Now in its third year, the American Horticultural Society’s “webinar” program , offered exclusively to members, is a great way to learn from and interact with leading horticultural experts without having to leave home.  Past presenters include Julie Moir Messervy, Norm Lownds, and Scott Calhoun.  On Wednesday, September 9, beginning at 1 pm, Douglas Tallamy, author of the highly aclaimed Bringing Nature Home, will present “Gardening for Wildlife.”  The seminar will consist of an online slide show with the presenter’s voice streamed through your computer’s speakers, or delivered by telephone.

Tallamy takes an obvious observation—wildlife is threatened when suburban development encroaches on once wild lands—and weds it to a novel one: that beneficial insects are being deprived of essential food resources when suburban gardeners exclusively utilize nonnative plant material. Such an imbalance, Tallamy declares, can lead to a weakened food chain that will no longer be able to support birds and other animal life. Once embraced only by members of the counterculture, the idea of gardening with native plants has been landscape design’s poor stepchild, thought to involve weeds and other plants too unattractive for pristine suburban enclaves. Not so, says Tallamy, who presents compelling arguments for aesthetically pleasing, ecologically healthy gardening. With nothing less than the future of North American biodiversity at stake, Tallamy imparts an encouraging message: it’s not too late to save the ecosystem-sustaining matrix of insects and animals, and the solution is as easy as replacing alien plants with natives. After the presentation, which lasts about an hour, the speaker will take questions from participants via a chat box.  Space is limited so registration prior to the event is required.  A high-speed Internet connection is strongly recommended for an optimum viewing experience.  For more information on registering and joining the American Horticultural Society, log on to www.ahs.org.