In this candid conversation, Renata Barnes and Jen Ventresca will explore the barriers to environmental access. We will look at the history of various groups and how each has experienced the outdoors. Join the discussion about how we ensure that our outdoor spaces include everyone and are welcoming to a variety of expressions.

Renata Barnes is the director of programming and community engagement for the Outdoor Equity Alliance (OEA). She has successfully implemented programs designed to create educational, recreational and career opportunities for everyone—with a focus on emerging community members—to enjoy nature, connect and become stewards of the outdoors. Among her many achievements, Barnes led OEA efforts to partner with Legislative District 15, The Mercer County Park Commission and the Trenton African American Cultural Collaborative to bring the first Juneteenth weekend festival to Trenton, NJ. 

Jen Ventresca joined the Preserve as its director of finance and operations in January 2021. Ventresca’s two decades of business management experience include serving as the manager for a New Mexico based construction company building sustainable, off-grid buildings around the world. She earned a B.A. from the University of California-Davis, where she majored in social-cultural anthropology with an emphasis on globalization and indigenous studies. With her educational background, experiences and personal passions of equity and inclusivity work, she has begun the initial steps to incorporating more accessible, equitable and inclusive initiatives into the Preserves ethos.

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.

REGISTRATION CLOSED PROGRAM FULL

Date: Sunday, Mar. 17, 7:30 – 9 am
Registration Deadline: Saturday, Mar. 16, 4 pm
Admission: $5 Preserve Admission Not Included

Join naturalist Pam Newitt for an informal walk and talk through the Preserve. We will cover the basics of bird watching and learn tricks to hone your skill at identification through field marks and birdsong. This program will help you prepare for the spring migration as returning birds make their way north from warmer wintering grounds. Bring binoculars if you have them, comfortable shoes and dress for the weather. This class is for ages 12 to adult.

Pam Newitt has a B.S. in wildlife conservation from the University of Maryland, has been a professional interpretive naturalist since 1989 and is a long-time active presence at the Preserve. She loves walking woodland trails, looking up for birds and down at wildflowers.

Farmer Jim Kinsel, of Chesterfield Organic Orchards & Nursery in Crosswicks, Burlington County, NJ, will talk about the benefits and challenges of growing native fruit organically in our area. He’ll highlight native varieties of small and tree fruits suitable for organic production, such as American persimmons (Diospyros virginiana), pawpaws (Asimina triloba) and blueberries (Vaccinium spp.). He will also discuss using your own compost as a fertilizer source, natural pest protection and protecting fruit from late and early frosts.

Jim Kinsel has been farming organically for over 35 years, starting as an apprentice at three NJ farms. After branching out on his own in 1991, he established the first certified organic Community Supported Agriculture program in Mercer County, NJ (then known as Watershed Organic Farm CSA), where he and his staff grew a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, flowers, herbs and dried beans. At one time, his CSA program (after name change to Honey Brook Organic Farm CSA) was the largest in the nation. He and his wife Sherry Dudas currently grow certified organic strawberries, figs, pawpaws, American and Asian persimmons, Chinese chestnuts and asparagus on 118 acres of permanently preserved farmland in Chesterfield, NJ under the name of Chesterfield Organic Orchards & Nursery, where they also nurture a fruit plant nursery.

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.

A lot of wildlife need wetlands at some point in their life, and so do humans…whaaat?! As a follow up to her previous presentation “Wonderful Wetlands” on the Thursday Night Nature series, graduate student and wetlands ecologist Jess Schmit explores how wetland ecosystems tie into the greater community, how and why human beings need wetlands, why we should care and what we can do about things such as wetland and species loss. Schmit will also describe some of her Master’s research on a secretive marsh bird, migration and breeding ecology and the importance of healthy wetland ecosystems to support threatened and endangered wildlife.

Jess Schmit is a current Master’s student at the University of Arkansas Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit. She received a B.A. in Wildlife Conservation from Delaware Valley College in 2015. Schmit worked in wildlife rehabilitation for four years while in school and also as a summer camp counselor and naturalist educator. After graduating, she began traveling as a wetlands field technician for a variety of agencies and NGOs. Her experience has been focused on wetland birds, including wading birds, ducks and swans, shorebirds and secretive marsh birds. Prior to starting her own research, Jess spent three years working with rails and loves the challenge these intelligent birds provide. Her research interests are avian and wetland ecology, migration ecology, and resiliency in relation to climate change.

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.

