Grow Your Own Groceries Series | Zoom Presentations

Learn how to grow healthy, nutritious food in your own backyard and get some tips for new ways to cook and prepare your harvest in these live Zoom presentations.

Agriculture agents will discuss how to grow fruits, vegetables, and herbs with information on:

• variety selection
• growing methods
• soil health
• dealing with common pests or problems

Family and Consumer Science agents will also discuss how to store and prepare your homegrown produce and demonstrate healthy, delicious recipes!

2026 Programs

2026 Grow Your Own Groceries Conference

Conference Schedule

8-9 a.m. — Registration & Visit Educational Tables

9–9:50 a.m.
• Growing in High Tunnels — Taunya Ernst, High Tunnel and Urban Agriculture Educator
• Planning for an Abundant Harvest — Krista Quinn, Faulkner County Extension Agent
• Nurturing Your Soil — Sherri Sanders, White County Extension Agent

10–10:50 a.m.
• Hydroponic Vegetable Production — Derek Reed, Pulaski County Extension Agent
• Food Preservation Methods — Extension Food Preservation Team
• Getting Started with Beekeeping — Dr. Jon Zawislak, Assistant Professor of Apiculture and Urban Entomology

11–11:50 a.m.
• Using Cover Crops in the Garden — Dr. Trenton Roberts, Professor of Soil Fertility and Soil Testing
• Composting — Colin Massey, Washington County Extension Agent
• Setting Up a Drip Irrigation System — Ryan Neal, Benton County Extension Agent

12–1:20 p.m.

Lunch & Keynote Presentation — Pick and Plant: Plant Talk with Janet Carson and Randy Forst

1:30–2:20 p.m.
• Using Cover Crops in the Garden — Dr. Trenton Roberts, Professor of Soil Fertility and Soil Testing
• Composting — Colin Massey, Washington County Extension Agent
• Setting Up a Drip Irrigation System — Ryan Neal, Benton County Extension Agent

2:30–3:20 p.m.
• Hydroponic Vegetable Production — Derek Reed, Pulaski County Extension Agent
• Food Preservation Methods — Extension Food Preservation Team
• Getting Started with Beekeeping — Dr. Jon Zawislak, Assistant Professor of Apiculture and Urban Entomology

3:30–4:20 p.m.
• Growing in High Tunnels — Taunya Ernst, High Tunnel and Urban Agriculture Educator
• Planning for an Abundant Harvest — Krista Quinn, Faulkner County Extension Agent
• Nurturing Your Soil — Sherri Sanders, White County Extension Agent

Download Conference Agenda

About the Grow Your Own Groceries Series

This virtual Grow Your Own virtual series started in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic as a way for extension experts to share research-based information with home gardeners on how to grow and prepare fresh produce. Five years later, and it's more popular than ever!  

At the end of 2025, the series had delivered  77 presentations that reached more than 28,000 people in 57 Arkansas counties, 31 states and seven countries. More than 30 extension experts in Agriculture, Horticulture and Family and Consumer Sciences have presented during the series. 

Participants were surveyed, and 95% said they gained knowledge about growing food and cooking skills.

We hope you'll join us in 2026.

Never miss a new webinar! Sign up for our email list.

Sign Up for Notifications