Events

Discover how ecological landscaping with native plants can make your landscape more resilient and help address the climate crisis. This webinar will highlight practical, evidence-based approaches to designing and maintaining landscapes that build resilience to climate change and support native biodiversity. Join Wild Ones for a free webinar, “EcoBeneficial Landscape Strategies for the Climate Crisis,” featuring environmental horticulturalist and ecological landscape designer Kim Eierman.

Please join us for the free, virtual presentation, "My Favorite Native Shrubs," with Adrian Fisher, West Cook Wild Ones board member extraordinaire on Sunday, September 21, 2025 from 2:30-4:00 pm.

Shrubs are the unsung heroes of the native plant landscape, since they can add beauty, structure and privacy, as well as habitat for numerous wild creatures. Yet many people’s yards and gardens either lack these wonderful plants, or the existing shrubs might be non-native and possibly invasive. In this talk we will explore the wonderful world of native shrubs, what’s so great about them, and ways to use them when landscaping.

Presenter Bio:

Adrian Ayres Fisher educates about and advocates for native-plant gardening, natural area restoration, and biodiversity. She has been enthusiastically gardening with native plants for over thirty years, and is a long-standing board member of West Cook Wild Ones, in Chicago’s near-west suburbs, where she is co-chair of programs and advocacy. She also serves as volunteer site steward of the 75-acre National Grove Woods Forest Preserve in Riverside, Illinois, where she manages volunteer restoration projects.  Formerly she was a sustainability coordinator at a community college.

Members are welcome to attend.  We will open with a brief period for member comment before commencing business.  If you are a paid member and would like to attend, please email us [email protected] for the Zoom link. Please include your Membership ID. Your ID can be found on your Membership Page. 

Even after reading books and attending talks, many still have pressing questions about ecological landscaping. In this talk, Tallamy addresses common concerns on biodiversity, invasive species, native plants, and conservation strategies, providing practical guidance and motivation to restore nature in everyday spaces. 

Though seldom seen due to their nocturnal nature, moths are every bit as beautiful and charismatic as their butterfly cousins. Their role as pollinators is essential to the survival of many of our plants, especially orchids. Most importantly, moths and their caterpillars are food for birds, bats, and countless other animals. We will take a photographic journey into the intriguing world of moths, exploring which of our native plants are most enticing to these lovely Lepidopterans. We can all greatly benefit the ecosystem around us by “moth gardening” in our yards! We are excited to host Chelsea Gottfried, co-author of Gardening for Moths, for this program. This lecture is co-sponsored by West Cook Wild Ones. Register here.

We are delighted to co-sponsored this presentation with  Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory.

Speaker Bio

Chelsea Gottfried works as a naturalist and nature-based preschool teacher for the Crawford Park District in north central Ohio. She is an avid gardener and a passionate entomologist.

Members are welcome to attend.  We will open with a brief period for member comment before commencing business.  If you are a paid member and would like to attend, please email us [email protected] for the Zoom link. Please include your Membership ID. Your ID can be found on your Membership Page. 

Details coming soon! 

Designing with native plants isn’t just about what you grow, it’s about how you shape your space. In this hands-on workshop, Zoe Evans (Plan it Wild) and Heather Evans (Design Your Wild) guide you through the process of creating a cohesive yard plan that supports both your lifestyle and biodiversity.

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! This will be a paid webinar with all proceeds supporting the Seeds for Education Program. 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon!