Native Plant Trust

Wednesday, December 8, 12:00 noon – 1:00 pm – Taking on the Big Places: How to Build and Maintain Self-Sufficient Landscapes, Online

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There are a variety of strategies for landscape maintenance that gardeners employ, but mulching, weeding, planting, and various other tasks become problematic when we start looking at acres instead of square feet. How does one manage a woodland as opposed to a woodland garden? What strategies can be applied to multi-acre meadows? How can we manage for specific species when getting down on our knees and weeding is not a viable option? Join Jaffe Wilder, author and ecological horticulturist, and The Ecological Landscape Alliance online on December 8 at noon to explore how to manage the big places. With case studies from Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary he will explain various strategies for creating and maintaining large landscapes with ecology and self-sustainability at the forefront.

Photographer and author Dan Jaffe Wilder has over fifteen years’ experience with ecological horticulture. He is a propagator of native species, the photographer and co-author of Native Plants for New England Gardens, and a lecturer on numerous topics including pollinators, sustainable landscape practices, foraging and cultivation of edible species, low-maintenance horticulture, among others. He has developed a native plant horticultural database (https://plantfinder.nativeplanttrust.org/Plant-Search) and has years of nursery management experience. Dan earned a degree in botany from the University of Maine, Orono, and an advanced certificate in Native Plant Horticulture and Design from Native Plant Trust (formerly New England Wild Flower Society). He is the Horticulturalist and Propagator for Norcross Wildlife Sanctuary in Wales, MA and is currently building his own home-scale homestead, growing and foraging numerous edible species, preserving and cooking whenever possible, and raising small animals.

Thursday, December 9, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Blackberries, Online

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Blackberries (Rubus subgenus Rubus) are a group of woody plants in the rose family whose members are notoriously difficult to classify and distinguish. However, much of the difficulty has been created by botanists, with their numerous opinions on how the group should be treated. Examination of living plants demonstrates that differentiating members of this subgenus is possible for anyone willing to study the important identifying features of these beautiful shrubs. This Native Plant Trust webinar with Arthur Haines takes place December 9 from 1 – 2. $12 for NPT members, $15 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/blackberries/

Thursday, December 2, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Plant Evolution, Part I, Online

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In this Native Plant Trust webinar on December 2 from 6- 7, you will learn current knowledge and theories for early plant evolution. We’ll review the evidence for plant evolution including fossils, DNA, and morphology to understand how photosynthetic organisms from ancient seas evolved and adapted to life on land. Lori K. Benoit leads, and the fee is $12 for NPT members, $15 for nonmembers. Register at www.nativeplanttrust.org.

Wednesday, December 1 – Deadline for Submission for Annual Botany Story Slam

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Native Plant Trust, the nation’s first plant conservation organization and the only one solely focused on New England’s native plants, announces an open call for storytellers for its annual signature event, The Botany Story Slam, which will take place on Saturday, February 26, 2022, from 6 to 8 p.m. The event is currently planned as an in-person event at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, MA; however, storytellers from around the world are welcome to submit their tales for the chance to share their stories using video technology.

A story slam is a competition in which each storyteller has minutes to share an experience on a chosen theme, with the audience interacting and voting on their favorite tale. Winning stories may be aired on the radio. We are seeking exciting, well-presented stories 5-10 minutes in length about plant adventures. Storytellers may include botanists, horticulturists, farmers, land managers, plant researchers, environmental educators, rangers, or similar plant-related professionals. For submission instructions, please email education@NativePlantTrust.org by December 1, 2021, with the subject line “Story Slam Submission.” Storytellers will be selected and notified on a rolling basis and must be available to present at the event on February 26, 2022, either in person or virtually. In past years, storytellers have included:

Wambui Ippolito, horticulturist, landscape designer, international speaker, and founder of the BIPOC Hort Group, a multicultural professional horticulture community.

Ted Elliman, botanist and author of Wildflowers of New England and co-author of Grasses, Sedges, Rushes: An Identification Guide.

