Designing with Native Plants: Creating Sustainable Landscapes for the Finger Lakes & Upstate New York

– Posted in: Design, Events, Habitat gardening, Native/Invasive
10 comments

Just learned of a fabulous workshop on designing with native plants for the Finger Lakes and upstate New York. Here’s a brief synopsis of the offerings:

  • Creating Habitats for Birds on Properties Large and Small
    Stephen W. Kress, National Audubon Society and Lab of Ornithology
    Learn how to attract birds using the native plants they love, from the Lab of O’s own Steve Kress, author of The Audubon Society Guide to Attracting Birds
    .
  • The Grand Tour….. of Upstate New York Plant Communities
    Donald J. Leopold, SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (Syracuse)
    You’ll see plants and habitats of Upstate New York in a new light after this virtual romp with Don Leopold, professor and author of Native Plants of the Northeast.
  • Natural Landscaping Techniques; Wildflower Meadows: Let’s Get Real
    Larry Weaner, Principal of Larry Weaner Design Associates
    Two presentations by Larry Weaner, a national leader in design with native plants. His work strikes a balance between environmental and aesthetic goals.
  • Native Plant Communities as Models for Natural Landscapes
    Dan Segal, Owner of The Plantsmen Nursery
    Dan will explore how our relationship with native plants in the landscape can be vividly inspired by first knowing those plants from their niche in the wild.
  • Common Species Delight in All Seasons
    Krissy Faust, Gardener at Cornell Plantations’ Mundy Wildflower Garden
    Krissy Faust will show some of her favorite plants highlighting their use in plantings at Cornell Plantations. Some are easy to grow, others are well worth the effort!

I heard Don Leopold speak at a native plants seminar in 2006, and he was both knowledgable and funny. I met Dan Segal and visited his nursery while researching an article for Horticulture on gardening sites to visit in Ithaca. It was early in his first season as owner, and his enthusiasm and passion for native plants was contagious. (Yes, he sold me some plants.)

The workshop will be held on Friday, February 20, 2009 from 8:30am to 4:30pm at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in Ithaca, NY. It is jointly sponsored by the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce and the City of Ithaca to raise funds for the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. You can register online at the chamber of commerce site or download a pdf brochure for more information. The first fifty registrants will receive a free copy of a Guide to the Plant Communities of the Central Finger Lakes Region, courtesy of Dan Segal. Registered landscape architects can earn six continuing education credits by attending.

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

~Albert Camus in Albert Camus quotations

Comments on this entry are closed.

Richard W Kenyon June 6, 2009, 3:15 pm

I am going to be giving a garden talk to garden clubs in the Henderson area of NY. I don’t want to appear a complete idiot, but I am not familair with the local plants etc. Here is my background. I am orginially from the UK and I have worked in Londons’ Royal Parks’ and I also worked for the Royal Horticultural Society at Wisley Garden. I have been here in Ohio for over 14 years. I would like to have some help in organizing my speach so that it is relavent to the area. Thankyou in advance.

Ro June 7, 2009, 7:10 pm

I live 10 miles north of Henderson in Sackets Harbor, NY on the eastern shore of Lake Ontario. Is that where you are going?

Cindy May 26, 2009, 3:15 pm

I am trying to get a list of perennials for my mother. She lives at the Rose Garden Apts. in Newark, NY. Does anyone know of a website where I can find this. I live in Ft.Worth and have access to several sites here, but nothing for your climate/region.
Any and all help is greatly appreciated

fred January 21, 2009, 12:57 pm

its always fairly anoying when you read about stuff you would like to attend, but is in the wrong country 🙁

Kathy Purdy January 21, 2009, 10:19 pm

Sorry, fred. I didn’t post it to be annoying.

Lynn January 20, 2009, 2:28 pm

Kathy, two friends sent me the e-newsletter from the Plantsmen about this, and now your post! Who wouldn’t want to go? But 90 bucks is a big chunk out of the garden budget…

Kathy Purdy January 21, 2009, 10:23 pm

Yes, it is a big chunk. Part of the reason is because it’s a fund raiser. Also there are some big names coming to speak. Some people have the budget and the desire and will pay. Registered landscape architects can write it off as a business expense.

eliz January 19, 2009, 10:29 pm

I am there!

Diana January 19, 2009, 10:13 pm

Those sound like great workshops. I absolutely loved the time I spent taking Master Gardener classes because I was just so interested in all the subject matter. In-depth education is worth so much more when you have the life experience to appreciate it and actually apply it, don’t you think?

Gail January 19, 2009, 6:04 pm

Hi Kathy, This is exactly the type of workshops I attend here in Nashville…even though I feel very knowledgeable about plants native to my part of the world, I’ve met the best gardeners, a few nursery owners and had a good time. Will you attend! Gail