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23 March

Accreditations & Affiliations

Accreditations & AffiliationsAccredited by the American Alliance of MuseumsAmerican Public Garden Association Institutional MemberAssociation of Nature Center Administrators Institutional MemberLady Bird Johnson Wildflower Research Center Affiliate

14 September

Thursday Night Nature: Retooling the American Garden with Carl Molter (October 19, 2023)

With the shift of horticulture from one of aesthetics and extraction to one of ecology, many gardeners wonder how to best make their existing landscapes more environmentally beneficial. Unless you are moving into a newly built home, most of us have or buy existing landscapes that are primarily non-native, and their conversion can be daunting to even the experienced gardener. This talk will discuss strategies a homeowner can use to transform their standard yard into an ecologically beneficial garden.

Carl Molter is Design Director at Indigenous Ingenuities, an ecologically based design-build firm in Doylestown, PA. He combines his over 25 years of design-build residential experience with a passion for ecology and place-making. He also is the host of WDVR’s Into the Garden radio show.

Program Fee: $15 (Members, enter your code at checkout to receive your 20% discount.)

All lectures will be held virtually using Zoom. They will be recorded and shared with everyone who registers for a short time.

31 July

8/1/2024: Ask a Naturalist: I’ve heard that pollinators are in trouble. What can I do to help them?

Ask a Naturalist Q: I’ve heard that pollinators are in trouble.  What can I do to help them? — G.Z. You are correct! Insect populations in general have dropped dramatically in the past 50 years; according to some studies, the …

23 March

In the News

In the News Stay up-to-date on Preserve happenings. PBS39 Let’s Go! with Grover Silcox Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve opens storybook trail to inspire young readers Passport – The Best Day Trips from Philadelphia 6abc – Philadelphia choir survives with unique …

26 June

6/20/2024: Find Kindred Spirits by Volunteering at the Preserve

Find Kindred Spirits by Volunteering at the Preserve By Volunteer and Visitor Services Coordinator Brianne Scott Searching for your kindred gardeners, hikers and outdoorsy folk? Interested in becoming more involved with your community? Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve is looking for …

03 September

“Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden” with Camille T. Dungy (November 9, 2024)

This program is free for Preserve Members. Members, please contact membership@bhwp.org for your code.

In Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden, poet and scholar Camille T. Dungy recounts the seven-year odyssey to diversify her garden in the predominantly white community of Fort Collins, CO. When she moved there in 2013 with her husband and daughter, the community held restrictions about what residents could and could not plant in their gardens. In resistance to the homogeneous policies that limited the possibility and wonder that grows from the earth, Dungy employs the various plants, herbs, vegetables and flowers she grows in her garden as metaphor and treatise for how homogeneity threatens the future of our planet and why cultivating diverse and intersectional language in our national discourse about the environment is the best means of protecting it.

Definitive and singular, Soil functions at the nexus of nature writing, environmental justice and prose to encourage you to recognize the relationship between the peoples of the African diaspora and the land on which they live, and to understand that wherever soil rests beneath their feet is home.

Camille T. Dungy is the author of Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden. She has also written Guidebook to Relative Strangers: Journeys into Race, Motherhood, and History (a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award) and four collections of poetry, including Trophic Cascade, winner of the Colorado Book Award. Dungy edited Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry, the first anthology to bring African American environmental poetry to national attention. She also co-edited the From the Fishouse poetry anthology and served as assistant editor for Gathering Ground: Celebrating Cave Canem’s First Decade. Dungy is the poetry editor for Orion magazine. Her work has appeared in Best American Poetry, 100 Best African American Poems, Best American Essays, The 1619 Project, All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, over 40 other anthologies, plus dozens of venues including The New Yorker, Poetry, Literary Hub, The Paris Review and Poets.org. You may know her as the host of Immaterial, a podcast from the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Magnificent Noise. A University Distinguished Professor at Colorado State University, Dungy’s honors include the 2021 Academy of American Poets Fellowship, a 2019 Guggenheim Fellowship, an American Book Award and fellowships from the NEA in both prose and poetry.

