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We love hosting workshops and special events in The Glassroom, bringing our community together to create, learn, and enjoy the beauty of the nursery.
The Art and Science of Dividing Perennials
Saturday - September 12, 2026
Divide & conquer your garden!
Join us at 5PM on September 12th in the Glassroom for
the Art and Science of Dividing Perennials.
Our gardens are constantly offering us more than we realize. In this hands-on class, you’ll get a fascinating look into the biology, timing, and techniques behind one of the simplest and most rewarding ways to propagate perennial plants and more.
Come learn & discuss the proper division of perennials and other types of plants, like when to do it, how to do it without killing them, why timing matters, what’s happening beneath the soil when a plant is divided, and how to recognize when a plant is ready to be propagated. We’ll cover the practical methods that actually work, the plant architecture that makes some species easy and others difficult, and the simple physiological reasons behind successful
(and failed) divisions.
Dig in the dirt during the class while we all divide perennials together. Go home with your newly propagated perennials to add into your gardens at home, and walk away knowing how to multiple many different types of healthy plants. Keep your borders vigorous for years, and stop paying full price for what your garden is already willing to give you!
2 Ticket Tiers
Tier 1 - $30/person
Come listen, learn, and go home with the perennial plant that you learned how to successfully divide
Tier 2- $60/person
Come listen, learn, go home with the perennial plant that you learned how to successfully divide
AND a Niwaki folding saw (a $42.95 value)
Come discover how to turn the generous offerings of your garden into more healthy, beautiful plants, and gain the knowledge and confidence to keep propagating for seasons to come.
Deer Resistant Gardening
Sunday - September 13, 2026
Deer may treat your garden like an all-you-can-eat buffet, but there are certain plants that are permanently off the menu. Their foliage is too bitter, too aromatic, too toxic, or simply too unappetizing for even the hungriest white-tail to bother with ... not a nibble, not a sample, not a second glance!
Join us at 3PM on September 13th, 2026 in the Glassroom for a discussion on deer resistant gardening.
During the class, we will come to deeply understand this beautiful but pesky animal, and then explore countless reliable, wonderfully ornamental, perennials, shrubs and trees that deer consistently ignore. We’ll cover exactly why these plants stay untouched, which ones thrive with the least fuss, and how to use them to create a garden that looks intentional, not helpless.
No complicated strategies. No endless spraying. Just smart plant choices. Come join the group and get inspired to plant your garden so thoroughly unappetizing to deer that you only have to do it once!
2 Ticket Tiers
Tier 1 - $10/person
Come, listen and learn
Tier 2- $40/person
Come, listen, learn AND go home with a selection of
deer resistant perennials (a $65 value)
Plant Propagation - Stem Cuttings
Saturday - September 19, 2026
Join us in the Glassroom on September 19, 2026 at 5:00pm to learn how to multiply plants in our Plant Propagation by Stem Cuttings course!
In this hands-on class, we’ll explore the fascinating world of plant propagation by stem cuttings - learning the basic techniques and, just as importantly, the biology that explains why they work.
We’ll cover the principles that apply across a wide range of plants, including how plants form new roots, what makes a cutting successful, when to take different types of cuttings, and how light, moisture, temperature, and hormones influence the process.
Our focus will be on fall propagation of perennials, with plenty of practical guidance on taking cuttings, preparing them for winter, and caring for them until they are ready to plant in the garden the following year.
Come learn how to turn a small piece of a plant into an entirely new one, discover just how remarkable plants really are at making more of themselves, and go home with a tray of cuttings you take during the class! Reserve your spot today!
2 Ticket Tiers
Tier 1 - $20/person
Come listen, learn, and go home with s tray of perennial cuttings that you take during the class and the knowledge to propagate plants with confidence.
Tier 2- $75/person
Come listen, learn, go home with s tray of perennial cuttings that you take during the class and the knowledge to propagate plants with confidence- PLUS go home with a cutting kit, a pair of Niwaki snips, a small bottle of hormone and a bag of media.
