Upcoming Events

Updates to this information are often posted on our online events calendar at GatewayGardener. com, so check there for the latest details.

Give us the details of your upcoming gardening, lawn or landscaping event and we’ll add it to our website and include it in our next issue. Deadline for printing in May issue is April 1st.

101. Presented by Gateway Greening and hosted by St. Louis County Library. Learn how to create compost from kitchen scraps to plant material and recycle organic matter into your garden. Adults. Registration required. Participants will receive Zoom information via email immediately after registering. Go to www.slcl. org for more information or to register.

4-5pm—Grow Native! Webinar: Build Your Own Bird Sanctuary. Hosted by Missouri Prairie Foundation. This seminar will discuss how songbirds and hummingbirds can be attracted to landscapes through the use of native plants that furnish insects, seeds, flowers, and fruits for birds. Specific examples of the most versatile and adaptable native woody and herbaceous plants will be included as well as simple gardening practices essential for birds. The session will close with a brief review of resources you can enlist to help on your journey. The webinar, to be held via Zoom, will be 45 minutes including a question and answer session. The webinar will be recorded, and sent to all registrants as well as posted to our YouTube channel. Go to moprairie. org to register. Links will be sent to all registrants.

9am-1pm—2021 Virtual Weekend Gardener. University of Illinois Extension is offering a FREE day of gardening topic talks in a relaxing virtual format. You can attend any or all of the virtual sessions. Classes start on the hour from 9am-noon, including Beginning Vegetable Gardening, Native Plants, Crevice Gardens and Growing and Designing with Cut Flowers. To register visit: https:// web.extension.illinois.edu/registrat ion/?RegistrationID=22973 . For questions please call Mary Kay at 618-939-3434. University of Illinois Extension offers equal opportunities in programs and employment.

4-5pm—Missouri Prairie

the Prairie. Hosted by Missouri Prairie Foundation. Grassland ants all nest underground, but during the growing season, most live nearer and become active at the surface or even above ground level, where the flourish of prairie life is in such vibrant force. The webinar, to be held via Zoom, will be 45 minutes including a question and answer session. The webinar will be recorded, and sent to all registrants as well as posted to our YouTube channel. Go to moprairie. org to register. Links will be sent to all registrants.

Conference. University of Illinois Extension has been hosting the Gateway Green Industry Conference for green industry professionals in the Metro East area for 39 years. Due to on-going Covid-19 restrictions we will be hosting our 2021 conference in a virtual format. The virtual platform will offer 7 sessions that will be open from March 10 – April 1. Continuing Education Units will be available for certified arborists, landscape architects, golf course professionals and IL Park and Rec employees. Guests are encouraged to attend any or all of the sessions. Cost for the entire session is $35, with discounted rates for full-time horticulture students and certified master gardeners and master naturalists. This conference is open to all who are interested. Sessions include Control Options for Severe Infestations of Woody Plants, Planting and Care of Native Trees, Climate Change and its Impact on Flora of Illinois, Pruning,Top Urban Tree and Shrub Picks, Insect Invaders and Abiotic Tree Stressors and their Treatment Options. For more information contact Extension office at (618) 344-4230 or e-mail pstanton@illinois.edu.

2pm—Virtual Program: A

Presented by Partners for Native Landscaping and coordinated through St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming. Registration required. To register go to slcl. org and search by title or date. For more details of the talks, find the flyer online at stlouisaudubon.org/ pnl2021.

2pm—Virtual Program:

People. Presented by Partners for Native Landscaping and coordinated through St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming. Dave Tylka of the St. Louis Audubon Society explores basic approaches to native landscaping, highlighting useful ideas, tools and resources for gardeners. Adults and teens. Registration required. To register go to slcl.org and search by title or date. For more details of the talks, find the flyer online at stlouisaudubon.org/pnl2021.

4-5pm—Missouri Prairie

Plants for your Garden. Hosted by Missouri Prairie Foundation. The speaker will share information on wildflowers, shrubs, and fruit trees that provide food for you! Identification tips will be discussed, growth requirements, when and what to harvest, what to eat, and how to prepare. She will also point out non-native, edible plants that may show up in your garden, as well as “look-alikes” that may be toxic or questionable. Note: This webinar on native edibles is intended as general information only. As with any foods, there is a potential for allergic reactions when consuming native edibles. Always seek the advice of a health professional with any questions about touching or eating any plant matter. The webinar, to be held via Zoom, will be 45 minutes including a question and answer session. The webinar will be recorded, and sent to all registrants as well as posted to our YouTube channel. Go to moprairie.org to register. Links will be sent to all registrants.

