Keynote Address | Wednesday, November 7, 3:45 - 5:15 pm

The Northeast Greenhouse Conference and Expo is thrilled to announce that Carmen Johnston, nationally renowned garden lifestyle expert and founder of Carmen Johnston Gardens, will keynote their 2018 Conference and Expo. Carmen, who specializes in commercial and residential landscape and garden design, is also an authority in event and wedding design. Carmen is a Southern Living Garden Lifestyle Expert, and she regularly contributes to the magazine as well as others such as Real Simple, etc. During this exciting session, Carmen will forecast the latest gardening trends and discuss one of the most important aspects of the business: social media. 

About the Speaker | Carmen Johnston

Looking at Garden Lifestyle Expert Carmen Johnston’s roots, it’s easy to figure out where she developed her affection for gardening. Her Austrian dad passed on his love of flora and fauna through the charming window boxes accenting her Georgia childhood home. Although she’s earned two bachelor’s degrees, it took meeting the love of her life, a greenhouse grower and flower farmer, before she really found her way back to her life’s passion – decorating, entertaining and creating lifestyle solutions straight from the garden!

Owner of Carmen Johnston Gardens, a nationally renowned commercial, residential and wedding flower and garden design business, Carmen’s work and effortless entertaining style gained national attention from the best in the business. Carmen currently serves as a garden lifestyle expert for Southern Living and the popular Southern Living® Plant Collection. When she isn’t traveling across the country for public appearances, she is getting her hands dirty designing the perfect garden for her clients. 

---

About the Presentation | Social Media and the Future of Gardening

In the ever-expanding world of digital media, to be successful, growers and retailers alike have to utilize social media. Not only is social media necessary from a business perspective, but it is also dictating the trends in gardening. These days, the ideas clients bring to the table are often those they have found while scrolling through Facebook or Instagram. In this exciting session, Carmen Johnston, nationally renowned garden lifestyle expert, will share the secret to social media success and illustrate how it is forecasting the future of gardening.