Upon adding native plants periodically in the last few years to increase biodiversity through the creation of seasonally evolving habitats for pollinators and birds, Flutter By Meadows has evolved into an unfolding seasonal tapestry: a 1-acre detention basin turned wildflower meadow, a few mini meadows and plenty of native plants and shrubs including a rain garden are continuously evolving with the seasons. Seeing the Seasons: Through the Lens of Native Plants is a journey that meanders through the garden taking notice of the role native plants play in awakening our senses to what surrounds us.

Samantha Bean loves to chronicle her discoveries about creatures that share her home while describing the habitats that exist for them on her blog. Blending the exhilaration of learning all about native plants that pique her curiosity every day with her love of writing, Flutter By Meadows is what she calls her home, her passion, her blog and her hobby. Watching the changes that take place just steps from her house, Bean is continually documenting those moments, inspiring others on the year-round magic of native plants.

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.

Some of you may have collected mushrooms from the woods while others venture only to the supermarket for the exotic and common varieties. But have you ever wondered if mushrooms are healthy for you? We will take a look at a variety of edible mushrooms to learn about their nutritional benefits and how they can be a valuable addition to your meals.

Sylvia Emberger began her career as a microbiologist, working in research and teaching. She later became a registered dietitian and worked in long-term care as a clinical nutrition and food service consultant. Emberger was at the Hershey Company in nutrition research and product labeling and a corporate nutritionist for GIANT Food Stores providing expertise on product nutrition, recipe development and writing articles for consumers. Now retired, she enjoys cooking and baking, taking walks in the woods, reading, sewing and making lavender wands.

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.

People have become aware of the critical importance of insect pollinators to plants, including some of our major food crops. When thinking of flower pollination, honeybees might come to mind. This is unfortunate because so many of our most important pollinators are native insects, including the unsung heroes like beetles, butterflies, flies, wasps and more—groups of insects that few consider in this context! Join Dan Duran, Ph.D., for an enlightening discussion of the many pollinators that keep our wild and cultivated plants thriving.

Daniel P. Duran, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the department of environmental science at Rowan University as well as the naturalist for Scotland Run Park, a 1300-acre nature preserve at the edge of the New Jersey Pine Barrens. He has published research papers on new methods for species discovery/delineation, biodiversity science and molecular phylogenetics. Duran has described 13 new species of insects, previously unknown to science. He received a B.S. in environmental science from Stockton University in 1998, an M.S. in entomology from University of Missouri in 2002 and a Ph.D. in evolution and ecology from Vanderbilt University in 2010. In between his degrees, he has also worked for the Natural History Museum in London, UK and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Duran is a co-author of the book A Field Guide to the Tiger Beetles of the United States and Canada, 2nd Edition.

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.

Due to unforeseen circumstances the original program “2024 Winter Lecture Series: Hunters Sharing the Harvest with Randy K. Ferguson” has been cancelled. In its place we have the following amazing lecture: “Invasive Management for Birds with Josh Bruce”

Birds require native plants for food and habitat. Invasive plants are replacing natives, leading to losses in the success of nesting sites, nutrient deficiency for migrating birds and food shortages for chicks. Bird abundance and diversity are decreasing. How can we help support bird populations in our own backyards? Learn how to target specific invasive plants detrimental to the success of vulnerable birds and replace them with advantageous natives.

 Josh Bruce specializes in helping landowners recover ‘lost’ or ‘overwhelmed’ sections of their property with a native vegetation system specifically designed to help reverse the decline of our bird populations—and look good too.

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.

Date: Friday, Apr. 12, 7:30 – 9 am
Registration Deadline: Thursday, Apr. 11, 4 pm
Admission: $5 Preserve Admission Not Included

Join naturalists Pam Newitt and Sue Evenland for an informal walk and talk through the Preserve. We will cover the basics of bird watching and learn tricks to hone your skill at identification through field marks and birdsong. This program will help you prepare for the spring migration as returning birds make their way north from warmer wintering grounds. Bring binoculars if you have them, comfortable shoes and dress for the weather. This class is for ages 12 to adult.

Pam Newitt has a B.S. in wildlife conservation from the University of Maryland, has been a professional interpretive naturalist since 1989 and is a long-time active presence at the Preserve. She loves walking woodland trails, looking up for birds and down at wildflowers.

Sue Eveland is a long-time Preserve volunteer with a B.S. in Biology from Penn State University. She followed this with a career as a research scientist in the pharmaceutical industry. Throughout her life, Eveland has been an avid birder and native plant enthusiast for many years and enjoys sharing her passion for both.