7pm—Virtual Program:

Presented by Partners for Native Landscaping and coordinated through St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming. Registration required. To register go to slcl. org and search by title or date. For more details of the talks, find the flyer online at stlouisaudubon.org/ pnl2021.

4-5pm—Grow Native! Master

Midwest. Hosted by Missouri Prairie Foundation. This program is a guide for those who wish to enrich their gardens or landscapes with native shrubs, and create an aesthetic that captures their spirit of our place in the Lower Midwest. The program will explore how to effectively use native shrubs to

create a functional and sustainable landscape. A diversity of shrubs will be explored — designed to stir one’s imagination with the inherent beauty of our native shrubs’ forms, foliage and flowers that contribute a symphony to our senses through each season. I hope it inspires one to create a place that can celebrate the wonder of the wild, where the local fauna flourish — filled with bird and insect songs, busy bees and other beneficial bugs. Maintenance tips will be included along the way that not only keep the plants looking beautiful and healthy but also ensure you are protecting their associated fauna. The master class, to be held via Zoom, will include 50 minutes of instruction with at least 10 minutes for a question and answer period via chat. A recording of the webinar will be available only to those that registered. One CEU for landscape architects will be available. Free to all MPF duespaying members (including Grow Native! Professional members) and $15 for non-members. Go to moprairie.org to register. Links will be sent to all registrants.

2pm—Virtual Program: Native

Presented by Partners for Native Landscaping and coordinated through St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming. Registration required. To register go to slcl. org and search by title or date. For more details of the talks, find the flyer online at stlouisaudubon.org/ pnl2021.

2pm—Virtual Program:

Practices and Plants. Presented by Partners for Native Landscaping and coordinated through St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming. Registration required. To register go to slcl. org and search by title or date. For more details of the talks, find the flyer online at stlouisaudubon.org/ pnl2021.

4-5pm—Missouri Prairie

on Urban Native Gardening. Hosted by Missouri Prairie Foundation. The speaker will discuss the rewards and challenges of starting and operating a native plant focused landscaping business in an urban area. He will highlight case studies over five years in gardens ranging in size from 10 square feet to 10,000 square feet. The speaker will break down maintenance costs for homeowners in time and dollars, and installation costs using a professional and in materials only. Examples of completed projects, including stormwater management garden designs will help homeowners and professionals. The webinar, to be held via Zoom, will be 45 minutes including a question and answer session. The webinar will be recorded, and sent to all registrants as well as posted to our YouTube channel. Go to moprairie.org to register. Links will be sent to all registrants.

The Partners for Native Landscaping (PNL) come together each year to present a program with the goal of inspiring and helping individuals to create gardens that are not only beautiful but are also habitats for native wildlife. This year, due to Covid, instead of an in-person workshop PNL has coordinated with St. Louis County Library’s Adult Programming to present a Spring Seminar Series via Zoom. Seminar Schedule

Wednesday, March 10, 2 pm • A Journey of Transformation to Native Plant Gardening Friday, March 12, 2 pm • Introduction to Native Landscaping for Wildlife and People Monday, March 22, 7 pm • Invasive? Native? Exotic? An Eco-Logical View of Plants Monday, March 29, 2 pm • Native Plant Gardening for Pollinators Wednesday, March 31, 2 pm • Challenges with Native Plant Practices and Plants Monday, April 5, 7 pm • Native Plant Gardening for Birds Monday, April 19, 7 pm • Gardening with Native Shrubs and Trees Monday April 26, 7 pm • Rainscaping with Native Plants Tuesday, May 4, 7 pm • Growing a Culture for Native Plants All programs are FREE, but advance registration is required. They may sell out, so don’t delay. To register: Go to slcl.org, click Events & Classes, Adult Programs & search by title or date. For more detailed descriptions of the talks, find the flyer online at https://stlouisaudubon.org/pnl2021/ To learn more about our Partner organizations, go to their websites listed below.

GrowNative.org MSDProjectClear.org MissouriBotanicalGarden.org

MDC.mo.gov

STLCC.edu StlWildOnes.org

st. louis BiodiverseCitySTL.org