Not sure what all the fuss is about invasive plants and how they really affect the environment?

Well, you’ll know much more after spending a Saturday morning in this class: Invasive Non-native Plants.
This course is an introduction to the problem of invasive, non-native plants in Georgia, taught by Connie Gray, M.L.A., a consultant in natural area restoration and management. Students will learn how to identify the major offenders, their current ranges and habitats, and how these plants impact natural plant communities. Basic management and control strategies will be discussed and demonstrated. Most of the class will be indoors, but we will venture outdoors to see some of the plants in the wild and visit sites where control efforts are underway.
This is an elective in the Certificate in Native Plants Program (http://www.uga.edu/botgarden/educnp.html), but you do not have to enroll in this program to take this class. You may, however, decide to take more classes in this program after this class.
This will be an eye-opening class for landowners, land managers, outdoorspeople, gardeners, and others who care about Georgia’s natural habitats. Register under the ‘Certificate Programs’ at http://www.uga.edu/botgarden/eduregister.html. This 5 hour class on June 5, 2010 is $45 ($40 for SBG members) and runs from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm at The State Botanical Garden of Georgia, Athens. Bring a sack lunch.

Save the dates! - Symposia on Native Plants, Garden History

Two all-day Symposia
at The State Botanical Garden of Georgia in Athens
2450 South Milledge Avenue, Athens, Georgia 30605
Pre-registration required.
Call 706-542-6156 or register online at www.uga.edu/botgarden.

Native Plant Symposium
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
8:45 am - 3:30 pm
Garden Club of Georgia, Terrace Room
Friends members $45; non-members $50 (lunch included)
Co-sponsored by The Garden Club of Georgia and The State Botanical Garden of Georgia
Native plants are uniquely adapted to local conditions, having co-evolved with other plants, animals, pollinators, and soil biota. Therefore they require little maintenance and withstand temperature and moisture extremes. Most importantly, native plants provide diverse sources of food and shelter for a wide variety of insects and birds, butterflies, mammals, reptiles, etc. in the complex web of life. Join us for a day-long program that considers gardening with wildflowers and other native plants along with related conservation issues. Learn how to incorporate your appreciation of these plants into your home landscape plan.

Agenda
8:45 Welcome and Announcements
9:00 Landscape Design for Planet-Friendly Gardens
10:00 Break — Plant Sale
10:30 The Right Plant for the Place: Natives in the Landscape
11:25 Native Perennials
12:00 Lunch
1:15 Promoting Natives: From Ecology to Heartstrings
2:15 Break
2:30 Botanical Illustrations of Southeastern Native Plants--A Walk Through the Calendar Year

2010 Southern Garden Heritage Conference
Friday, February 19, 2010
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Callaway Building Auditorium
Friends members$95; non-members $110
The State Botanical Garden of Georgia is pleased to host the Southern Garden Heritage Conference, which brings an audience from throughout the Southeast. Robin Salmon will open the conference with a lecture about garden sculpture and close the conference with a presentation about Brookgreen Gardens, one of America's finest sculpture gardens. Sue Burgess will provide a brief history of efforts to save the historic Root House in Marietta and create a garden of the period. Keyes Williamson will provide an update on work being done to preserve the Elizabeth Lawrence Garden in Charlotte. John Waters and Jim Cothran will provide a look into the architecture and gardens of Savannah and their interrelationships. And Gerard Krewer will speak about some of Georgia's rare and unusual fruits-some familiar and some unfamiliar. Amateurs and professionals alike are sure to find this conference interesting and informative.

AGENDA
9:00 - 9:15 Opening Remarks
9:15 - 10:00 A Brief History of American Garden Sculpture
10:00 - 10:30 Break
10:30 -11:15 The Root House, A Mid-Nineteenth Century Middle Class Merchant’s Home: Challenges of Recreating the Historic Southern Landscape in a Hostile 21st Century Urban Environment
11:15 - 12:00 The Elizabeth Lawrence Garden
12:00 - 1:00 Lunch
1:00 - 1:45 The Architecture and Gardens of Savannah
1:45 - 2:30 Rare and Unusual Fruits of Georgia
2:30 - 3:00 Break
3:00 - 3:45 Brookgreen Gardens Past and Present
3:45 - 4:00 Closing Remarks