Come Learn More About Sustainable Landscaping Practices
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Learn ways you can enhance and improve your lawns, gardens and property to benefit the community and ecosystem at the Tennessee Smart Yards Festival for Davidson County. Hosted by the Master Gardeners of Davidson County and multiple community partners, the free event will be held on Saturday, May 10, 2025, from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. CDT, at the University of Tennessee Extension Central Region Office located at 5201 Marchant Drive within the Tennessee Department of Agriculture Ellington Agricultural Center complex.
Landowners and landscapers can learn sustainable landscaping practices that protect water and natural resources through the Tennessee Smart Yards yard certification program. Tennessee Smart Yards is a University of Tennessee Extension-led program that guides Tennesseans on practices to create healthier and more ecologically-sound landscapes and communities. Residents incorporate nine foundational principles to have a certified Tennessee Smart Yard. The principles include planting the right plant in the right place, managing soils and mulch, practicing sustainability, watering efficiently, fertilizing appropriately, managing yard pests, reducing stormwater and pollutants, providing for wildlife and protecting the water’s edge. The festival will include exhibits and demonstrations to educate attendees on smart yard practices.
For more information about Tennessee Smart Yards, visit tnyards.utk.edu. The certification program is free and online and includes a checklist and video instructions to guide interested landowners.
Tennessee Smart Yards was developed through a partnership between the Tennessee Water Resource Research Center and UT-Tennessee State University Extension, with support from a 319 Nonpoint Source Program grant (2008-2012) from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. The program is currently lead by UT-TSU Extension and local municipal government partners.
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture is comprised of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT College of Veterinary Medicine, UT AgResearch and UT Extension. Through its land-grant mission of teaching, research and outreach, the Institute touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. to Tennesseans and beyond. utia.tennessee.edu.