Kelly D. Norris, award-winning plantsman, author of New Naturalism: Designing and Planting a Resilient, Ecologically Vibrant Home Garden, and former Director of Horticulture and Education at Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden.

C.L. Fornari, host of GardenLine on WXTK FM radio, co-host of the award-winning podcast Plantrama and author of eight books, including Sand & Soil: Creating Beautiful Gardens on Cape Cod and the Islands.

Dwayne Estes, Executive Director of Southern Grasslands Initiative, Professor of Biology and Director of the Herbarium at Austin Peay State University, Principal Investigator for the Center of Excellence for Field Biology, and author of Guide to the Vascular Plants of Tennessee.

Thursday, November 18, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Strategies for Invasive Plant Management, Online

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Invasive plants continue to be one of the main threats to the ecological integrity of natural communities and to populations of rare plants. Native Plant Trust’s Ecological Programs Coordinator, Bud Sechler, examines different strategies to combat invasive plants, drawing on invasive plant management experiences with Native Plant Trust, the Massachusetts Invasive Plant Advisory Group, and the Sudbury-Assabet-Concord Watershed Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area. The webinar takes place November 18 from 1-2 and is $12 for NPT members, $15 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/strategies-invasive-plant-management/

Friday, November 12, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Native Plants in American Gardens: A Brief History

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At various times in American history, conservationists, landscape architects, and backyard gardeners have encouraged the use of native plants in public and private landscapes. This Native Plant Trust illustrated online lecture will provide a historical overview of these movements, spanning the late-nineteenth century Chicago Prairie School and the late-twentieth century grassroots resurgence among gardeners and conservationists throughout the United States. Among other questions, this talk explores the platforms and concerns of native plants advocates over the course of the twentieth century. Jane Roy Brown will lead the webinar on November 12 from 1 – 2 pm. $12 for NPT members, $15 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/native-plants-american-gardens-brief-history/

Friday, October 22, 12:30 pm – 4:30 pm – A Holistic Guide for the Modern Land Steward Webinar

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Based on decades of landscape project experience, this online land care guide, cosponsored by the Ecological Landscape Alliance and the Native Plant Trust, will address regenerative design, green infrastructure, resilient landscapes, adaptive strategies, and building your own toolbox and rule book. You will reconnect with your land practices and their impact. Appropriate for both professional and personal development. The class is led by Trevor Smith and takes place on October 22 from 12:30 – 4:30 pm at Garden in the Woods in Framingham. $60 for ELA and NPT members, $72 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/holistic-guide-modern-land-steward/

Tuesday, October 19, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Botanical Phenology, Online

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Join Native Plant Trust’s Botanical Coordinator Micah Jasny on October 19 from 1 – 2 in this live webinar exploring phenology: the study of the timing of biological events in a plant’s life cycle. Understanding when plants will be in certain life stages, from leaf to flower to seed, plays a critical role in monitoring and protecting key plant species. We will also address how seasonal and annual variations in habitat and climate can impact phenology. $12 for NPT members, $15 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/botanical-phenology/

Thursday, October 5, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm – People & Plants of the World: Landscape Commonalities, Online

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Viewing landscapes and plants through the lenses of different cultures will help designers create panoramas that are not only aesthetically pleasing but are spaces where Nature is no longer reorganized and alien. Working with Nature to create landscapes in which both people and plants are considered is the new frontier for landscape designers. Join the Native Plant Trust and Wambui Ippolito on October 5 at 6:30 pm online. $15 for NPT members, $18 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/people-plants-world-landscape-commonalities/

Wednesday, September 29, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm – Tracing Conservation History: Back Bay

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Who and what inspired current practices and perspectives in plant protection? Walk the journey of the conservation movement at the turn of the 20th century. Discover historic local efforts and their impact on the national conversation, right at our organization’s birthplace. Wear walking shoes and dress for the weather. The very popular Native Plant Trust walk with Courtney Allen returns Wednesday, September 29 from 11:00 – 1:30 and is $23 for NPT members, $27 for nonmembers. Register at www.nativeplanttrust.org. You will be sent information on the start point.