Evergreens are an indispensable part of all home landscapes. They provide year-round color and textural interest, give structure to the garden, and offer shelter and food sources for birds. Learn the cultural requirements, ornamental qualities, and various uses of native conifers and broadleaved evergreens that will boost the aesthetic and ecological value of your property on September 30, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., at the Berkshire Botanical Garden.
Duncan Himmelman earned his doctorate at Cornell University and taught horticultural science at the college level for 24 years. He recently retired as the education manager at Mt. Cuba Center, a public garden in Delaware devoted to native plant advocacy. He continues to enjoy teaching, designing landscapes and promoting ecologically focused gardening practices.
Wondering what plants to grow in the shady parts of your yard? Fear not. An enterprising gardener can create an attractive, ecologically robust and relaxing garden, even in the shade. This Berkshire Botanical Garden class starts by identifying the various degrees of shade you may have and moves on to presenting the best native plants for those conditions. Don’t let a lack of sunlight hold you back! Led by Duncan Himmelman, it takes place April 22 from 1 – 3, and is $15 for BBG members, $20 for nonmembers. Register HERE.
Duncan Himmelman earned his doctorate at Cornell University and taught horticultural science at the college level for 24 years. He recently retired as the Education Manager at Mt. Cuba Center, a public garden in Delaware devoted to native plant advocacy. He continues to enjoy teaching, designing landscapes and promoting ecologically focused gardening practices.
While Mt. Cuba Center’s gardens showcase how native plants can enhance formal and naturalistic gardens, behind the scenes, Mt. Cuba conducts conservation programs at many scales, ranging from individual species to whole ecosystems. We monitor and propagate rare plants, cultivate breeding habitat for bird species of conservation concern, and conduct a 100-year reforestation experiment. We collaborate with independent, university, and community scientists to learn more about the flora and fauna at Mt. Cuba, share the results with broader audiences, and contribute data to national community science projects. Dr. Ellen Lake, discusses the range of conservation efforts at Mt. Cuba, ongoing ecological research, and the purpose of Mt. Cuba’s newly constructed greenhouse and plant nursery.
Ellen Lake, PhD, is the Director of Conservation and Research at Mt. Cuba Center. She taught environmental education and was the Education Director at the Brandywine and Red Clay Valley Associations. Ellen has a master’s degree in Entomology and Ph.D. in Entomology and Wildlife Ecology from the University of Delaware, where she researched biological control of mile-a-minute weed and how to integrate weed management techniques to restore plant communities. Ellen has extensive experience researching insect-plant interactions, including work for the USDA in the Greater Everglades ecosystem.
Join the Mt. Cuba Center and ecological landscape designer Jeff Lorenz of Bala Cynwyd-based Refugia Design/Build for expert tips and insight on creating a native habitat that is immersive, functional, and resilient. In an effort to reimagine their landscapes, homeowners often seek plants that manage stormwater runoff. How can we get creative with design and materials to create a beautiful and multi-tasking outdoor space? Reducing lawn, establishing deep-rooted plantings and integrating permeable hardscaping is key to reducing neighborhood erosion, filtering pollutants, and absorbing dirty water before it enters our precious waterways.
Jeff Lorenz is the founder of Refugia Design, an ecological landscape design/build and stewardship firm, based out of Bala Cynwyd, PA. Since 2015, Refugia has been offering distinctive native landscape design for both residential and commercial green spaces throughout the Greater Philadelphia Area and Jersey Shore. Annual major exhibitor and award-winners at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s Philadelphia Flower Show, Refugia is known for an immersive, naturalistic design aesthetic and meadow expertise at projects ranging in size from city yards to suburban estates. Refugia’s ground-breaking initiatives include mapping the impact of their 120+ native habitats via the Ecological Greenway Network, designed to promote connectivity for wildlife and restore ecosystem function to neighborhoods. Refugia added 47 ‘stepping stone’ gardens to the Greenway Network in 2021, developing an ecological corridor for native plants and wildlife that is made more powerful by the network’s growing interconnectedness.
Jeff resides in Narberth with his wife and young daughters and he is proud of Refugia’s impact in his community – 70+ properties within 5 miles of Narberth that manage stormwater sustainably, support biodiversity and replace lawn with native habitat that ‘put plants to work’; creating beautiful, functional and resilient landscapes for all.
Are native cultivars as valuable in pollinator habitat gardens as straight native species? Native plants are generally recommended for supporting pollinators, but the growing demand for native plants, coupled with the horticulture industry’s desire for plants with unique characteristics, has led to the increased breeding and availability of native cultivars or “nativars.” Annie White was one of the first researchers in the country to evaluate native cultivars based on their ecological value instead of just their garden performance. Informed by both years of rigorous field research and real-world landscape design experience, Annie’s talk discusses both the benefits and challenges of using native species and their cultivars in landscapes. Annie White is the founder of Nectar Landscape Design Studio and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Vermont. She earned her MS in Landscape Architecture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her PhD research on native plant cultivars, done at the University of Vermont, broke new ground on this very important and timely subject. This was one of the first public presentations she ever gave about the results of her study.
This Mt. Cuba Center program takes place online Wednesday, January 11, 2023, at 6:30 pm. $25. Register at www.mtcubacenter.org
