Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 16, 2021 at 7 pm
We are pleased to present our February program online, however, we will be limited to 100 participants. Please check back here for registration information. This program will be available for viewing on our chapter's YouTube channel a few days afterward. Thank you!
Growing a Sense of Place
Vicki Bonk, Nokomis Naturescape Stewardship and Outreach Lead
Within all our neighborhoods, there are likely natural amenities that spark a nature connection for the residents. Building on these assets can help generate the “Homegrown National Park” Douglas Tallamy forwarded in “Nature’s Best Hope”. What features in your community encourage more native plantings? This presentation will focus on one southeast Minneapolis community’s twenty-five history of ongoing habitat projects where one endeavor lead to another and in the process created corridors and in-roads! These ventures are promoted with workshops, plant sales, online presentations and a large celebration. The outreach model for community participation became - demonstrate, educate and celebrate.
Community outreach will grow this year by highlighting the native plants at home in the area surrounding Lake Nokomis Park, within Minnehaha Park and also the Mississippi River National Park and Recreation Area that includes Coldwater Spring. In the summer of 2021, people will have an opportunity to visit the Nokomis East Neighborhood projects, homes and nearby parks on a the WOTC Garden Tour.
 |
| A lively 2020 scene along the Monarch Mile* provided the public with a vision of what can be. *A Nokomis East Neighborhood Association native boulevard plantings project of a street corridor connecting two larger habitat gardens. Neighborhood habitat projects help connect people, wildlife and the land to nearby nature reserves. |
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Vicki's commitment to native plant gardening was activated in 1995 when she suggested a community project of a butterfly garden at Lake Nokomis Park in Minneapolis. Thus, the Nokomis Naturescape (NN), came into being in 1998. Since then, Vicki has served as the NN volunteer stewardship and outreach coordinator, working with the local neighborhood association, green team and park board. The NN mission is to "encourage people to connect with nature by growing native plant habitat gardens." With this focus, the Grow Monarch Habitat Workshops were created in 2006. The beloved monarch butterfly, a flagship species, was chosen as an ambassador to inspire people to plant livelier home landscapes that beckon many beneficial creatures. The workshops were a catalyst for the Minneapolis Monarch Festival, a popular annual event since 2009.
______________________________________
Congratulations to two of our Wild Ones Twin Cities members, John Arthur and Roz Johnson, who's photographs were featured in the 2021 9 Mile Creek calendar! You can watch the video presentation here.
