Pre-Conference Field Trips
Pre-Conference Field Trips will take place on Sunday, October 15th. All trips will depart at 12:30pm and return at 4:30pm. Advance registration is required and will be available when conference registration opens in June.
All field trips are walking tours where participants will walk 1-2 miles. Please bring a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen. Water and light snacks will be provided.
Each tour is limited to 50 people.
Old Town St. Augustine Charm
Discover 400 years of history around the plants and places of our oldest City. This tour begins with a program on the ethnobotany and early landscapes of the St. Augustine colonists and Native Floridians. The class and tour will take place at the historic Government House on the Plaza de la Constitucion. The tour will then take a brief walk to the Spanish Military Hospital and medicinal herb garden to learn which plants aided the colonist in their survival. The tour ends with a self-guided tour of pocket gardens around famous St. George Street.
Price: $50 per person
Beachside Botanical Garden
One of our best state parks is a beachside botanical treasure called Washington Oaks Gardens State Park. Our tour begins with docent lead stroll through the beautiful grounds of this historic park. We will see the formal gardens, rose garden, and the shady foot paths that lead to reflecting ponds lined with tropical foliage. Then we cross A1A to hit the beach and discover the dune ecology and to see the beautiful and unique coquina rock formations in the surf of the Atlantic Ocean. Come enjoy this beautiful two sided state park!
Price: $40 per person
Please note: this field trip is full
St. Johns County Agriculture and Horticulture
Hastings, Florida is well known for its potatoes, cabbage and friendly people. This tour takes us to the Hastings Agricultural Extension Center! The center uses "living" displays to educate extension clientele on alternative practices such as low-impact development (LID), Florida-friendly landscaping principles, alternative crops, and sustainable commercial agricultural practices, as well as traditional practices in agriculture, landscaping, water quality and use, and land management. Favorite sites to see are the blueberries, containerized vegetables and hydroponic systems. Then we head to one of the largest gardens of any extension office in the state; the St. Johns County Extension Office. They have beautiful Florida-Friendly Landscaping, lakeside plantings, and extensive community gardens. You will also tour the greenhouse and plant propagation area.
Price: $25 per person
