2026 PPA National Symposium

All members welcome to attend to learn more about board activities and association financials.

In this talk, Dr. Lopez will highlight how light quality, intensity, and duration can be strategically managed to control flowering time and plant height in herbaceous perennials. Attendees will learn the latest behind spectral manipulation, and how these factors interact with temperature and plant genetics. Practical examples will demonstrate how growers can use LEDs to improve crop uniformity, reduce chemical growth regulator use, and hit market windows more precisely. The session will translate MSU research into actionable production strategies, helping perennial producers optimize growth, flowering consistency, and overall crop quality while improving sustainability and profitability goals.

This session brings together two unique services from MSU Plant & Pest Diagnostics: plant identification and herbicide injury diagnosis. Smartphones can be powerful tools for plant ID—but when should you trust plant identification apps, and when should you be cautious? After eight years of reviewing these technologies, we’ll share the essential “dos and don’ts.” In addition, we’ll showcase real-life examples of herbicide injury to help you protect your crops and ask the right questions when problems arise.

Biostimulants can be used to promote plant growth and enhance stress tolerance, but do these products do all that they claim? What type of biostimulants are available and what should you consider before choosing a product? In this seminar you will learn about the types of biostimulants and how their efficacy may be affected by growing environment, substrate properties, plant species, and fertilizer applications. Learn about successes, challenges, and the importance of conducting in-house trials.

Refugia Design, based in Greater Philadelphia since 2015, embraces the ethos of designing landscapes that support native ecosystems to create biological corridors of refuge for plants, people and wildlife. Join founder Jeff Lorenz and Sarah Leaskey (RLA) to learn more about their award-winning design-build-stewardship approach and the potential for high impact, low input landscapes in building connectivity, restoring natural systems and growing ecological literacy in neighborhoods. Passionate about planting a new paradigm and educational opportunities that pique curiosity, find out how an awareness of sound, movement, responsibly sourced materials and the built environment can create immersive, expansive outdoor spaces in which to explore, learn and unwind.

Coffee/tea available.

As climate conditions grow more challenging, gardens must do more than look good—they must function with less, adapt over time, and support the complex web of life that’s still around us. In this lecture, Jeff Epping explores how herbaceous perennials, combined with trees and shrubs, form the foundation of living landscapes that balance beauty, adaptability, and ecological performance.

His presentation examines how perennials are integrated into mixed borders, naturalistic meadows, and gravel gardens to create landscapes that thrive with limited irrigation and reduced chemical and energy inputs. Examples are drawn from residential, municipal, and commercial projects he designed and consulted on throughout southern Wisconsin, including his work with the City of Madison and healthcare giant Epic Systems.

Rather than viewing gardens as static compositions, this session frames landscapes as living systems designed to evolve. Attendees will gain insight into how perennials can serve as long-term design partners—creating resilient, responsive gardens capable of thriving amid climatic uncertainty.