Sexton, Strawbery Banke Museum & Gardens

11:30 AM Lecture: Historic Gardens – In Your Own Backyard, John Forti, The Heirloom Gardener

12:00 PM Demo: Nasturtium Corn Fritter with a Pineapple Sage Ancho Salsa, Chef John Lawrence, Peppers Fine Food Catering, hosted by KISS 108 FM

12:30 PM Lecture: Soak Up the Rain Campaign, Curt Spalding, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

12:30 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Story Hour – Flowers

1:00 PM Demo: Floral Design for Great First Impressions, Faith Cass, Cass School of Floral Design

1:30 PM Lecture: Get Off the Grass: Organic Alternatives to Turf, Therese Ciesinski, Organic Gardening Magazine

2:00 PM Demo: Make a Great First Impression with Porch Pots & Window Boxes, Tina Bemis, Bemis Farm Nursery

2:30 PM Lecture: Beyond the Wild – Creating Habitat for People and Wildlife in Our Gardens and Landscapes, Theresa Sprague, BlueFlax

3:00 PM Demo: Roses, Manuel Mendes, New England Rose Society

3:30 PM Lecture: The Year-round Vegetable Gardener, Nikki Jabbour, courtesy of Storey Publishing Co.

4:00 PM Demo: Sous Vide: The Art of Slow & Low Tempature Cooking, Chef Jayson DeMarco, Bistro 44

4:30 PM Lecture: Variegated Foliage, Stan Megos, Variegated Foliage Nursery

After Work Urban Gardening Series:

6:00 PM Demo: Jaw-Dropping, Traffic-Stopping, Get-Your-Neighbors-Talking Container Gardens, Deborah Trickett, The Captured Garden

Thursday, March 15

Thursday’s lectures and demos are programmed by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.

10:00 AM Demo: Container Gardening for Curb Appeal, Tina Bemis, Bemis Farms Nursery

10:30 AM Lecture: Twenty Great Spring-Flowering Shrubs You Don’t Have, Wayne Mezzit, Weston Nurseries

11:00 AM Demo: Floral Design, Mary Huntoon, Floral Designer

11:30 AM Lecture: Designing & Planting The Entry Garden, Warren Leach, Tranquil Lake Nursery

12:00 PM Demo: Vegetable Gardening Made Simple – And Beautiful, Ellen Ecker Ogden, The Complete Kitchen Garden

12:30 PM Lecture: Taking Care of Your Trees, Jim Ingram, Bartlett Tree Experts

12:30 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Story Hour – Vegetables & Me

1:00 PM Demo: Ikebana, Kaye Vosburgh, Ikebana International

1:30 PM Lecture: Make a Great First Impression, Kerry Ann Mendez, Perennially Yours

2:00 PM Demo: Container Gardens for Small Spaces , Including Water Gardens, Betty Sanders, MA for Russell’s Garden Center

2:30 PM Lecture: Dramatic Entryways for A Great First Impression, Barbara Pierson, White Flower Farm

3:00 PM Demo: Floral Design, Gloria Freitas Steidinger, Floral Designer

3:30 PM Lecture: Beyond Lawns: Re-Imagining the Front of Your Property, Paul Miskovsky, Miskovsky Landscaping

4:00 PM Demo: Art in Bloom: Floral Arranging from the MFA’s Signature Celebration of Spring, MFA Associates Marmee Taylor and Yvette Shakespeare

4:30 PM Lecture: How to Take Great Garden Photos, Barbara Ellison, Canon U.S.A.

After Work Urban Gardening Series:

5:00 PM Demo: Urban Gardening, Peter Vera, Mahoney’s Garden Centers

5:30 PM Lecture: Curb Appeal for City Homes, Sally Muspratt, Landscape Designer

6:00 PM Demo: Containers for City Living, Betty Sanders, Massachusetts Master Gardeners Association

Friday, March 16

10:00 AM Demo: Jaw-Dropping, Traffic-Stopping, Get-Your-Neighbors-Talking Container Gardens, Deborah Trickett, The Captured Garden

10:30 AM Lecture: Organic Container Gardening, Paul Split, Horticultural Lecturer

11:00 AM Demo: Cooking with Lavender, Betsey-Ann Golon, Common Folk Herb Farm

11:30 AM Lecture: Creating Curb Appeal, John Gidding, HGTV’s Curb Appeal: The Block

12:00 PM Demo: Party Starting Apps from the Garden, Paul Split, Horticultural Lecturer

12:30 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Story Hour – In My Backyard

1:00 PM Demo: The Power of First Impressions: Foyer Flowers that WOW, Kirsten van Dijk, My PassionFlower

