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St. LOUIS, Mo.— Homeowners can contribute significantly to making their neighborhoods and communities greener by planting native plants. To help them get started, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Partners for Native Landscaping have teamed up with St. Louis County Library to present the Partners for Native Landscaping Spring Webinar series of free virtual native landscaping workshop sessions. The goal of the series is to inspire and help individuals create gardens that are not only beautiful, but are also habitats for native wildlife.
A total of nine sessions will take place starting March 10 and run through April 5. Individual sessions will include the keynote Let it Be an Oak by celebrated native landscaping author Doug Tallamy, A Three-Year Suburban Landscape Makeover, Life in the Soil, Native Plant Gardens Bring Pollinators, Rainscaping with Native Plants, Investing in Native Shrubs and Trees, and Gardening for Backyard Wildlife, plus more.
The seminars will be led by experts in the field like MDC’s Erin Shank, Dave Tylka of the St. Louis Audubon Society, Jean Ponzi from the Missouri Botanical Garden, and Shaw Nature Reserve’s Scott Woodbury.
Each Partners for Native Landscaping Spring Webinar session is free and those interested may attend as many as they choose; however, advanced online registration is required. More information about the series and a complete list of programs and registration links can be found at https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4oh. Webinars will be conducted via Zoom. Participants will receive Zoom information via email immediately after registering. Programs will also be recorded and available on YouTube within three business days.
More information can also be found at PartnersForNativeLandscaping.org/.
The workshop series is sponsored jointly by MDC, Shaw Nature Reserve, St. Louis Audubon Society, St. Louis Community College, the St. Louis Chapter of Wild Ones, BiodiverseCity St. Louis, Metropolitan Sewer District’s Project Clear Stormwater, Grow Native!, and hosted by the St. Louis County Library.
Native plants have evolved in Missouri’s landscape. They are better acclimated to our climate conditions than exotic plants and resistant to local pests and diseases. This translates into less time, effort, and costs consumed by watering, fertilizing, and insecticide use.
Likewise, native Missouri wildlife has evolved to coexist and use native plants for cover, food, and habitat, so, increasing native plants also tends to increase desirable wildlife, like birds, butterflies, and pollinators.
This Partners for Native Landscaping virtual workshop series is part of MDC’s commitment to work with homeowners to sustain healthy and greener communities for both people and wildlife.
