Calendar of Events and Programs

Holly Latteman will teach you tips and tricks to remove seeds from seed heads as well as efficient collection methods for this year. Please bring native plant seeds to swap. Please label them with the latin name and common name to pass along. The seeds don’t need to be removed from the seed head if you aren’t sure how to do it but don’t leave much stem on the seed heads. If you don’t have any seeds to bring, no worries. There are ALWAYS plenty from those that do bring them! Also remember to bring something to put seeds in such as envelopes, paper bags or containers to put your seeds in.

Event description: Non-native, invasive plants are one of the biggest threats to our natural areas in Ohio. It is important to identify the most invasive plants impacting our natural areas, determine the best control methods, and consider using native alternatives in our landscaping. This presentation will focus on our most invasive plants and the efforts by two non-profit organizations, the Ohio Invasive Plants Council (OIPC) and the Ohio Natural Areas & Preserves Association (ONAPA), to improve awareness of this issue and conduct stewardship in natural areas around the state. Educational materials will be provided.

Speaker bio: Jennifer Windus is currently the President of OIPC and Vice-president of ONAPA. She worked for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (primarily in Natural Areas & Preserves and Wildlife) for 31 years (1983-2014). Since retirement from ODNR, she has been involved in 4 non-profits, primarily OIPC and ONAPA. OIPC focuses on educational efforts to spread awareness of invasive plants and ONAPA conducts stewardship on nature preserves, as well as conducting field trips and educational nature programs. The missions of both organizations overlap and are complimentary.

Program description: Join us for a presentation by Mark Dilley on backyard wetland gardens! Mark will talk about soils, site selection, grading and the various wetland plant species, from emergent herbaceous plants to shrubs and trees. He will also discuss the pollinator and wildlife values of healthy wetlands and wetland gardens.

Presenter bio: Mark Dilley earned a B.S. in Natural Resources (Fisheries Management) in 1991 and a M.S. in Environmental Science (specializing in wetlands) in 2003, both from The Ohio State University School of Environment & Natural Resources. He and his wife Christine are co-owners of a WBE, WOSB, and EDGE-certified environmental consulting firm, MAD Scientist Associates, specializing in ecological and wetland consulting. Their company strives to Make a Difference-- through Science, Service and Education. Mark is also a lecturer at The Ohio State University, where he teaches Wetland Ecology & Restoration, and he currently serves as the President of the Ohio Wetlands Association.

Mark has nearly 30 years of experience as a field biologist, ecologist, and wetland scientist. He is an Ohio EPA-certified Level 3 Qualified Data Collector (QDC) for fish and habitat studies in Ohio, a Certified Senior Ecologist, Certified Ecological Restoration Professional (CERP), and Senior Professional Wetland Scientist (PWS). Mark has conducted ecological surveys and ecological risk assessments on RCRA and Superfund sites in over 11 states for a variety of clients, including the Department of Energy, NASA, the U.S. military, landfills, and the manufacturing industry. His academic research has focused on biological monitoring of streams and rivers and atrazine (agricultural herbicide) fate and transport processes in constructed wetlands. In his current role as Chief Scientist at MAD Scientist Associates, he manages several dozen projects annually involving ecological surveys, environmental education, wetland delineation, permitting, and assessment, and wetland restoration and creation-- ranging conventional storm water detention basin wetland retrofits and landscape-scale restoration projects covering dozens to hundreds of acres. Mark and the MAD Scientist Team also provide construction oversight, planting, and invasive species control services for a wide variety of public and private clients.

Please note that this event is open to Wild Ones members only. Members will be emailed the event details and location. Please visit our Membership page if you are interested in joining.

Don Reuter invites you to tour his yard, filled with native spring ephemerals, trees, and shrubs designed to attract a variety of native birds and pollinators. We hope you stop by to pick up some ideas and tips for your own yard!

Help us get ready for our native plant sale in May by participating in a plant dig! We will be digging and potting up plants at Wild Ones Columbus board member Cecelia's house. No need to stay the whole time if you can't and the more members that show up, the faster we'll finish. Volunteers can take some plants home too! See the bottom of the description for the list of available plants.

