This year's Fall Tour is headed to Helena September 15-16, 2022.
The two-day event starts on Thursday, September 15th with a Certified Plant Professional (CPP) Exam, Corn Hole Tournament, and Kick-Off Dinner. Site tours around the Helana area will be the following day, on Friday, September 16th. Join us for one, or better yet, both days.
Fall Tour is a great way to see what fellow professionals are doing in the field. It's a fun two days with lots of opportunity to learn from others, rejuvenate, connect with fellow MNLA members, and share new ideas.
HOW TO REGISTER for Fall Tour: You can register on-line by following the link on this page, by emailing your registration form to info@plantingmontana.com, or by calling the office at 406-755-3079. Please register by September 9th.
Want a preview of the Fall Tour events? Here's what we have planned:
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15:
CERTIFIED PLANT PROFESSIONAL EXAM: The CPP Exam will offered on Thursday, at 1:00pm. Applications for the test and order forms for the manual are available online, or by calling the MNLA office at 406.755.3079. Registration for the exam is not included in the Fall Tour registration; if you wish to take the exam and attend Fall Tour, you will need to complete separate registration forms for each. Register online for the CPP Exam here. Registration deadline: September 9th.
CORNHOLE TOURNAMENT: We will gather Thursday afternoon before the Kick-Off Dinner for a little friendly competition. The corn hole tournament is a great way to unwind and spend some time honing your backyard game skills with your peers. (and try to win bragging rights for the whole year)! A separate registration is required for the cornhole tournament. You can register online, download the registration form, or call our office: 406.755.3079. Register by September 9th.
KICK-OFF DINNER: All Fall Tour registrants are invited to join us Thursday evening, September 15th, at Gardenwerks (3225 Cooney Dr.) for a welcome dinner. We will enjoy a walking tour of their nursery and on-site Flower Farm CSA. Dinner is included with your Tour Day registration, and is a great time to see familiar faces and connect before the hustle and bustle of tour day.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16: Tour Day
Tour Day Details: The 2022 Fall Tour will take place in and around Helena on Friday, September 16, 2022. Tour-day bus transportation will be provided, with the option of using your own transportation if you prefer. A detailed map of the tour stops will be provided at check-in the morning of the tour for those who prefer not to use the bus transportation. Bus seating is limited, so make sure you sign up ahead of time to reserve your space if you plan to take the bus. We have some fun games and door prizes along the way!
Where to Stay? The DoubleTree by Hilton Helena Downtown will be hosting Fall Tour guests. We have negotiated a reduced rate (rates expire August 14th). A discount code that can be used for online booking will be provided in your Fall Tour registration confirmation email. You can also call the hotel directly at: 406.443.2200 and ask for the Montana Nursery & Landscape Association group rate.
Where will the Fall Tour be stopping this year? Here's a preview:
Flower Farm at Gardenwerks – We will tour the Flower Farm during Thursday evening’s Kick-off Dinner. From the months of May through September they offer unique, seasonal flowers using 75 fresh cut flower varieties that are grown on-site, using sustainable farm practices. They have designed a successful CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program, where participants receive hand-cut and tied floral arrangements throughout the growing season.
2M Company – Did anyone say breakfast? 2M will be providing food-truck-style breakfast for all Tour attendees, while we take a walking tour of their newest branch location. They are a leading wholesale supplier of products and materials for today’s water industry, including water well, turf/landscaping, wastewater, water treatment, and irrigation.
Montana Heritage Center – Future home of the Montana Historical Society, the Center was designed to be a world-class destination, gathering place, and a space to tell the stories of Montana and all our people. We will be given a hard-hat tour of the site, located on the Capitol campus, where the landscape architect will join us to give a presentation on the design inspiration for the landscaping surrounding the Center.
Mark’s Lumber – A wholesale supplier of colored and natural landscape mulch, playground material, firewood, and building materials, Mark’s Lumber sources their product from right here in Montana. They recently upgraded their mill, and will give us a glimpse into their production process – from raw lumber to finished product.
Chadwick Nursery – At Chadwick Nursery, they love plants and they love their work! Their fruit tree testing has even led to the discovery of the Chadwick pear and many more Helena plants that have since been brought into nursery production. Family owned and operated, they have been serving their community for over 38 years, and will continue their tradition of service by providing lunch for the group while we tour their retail nursery.
6th Ward Garden Park – The Garden Park is a 1.1-acre city park, and also Montana’s first public edible landscape. In additional to an edible garden and community garden plots, the park features water wise, pollinator, medicinal, and native plant gardens. The Montana Native Plant Society will join us on this tour to discuss the Native Plant Display and Learning Center.
High Country Growers – This family owned and operated nursery has 31 greenhouses (that equates to nearly 2.5 acres!), a 5,400 square foot retail garden center, as well as outdoor growing areas. Using their unique growing system, they turn their total greenhouse production space into approximately 10+ acres, making them Montana’s largest wholesale grower. We will learn how they do it!
PLUS: Residential landscape sites by Greenup Lawn, Landscape & Sprinklers, and Gardenwerks.
THANK YOU to our Fall Tour Sponsors!!
Interested in sponsoring the Fall Tour? We have several sponsorship opportunities available. Download our sponsorship form, or contact the MNLA office at info@plantingmontana.com, or call 406.755.3079.
