Our Symposium will begin by zooming in on techniques for regionally-specific landscape analysis and design. We will then widen the lens and learn how disturbance, ecological science, and cultural land practices across regions can factor into those processes. Finally, we will explore how an expansive view of landscape art can unify this micro/macro divide in landscapes ranging from expansive to intimate.

Our accomplished group of presenters will include University of Delaware Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology Doug Tallamy, PhD; Indigenous musician, scholar, and community organizer Lyla June Johnston, PhD; Landscape Designer at Larry Weaner Landscape Associates Ethan Dropkin, MLA; and NDAL Founder and Landscape Designer Larry Weaner, FAPLD. Topics will include how to make a meadow seed mix, indigenous edible landscapes, a season-by-season guide to gardening for pollinators, and more.

A 4-part Virtual Intensive Course for Home Gardeners

Presented by Larry Weaner, FAPLD and Sara Weaner Cooper

Native meadows can be stunningly beautiful bird and butterfly magnets that require far less maintenance than mown turf or virtually any garden bed. Sounds great right? But it is only true if planned with an understanding of actual meadow ecology.

A 4-part Virtual Intensive Course for Home Gardeners
Presented by Larry Weaner, FAPLD

Our expansive format will allow Landscape Designer Larry Weaner to provide an in-depth guide for creating wildlife inclusive, ecologically productive, and highly manageable residential landscapes. Throughout the program Larry will interweave garden aesthetics with garden ecology, demonstrating how home environments can be both ecologically productive and experientially rich.

Read the April 2025 article, “'Meadowscaping': The people turning their lawns into meadows.”

“Turning lawns into meadows can have big benefits for people, wildlife and the climate. Here's why 'meadowscaping' has become the latest gardening craze.”

Sara Weaner Cooper and Evan Cooper knew that weekly mowing was not for them. So in place of their lawn, they began to imagine a meadow. The method, however, would not involve killing the turf grass first. Instead, they would plant and seed directly into it using some strategic techniques...with results that exceeded expectations.

Article written by Margaret Roach

Part of American Horticultural Society’s Great American Gardeners Awards, the Horticultural Innovation Award is “given to an individual or company whose innovations have made the field of horticulture more sustainable and accessible to all.”