GreenScapes Symposium: Leveraging Native Plants to Restore the Environment

Back to Our Roots: Leveraging Native Plants to Restore the Environment.

Years of rapid urbanization have fragmented natural habitats with manicured lawns and barren over-development leading to significant declines in biodiversity. How can you reverse this alarming trend? Join us for a fascinating day of innovative presentations that dig deep into how native plants can restore natural ecosystems in a range of landscapes, from backyards and public gardens to urban and commercial projects.

Experts will tackle the native vs. non-native plant debate: Is a native plant-only prescription necessary? Under what conditions should non-native plants be incorporated, and what are the risks of using cultivars? Join the conversation as experts assess the scope of environmental benefits that native ecosystems create, such as decreasing pollution and fighting climate change.

We’ll explore the latest strategies to combat pollinator population collapse, considering key factors like pollination syndromes, specialist pollinators, plant genetics and floral balance. Speakers will demonstrate the latest tools to assess the sustainability of sites, including best practices for evidence-based designs that maximize the ecological, social and economic benefits of native landscapes.

***This will be offered as a series of live online lectures using Zoom with audience Q&A incorporated into the program. Each session will be recorded and a link to watch the symposium will be emailed to all participants.

About GreenScapes

The GreenScapes Symposium, formerly Green Matters, is an annual program sponsored by Brookside Gardens since 2004.   The symposium will continue to concentrate attention on the intersection of horticulture and environmental issues Environmental stewardship is a core value of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), Brookside Gardens’ parent organization. As such, we strive to provide timely information and viable solutions to environmental challenges.

Registration Information 

Standard Fee:   $55 p/person after January 9, 2020

Register using this link ActiveMontgomery.org (Course #87621) or call 301-962-1470.

*Registration includes link to watch recordings of each session after the event.

***If you create a new Active Montgomery account, please check your Inbox for an email with a link to authenticate your account. This must be done prior to adding the GreenScapes event to your cart and checking out.