Food, extra water, and bathrooms will be available. Please bring your own gardening implements such as gloves, trowels, shovel, scissors, pruner (for cutting difficult roots), knee pad or kneeler. Also, sunscreen, tick repellent and water bottle.

For more information and to sign up, please email Cecelia at [email protected]

Plants that members can take home include:

Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)

Canada Anemone (Anemone canadensis)

Grey-headed Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata)

Hairy Petunia (Ruellia humilis)

Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum)

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis)

Lance-leaved Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)

Lyre-leaved Sage (Salvia lyrata)

Monarda (bee balm)

New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae)

Orange Coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida)

Shrubby Saint John's Wort (Hypericum prolificum)

Snakeroot

Three-leaved Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum)

Virgin's Bower (Clematis virginiana)

Stock up on native plants for your yard at our annual native plant sale! This year our sale will be even bigger, with plants available from Wild Ones members and 3 local native plant nurseries. We are excited to have Natives in Harmony and Leaves for Wildlife Native Plant Nursery returning, and welcome Scioto Gardens as a third vendor this year. We will have a great selection of native plants available, including wildflowers, ferns, shrubs, and trees. See you there!

Please note that the accepted forms of payment for Wild Ones Columbus plants are cash, Venmo, or PayPal.

For our June program, we will be learning all about mosses! Professor Bob Klips, author of the new book "Common Mosses, Liverworts and Lichens of Ohio", will be giving a presentation on mosses and their relatives. Afterwards we will head out on a walk around Inniswood to explore the mosses we can find!

Presentation description: Because they are small, the beautiful and interesting bryophyte plants (mosses and their kin) are often overlooked despite their abundance in most Ohio ecosystems. In this program we will learn the features of the plant life cycle that sets them apart from larger, more advanced, plants, discern the traits that vary enough to be helpful in bryophyte identification, and seek out about a dozen species growing at Inniswood.

Speaker bio: Bob Klips is an associate professor emeritus in the Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at Ohio State University (OSU), where he continues to teach courses in plant identification and ecology. He manages the bryophyte and lichen specimen collections in the herbarium at OSU’s Museum of Biological Diversity and is the author of a new book “Common Mosses, Liverworts and Lichens of Ohio,” published by Ohio University Press. Skilled in botanical macrophotography, Klips served as the photographer for the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s 2017 Common Lichens of Ohio Field Guide and has contributed images to dozens of books, periodicals, and websites. He frequently conducts field work and educates nature study groups about the identification, ecology, and distribution of Ohio plants and lichens.

Join us for a summer yard tour and get some ideas and tips for your home! We will be touring Joe's 1.5-acre prairie designed to attract birds, bees and butterflies. If you're interested in sunflowers, goldenrods, coneflowers and other sun-loving natives, you'll want to check out this yard. Other areas of his property include wood piles, brush piles, and an assortment of native trees and shrubs to support wildlife.

Last month we enjoyed a stroll through a prairie; this month, spend some time with us in the shade!

* Location details: 1084 East College Avenue, Westerville, 43081. There is ample street parking on College Avenue or nearby courts and side streets. As you walk up the driveway, follow the gravel path to the right to access the backyard where we will be meeting. *

Mark and Chris Dilley, Partner-Owners of Scioto Gardens Nursery, invite you to tour their "work in progress" native landscape, which includes over 100 species of native herbaceous forbs, grasses, shrubs and trees. Their backyard provides partial to full shade, and they have a variety of spring ephemeral wildflowers, summer bloomers, ferns, and shrubs that are appropriate to these conditions.

Canopy trees include Red and Silver Maple, Red Oak, River Birch, with younger Bitternut Hickory, American Elm, and Ohio Buckeye, plus several Redbud trees. Featured beds include their "Little Prairie on the House", the River Birch Bed near their fire ring, the Wetland Thicket, and two newer (as yet to be named) beds that they are still working to fill with natives. The area around their patio supports "twice rescued" Wild Geranium, Virginia Waterleaf, Green Dragon and many other wildflowers and shrubs, including Hydrangea, Hazelnut, Winterberry Holly, and Ninebark. Trees that have been gifted to them by their resident chipmunks and squirrels often get dug out of beds that are too close to the house and transplanted into their clover lawn yard, adding additional habitat and shade.

