Hort Days Are Back!
When: August 7th - 8th 2025
Featuring family and childrens events for the first time!
Connect with like-minded gardeners and pick up some new tips on how to keep your garden healthy and your yard beautiful. Hort Week offers the public engaging, accurate classes taught by enthusiastic garden professionals and they are suitable for new or experienced gardeners. Workshops may be taken for personal interest or for credit towards the Master Gardener Certificate Program. Come make new gardening friends!
Registration
REGISTRATION LINK COMING SOON
If you are registering multiple people, please submit one registration per individual.
Courses have limited capacitity. Drop-ins welcome if capacity has not been reached.
EVENTS - Thursday, August 7th
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
Learn the basics of how to can and preserve your harvest. You will learn about the basic components of canning through discussion and demonstration. Tips for food safety and storage is included. This event will include a tasting of the canned goods shown in the demonstration.
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
Retired Professor Bob Bors will discuss his favorite and new generation of fruit cultivars. He will also provide tips for better growth and fruiting.
There will be ample opportunity to ask questions.
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
Some artists use paint—others use plants.
Working with living media presents unique challenges, but it also offers the exciting potential for ever-evolving works of art.
In this session, we’ll explore color, texture, form, and line in container design. Learn how to create striking arrangements that last all season, engage the senses, and deliver that unforgettable “wow” factor!
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
Designed to help gardeners and small-scale growers better understand and improve their soil health, we will learn what soil health really means by exploring its physical, chemical, and biological components. We will go over and discuss the six key principles of building healthy soils. The session will also address common pitfalls such as over-fertility and explain how to use soil sampling to optimize nutrient management. We’ll explore how soil health influences garden yields and longevity and discuss practical tips to consideR. You can expect an interactive session with some hands-on components and lively discussion.
2:00 pm - 2:45 pm
3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
With rising prices, access to high quality fresh fruits and vegetables is becoming challenging, especially in the winter months. This session combines lecture with display and explanations. Low light tolerant plants and how to grow fresh horticulture produce year round indoors on a windowsill at relatively little cost and without expensive equipment will be covered.
Events - Friday, August 8th
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Learn the basics of budding and grafting with woody species with the Usask Fruit Program.
Instructors: Justin Schaeffer, Research Technician and Anze Svara, Assistant Professor.
Registration fees include all materials needed for the session including: root stalk, wood, grafting tape and knives. These materials must be returned at the end of the workshop.
If you are interested in purchasing your grafted tree at the end of the session there is an additional cost of $65.00. This is payable by cash.
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
The Patterson Arboretum was established in 1966 as part of the Prairie Regional Trials for Woody Ornamentals experiment. Dozens of new specimens are added each year, often sourced from wild seed of Canadian species or obtained from botanical gardens of the northern hemisphere.
The arboretum has grown into one of the most compelling collections of trees, shrubs, and vines in the Canadian Prairie Provinces.
F.A.Q.
Registration is priced per event.
Drop-In cost includes an additional 5$ fee. Cash or Cheque at the door. (There is a bank machine located in the building across from the Agriculture Cafe on the 2nd floor.)
Cancellation Policy:
Hort Days Refund Policy: registration can be cancelled up to July 31, 2025, with a cancellation fee of $25.00 & gst. After July 31, 2025, no refund will be issued.
Contact for refund information.
Where do you park? There is metered parking around the building, underground parking beneath it, and occassionally the staff and student lots are free to park in as well. For specific parking advice, check out the parking website.
Coming in from out of town to take classes? Stay on campus for an inexpensive and convenient option.