8:45am – Welcome & Introductions
9:00am – Species, Cultivars and Selections: Design Matrixes for Making Smarter Choices in Your Landscapes
Ulrich Lorimer, Director of Horticulture, Native Plant Trust
Native plants have become a central strategy in the growing sustainable landscapes movement aimed at protecting wildlife and the environment. Yet selecting a native plant is not a simple binary choice or at times even an option where local nurseries can be a native plant desert. Even landscape professionals and designers are faced with limited inventory. What criteria should we use when we’re forced to make hard choices regarding plant selections that affect the overall ecological benefits of our landscapes? How can we do the most good and the least harm?
Join Uli as he guides us through a series of decision matrixes designed to help home gardeners and professionals alike make informed plant selections and develop successful designs. When is a cultivar of a native better than the species or when is an exotic plant an acceptable alternative? A wide variety of landscape environments, ecological benefits, sustainability goals, and design scenarios will be covered.
10:15am Break
10:45am – Resilient RainScapes: Designs That Thrive in Climate Extremes
Ann English, RainScapes Manager, Watershed Restoration Division, Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection, Maryland
We are dealing more frequently with extreme weather patterns that bring periods of drought and periods of heavy rains and flooding. These conditions place new burdens on all landscapes, whether a home garden or commercial site, and increasingly lead to design failure and loss of plants. Join Ann as she evaluates various RainScapes projects designed to address these environmental challenges including rain gardens and conservation landscapes.
We’ll explore strategies to properly create an effective design, using a treatment train approach. Ann will review how to size a landscape project, estimate plant quantities, and create a successful planting plan suitable for changing climate conditions. A range of native plant combinations and layouts will be reviewed that manage water runoff, survive droughts, and support pollinators and wildlife.
12:00 Lunch
12:30pm Sponsor Presentations
1:00pm – Practicing New Naturalism: Site-Specific Plantings in Public and Private Places
Kelly Norris, award-winning landscape designer, horticulturist, author
Join planting designer, artist, and thought leader Kelly Norris for an in-depth exploration of his recent and future work at the intersections of horticulture and ecology.This presentation will delve into the mechanics behind several award-winning projects, including their narratives, plant palettes, and the relative success or progress of each endeavor.
Kelly will also share methods for ongoing maintenance and design of naturalistic landscapes that mimic nature instead of controlling it. He’ll explore management strategies from his upcoming book, Your Natural Garden, including how to establish complexity in a new garden and when and what to edit. Whether you’re a professional working on large-scale designs or a passionate gardener reimagining your backyard, this talk offers valuable lessons for designing beautiful naturalistic landscapes.
2:15pm Break
2:45pm – Responding To a Rapidly Changing Climate: The Case for Diversity & Plant Palette Expansion in Urban Landscapes
Kim Shearer, Director of Collections & Curator, The Morton Arboretum, & Chair, USDA Woody Landscape Plant Crop Germplasm Committee
This lecture explores the latest industry initiatives and advances in plant breeding aimed at preserving the genetic diversity of our native plant communities. Learn why plant provenance is critical for conservation and hybridization efforts but not a priority when selecting plants for urban and suburban landscapes. We’ll explore the case for why designing landscapes that prioritize ecosystem benefits for humans is just as important as those supporting wildlife. You’ll be surprised how climate change is dictating conservation efforts, its impact on native plant ecoregions and the implications for the way we garden. Kim will make the argument why we need to expand our native plant palette and design criteria to effectively respond to a rapidly changing climate.
4:00pm Closing Remarks