The following people will be speaking at the 2009 Tacoma Home and Garden Show.

Melinda Myers

Outside the classroom, Melinda shares her expertise through a variety of media outlets. She has written 19 books, including Can’t Miss Small Space Gardening, the Birds & Blooms’ Ultimate Gardening Guide, and Jackson and Perkins’ Beautiful Roses Made Easy: Midwestern Edition. She hosts “Great Lakes Gardener,” seen on PBS stations throughout the United States, and “Melinda’s Garden Moments”, which air on network television stations throughout the country. She also appears regularly as a guest expert on various national and local television and radio shows. She writes the twice monthly “Gardeners’ Questions” newspaper column and is a contributing editor and columnist for Birds & Blooms and Backyard Living magazines. Melinda has also written articles for Better Homes and Gardens and Fine Gardening magazines.  Additionally, she hosted “The Plant Doctor” radio program for over 20 years. Melinda has written several other books, including My Wisconsin Garden: A Gardener’s Journal, Month-by-Month Gardening in Wisconsin, Month-by-Month Gardening in the Prairielands, Minnesota Gardener’s Guide, The Minnesota Horticultural Society’s Month-by-Month Gardening in Minnesota, and The Perfect Lawn Midwest Series.

Her 13 years of experience at the University of Wisconsin Extension allowed Melinda to work with backyard, community, and master gardeners throughout Wisconsin. In addition, she began the Master Gardener Program in Milwaukee County. As Milwaukee’s Assistant City Forester, Melinda helped manage the city’s street trees, boulevards, and green spaces. She worked with the Young Adult Conservation Corps supervising crews that maintain University of Wisconsin Extension urban test gardens and provide trail repair and other conservation work. She serves as a horticulture consultant to numerous community and beautification groups.

For more information on Melinda, you can visit her website at http://www.melindamyers.com/

Ed Hume

Ed will be speaking on Thursday, Jan 29th at Noon, Friday, January 30th at Noon and Saturday, January 31st at 4:00 pm.  All three seminars will be in the Green Theater.

ED HUME is celebrating his 42nd year as a gardening personality. His weekly television show is the longest continuous-running gardening television show in North America and possibly in the World. He also has a weekly radio show and has written for various local, regional and national publications. Ed is also a well-known International speaker.

At one time his weekly television show GARDENING IN AMERICA was seen in approximately 50 million homes across the United States and in Japan. Currently his weekly program is seen on KONG TV in Seattle, channels 6/16.

The recipient of numerous awards and honors, Ed Hume is especially proud of his induction into the Garden Writers Association "Hall of Fame", their highest honor. He has also received the "National Garden Communicators Award" (1977). Hume has also received the coveted National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences "Silver Circle". He is an honorary "Master Gardener"; "Certified Professional Horticulturist"; honorary member of the "Washington Association of Landscape Professionals" and an honorary lifetime member of the 'Washington State Nursery and Landscape Association".  On October 5th, 2006, Ed was awarded the WaFlorA Cup, the highest honor of the Washington Floricultural Association.

His latest book, is GARDENING WITH ED HUME, NORTHWEST GARDENING MADE EASY. Ed has also written several other books including the ED HUME GARDEN BOOK, the KEEP IT SIMPLE series of books, and a special children's book entitled HOW TO PLANT A BUNCH OF STUFF.

When Ed goes on the air at 10am Saturday to do his 2 hour "Ask the Expert" gardening show on KOMO, 1000 AM, the phone lines are usually jammed with callers. His down-to-earth, practical advice and extraordinary knowledge have made this question and answer feature one of Puget Sound's most popular weekend radio shows.

Ed is equally well known for his personal appearances and lectures, drawing crowds of avid gardeners of all skills and ages. He speaks throughout the United States and Canada.

He has served on countless boards, both regionally and nationally. Through his accomplishments and energetic activities, Ed Hume has made major contributions to the field of horticulture locally, regionally and nationally.

When it comes to gardening, one of the best known names is - Ed Hume.

For more information on Ed, you can visit her website at http://www.humeseeds.com/

Ciscoe Morris

Ciscoe will be speaking on Thursday, Jan 29th at 1:00 pm,  Saturday, January 31st at 2:00 pm and Sunday, February 1st and 1:00pm.  All three seminars will be in the Green Theater.

After 24 years as Grounds Manager at Seattle University, Ciscoe is now concentrating on his radio show, TV spots and numerous garden talks. He is also a long time King County Master Gardener. In addition, Ciscoe is a certified arborist and is on several advisory boards including Plant Amnesty, The Seattle School District, and South Seattle Community College. He also teaches at Seattle University, Edmonds Community College, the University of Washington, and the Center for Urban Horticulture. He has written numerous articles for various publications and is a member of the Arboretum Editorial Board.

Ciscoe is a native of Wisconsin (Wauwatosa to be exact); thus, the distinct accent. His gardening career began when he was 10 years old and got a job as the lawnboy for his local church. He visited Seattle in the early 70's, liked it, and stayed.

Ciscoe answers questions and espouses on the virtues of brussels sprouts on his weekly radio show "Gardening with Ciscoe". You can catch it every Saturday from 9am until 12pm on KIRO radio, 710 AM. He also gives gardening tips on KING 5 TV (Tuesdays and Thursdays during the noon news; Saturdays and Sundays during the morning news.

For more information on Melinda, you can visit her website at http://www.melindamyers.com/

Marianne Binetti

Ciscoe will be speaking on Thursday, Jan 29th at 1:00 pm,  Saturday, January 31st at 2:00 pm and Sunday, February 1st and 1:00pm.  All three seminars will be in the Green Theater.

Marianne hold a degree in horticulture from Washington State University, is a well known and popular speaker, and author of seven books on gardening.  Her gardening columns appear in numerous newspapers and National magazines.  She also appears regularly on both local and national radio and TV programs.  Marianne will be signing books following her talks.  She will also be doing a live radio show from the dome before her talk on Saturday.

Marianne also has a new book coming out.  The new book is called "Container Gardening for Washington and Oregon" and she'll be signing copies after each of her talks.

The book is written specifically for our climate with hundreds of photos of the best plants and planting combinations for gardening in pots. I would be happy to do interviews or articles about the book or container gardening and will also give away one copy of the book at every talk. 

For more information on Marianne, you can visit her website at http://www.binettigarden.com/