Boston Flora

Tag: Drew Monthie

  • Thursdays, September 16 – September 23, 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Northeast Ethnobotany

    Plants shape our lives in many ways: they provide food, fiber and medicine among other uses. This two-part Berkshire Botanical Garden class, led by ethnobotanist and ecologist Drew Monthie, will explore some of the indigenous and European ethnobotanical practices of the Northeastern US and their historical context. The phytochemistry of plants (their chemical constituents) and their use as medicine will also be a topic of exploration, along with the ethics of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK). Students will complete a short research project with a focus on one of the ethnobotanical topics mentioned above. The class meets Thursdays, September 16 – 323, from 5:30 – 8:30 .

    Instructor Drew Monthie has operated Ecologic Consulting LLC, specializing in plant-driven design and consultation since 1998. He is based in the Shirt Factory building in Glens Falls, NY. He has been growing plants since the age of 4 and was influenced by his parents and grandparents who always had vegetable and perennial gardens. He worked in nurseries during high school and attended the BOCES horticulture program. After high school, he attended SUNY Cobleskill School where he earned an A.A.S. in Plant Science. After owning and operating a nursery/landscape business for about a decade, he returned to college to earn his B.S. in Ecology and then an M.A. in Ethnobotany. He has been teaching and designing courses as a Professor in the Natural Sciences for SUNY Empire State College for the last decade in the areas of study of horticulture, botany, ethnobotany and ecology. He is also a photographer, and you can find some of his photographic work on his other website: http://StarflowerStudioNY.com.

    BBG Members: $145, Non-Members: $160. Register at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

  • Sundays, November 15 & 22, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm – Rooted in Place Online: Annual Ecological Gardening Symposium

    Offered online for the first time, Berkshire Botanical Garden’s 5th Annual Rooted in Place Ecological Gardening Symposium invites you to create a new, environmentally sensitive vision by exploring the connection between the surrounding landscape and your home.

    The symposium features four informative lectures over the course of two days, November 15th and November 22nd, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. with sessions offered live through Zoom followed by question and answer periods. Registration deadline is 9 a.m. on November 15. Recordings of the lectures can be accessed until January 1, 2021. 

    Our expert presenters will examine the intersection of the wild and cultivated landscape while exploring ecosystem services offered by native plantings, including the role they play in our gardens.

    Become inspired to plant gardens designed to support diverse and resilient ecological communities in the face of a changing world. Online registration for this program is temporarily unavailable. Please call 413 354-8410 to register. 

    Conference presenters include Heather Holm, Ulrich Lorimer, and Dr. Desiree Narango.

    Heather Holm is an award-winning author and nationally sought-after speaker, spending much of her time passionately educating audiences about the fascinating world of native bees and the native plants that support them. Her first book, Pollinators of Native Plants, was published in 2014, and her latest book, Bees, published in 2017, has won six book awards including the 2018 American Horticultural Society Book Award. Heather’s expertise includes the interactions between native bees and native plants and the natural history and biology of native bees occurring in the Upper Midwest and Northeast. Heather’s presentation, What’s the Buzz About Native Bees explores the nesting habitat, life cycle, pollen collection, brood rearing, and general characteristics of common genera of native bees occurring in the Midwestern, Eastern United States, and southern Canada. The pollination of native plants and the mutualism between native plants and native bees will be highlighted, in addition to the presentation of floral resources and how the physical characteristics of bees can influence their effectiveness as pollinators.

    Ulrich Lorimer is Director of Horticulture at Native Plant Trust. A longtime advocate for native plants in designed landscapes, Uli firmly believes that ecological gardening can help heal our planet and bolster biodiversity in all its forms. His work as a native plant and biodiversity advocate is informed by years of work in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s Native Flora Garden, in the woodland garden at Wave Hill in the Bronx and even earlier at the US Botanic Garden. Uli’s presentation, What I have Learned from Observing Plants in Nature, engages gardeners and horticulturists to turn outdoor hikes into inspiring, learning experiences — an approach which fosters inspiration, reinforces the ecoregion concept, shows how ecosystems and their components function, and emphasizes how plant communities are connected with all other forms of life, humans included. This talk will explore how observations made from nature can help expand our plant choices, inform design decisions, and result in gardens that support biodiversity, aesthetics and ecosystem function. 

    Dr. Desiree Narango is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and current David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellow. Her research interests include ecology and conservation in human-dominated landscapes, plant-animal interactions and community-driven science. Desiree has a PhD in Entomology and Wildlife Ecology from University of Delaware, an MS in Natural Resources from The Ohio State University, a BS in Environmental Biology from SUNY: ESF and nearly 15 years experience studying wildlife. She’s also an active birder and gardener who enjoys getting others excited about the natural world in their own yards. Dr. Narango’s presentation, Native Plants in Gardening Practices, addresses her research on how native plants and gardening practices influence birds, bees, butterflies and moths in residential yards, addressing the specialized relationships between native plants and insects, why insects matter to birds, and steps you can take to improve habitat for wildlife at home. She will also share resources to find more information about native plants, nature-friendly gardening and participating in community-driven science. 

    There will also be a panel discussion with Bridghe McCracken, Drew Monthie, and Rebekah Lamphere. Full details may be found at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/rooted-place-online-annual-ecological-gardening-symposium

  • Saturday, March 16, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon and 12:30 pm – 2:30 pm – Gardening is for the Birds, and Ethnobotany

    This Berkshire Botanical Garden morning class on Saturday, March 16 from 10 – 12 is for the gardener/naturalist and bird lover. Understand the unique relationship of our avian friends with plants, and how to provide birds with all they need to make the garden a welcoming home. Learn about the variety of song birds, their requirements for survival and the plants that attract them to the landscape, as well as the importance of structural elements in the garden to attract these welcomed guests. The ecological perspective in this lecture will help gardeners better understand essential plant/animal relationships. In the afternoon, from 12:30 – 2:30, learn about the many uses of plants growing in the fields and forests of New England. This lecture will look at the fascinating history of plants in North America from a human perspective and explore their role in the survival and development of society, as well as their importance today. The instructor will discuss some of the major figures in plant discovery and how plants were used for food, shelter, medicine, clothing, hunting and religious ceremonies.

    Drew Monthie is a horticulturalist, garden designer and ecologist working in upstate New York. He is committed to teaching about the importance of using native plants to provide beauty and preserve biodiversity in yards and gardens. The morning class costs $25 for BBG members, $30 for nonmembers, and the afternoon session is separately priced at $25/$30. However, if you enroll for both, you will receive a 20% discount. Visit www.berkshirebotanical.org for details.

  • Saturday, February 11, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Meadows Turned Garden

    Meadows are not only beautiful landscapes, but also valuable habitats for plants, pollinators and birds. Information on creating and maintaining a meadow are included in the talk. Consider plant selection, siting, planting, cultivation and maintenance of native plants suitable for a meadow garden in this Berkshire Botanical Garden lecture on Saturday, February 11, from 1 – 3. View plants and combinations that will enhance properties in a natural way. In the first hour explore the native and non-native species that call meadows home and learn how meadows function. In the second hour discuss creating meadow gardens and look more closely at the cultural requirements of native meadow species.

    Drew Monthie is a horticulturalist, garden designer and ecologist working in upper New York State. He is committed to teaching about the importance of using native plants to provide beauty and preserve biodiversity in yards and gardens. $22 for BBG members, $27 for non-members. Register on line at www.berkshirebotanical.org. Image below from The American Meadow Garden by John Greenlee.