As the official botanic garden of Rutgers University, Rutgers Gardens has a rich horticultural history and is home to many fascinating plant cultivars. All are invited to a series of outdoor learning experiences and guided walking tours throughout the year. During these approximately two-hour excursions, you’ll be introduced to native plants and unique specimens not typically found outside the botanic garden setting, while having our staff or other experts available to answer your questions.
Each month will offer a new subject, with the beauty of Rutgers Gardens on full display and nature as your classroom. Ticket fees for these events help us maintain Rutgers Gardens while keeping admission free all year long. Thank you for your support!
The second annual season of Explore with an Expert events has now concluded. We appreciate the support of everyone who joined us for a tour in 2024! Subscribe to the Friends of Rutgers Gardens e-newsletter to be the first to hear about the 2025 slate of programming.
Previous Events:
Haul Out Your Holly: A Tour of the Evergreen Garden and Holly Collection – Saturday, December 14th at 10:00am
‘Tis the season to bundle up and decorate with winter bundles of greens. You’re invited to tour the Rutgers Gardens Holly Collection and Evergreen Garden with Maxine Marvosa, Assistant Director: Horticulture, on Saturday, December 14th at 10:00am. Maxine will show you how to sustainably collect greens and talk about the history behind some of our Rutgers Gardens plant collections. You’ll collect your own cuttings of holly, pine, magnolia, and more to make unique seasonal arrangements at home. Attendees will learn tips for how to care for your greens after they are cut, along with design ideas.
Rutgers Gardens will provide hand tools to use during the event. Attendees will need to bring their own bag with them to take fresh cut greens home.
Tree Planting and Pruning 101 – Saturday, November 2nd at 10:00am
Are you interested in adding trees to your home landscape, but you’re not sure where to start? Join us for an in-depth walking tour viewing the wide variety of trees throughout Rutgers Gardens. While spending time outdoors in the fresh autumn air, you’ll learn how you can bring the beauty and the ecological benefits of trees to your property. Maxine Marvosa, Rutgers Gardens Assistant Director: Horticulture, and Beau Norris from Bartlett Tree Experts will teach you proper planting and pruning techniques and best management practices for the ongoing care of your trees. Maxine and Beau are Licensed Tree Experts and will show you reliable methods for taking pruning matters into your own hands. Bring your own pruners from home if you have them, or we’ll have some to share with the tour group for demonstrations.
Fall Color at Rutgers Gardens – Saturday, October 19th at 10:00am
You won’t be-LEAF your eyes! Fall is a fabulous time to enjoy the outdoors, and Rutgers Gardens has much to see during this season. Join Maxine Marvosa, Assistant Director: Horticulture, on an educational tour of Rutgers Gardens that will highlight fall landscape features and design ideas. Maxine will introduce attendees to trees with colorful foliage, annuals and perennials that are blooming at their peak in the autumn, and plants that offer winter interest later into the season. This is a great chance to enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at Rutgers Gardens during near-prime “leaf peeping” season! The group will explore acres of our cultivated garden and display areas during this session.
Preparing your Vegetable Garden for Winter – Saturday, September 14th at 10:00am
While there are still a few months remaining in the growing season, it’s not too early to start thinking about preparing your vegetable garden for the winter. The decisions you make now and into the fall have significant implications for the success of your garden next spring! Join Alex Sawatzky, Assistant Director: Sustainable Agriculture and Urban Farms, for a discussion about winterizing practices at the Rutgers Gardens Student Farm. During this show-and-tell, Alex will talk about why off-season care of your garden can be just as important as in-season maintenance, including topics such as protecting and feeding your soil, pest and disease considerations, the benefits and challenges of cover crops, and the pros and cons of different types of mulch. End-of-season cleanup and winterizing may not be as glamorous as spring planting, but your future self will surely thank you when it’s time to get growing again!
All About Pollinator Gardens – Saturday, August 17th at 10:00am
In this month’s tour, we’ll be exploring the world of pollinators: who they are, what types of plants they love and the bloom periods to attract them, environments where pollinator plants thrive, and how you can provide pollinators with food and shelter year-round. This outdoor walking tour will visit our Pollinator Garden (naturally!) and additional “hot spots” for pollinators all throughout Rutgers Gardens. You’ll be introduced to some eco-friendly host plants including herbaceous perennials and trees, as well as plants that are aesthetically pleasing for your home garden. Not only will you experience an enjoyable Saturday excursion through Rutgers Gardens, but you will also come away with ideas for how to plant and maintain your own pollinator garden.
