Dreaming of Spring? Save the Date: Garden, Landscape with Edible Native Plants

From Westchester Community College

The Native Plant Center’s 2015 Spring Landscape Conference, Natives that Nourish: Planting an Edible Landscape, will explore species of native plants that can be enjoyed at the dinner table—and how to grow these plants in home gardens. The event will be held at Westchester Community College in Valhalla on Monday, March 16, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with a snow date of March 20.

“Native food plants serve a double purpose: They add beauty to the landscape and are healthful,” says Carol Capobianco, Director of The Native Plant Center. “Our theme this year is fun and timely, especially with today’s emphasis on farm-to-table cuisine. The annual conference will look at historical and present-day uses of native edible plants and how to mimic natural systems in designing a native edible garden.”

Native plants that produce food that can be eaten by people include well-known fruits and nuts such as blueberries, strawberries, and filberts as well as lesser-known treats such as pawpaw, Jerusalem artichoke, and prickly pear. The conference will include four presentations, beginning with a look at the landscape and native plants that sustained Native Americans centuries ago with best-selling author of Mannahatta, Eric W. Sanderson, PhD. How to grow native edible fruits, nuts, herbs, and more—and forage for them in your yard—will be presented in separate talks by Lee Reich, PhD, and Ellen Zachos. The final speaker, Dave Jacke, will discuss designing a garden of edibles incorporating processes that imitate natural ecosystems.

The conference is approved for 4.5 Professional Development Hours (PDHs) accredited by the Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System (LA-CES) as well as 4.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) accredited by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA). Registration for the conference is required; the fee depends on whether professional credits are requested. For further details and to register, visit www.nativeplantcenter.org or call 914-606-7870.

Lecture details:

Eating on Mannahatta: The Plants that Sustained Native Americans

The Native Americans who pre-dated Henry Hudson on Manhattan Island harvested a variety of foods from the land: nuts, berries, seeds, leaves, and tubers. Find out about the horticultural cultivation and food gathering by the Lenape 400 years ago. Learn about “Muir webs” and the habitat connections among plants, animals, and people. Discuss and imagine for the future a more sustainable, edible landscape for New York City. Eric W. Sanderson, PhD, is Senior Conservation Ecologist at the Wildlife Conservation Society and the best-selling author of Mannahatta: A Natural History of New York City. A TED Conference presenter, he received his doctorate in ecology from the University of California, Davis. His latest book is Terra Nova: The New World After Oil, Cars, and Suburbs.

Landscaping with Native Edible Fruits and Nuts

Native trees, shrubs, and vines that bear fruits and nuts are better adapted to withstand the pests and climate of the Northeast than the typically planted apples, peaches, pears, and cherries. Native species also look natural in the landscape—a landscape that can be luscious as well as ornamental. Discover the beauty, flavor, and cultivation of persimmon, pawpaw, blueberry, and a host of other native delectables. Lee Reich, PhD, is an avid “farmdener” (more than a gardener, less than a farmer) with graduate degrees in soil science and horticulture. After working in agricultural research for Cornell and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, he turned to writing, lecturing, and consulting. He is the author of several books, including Grow Fruit Naturally. His “farmden” is a test site for innovative techniques in soil care, pruning, and growing fruits and vegetables.

Edible Herbaceous Natives for the Garden

Many native herbaceous plants are delicious as well as lovely. Learn how to recognize, grow, and harvest these species in your home landscape, creating sources of food and beauty. Find out how to transform these natives into tasty treats such as yucca pie, roasted Jerusalem artichoke soup, and wild ginger snaps. Ellen Zachos, a garden writer and photographer, is an instructor at The New York Botanical Garden, where she studied commercial horticulture and ethnobotany. She is the foraging expert for About.com, a senior advisor for the Garden Compass app, and writes monthly for the National Gardening Association. A Harvard graduate, she is the author of six books, including Backyard Foraging: 65 Familiar Plants You Didn’t Know You Could Eat.

Mimicking Nature: Healthy Edible Ecosystems by Design

With clear scientific theory and practical design processes, we can create edible landscapes that mimic healthy ecosystems. The benefits that emerge include minimal competition and maximum cooperation among the plants, the return of critical ecosystem functions, and reduced work and outside inputs for the gardener. Explore the essential theories and practices behind edible ecosystem design and learn about native ecosystem assemblages. Dave Jacke, a student of ecology and design for 40 years, is primary author of the award-winning two-volume book Edible Forest Gardens. Since 1984 his firm, Dynamics Ecological Design, has designed and built landscapes, homes, farms, and communities across the United States and internationally. He holds a BA in Environmental Studies from Simon’s Rock College and an MA in Landscape Design from the Conway School of Landscape Design.

The Native Plant Center, a program of the Westchester Community College Foundation, was established in 1998 as the first national affiliate of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas. The Native Plant Center maintains demonstration gardens and educates the public about the environmental necessity, economic value, and natural beauty of native plants through conferences, field trips, classes, and its Go Native U certificate program.