During our July 2025 meeting, Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay (WOCB) members Robin Madel and Sue Williams present “Increasing Biodiversity One Yard at a Time” and discuss turning residential gardens into more biodiverse native plantings. Topics include ecoregions, critical areas, and considerations for choosing native plants. Robin Madel is an environmental educator who has been helping […] Continue reading "Increasing Biodiversity One Yard at a Time"
One of the keystone programs of Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay is youth empowerment. Our chapter President, Marlene Smith, has been mentoring Esther Bonney, WOCB chapter member and Founder/President of Nurture Natives, since the two met at a local University of Maryland Extension 4-H project on pollinators in January 2022. Together, the two have partnered on […] Continue reading "Building Habitat for Native Bees – Youth Empowerment"
In the past two blogs, we introduced Sam Droege and Dave Hunter, two of three guest speakers on the February 20th Wild Ones webinar on “Bees Beyond Honey, Understanding Native and Managed Pollinators” hosted by Sara Ressing, Wild Ones Education and Program Coordinator. In this third installment of this multipart series on “Bees Beyond Honey”, […] Continue reading "“Bees Beyond Honey” with Lora Morandin"
In last week’s blog, we introduced you to Sam Droege, one of three guest speakers on the February 20th Wild Ones webinar on “Bees Beyond Honey, Understanding Native and Managed Pollinators” hosted by Sara Ressing, Wild Ones Education and Program Coordinator. In this second installment of this multipart series on “Bees Beyond Honey”, we introduce […] Continue reading "“Bees Beyond Honey” with Dave Hunter"
In the February 2025 Wild Ones webinar on “Bees Beyond Honey, Understanding Native and Managed Pollinators” hosted by Sara Ressing, Wild Ones Education and Program Coordinator, we were introduced to three pollinator experts: USGS Wildlife biologist Sam Droege, Crown Bees founder Dave Hunter, and Associate Director of the Pollinator Partnership Lora Morandin. Sam, Dave, and […] Continue reading "“Bees Beyond Honey” with Sam Droege"
Collecting, cleaning, sharing, and sowing native seeds are keystone activities of Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay. Collecting Seeds From the time the spring ephemerals start to drop their seeds in spring until the last of the fall bloomers’ seeds have ripened, our chapter members were armed with organza bags, paper bags, markers, and clippers in hand […] Continue reading "Show Your Love with Native Seeds"
Wild Ones promotes native landscapes through education, advocacy, and collaboration. Our educational efforts include tabling at local festivals and events, producing webinars and videos that we post on our YouTube channel, and posting gardening ideas, research and the latest native plant policy news on social media. Last fall, Marlene Smith, President Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay, […] Continue reading "Library Display Case for Education"
While doing research for our upcoming Seed College presentation at the end of the month, I came across a new-to-me term, “seed sitting,” which is a catchy term for sowing seeds outside in winter, in pots covered with wire mesh. The concept is not new, but the terminology is catchy. I first heard the term […] Continue reading "Seed Sitting"
Winter sowing is an economical way to germinate native plants in the middle of winter. With just a few materials that you can probably find around your house, it’s a fun and easy activity for all ages. As the winter solstice approaches and we all turn our attention to winter sowing, I wanted to share […] Continue reading "Deeply Rooted in Winter Sowing"
Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay is deeply rooted in natives, promoting native plants for a healthy planet. We accomplish this through education, advocacy, and collaboration. And this fall, education and collaboration is all about native seed collecting! To date, we’ve given presentations on native seed collection at our local college, the College of Southern Maryland (in collaboration […] Continue reading "Deeply Rooted in Native Seed Collecting"