“If You Build It, They Will Come: Understanding and Improving Garden Soils”
Bryce Lane, Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor Emeritus and Lecturer Emeritus, Department of Horticultural Science, NC State University

As gardeners, we spend most of our time thinking “above ground.” We ruminate about plants, combinations, color, texture, and about light exposure, water, temperature and climate. Gardening success is equally dependent on what is going on below ground. A scientific understanding of soil chemistry, biology, physics, and fertility makes a good gardener a “master” gardener! This class will help us understand basic soil principles, and how we can use that understanding to improve our garden soils, properly prepare garden beds, reduce fertilizer inputs, compost, and maximize growth in our gardens.

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Continuing Education Credit

The Garden Soils Class has been approved for four credit hours (Course 10802) by the N.C. Board of Landscape Architects.

About Bryce Lane

Bryce grew up in Western Massachusetts, where he discovered his passion for plants and telling others about them, working at a local garden center through high school and college. After earning his B.S. in plant science from the University of Massachusetts in 1979 and an M.S. in horticulture from The Ohio State University in 1981, he came to the Department of Horticultural Science at NC State University as a lecturer, teaching in both the two-year and four-year programs. He taught plant identification at NC State for 18 years. In 1987, he became the undergraduate coordinator, serving the department in that capacity for 26 years. Bryce taught both large and small courses, for majors and non-majors. In the past 30+ years, he has taught more than 20,000 students. He has received numerous local, regional, and national teaching awards and is frequently invited to speak at many workshops and symposia, about teaching as well as horticulture and gardening. He hosted and produced a three-time, Emmy winning UNC TV public television show called “In the Garden With Bryce Lane” which was on the air for 11 seasons. Most importantly, he has been married for 37 years to his high school sweetheart, has two happily married daughters, and six incredible grandchildren.

Bryce retired from NC State in January 2014, and is now spending more time with his family, pursuing the next chapter in his public speaking career, and teaching part time at NC State and the JC Raulston Arboretum. He served as interim director of the JC Raulston Arboretum from July through November 2014. He is an avid gardener who has gardened in the same spot for more than 30 years!

Cost: $50.00 for members, $60.00 for nonmembers.
Registration: Advance registration is required. Please register online using our registration e-store. Registration is limited to 24 people and is considered complete when payment is received.
Cancellation: Program cancellations can be made up to two weeks before the program’s start date. A 15% cancellation fee applies.