Georgia Native Plant Society Annual Symposium

JOIN US for our 24th NATIVE PLANT SYMPOSIUM

Saturday, March 2nd 2019

Middle Georgia State University Conference Center, Macon, GA.
Doors open at 8:00 AM  I  Symposium begins at 8:45 AM

DOWNLOADABLE SYMPOSIUM BROCHURE

Our 24th annual Symposium is designed to refresh our collective memory on the importance of caring about all layers in the landscape and the life supported within them.  Care, like stewardship and unlike maintenance, implies a genuinely engaged, empathetic relationship. We must all care for the many layers in our landscape from below the ground all the way up to the top of our Georgia canopy.  REGISTER NOW for this informative lecture series and join us in our mission to promote the stewardship and conservation of Georgia’s native plants and their habitats. 

This is your opportunity to:

  • Listen and learn from our five distinguished speakers
  • Take advantage of planting advice from skilled botanists and Master Gardeners
  • Purchase native plants from nurseries all over Georgia
  • Meet with wildlife and environmental organizations
  • Learn about our Native Plant Habitat Certification program
  • Check out crafts and gifts from local artists
  • Purchase the  2019 Plant of the Year t-shirt
  • Buy signed books authored by our speakers and distinguished members
  • Get to know other chapters and their members

 

DOUG TALLAMY I  Making Insects: a Guide to Restoring the Little Things that Run the World.  BIO: Doug is a professor in the Department of Entomology & Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 92 research publications and taught insect related courses for almost four decades.    

PRESENTATION: Tallamy will remind us of the many essential roles insects play and describe the simple changes we must make in our landscapes and our attitudes to keep our most important insects on the ground, in the air and yes, on our plants.  How do we build beautiful landscapes that support the pollinators, herbivores, detritivores, predators and parasitoids that run the ecosystems we depend on?  Asking because if we were to lose our insects, we would also lose 90% of all flowering plants.  As food webs collapsed we would lose birds, reptiles, amphibians & mammals.  Humans would not last long without insects to run the ecosystems that support us.

 

JENNIFER CESKA I  Connect to Protect for Biodiversity; Layering Georgia Natives into Home Gardens, Potted Displays and Pocket Prairies.  BIO: Conservation Coordinator for the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, Athens, Jennifer’s specialty is creating project driven professional networks.

PRESENTATION: Georgia gardeners have tremendous opportunity to help support wildlife by layering native plants into their displays and Ceska will share designs, techniques for getting natives on the ground, species recommendations and sources for native plants, all with an eye on conservation ethics.  Displays can be both small like potted plants on a patio or cheerful mailbox gardens and larger like grand formal displays, looser cottage style compositions, and even pocket prairies along roadsides, driveways and rights-of-way.  We all can connect to protect.

 

RICK DARKE I  Dynamic Design and the Stewardship of Living Landscapes.  BIO: Landscape ethicist, design consultant and photographer Rick Darke will use a wide array of regional habitats and designed spaces to illustrate strategies for observing, creating, and caring for diverse, beautifully functional living landscapes. 

PRESENTATION: Design needn’t always begin with destruction.  The first rule of truly conservation-based work is to begin with assessment to make the preservation of living and non-living elements a primary goal.  The multiplicity of things and living processes that comprise any landscape is constantly in flux, and ethical design and stewardship acknowledges, accommodates and celebrates this dynamic nature.  Rick’s presentation will include biological, cultural and temporal layers and their care in urban and suburban landscapes and in private and public gardens.

 

KEVIN BURKE I  The Layer Below.   BIO: Principal Landscape Architect for AtlantaBeltLine Inc., Kevin has 36 years of experience in design and construction on a plethora of institutional, roadway, college and university, residential and park projects.  He is passionate about organic land care and the sustainable maintenance of our public spaces.

PRESENTATION: Let’s talk about what goes on below the ground and how we can all improve the microbiology of our soils with some simple and practical steps.  The Layer Below is based on several decades of learnings from dealing with soils in a variety of zones including lessons from the design and construction of over 30 acres of new parks, many miles of multi-use trails and the Linear Arboretum that is an integral component of the Atlanta BeltLine Corridor.  

 

ANDREA GRECO  Honey I Shrunk the Lawn, Design & Maintenance Tips for an Orderly AND Ecological Front Yard  BIO: A UGA graduate, Andrea is now a professional landscape architect and ISA Certified Arborist in metro Atlanta.  She found her way to native plants after having some interesting experiences in entomology and ecology research.  Her experiences in both her work and private realms have given Andrea opportunities to gain insight on the cultural perceptions and expectations of both our designed and “natural” landscapes

PRESENTATION: Scientific research has unequivocally shown the need for ecological function in our created landscapes yet the expansive front lawn remains a required feature of the sing-family home in America.  Andrea will discuss beginner steps, practical methods and design techniques for evaluating your front yard landscape.  Yes, you can enhance your soil and plant health, boost your yard’s capacity for supporting biodiversity and still meet both your functional needs and sync with your desired level of required maintenance.  

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