https://www.michiganhta.org/2020-conference
Join the Michigan Horticultural Therapy Association (MHTA) for a one day event: "Horticultural Therapy: Connecting People & Plants” on Friday, March 6, 2020 from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at the Plant & Soil Science Building. This event, the 41st annual conference of MHTA, includes informative breakout sessions and a hands-on horticultural therapy activity. Join us to experience the benefits of horticulture as therapy, view educational displays and visit the book sale / vendors. This event is open to anyone interested in learning how the people-plant interaction brings therapeutic change and improves well-being. Early Registration fee: is $65 for MHTA members/$85 for non-members (postmarked by February 22). Regular registration is $75 for MHTA members/$95 for non-members. $40 for full time students. Annual MHTA membership is $20. Registration fee includes lunch (vegetarian option available).
Conference Agenda and Breakouts Michigan Horticultural Therapy Association (MHTA) Conference
Friday, March 6, 2020.
The Michigan Horticultural Therapy Association invites you to the 41st annual conference at Michigan State University. Join us on Friday, March 6 to learn of the benefits of horticulture as therapy through informative breakout sessions, a horticultural therapy activity, educational displays and networking. This event is beneficial to anyone interested in learning how the people-plant interaction brings therapeutic change and improves well-being.
Additional information and registration at www.michiganhta.org
Special Guest Speaker, Levi Gardner
We are excited to welcome Levi Gardner, founder of Urban Roots, to present at the afternoon session. Cultivated: Plants, People, and Growing Lives Worthy of the Name. Beyond its role as a therapeutic intervention, the natural world gives us language and metaphor for understanding a world plagued with interconnected complexities. Through story and science, Levi will share more about how cultivation is both a metaphorical and literal path forward for understanding ourselves, our work, and the greater world around us.
Levi Gardner is a West Michigan native and has an M.S. in Community Sustainability and Ecological Food and Farming systems from Michigan State University and is a certified Permaculture Designer and Biointensive Grower. He is the Founder of Urban Roots, a community farm, market, and education center in Grand Rapids, MI. He has served as the Chair of the City of Grand Rapids Committee on Urban Agriculture and an adjunct professor of Environmental Studies at Grand Valley State University. In fall 2020, he will begin his PhD in Community Sustainability at Michigan State University. Beyond his professional work, Levi is a father, musician, and a lover of being outdoors. Session 1 10 a.m. - 11 a.m.
1. Getting to the Root of Horticultural Therapy
2. The Herbal Apothecary: Growing and Making Herbal Products
3. Lavender for Wellness
4. Therapeutic Garden Design
Session 2 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
5. Getting to the Root of Horticultural Therapy
6. The Herbal Apothecary: Growing and Making Herbal Products
7. Lavender for Wellness
8. EcoWellness
1. & 5. Getting to the Root of Horticultural Therapy Cathy Flinton, HTR
Join this session for an introduction to the basics of horticultural therapy. Participants will learn the benefits of horticultural therapy, how it is applied with persons with many types of abilities/disabilities and common goals and objectives. Information will be shared on HT activities, books, plants and resources. Each participant will receive a plant to take back to their programs. This session is offered 2x.
Cathy Flinton has been employed for over 20 years with Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation in East Lansing, working with patients with traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury in a greenhouse and outdoor garden setting. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Horticulture / horticultural therapy from Michigan State University and was granted Horticultural Therapist Registered (HTR) from the American Horticultural Therapy Association in 1996. Cathy is currently a board member and conference coordinator of the Michigan Horticultural Therapy Association.
2. & 6. The Herbal Apothecary: Growing and Making Herbal Products Patti Travioli
In this class, you will learn about common and not so common healing plants that may already be growing in your garden and yard. After proper identification, learn how to grow, harvest, process, and the 5 easy steps for making affordable herbal tisanes (tea), infusions, tinctures, oils and salves that will get you started with stocking your apothecary. Woven throughout the class, you will learn ways to incorporate these skills into your therapeutic program. This session is offered 2x.
Patti Travioli earned a degree in horticulture from Michigan State University and is the proprietor of Heartwood Forest Farm; a USDA certified organic farm located in Cedar, Michigan, specializing in growing culinary and medicinal herbs. She is a home herbalist and encourages others to connect with plants and nature. Patti is an Emeritus MHTA Board Member and Past President.
3. & 7. Lavender for Wellness Sarah Sieradzki OTR/L, HTR and Cynthia Hasko
Lavender’s benefits and versatility make it an ideal plant for horticultural therapy sessions. Its fragrance and flavor are always enticing to clients, and its wellness benefits positively impact relaxation, sleep, memory, pain issues, and mood. Make a lavender filled sleep mask and a flavorful herbal tea to take home while you enjoy experiencing the flavor and fragrance of this historically important plant. Additional session plans, projects, and cultural information will be shared. This session is offered 2x.
Sarah G. Sieradzki, OTR/L, HTR
Sarah recently retired from University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, where she was a Clinical Specialist in mental health occupational therapy, working with adults of all ages for 21 years. Sarah has been an occupational therapist for over 40 years and has specialized in behavioral health for the past 28 years. Sarah is a graduate of the Horticultural Therapy Institute and is a registered horticultural therapist (HTR) and a certified dementia practitioner.
Cynthia Hasko
Cindy has experience working with older adults in a variety of healthcare settings. She is an active gardener, artist, painter, and mixed media artist. She has taught a variety of creative, artistic, and horticultural topics to community-based and educational groups and enjoys sharing the beauty of her work with others.
4. Therapeutic Garden Design Liz Tylander BSN, RN and Kat Shiffler, MS
Therapeutic gardens are increasingly becoming part of health care settings and it’s happening in countries across the world. Liz and Kat will discuss the design process, essential therapeutic garden design characteristics, and show examples of how a landscape architecture firm in Santiago, Chile has brought therapeutic garden design to public hospitals. You will see examples of therapeutic garden designs, analyze how the designs meet the needs of patients served, and discuss community based design strategies. This session is offered 1x.
Liz Tylander has worked as a registered nurse in diverse healthcare environments in rehabilitation, addiction medicine, community health, and triage care over the past 6 years. As a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua she collaborated with communities to design and plant therapeutic medicinal gardens in hospitals and rural clinics. Her passion for facilitating educational and therapeutic experiences with plants has led her to Horticultural Therapy. She is currently working as the Farm Program Manager at The Farm at St. Joe’s bringing doses of nature and therapeutic horticultural programing into the hospital setting.
Kat Shiffler is a beekeeper, agroecologist, and landscape-architect-in-training, currently in her second year of the MLA program at the University of Michigan. She is passionate about the development of participatory and evidence-based design practices for healthcare environments.
8. EcoWellness Susan M. Long, PhD, LPC, CWC Dr. Long will present on EcoWellness. She will share a brief history of wellness models from a mental health counseling perspective and discuss the salience of nature-based interventions on positive well-being. This session is offered 1x.
Susan M. Long PhD, LPC, CWC is an assistant lecturer at The University of Toledo, licensed mental health counselor, and certified wellness counselor. She is an expert in holistic wellness approaches to support well-being for her clients, students, and the community. She recognizes that nature and accessibility to greenspaces is usually absent from conversations about physical, mental, and social health and wellness CONFERENCE SCHEDULE 8:30-9:00 Check in Room 1200
9:00-9:45 Welcome, Introductions and Logistics Room 1200 Recap of Horticultural Therapy in Michigan 9:45-10:00 Break, travel time
10:00-11:00 Breakout Sessions repeat 3 sessions Getting to the Root of Horticultural Therapy Cathy Flinton, HTR
The Herbal Apothecary Patti Travioli
Lavender for Wellness Sarah Sierakzki OTR/L, HTR & Cindy Hasko
Therapeutic Garden Design Liz Tylander BSN, RN and Kat Shiffler, MS 11:00-11:30 Morning Break Book Sale, Displays, Vendors, Refreshments, Networking 11:30-12:30 Breakout Sessions Repeat 3 sessions Getting to the Root of Horticultural Therapy (repeated) Cathy Flinton, HTR
The Herbal Apothecary (repeated) Patti Travioli
Lavender for Wellness (repeated) Sarah Sierakzki OTR/L, HTR & Cindy Hasko
EcoWellness Susan M. Long, PhD, LPC, CWC 12:30-1:30 Lunch in the Conservatory 1:30-2:30 Horticultural Therapy Activity Conservatory 2:30 – 2:45 Break, travel time 2:45 -4:15 Presentation Room 1200 “Cultivated: Plants, People and Growing Lives Worthy of the Name” by Levi Gardner Membership meeting, door prizes 4:15 p.m. Conference Adjournment Note: Session held in room 1200 and conservatory are general sessions for all attendees The Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center is offering $114 per night for standard/deluxe king rooms for participants of Agriculture and Natural Resource week including MHTA conference attendees. Advance reservations can be made with the reservation desk by calling 517-432-4000 or toll free 1-800-875-5090. Be sure to mention you are with ANR Week to receive these special room rates. Rates are good through Feb. 22, 2020. https://kelloggcenter.com ~