Events

In this special collaboration, Robin Wall Kimmerer, author, botanist, and founder of Plant Baby Plant, joins youth leader and Nurture Natives founder Esther Bonney for an intergenerational conversation about belonging, reciprocity, and native plant action. 

Together, they will explore questions such as:

How do we create opportunities for young people to have a voice and feel empowered, even when they are not homeowners or decision makers?What kinds of relationships and mentorships help people stay engaged in native plant work over decades?Why do stories, shared practices, and community invitations matter just as much as plant lists?

Robin and Esther will reflect on what invites people into this work, what keeps them here, and what elders and youth have to teach each other.

Are you thinking about making a new garden, expanding or reworking an existing garden, or starting on a full landscape plan? Join us, whatever your experience level and whatever stage your plan is in. We will have a short presentation that includes lots of resources and some basic design principles to use when creating a garden. The rest of the time will be spent at tables in groups working on your plan. Experienced gardeners will be there to help answer questions you might have. If you can, bring a photo (printed out is great) of the garden area and any other supplies you use for planning a garden. We will also bring supplies to share. 

We recommend that before you come you watch the Wild Ones design workshop webinar, “Turn That Patch Into a Plan,”  where experts Zoe Evans (Plan it Wild) and Heather Evans (Design Your Wild) show you how to reimagine your entire yard as a place that truly works for both people and wildlife. As you watch the video, you are invited to sketch along and come away with a draft plan they can refine over time. Have blank paper, highlighter, and if possible, an overhead view of your property. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHv2Yea57SY

 Please RSVP to [email protected]

Our upcoming webinar with Basil Camu explores practical, evidence based ways to heal suburban and urban landscapes by working with trees, soil, and natural systems, drawing on real world practices from Leaf & Limb and community centered models for restoring life where we live, work, and play.!  

Saturday, March 7, 10am, “

Don’t miss this one! WOMV vice-president, Maggie Reilly, will present her sequel to “The Power of a Compassionate Landscape” at the Hamilton College Arboretum Speaker Series. Maggie will inspire us to transform our small suburban yards into a welcoming, restorative landscape where you and others will want to spend time developing an even more meaningful connection with nature. She will discuss why it is more important than ever that we establish a reciprocal relationship with the land, becoming its guardians, while celebrating biodiversity in our own outdoor spaces.

Maggie will show us how to create our own sanctuary with a sense of enclosure, distinct destination areas or rooms, focal points, and functional spaces, surrounded by beautiful, ecological native plant communities of our ecoregion. She will present some of her favorite plant combinations as she reviews a hedgerow, foundation, and pollinator garden design.
Throughout, Maggie will reveal to us how she embraces her own ever-changing,
compassionate landscape to heal the land, build community, and share her passion for
native gardening. 

In person in the Taylor Science Center’s Kennedy Auditorium at Hamilton College, Clinton or by Zoom. Zoom registration will be available closer to the event date. Check website here. Presentation will be recorded and available after the event. 

Join Joey Santore, creator of Crime Pays But Botany Doesn’t, for a candid Wild Ones National Webinar examining how inherited garden aesthetics shape native plant landscapes. Drawing on field experience and real ecology, Joey challenges tidy design norms and explores why dense, irregular plant communities are often the most resilient and ecologically sound.

We will meet in person for a group discussion about the two journal articles described below.

To prepare for this event, please read the articles "Anishnaabe Aki: an indigenous perspective on the global threat of invasive species”  and if possible "Embracing Invasives.”  The articles examine alternative ways of thinking about the nature of our relationship with plants that are "new arrivals," or, as they are often called, invasive species.  Get ready to participate in a lively discussion!  

For links to the articles and location, please  RSVP to [email protected]

Join us for a discussion about creating the landscape you want and an open question and answer session.  Bring your questions about anything related to native plants to this open group discussion. Do you have pragmatic questions about which native plants will work best for a difficult area in your yard, need suggestions for starting a new garden, removing invasive plants, or dealing with deer pressure? Are you wondering about how to plant for a changing climate or seeking resources for designing a garden? No questions? Come anyway to enjoy the discussion and perhaps answer someone else’s question.

And if you have a favorite gardening tool – a great pair of gloves, pruners, digger, or anything else that has made a gardening chore much easier – please bring that to display!

Please RSVP to [email protected] for location

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon!