Chapter Events

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

This program will occur virtually on Zoom.  Registration is required.  A recording of the program will be shared with program registrants.  To register for this program please click on the “Register” button at the bottom of this page.

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In this program, we will explore the how and why to converting from lawn to natural garden, then touch on the practical preparation, research, design, management, and working with city inspectors and HOAs aspects involved in this conversion. In under one hour you’ll have the basic tools and strategies to begin your own further research and planning to reduce intensively managed lawn as well as invigorating older garden beds that often need more plants. 

Presenter Bio:

Benjamin Vogt is the author of the best-selling Prairie Up: An Introduction to Natural Garden Design, as well as A New Garden Ethic: Cultivating Defiant Compassion for an Uncertain Future. His work has appeared in Dwell, Fine Gardening, Horticulture, Midwest Living, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post. He manages the educational and design firm Prairie Up based in Lincoln, Nebraska. 

A signed copy of Prairie Up can be ordered at Nature and Garden Books by Benjamin Vogt.  Unsigned books can be ordered from your favorite bookseller.  If you shop from the Wild Ones Reading List Bookshop a portion of your purchase goes to support both Wild Ones and independently owned local bookstores. This contribution, at no additional cost to you, helps to support the Wild Ones mission but does not influence our reviews or recommendations. 

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note:  This program will be presented on Zoom.  Advance registration is required.  A recording of this program will be available on our chapter YouTube channel soon after the presentation date.  Click the “Register” button below the program description to register for this program. 
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Butterfly expert and photographer Betsy Betros will teach us about the high-flying, colorful world of swallowtail butterflies in the Kansas City region (and also found in Illinois). Betsy will take us on a tour of what makes each swallowtail unique from each other and what groups them together. 

Presenter Bio:

Betsy Betros‘ lifelong love of insects began in childhood, and she went on to earn a degree in entomology from Colorado State University, focusing mostly on aquatic insects. She worked for 35 years for the Environmental Department of Johnson County, Kansas, and worked to earn a Master’s degree from Kansas University in environmental health science. She taught environmental science for 15 years, part time at Johnson County Community College, and found time to write a book on the butterflies of the Kansas City Region, which was published in 2008. In her retirement, Betros studies and photographs invertebrates on her five acres of land. So far, she has submitted more than 4,000 of her invertebrate images to Bugguide.net, including several rare species.

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note:  This program will be presented both in-person and by livestream.  A link to join the livestream will be posted here closer to the program date.  A recording of the program will be available on our YouTube Channel.
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The non-native (and arguably, invasive) European Honeybee (Apis mellifera) gets a lot of attention because the species is reared here in North America for the purpose of pollinating crops and for the production of honey. Although native bumblebees are an integral component of our local ecosystems and are, also, important pollinators for a number of agriculturally important crops, they rarely get the appreciation they deserve. This is particularly concerning because research indicates that North American bumblebees face a multitude of threats and more than a quarter of native bumblebee species are facing some level of extinction risk, as a result. Join Dr. Sheri Glowinski for an exploration of bumblebee diversity, ecological importance, and conservation concerns – and, importantly, learn what YOU can do to promote the precious presence of our local native bumbles in your gardens.

Presenter Bio:

Sheri Glowinski has been an official Wild One for about 4 years but has been wild about native plants and ecosystems and their fauna for much longer. She developed my appreciation for native plants as an ecological restoration intern for McHenry County Conservation District in northern IL many years ago – and with that, has cut her share of common buckthorn, multiflora rose, and Japanese honeysuckle. Since then, she has lived throughout the U.S. and witnessed the impacts of invasive species on ecosystems (notably, kudzu in the south, ice plant in the west, and European frog-bit in Upper Michigan), and has aimed to spread the native plant love in each place she has lived. While her experience in McHenry County informed her personal passion for prairie plants, her education and experience since then (a PhD in biological sciences with an emphasis on conservation science and ornithology plus several backyard native gardens since) have informed her understanding that the health of our fauna (THINK: native bees, beetles, butterflies, birds and much more) are dependent on a fully functioning ecosystem that includes locally native plants. To that end, she is passionate about spreading the word that our yards, neighborhoods, parks, and beyond need native plants.

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note:  This program will be presented both in-person and by livestream.  A link to join the livestream will be posted here closer to the program date.  A recording of the program will be available on our YouTube channel.
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Most young trees need a little help to become the best that they can be. Oaks have special characteristics that, if addressed at a young age, can be molded into the venerable form and stature that we all think about when the word “oak” is mentioned. While many other tree species are simpler to prune as needed, the same techniques and precautions can apply. Learn the right, and wrong, ways to approach pruning during the early years of tree growth. If we have time, we also will show a demonstration about pruning tools, their use and care. 

Presenter Bio:

Guy Sternberg is co-founder of Starhill Forest Arboretum, the most comprehensive certified oak research collection in North America and the first arboretum worldwide to be granted international status in ArbNet; first president of the International Oak Society; founding committee member and past officer of the Illinois Native Plant Society; life member of other organizations; adjunct faculty in biology, Illinois College; adjunct research associate, Illinois State Museum; and author of the reference book Native Trees of North America. 

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note:  This program will be held in-person and by livestream.  A link to join the livestream will be posted here closer to the program date.  A recording of the program will be made available to chapter members soon after the program.
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The tallgrass prairie ecosystem is one of the rarest ecosystems in the world. It’s home to plants uniquely adapted to their soil microorganisms, precipitation, pollinators, and light conditions. Sydney will talk about how prairie plant species are adapted to their soil microbial communities and consider how those communities change with the level of precipitation across the Midwestern United States. Hear about the performance of pale-spike lobelia (Lobelia spicata), round-headed bush clover (Lespedeza capitata), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), and rosinweed (Silphium integrifolium) in recent research by the Byers Lab at Illinois State University. Learn how adaptations in prairie plants can shift our expectations to their future success and how this work applies to planting your own garden spaces.

Presenter Bio:

Sydney Metternich is the outreach coordinator for the Fell Arboretum; the collection of trees on Illinois State University’s (ISU) campus. After receiving her Masters  degree in biology studying adaptations in prairie plants from ISU in December of 2022, Sydney teaches undergraduate botany courses at ISU and facilitates botanical experiences for students and nature enthusiasts of all ages in the Bloomington-Normal Community.

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note: This program will be held both in-person and by livestream.  A link to join the livestream will be posted here closer to program date.  A recording of the program will be available on our YouTube channel.
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The book “In the Spirit of Wetlands" by Clare Howard and David Zalaznik explores a dozen locations in Illinois with either wetland restorations or constructed wetlands. Rather than dark, smelly, unproductive swamps, wetlands are environmental warriors nurturing diversity, cleansing water and mitigating flooding. People who own and work on these wetlands bring incredible and contagious commitment to this misunderstood and maligned environment. This presentation will highlight images of these Illinois wetlands and the people behind them. 

Early settlers in Illinois destroyed wetlands before understanding them and before seeing their beauty. Now we have the scientific knowledge that wetlands are critical to a healthy ecosystem. What remains is to open our eyes to see their beauty and fall in love with this environment where land, water and air co-mingle in a world alive with diversity. We will protect what we love?

Presenter Bios:

Clare Howard is a journalist formerly at the Peoria Journal Star and Community Word. She has a master’s degree in journalism from University of Illinois and a doctorate from Union Institute and University. Her next book, “Wisdom of the Marsh” focuses on one vast wetland complex in central New York as its geographic anchor, but its mission is exploring the universal role wetlands play in combating climate change and restoring diversity, justice and community. 

David Zalaznik is a photojournalist currently living in Central New York. His newspaper career began at the Lincoln (Ill.) Courier and ended more than three decades later with retirement from the Peoria Journal Star. Zalaznik has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from University of Iowa and a master’s degree in journalism from University of Illinois. During his career, a special interest was coverage of environmental issues and the people searching for solutions to critical environmental problems.

Details TBA to chapter members.

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Note: This program will be presented both in-person and by livestream.  The link to join the livestream will be posted here closer to the program date.  A recording of the program will be available on our YouTube channel.
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Native plants are becoming the superstars of our home landscapes but many of us are less familiar with these plants in the built environment.  Join Illinois Extension Educator, Ryan Pankau, for a presentation focused on the use of native trees and shrubs in landscaping.  Ryan will review the challenges that urban environment presents to natives and discuss how you can properly site and care for these spectacular plants on your property.  His presentation will focus on plants included in the chapter's “Fall Tree & Shrub Sale”, as well as other native species that are popular in the horticulture industry.

Presenter Bio:

Ryan has over two decades of experience as a forester and arborist, building his lifelong love of trees into the career he enjoys today.  He has experience with forest restoration and management as well as care of individual trees in the urban setting.  In recent years, Ryan has focused on integrating the concepts of ecology into the management of plants in the built environment to create more resilient landscapes that better support the native flora and fauna of Illinois.

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! 

Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Annual Reports will be presented to the membership for 2025.  The election of officers for 2026 will be held.  After the meeting, members will participate in a seed exchange.

Details coming soon!