Meet your Neighbors: An Introduction to Native Plants – Saturday, July 20th at 10:00am
Want to know more about plants that offer a beautiful aesthetic AND benefit the ecosystem? Join Dr. Lauren Errickson, Director of Rutgers Gardens and Campus Stewardship, for an in-depth conversation and walking tour in the gardens as she shares some of her favorite plants for different environments. From sun to shade, wet to dry sites, and clay to sandy soil, there are native plants to suit any garden or landscape, and areas of Rutgers Gardens that provide an eye-catching backdrop for each topic! Learn how to identify, grow, and maximize the benefits of a delightful collection of perennials, shrubs, and trees by exploring the native specimens throughout Rutgers Gardens. You’ll leave with a deeper appreciation for native plants and the not-so-hidden gems of Rutgers Gardens and be ready to incorporate more natives into your home landscape.
Organic Pest and Disease Control for your Backyard Vegetable Garden – Saturday, June 22nd at 10:00am
Now that temperatures are heating up and your gardens are beginning to put on rapid growth, pest and disease pressure will be mounting too! Join Student Farm Manager Alex Sawatzky on June 22nd to talk about organic pest and disease control for your backyard vegetable garden. Alex has been farming diversified vegetables organically for 15 years and will share an arsenal of tips and tricks to keep your plants healthy and productive. While on a walking tour of the Student Farm, he will show guests the methods that are used to reduce pest and disease pressure. The full toolkit consists of cultural, physical, biological, and therapeutic controls. Come learn how to work alongside nature to ensure a bountiful harvest this season!
Spring Bulbs & Blooms – Saturday, April 20th at 10:00am
Earth Day is almost here! Celebrate the beauty and resilience of nature with a walking tour throughout Rutgers Gardens. Bulbs that were planted in the winter have survived the elements to delight you on April 20th. Assistant Director Maxine Marvosa will show guests where all the bulb blooming “hot spots” are during the tour and will introduce other early-flowering plants along the way. Drawing from her years of experience as a horticulturist, Maxine can answer your burning bulb questions along the walk.
Meet your Experts for 2024:
Maxine Marvosa is a New Jersey Licensed Tree Expert and ISA Certified Arborist with a Tree Risk Assessment Qualification. She is newly elected to the board of the New Jersey Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture (NJISA). Maxine is a Rutgers alum, earning her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences at SEBS before earning a master’s degree from Clemson University. Prior to joining Rutgers Gardens as the Assistant Director in February 2023, Maxine worked at the Robert A. Winters Arboretum at Meadow Lakes in Hightstown, New Jersey as well as Moore Farms Botanical Garden in South Carolina. Maxine’s years of experience in the horticulture industry include positions as Horticulturist, IPM Coordinator, and Plant Recorder. Maxine is also a current PhD student in the Rutgers Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources.
Alex Sawatzky has a master’s degree in sustainable food systems and specializes in small-scale organic farming. He began his farming career as an intern at Living Hope Farm in Pennsylvania in 2010. He then went on to start Sandbrook Meadow Farm in Stockton, NJ—a certified organic farm and CSA, where he was farm manager and co-owner for eight years. He joined Rutgers University in 2019 as the Rutgers Gardens Student Farm Manager. In this role, Alex has mentored undergraduate and graduate students in learning and implementing principles and practices of small-scale farming. He has also coached aspiring farmers—working professionals from a variety of sectors interested in starting careers in agriculture as a farm coach for the RU Beginner Farmer Training Program, and taught undergraduates as part-time instructor in the Agriculture and Food Systems Program.
Dr. Lauren Errickson has served as the Director of Rutgers Gardens since January 2022. In a previous university role, she worked with Rutgers Cooperative Extension in the development, management, and evaluation of multifaceted nutrition, agriculture, and food access programs, including the New Brunswick Community Farmers Market and Community Gardens, Rutgers Against Hunger, and RU Ready to Farm: Getting Rooted in the Garden State. Prior to coming to Rutgers, Lauren co-owned and operated a small-scale, diversified organic farm and worked for a number of years in the environmental and agricultural education non-profit sector. She completed her Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences at Rutgers, after earning a M.S. in Natural Resources at the University of New Hampshire and a B.S. in Environmental Studies from Stockton University. She has taught ecology, environmental studies, water resources, and health-focused courses at Rutgers and other universities. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed publications such as the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development; Journal of Extension; and the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.
