Events

What does it really take to turn a conventional lawn into a thriving native meadow? Join Owner & Principal, New Directions in the American Landscape (NDAL), Sara Weaner Cooper for a candid look at her family's ongoing lawn-to-meadow transformation featured in The New York Times and BBC. Drawing from three years of hands-on experience, Sara will share the methods, lessons learned, successes, and challenges of converting turfgrass into a dynamic native plant community. Participants will gain practical insights into site preparation, planting, management, and the ecological principles that guide successful meadow establishment, along with realistic expectations for how these landscapes evolve over time.

Registration link coming soon.

Mark will share how he and his wife, Maria are transforming their traditional suburban property into a thriving native plant habitat while working within neighborhood and HOA expectations. Their front garden showcases native plants in a formal landscape, while their wooded backyard is evolving into a natural woodland oasis. Learn about their compromises, challenges, and rewards of gardening with natives in a suburban setting.

Traditional fall garden cleanup practices can short-change the ecological benefits of growing gardens and native plant beds. Adjusting the timing and scope of your fall gardening efforts can enhance the environmental benefits of your landscape, yield more natural beauty and biological diversity around your property, and result in LESS WORK for you! 

If you want to learn more about best practices to employ as you're putting you beds to bed for the winter, join Mark Dilley of MAD Scientist Associates and Scioto Gardens Native Plant Nursery for this informative presentation.

Bats are among the most important and misunderstood wildlife in our communities. Join experts from Bat Conservation International to explore how native plants, healthy insect populations, and thoughtful landscape design can help support bats. Learn about the ecological role of bats and discover practical ways to create habitat for North America's night flyers right in your own backyard.

Join us for a special day-long gathering at Spring Hollow Lodge. There will be plenty of socializing and connecting with your fellow Wild Ones members, our Annual Meeting, and two outstanding programs for MEMBERS ONLY.

This will be followed by an afternoon seed cleaning workshop that's open to the public.

Come all day or join us for part of the day.

9-10am: Coffee hour

10-11am: “Asters, Goldenrods and Coneflowers: Pollen and Nectar Workhorses” presented by Terri and Randy Litchfield. This is an introduction to the Asteraceae family; a focus on species of asters, goldenrods, and coneflowers will be followed by a discussion of the ecological services this group provides with ways to include these plants in our landscapes. Terri and Randy Litchfield have been gardening with native plants for over 25  years. Their garden, Catchfly Commons, has roughly 275 varieties of native plants on a 1.3 acre lot. Over 8,000 square feet have been converted from turf to landscape beds. Approximately 130 Lepidoptera species have been observed on site. They have a blog and website devoted to native plant gardening: catchflycommons.org.

11-12 noon: “Deep Roots: An Introduction to Pocket Prairies in Urban and Suburban Landscapes” presented by Melissa Doyle. Have you ever wondered what it takes to convert turf grass into an ecological universe? Join us as Wild Ones member, Melissa Doyle, speaks about her journey restoring prairie habitat within city limits. Her front lawn transformation was a project deeply rooted in peaceful activism for wildlife, inspiring local conversations, and combating environmental degradation. Participants will learn many tools and techniques on how to prepare a site, native plantings, stewardship, and ecological practices that boost biodiversity. Together we can learn to redefine our traditional urban lots into diverse, community-driven landscapes for all!

12-12:45: Lunch (main dish catered with side dishes and desserts from our members). Please RSVP here for Lunch 

12:45-1:45pm: Annual Meeting

2:30-4pm: Seed Cleaning Workshop - open to the public and led by member Lauren Clark. Bring seeds to donate to the January seed swap. NATIVES only. No cultivars, please. All seeds MUST be labeled with the common and botanical name. Seeds will be verified at t he door. 

This hands-on event is for beginner and experienced seed cleaners. Wild Ones member Lauren Clark will lead a session demonstrating how to clean native seeds in preparation for our annual Seed Swap (scheduled for January 9, 2027). If you are new to seed cleaning, you'll learn seed cleaning techniques from more experienced chapter members.

Feel free to bring your own native seed to learn how to clean it. Please, native seeds only! Remember to label them in advance with the common name and botanical / latin name.

Note: non-native seeds won't be permitted to prevent possible contamination with native seeds. Seeds will be registered upon entry.

Zoe Evans, rewilding coach and VP of Partnerships & Programs at Wildr shares a practical, science-informed framework for evaluating a home landscape, identifying its greatest habitat opportunities, and choosing actions that support more plants, insects, birds, and other wildlife.

Registration link coming soon.

Winter Sowing is an easy, simple and inexpensive  way to grow native plants. In this make-and-take session, Wild Ones member Steve Herminghausen will guide attendees through making a mini-greenhouse. Take it home, set it outside, and wait for the seeds to germinate. All materials provided including native seeds.

Winter Sowing is an easy, simple and inexpensive  way to grow native plants. In this make-and-take session, Wild Ones member Steve Herminghausen will guide attendees through making a mini-greenhouse. Take it home, set it outside, and wait for the seeds to germinate. All materials provided including native seeds.

No yard required. Learn how native plants can turn patios, balconies, containers, and other small spaces into meaningful habitat for pollinators and other wildlife. This practical panel will cover plant selection, container design, seasonal care, and realistic ways to support biodiversity in limited spaces.

Registration link coming soon.

Birds depend on healthy, connected habitats for food, shelter, nesting, and migration support. Join experts from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to explore how native plants and thoughtful landscape choices can support birdlife at home. Learn how gardens, yards, and community spaces can provide the insects, seeds, berries, cover, and habitat structure birds need throughout the year.

Registration link coming soon. 

You might know them as lightning bugs or fireflies, but we love these blinking lights in our gardens at night. 

Learn how to attract more fireflies to your native garden and interesting firefly facts with Jeff Calta, president of the Pennsylvania Firefly Festival. From retired chemist to firefly enthusiast, Jeff has studied and catalogued fireflies for years. Jeff will cover flash pattern importance, firefly anatomy and physiology, and the interesting “lifestyle” of a firefly.

Monarch butterflies depend on a network of habitats stretching across North America, and home landscapes can play an important role in their survival. Join experts from Monarch Joint Venture to explore the science behind monarch conservation, including the importance of milkweed, nectar resources, and regionally appropriate habitat. Learn practical ways to support monarchs through native landscaping and help sustain one of the world's most remarkable migrations.
 

Registration link coming soon.