Admission for non-members: $15

30 November

2024 Winter Lecture Series: The Biodynamic Garden Relationship with Valerie Leone (January 7, 2024)

From insights that arose in Europe over 100 years ago, the biodynamic approach to stewarding the land offers a unique opportunity. Based on a variety of holistic principles, biodynamic gardening and farming cultivates awareness of co-creation between humanity and the natural realm. The development of one’s intuition is valued over acquiring information and allowing for more meaningful work to take place. Mindful applications in the garden invite reciprocity to become foundational. In this introductory conversation, Environmental Educator Valerie Leone will present the concepts of biodynamics in a relatable way. This new consciousness of the gardener can allow the landscape under their care to reach its vibrant potential.

Raised in the landscape of the Baltic region, Valerie Leone has always been immersed in outdoor life. Her gardening experience includes a wide range: from family subsistence plots, to residential design, to natural restoration and to her most recent work of gardening with school children. An environmental educator for almost 20 years, Valerie has developed practical ways to nurture her students. Through creative applications, she aims to deepen the integral bond between human beings and the kingdom of nature.

All lectures will be held virtually using Zoom. They will be recorded and shared with everyone who registers for a short time. Zoom invitations will be sent out after this time to the email used to register for the event via education@bhwp.org.

Program Fee: $15 (Members, enter your code at checkout to receive your 20% discount.)

Additional Information: Online registration for this program closes at noon on the date of the program. This lecture is part of our Annual Winter Lecture Series. The series features presentations by regionally renowned experts who address a wide range of topics related to natural history, biodiversity, ecological gardening, native plants and native wildlife.

 

22 December

Biodynamic Garden Relationship Workshop with Valerie Leone (March 9, 2024)

From insights that arose in Europe over 100 years ago, the biodynamic approach to stewarding the land offers a unique opportunity. Based on a variety of holistic principles, biodynamic gardening and farming cultivates awareness of co-creation between humanity and the natural realm. The development of one’s intuition is valued over acquiring information and allowing for more meaningful work to take place. Mindful applications in the garden invite reciprocity to become foundational. In this introductory conversation, Environmental Educator Valerie Leone will present the concepts of biodynamics in a relatable way. This new consciousness of the gardener can allow the landscape under their care to reach its vibrant potential.

Participants will be offered the opportunity to engage with exercises that demonstrate some aspects of biodynamics.

Raised in the landscape of the Baltic region, Valerie Leone has always been immersed in outdoor life. Her gardening experience includes a wide range: from family subsistence plots, to residential design, to natural restoration and to her most recent work of gardening with school children. An environmental educator for almost 20 years, Leone has developed practical ways to nurture her students. Through creative applications, she aims to deepen the integral bond between human beings and the kingdom of nature.

Program Fee: $20 (Members, enter your code at checkout to receive your 20% discount.)

12 June

Permaculture for Homeowners: Designing a Sustainable Perennial Garden with Brent Deisher (August 21, 2025)

Discover how permaculture principles can empower you in designing a beautiful, sustainable, and low-maintenance home garden centered around perennial plants. This accessible lecture breaks down the permaculture design process into simple steps, focusing on creating a resilient ecosystem in your backyard. Discover how to incorporate perennials for long-lasting beauty and reduced maintenance, while also promoting biodiversity, conserving resources, and cultivating a thriving outdoor space that benefits both you and the environment.

Brent Deisher, of Princeton Permaculture, specializes in introducing homeowners to the principles of permaculture, with a particular focus on designing sustainable gardens that utilize perennial plants. He empowers individuals to create ecologically sound and low-maintenance landscapes that are both beautiful and productive. Brent’s guidance streamlines the permaculture design process, making it accessible to anyone who wants to establish a thriving perennial garden that enhances their home and contributes to a more sustainable environment.

Program Fee: $15 (Members, enter your code at checkout to receive your 20% discount.)

All lectures will be held virtually using Zoom. They will be recorded and shared with everyone who registers for a short time.

14 April

4/17/2025 Butterflies are in trouble. You can help them! 

A recent study published in the journal Science revealed that butterfly populations in the United States declined 22% between 2000 and 2020. The drop in the Northeastern United States was even worse: 32.6%. Much of the data used for this …

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