One of Mark's passions has been serving as a Bluebird Landlord, and his nesting pair of Eastern Bluebirds has already fledged two broods of five in 2023, adding 10 more bluebirds to the neighborhood population. With any luck, this pair will be on their third nest when the tour rolls around!

Join us in September to learn about prescribed burning in Ohio!

Program description: Jennifer Windus, Vice-president of the Ohio Prescribed Fire Council (OPFC), will talk about the use of prescribed fire in Ohio's natural areas, primarily grasslands, savannas, and woodlands. While it is a land management tool used primarily by public and private agencies and organizations, private landowners may also use it on small prairies and Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands. Some natural areas are adapted to fire so the plants respond well to fire, while others do not. Conducting prescribed fire is a science and fire managers must be certified by the Ohio Division of Forestry (DOF). Jennifer will discuss fire ecology and the steps involved with planning and conducting prescribed fire.

Speaker bio: Jennifer Windus is currently the Vice-president of the Ohio Prescribed Fire Council (OPFC). She worked for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (primarily in Natural Areas & Preserves and Wildlife) for 31 years (1983-2014). Since retirement from ODNR, she has been involved in 4 non-profits, including OPFC and ONAPA (Ohio Natural Areas & Preserves Association). Both organizations promote the safe and responsible use of prescribed fire, providing training and some services on a limited number of natural areas in Ohio. Visit http://www.ohioprescribedfire.org/ for more information. Jennifer has also been an instructor for the DOF certified prescribed fire manager course since 2002.

Join Wild Ones Honorary Director Heather Holm as she explores the nesting habitats, life cycles, pollen collection, brood rearing, and general characteristics of some of the most common native bees in eastern North America, while highlighting the pollination of native plants and the mutualism between native plants and native bees.

When creating and managing thriving habitats for native bees, many factors such as seasonal phenology, nesting strategies, and flower preferences must be considered—and with approximately 3,600 species in North America (north of Mexico), there are many unique aspects to keep in mind when managing successful landscapes for bees. 

Join us for a tour of Leaves for Wildlife Native Plant Nursery!

Leaves for Wildlife, founded by Patty Shipley in September 2020, is a unique nursery specializing in pesticide-free straight-native species of shrubs, trees, and herbaceous perennials. Patty's lifelong love for nature and gardening was the driving force behind the creation of this nursery, and her inspiration came from reading the book, "Bringing Nature Home" by Douglas Tallamy in the fall of 2019. Since its opening, the nursery has been dedicated to educating and inspiring visitors to make eco-conscious choices in their own gardens to help conserve Ohio's native ecosystems.

Nursery visitors can explore various demonstration gardens and projects spread across the nursery's 10-acre property that showcase the diverse range of native plants. These installations not only beautify the surroundings but also serve as educational tools to inspire and inform visitors about the benefits and versatility of native plants. Some of the notable features include: a rain garden, vine trellises, wattle fence, berms and swales to correct flooding, vernal pools and mini-ponds, pondside and aquatic plantings, two distinctly different meadows, and numerous ornamental garden beds. Throughout the tour, Patty will share the many propagation techniques currently in use at the nursery.

Interested in learning more about what we do as a chapter and how you can get involved? Join us for an exchange of ideas for our chapter's 2024 monthly programs and other activities. Snacks and refreshments will be provided!

Join us for an enlightening webinar featuring authors, Neil Diboll and Hilary Cox, as they present their latest book, "The Gardener’s Guide to Prairie Plants." This comprehensive compendium is a treasure trove of knowledge for gardeners looking to incorporate native prairie plants into their landscapes. Neil and Hilary will delve into the making and application of this essential guide, sharing rich historical and ecological insights about prairie ecosystems, all while showcasing stunning images of prairie flora.