Meeting Activities: Speaker, Flower Show
Click here for Flower Show details. Flower Show entries need to be in place by 6:30pm.
Guest Speaker: Margie Patlak
Topic: Gardening for Grubs
Being more aware of insects and all they do for the flowers and vegetables we grow can add another joyful and entertaining dimension to gardening. In this talk, science and nature writer Margie Patlak will delve into how wasps, flower flies, bees, and other common insects help gardeners by pollinating plants and curbing many garden pests.
Insects can also prompt wonder once you come to know their amazing capabilities and intriguing lifestyles. Who knew bees do math, ants herd aphids, and wasps use tools?
And when you look closely, sometimes you’ll find the insects adorning flower petals are more beautiful than the blossoms themselves!
Margie will show that you don’t need to travel the globe to find extraordinary creatures because they’re hiding in plain sight in your garden! She’ll share tips on how to both notice and boost beneficial insects in your garden, as well as emphasize how gardening can be more rewarding when you are doing it not just for yourself but for the broader ecosystem. By planting the right flowers, trees, and bushes and adopting a few simple gardening practices, you can attract more insects and the birds that dine on them.
These steps can help counter dramatic recent declines seen in insect populations and songbirds. The talk will be illustrated with Margie’s photographs of insects, flowers, and gardens that appear in her book Insect Safari: Exploring the Wondrous World of Everyday Insects, published by Workman/Hachette.
Bio:
Margie is a gardener, nature and science writer, and photographer. Her book More Than Meets the Eye: Exploring Nature and Loss on the Coast of Maine received an “Outstanding Book” award from the American Society of Journalists and Authors in 2022. Her photo book Wild and Wondrous: Nature’s Artistry on the Coast of Maine was published in 2023. Margie has degrees in botany and environmental science.