A free event from Project GREEN and the Iowa City Public Library will provide timely information on growing resilient gardens in the face of climate change.
The Second Sunday Garden Forum will be 2-4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 13. The free event is open to the public.
Related: Winter Gardening Fair plans in-person return in 2022
Learn more from Project GREEN:
IOWA CITY — Project GREEN and the Iowa City Public Library will virtually present a Second Sunday Garden Forum on Feb. 13, from 2 to 4 p.m. The free event is open to the public.
To join the Zoom event and ask questions, registration is required. Follow this link to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_LBGa63rRR_Or5ksbDKKG8w. The program will stream live on Iowa City Public Library’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/thelibrarychannel.
Benjamin Vogt of Lincoln, Nebr., will address The Fundamentals of Garden Layers. His information is timely as we struggle to modify our gardens for increased summer heat, cycles of drought and excessive rain events.
He will discuss what he’s learned from natural plant communities to increase ecosystem function and climate resilience in our gardens at home. From the fundamentals of plant succession to using plant reproduction and growth habits to fill ecological niches, the right native plant communities make all the difference to create beautiful gardens that wildlife and people crave.
He owns the prairie-inspired design firm Monarch Gardens LLC (monarchgard.com) focusing on urban and suburban lawn to meadow conversions. He is an administrator of the Facebook page Milk the Weed with nearly 14,000 followers and contributors.
Benjamin received an M.F.A. from Ohio State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska in English and has taught over 50 college classes for which he has received multiple awards.
He is a prolific author of books, articles and essays. A popular book, “A New Garden Ethic: Cultivating Defiant Compassion for an Uncertain Future”, was published in 2017, and the forthcoming “Prairie Up: An Introduction to Natural Garden Design” (University of Illinois Press, 2022).
His essays have been published in The Tallgrass Prairie Reader, Natural Treasures of the Great Plains, and Prairie Gold. Benjamin’s award-winning photography and writing have been featured in Northern Gardener, Garden Design, Fine Gardening, Midwest Living and Houzz.
Benjamin lives in Lincoln, Nebr. with his wife and son and two rescue cats.
The final Second Sunday Garden Forum will be held Sunday, March 13, featuring University of Iowa Urban Forestry Supervisor and campus arborist Andy Dahl. The forum will be held at the Iowa City Public Library in-person with COVID-19 precautions in place.
Project GREEN and the Iowa City Public Library have partnered to offer the Garden Forums for many years. The forums are free and open to the public. Attendance at forums qualifies Iowa State University Extension Master Gardeners for continuing education CEUs.
Since Project GREEN (Grow to Reach Environmental Excellence Now) was launched in 1968, the nonprofit has funded nearly $2.2 million in projects, including Project GREEN Garden, a public garden at the city-owned Ned Ashton House at 820 Park Road, parks, roadsides, riverfronts and median parkways and public school grounds. Project GREEN also supports efforts to educate citizens about the importance of beautifying private property as well. The organization celebrated 50 years of service to the community in 2018.
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