Events Calendar

Join us for a coffee and chat with fellow gardeners who love pollinators! Share pictures of your garden and gardening goals. And learn tips from the book, Nature's Best Hope , about gardening for habitat.

Informal chat for native plant enthusiasts. Grab a beverage or lunch at the market and join the chat. Arthur's Market is a treasured landmark in the historic Stockade Area of Schenectady.  Plan to arrive early with about 10 minutes to spare to find parking and walk in.  There are a few steps up to enter the building. 

Expect to see many old, large trees and practice your tree ID! Take the Campbell Road exit from I-890, Rice Road west past the pump station to Schermerhorn Road, turn left onto Schermerhorn, and cross under I-890. Park outside the National Grid gate. The preserve is slightly uphill and to the left. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and weather, and expect some hills, although we will not walk far. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation. If there is deep snow, the backup location is the nearby Great Flats Nature Trail; check here in the morning for updates.

Join us for our monthly  Leadership Team & Business Meeting.   Reach out by email for zoom link:  [email protected] 

Public gardens hold tremendous power to influence landscaping norms and inspire change. By showcasing the beauty, functionality, and ecological value of native plants, these spaces help foster biodiversity, advocate for sustainable practices, and engage communities in environmental stewardship. 

This webinar will explore how public and demonstration gardens serve as powerful tools for native plant advocacy. Attendees will learn how gardens move beyond aesthetics to spark action—turning appreciation into engagement and inspiring participants to replicate these practices in their own communities.

We will hear insights from Nicole Machuca, Environmental Social Scientist at the Field Museum, on how public gardens influence behaviors, foster stewardship, and connect people to conservation efforts through research and community engagement. The Wild Ones Capital Region NY and the Wild Ones San Diego (CA) Chapters will share their experiences building native plant demonstration gardens and how these spaces drive community engagement, education, and advocacy. And We'll finish with a conversation exploring how public gardens create a lasting impact beyond planting day moderated by Kelly Kapuzzi, Demonstration Garden Char with the Wild Ones Hocking Hills (OH) Chapter.

Our chapter will have a display table at the Capital Region Flower & Garden Expo, held at the McDonough Sports Complex at Hudson Valley Community College, Troy.  Your help is needed! Please volunteer to help us engage people; if you can do a two or three hour shift during the weekend, that would be great.  You don’t have to be a gardening expert, just someone who values native plants. Our table will have a colorful display about native host plants and butterflies, along with membership information.  If you want to get involved in developing the display and set up, let us know.  

Wild Ones will be offering a several workshops in their listing of over fifty presentations. 

This annual Expo event includes large-scale gardens and floral-themed exhibits, and a Marketplace filled with over 190 flower and garden-themed retail exhibits, an indoor farmers market, and NYS wine tastings.  Public is charged an entry fee of $14/day if paid in advance;  WOCRNY volunteers will be given a free day pass for staffing our table for a few hours. 

All interested members are welcome to share their ideas on who to ensure native gardening is a culture change, not a fad.  Currently, this committee is focused on how to modernize town ordinances to make native gardens easier to start in communities that have strict lawn height requirements.  Register to receive a zoom link.

Spring wildflowers beneath beech, oak, hickory, and hemlock. We will follow the one-mile orange loop beginning and ending at the parking area. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and weather. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Learn about how native gardening supports pollinators and songbirds, and learn more about the Crandall Seed Library! 

Join us for our quarterly  Membership Meeting.   Reach out by email for zoom link:  [email protected] 

We will take the blue trail loop with a side-trip to the falls, a bit over 1mi, looking for spring ephemerals like bloodroot and wild ginger. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Join us for our monthly  Leadership Team & Business Meeting.   Reach out by email for zoom link:  [email protected] 

We will set out from the Uncle Sam gravesite and follow the man-made lake and creek downstream, observing the John C. Sidney’s landscape design and its evolution over 175 years. Bring appropriate attire for an easy walk and the weather. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Join us for our monthly  Leadership Team & Business Meeting.   Reach out by email for zoom link:  [email protected] 

Limestone means alkaline soil, selecting for plants that thrive in that condition, including a healthy selection of ferns. Park along the pull-off. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather. The walk will be shady. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667.  Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Starting at the visitor center, we will walk the Native Plant Collection trail, approximately 1mi. Parking and visit are free, although Landis requests a $5 donation per visitor. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather. Parts of the walk will be sunny, there are minor hills, and the trails can be slippery when wet. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Gathering near the historic Whipple Bridge at River View and Van Vranken Roads, we will walk out to Fort’s Ferry and make a short loop. We will use David H. Behm’s list of observed invasive plants as a checklist to practice identifying invasives. Bring appropriate attire for a hike, the weather, and flying insects. Parts of the walk will be sunny. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

In search of asters and allies, we will explore all of the early-fall blooms we find. We will walk both the blue and red trails, totaling about 1.5mi. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.
 

Details coming soon! 

Beginning at the smaller Falstaff’s parking lot near Broadway, we will take the red loop trail, about 1.1mi, seeking late wildflowers, enjoying the fall foliage, and thinking about the soil structure all this falling plant matter supports. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Details coming soon! 

Friday 7th, 8:30am. Henry Gerber Reist Bird Sanctuary, 897 St David's Ln, Niskayuna, NY. Park at the Kelly Adirondack Center. From there we will follow the Paul Schaefer Yellow Trail, about 1.3mi, looking out for birds, late-fall flora, and the remnants of dry vernal pools. Bring appropriate attire for a hike and the weather; note that this area can get wet and muddy. Host: Dustin Mitchell, 314-616-2667. Always check the Events Calendar for any cancellation.

Details coming soon!