Designing Native and Ecological Plant Communities

Thursday April 19, 2018 • 9AM-3:30PM • Powell Gardens • $75

9AM-3:30PM

Functional and ecological plantings, such as rain gardens and meadows, are gaining on popularity but also face severe challenges. They often fail to wow the public, offer a low level of ecological functions, and simply don’t survive in low budget maintenance environments. Examples of failed projects are plentiful and hurt the image of the native plant movement. We won’t solve these issues if we continue to compare planting design to painting on canvas and perceive plants as individual objects in space. It is time for a new approach–a9 a.m.-noon or  plant community-based method which has evolved in the world of ecological science. Join us as we translate ecological principles of wild plant communities into planting design tools that will help you create better planting. This interactive workshop will introduce you to the science behind stable and lasting plant combination. You will learn the skill of creating plant communities in four hands-on design exercises and practice this technique in a hypothetical planting project at the end of the workshop. This workshop is presented in collaboration with Missouri Department of Conservation, Western Nursery and Landscape Association and the Kansas City Native Plant Initiative.

For more information please visit https://powellgardens.org/events-exhibits/calendar/