1:30 Lecture: Using Texture & Foliage in the Garden, Crystal Brinson, Horticulturist

2:00 PM Demo: Window Boxes that WOW, Joann Vieira, Tower Hill Botanic Garden

2:30 PM Lectures: Creating Curb Appeal, John Gidding, HGTV’s Curb Appeal: The Block

3:00 PM Demo: Preserving the Herbal Harvest in Unique Ways, Betsey-Ann Golon, Common Folk Farm

4:00 PM Demo: First Bites: Garden-Inspired Nibbles, Chef Carole Murko, Heirloom Meals

4:30 PM Lecture: i-Factor: Defining Yourself In the Garden, Samantha Best, Magma Design Group

After Work Urban Gardening Series:

6:00 PM Lecture: Creating a Small-Space Garden Oasis, Ed Maclean, Potted UP

Saturday, March 17

10:00 AM Demo: Constructing Habitat Boxes, Nate McCullin, New England Wild Flower Society

10:30 AM Lecture: Bringing Your Garden to Life, Tobias Wolfe, Ecologic Landscape Association

11:00 AM Demo: The Love of Lavender, Nancy Engel, Sunny Window

11:00 AM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Story Hour – Growing Up Green

11:30 AM Lecture: Create Winning Perennial Combinations Using Color & Texture Basic, Maria von Brincken, Landscape Architect

12:00 PM Demo: Springtime Frittatas, Culinary Staff, Wilson Farms

12:30 PM Lecture: Water Features in the Home Landscape, Jay Bearfield, Liquid Landscape Design

1:00 PM Demo: Ikebana, Tomoko Tanaka, Ikebana International

1:00 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Activities & Crafts

1:30 Lecture: Anatomy of a Sustainable Rose Garden, Mike & Angie Chute, RoseSolutions

2:00 PM Demo: Pruning 101, Joe Biagioni, Arbor Alliance

2:30 PM Lecture: Four-Season Landscapes: Choosing Trees & Shrubs for Year-Round Appeal, Penelope O’Sullivan, Coastal Home Magazine

3:00 PM Demo: The Bins & Outs of Composting, Colleen Plimpton, Garden Lecturer

3:00 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Activities & Crafts

3:30 PM Lecture: Creating the Wow Factor in Shade Gardens: Seeing Your Way Out of the Dark, Kerry Ann Mendez, Perennially Yours

4:00 PM Demo: Four Seasons of Charming Container Gardens, Michelle Harvey, Lakeview Nurseries

4:30 PM Lecture: Heirloom Gardening, From Seed to Seed, Ken Greene, Hudson Valley Seed Library

After Work Urban Gardening Series:

6:00 PM Demo: Intensive Growing in Small Spaces: How to Optimize your Vegetable Production when Space and Sun are Limited, Jessie Benhazi, Green City Growers

Sunday, March 18

10:00 AM Demo: Propagation of Trillium & Other Garden Plants, Dan Jaffe, New England Wild Flower Society

10:30 AM Lecture: High on Hydrangea, Jeannie Gillis, Cape Cod Hydrangea Society

11:00 AM Demo: Roses, Manuel Mendes, New England Rose Society

11:00 AM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Story Hour – Good Bugs, Bad Bugs

11:30 AM Lecture: The Allure of the Japanese Maple, Brent Markus, Markus Specimen Trees

12:00 PM Demo: Apps from Taps, Chef Natasha Tauscher, Natick Community Organic Farm

1:00 PM Demo: Four-Season Window Boxes, Trish Wesley Umbrell, Natick Community Organic Farm

1:30 PM Lecture: What’s Worth It & What’s Not in Curb Appeal Landscape Upgrades, Robin Brodsky, Coldwell Banker

2:00 PM Demo: Small Worlds: Terrariums from Start to Finish Virginia Orlando, Owner, Seed To Stem Botanicals

2:30 PM Program: Tag, Toss & Run: 40 Classic Lawn Games, Paul Tukey & Victoria Rowell

3:00 PM Demo: Body Flowers & Bling, Cindy Mattson, Given-Irwin Florists

3:00 PM Children’s Activity: Master Gardener Activities & Craft

4:00 PM Demo: Party Starting Apps from the Garden, Russell Morin Fine Catering, in celebration of the 2012 Newport Flower Show, “Salsa!”

New in 2012! The After Work Urban Gardening Series. Stop by on your way home from the office at 6pm, Wednesday-Saturday for tips and techniques on topics such as vegetable gardening in the city, how to get involved in a community garden, and small space gardening!