Seed Saving
Sunday - September 20, 2026
Capture Next Year’s Garden Before It Disappears!
Join us in the Glassroom on September 20, 2026 at 5:00pm for a class all about seed saving!
Most of the plants are finished performing. Now comes the what might be the most exciting work in gardening - the work of collecting what they spent all year working so beautifully to form ... their offsprings - their seeds!
This practical class explores saving viable seed from perennials, native plants, and annual flowers. We’ll cover best timing, how to recognize true ripeness, which seeds stay true to type, the critical steps of cleaning and drying, and the simple storage methods that keep germination rates high. You’ll leave knowing how to turn this season’s best performers into reliable plants for years to come, without buying another packet.
The garden is offering free plants. Learn how to harvest them successfully - a great skill to carry through life - and go home with a bag of freshly harvested seeds!
Children's Spooky Spiders
Monday - September 21, 2026
Spooky Spiders:
The Creepy, Crawly, 8-Legged Members of our Gardens
Join us in the Glassroom on September 21, 2026 at 10:00 am for the kick off of our Halloween Nature Courses for Kids!
Spiders are not the villains they are made out to be. They help protect the ecosystem & thus our gardens. In this hands-on class, kids discover why these 8-legged garden helpers are actually the good guys — they protect our plants by eating pests, keep the ecosystem balanced, and they’re not that scary because most of them want nothing to do with us. We’ll learn the common spiders that live right in our backyards, how they help the garden, and how to spot the very few that need extra caution.
Then, every child crafts their own terracotta spider planter complete with googly eyes, pipe-cleaner legs, and a real spider plant planted in the pot to take home - just in time for holiday decorating!
After this workshop, you will never look at spiders the same way again!
Spots are limited and these sell out fast. Grab your ticket and let your child become a spider-smart nature hero this Halloween season!
Book Signing with Linda Jane Holden
Saturday - September 26, 2026
We are delighted to invite you to
Abernethy & Spencer’s first-ever book signing.
Join us in the Conservatory on
Saturday, September 26th, from 11 AM–2 PM
to meet renowned garden historian and author Linda Jane Holden. Discover the stories behind her celebrated books, "The Gardens of Bunny Mellon," "Garden Secrets of Bunny Mellon,"
and the "Bunny Mellon Garden Journal."
Linda’s love of gardens began here in Virginia, where she spent her childhood exploring the gardens of Mount Vernon, Colonial Williamsburg, and Washington, DC. Her work at the White House during the Reagan administration later introduced her to the remarkable legacy of Bunny Mellon and her influence on American landscape design.
Linda's books draw upon extensive interviews with Mrs. Mellon and the gardeners who cared for Oak Spring and other Mellon family properties. A gardener herself, Linda has a deep appreciation for creating gardens that invite people to experience beauty effortlessly.
Linda is also one of Abernethy & Spencer’s favorite customers, making this first-ever signing especially meaningful to us. We are thrilled to welcome her into our Conservatory and share her passion for gardens, history, and beauty with our community.
Come meet Linda, browse her beautiful books, have a copy signed, and linger awhile in the Conservatory.
We hope you’ll join us!
Succulent Pumpkin Arrangement
Saturday - October 3, 2026
Come create a living fall centerpiece during the
Succulent Pumpkin Arrangement workshop in the Glassroom on October 3, 2026 at 5:00 pm.
Discover the surprising biology that makes succulents such wonderfully versatile plants, and learn how to use them in a beautiful new way this fall.
In this hands-on class, arrange your own selection of colorful & uniquely shaped succulents around the top of a pumpkin after learning about the remarkable adaptations of these plants.
Take home both a beautiful fall masterpiece that can last for MONTHS, and the knowledge to keep your succulents thriving long after the pumpkins have gone. Make it a date, come ready to get creative and have fun while learning something new with a friend, a sister, a spouse, your kids & more! Get your tickets today!