All Scheduled Programs
2025 Fall Virtual Education Series
Individual Professional & Home Gardener Sessions
Previously Held:
(recordings viewable for 3 months)
37th Annual NDAL Symposium
Seeing the Forest and the Trees
Designing Landscapes that Integrate
Regional Specificity with Global Commonality
January 15 - 16, 2026 | Union, NJ
Landscaping with Nature:
Turning Battles into Partnerships
A 4-part Virtual Intensive Course for Home Gardeners
Live September - October 2025
(recordings viewable for 3 months from live event dates)
Individual Sessions:
Meadow Making:
A Brains Over Brawn Approach
A 4-part Virtual Intensive Course for Home Gardeners
Live September - October 2025
(recordings viewable for 3 months from live event dates)
Individual Sessions:
37th Annual NDAL Symposium | Seeing the Forest and the Trees | In-Person, Union, NJ (Virtual options available)
Incorporating a region’s indigenous plant communities and ecological processes is at the heart of ecology-based design. But no natural system operates in isolation or is forever immune to change…..especially today where the effects of watershed alteration, soil disturbance, plant globalization, and climate change are at play worldwide. 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.
Category: Professional
37th Annual NDAL Symposium | Seeing the Forest and the Trees | Virtual Only
Incorporating a region’s indigenous plant communities and ecological processes is at the heart of ecology-based design. But no natural system operates in isolation or is forever immune to change…..especially today where the effects of watershed alteration, soil disturbance, plant globalization, and climate change are at play worldwide. 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.
Category: Professional
Tallamy and Weaner: A Season by Season Guide to Plant-Wildlife Connections (Fall Virtual Series)
Doug Tallamy, PhD & Larry Weaner, FAPLD
To support native birds and pollinators you need native plants. For those plants to thrive, you need to know how to plant, arrange, and manage them. And to optimize the wildlife benefits, those plants must provide habitat throughout the year. In this presentation, entomologist & wildlife ecologist Doug Tallamy and landscape designer Larry Weaner will illustrate an all too rare, integrated approach to habitat creation on residential properties. In an alternating series of presentations, they will connect plants, wildlife, and their specific seasonal needs to illustrate the dynamic landscapes that this integrated approach can provide. They will conclude by comparing notes on their personal experience, interacting with plants and wildlife on their respective home landscapes.
Fee: $38
Photo by Ian Caton
Utilizing Natural Disturbances in the Establishment and Maintenance of Prairie Vegetation (Fall Virtual Series)
Chad Bitler
This presentation will explore how natural disturbances, such as grazing and fire, can be valuable tools in the establishment and maintenance of prairie ecosystems. We'll delve into how grazing by herbivores influences plant diversity and structure, while fire serves as a natural disturbance that promotes the dominance of grasses and prevents woody plant encroachment. By understanding these interconnected processes, we can appreciate their role in shaping vibrant, resilient prairies. The discussion will also touch on how these ecological forces contribute to soil health, biodiversity, and the overall sustainability of prairie landscapes. To conclude the program, Larry Weaner will join Chad to discuss ways to overcome the practical difficulties of incorporating these strategies outside of agricultural or ecological restoration settings. These will include the potential availability of new landscape services and equipment that can provide mechanized facsimiles of the processes described in the program.
Fee: $42
Garden Chat with Larry | Free, Live Q&A (Fall)
Join us for our Live Q&A Series with Larry Weaner! "Garden Chats with Larry" will be a FREE, quarterly live series where you can ask Larry your ecological gardening & landscaping questions.
FREE AND OPEN TO ALL
Seed Mix Formulation for Native Meadows (Fall Virtual Series)
Ethan Dropkin, MLA
While seed mix formulation can look simple, long-term meadow success is rooted in a detailed understanding of individual species characteristics, how to quantify those species, how they fit together to form a community, and their roles in the various stages of meadow development. He will also discuss how to overlay various mitigation requirements, as well as the aesthetic preferences of the client.
Through his experience with Larry Weaner Landscape Associates (LWLA) and his encyclopedic knowledge of native plants, Ethan is uniquely qualified to enhance your ability to design and oversee successful native meadows.
Category: Professional
Fee: $42
What Makes a Garden Break “Room” Truly Restorative? (Fall Virtual Series)
Perla Sofía Curbelo-Santiago
More and more people are turning to nature to recharge. Whether you have a patio, a balcony, or a small corner by the window, you’ll discover how to create a space that supports relaxation and meaningful pauses. But simply adding plants to a room or intimate outdoor space doesn’t guarantee rest or well-being.
In this thoughtful and inspiring session, you’ll learn what truly makes a Garden Break Room effective. Through stories, research-backed insights, and real examples from both home and office settings, author and garden communicator Perla Sofía Curbelo-Santiago will guide you through the essential elements—both visible and invisible—that help people feel restored, not just impressed.
Fee: $32
Meadow Making: A Brains Over Brawn Approach | Session 4 of 4 | Conversation and Q&A
Larry Weaner, FAPLD and Sara Weaner Cooper
After a three-week opportunity to digest the information provided in the previous three sessions, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the course information. The freewheeling format will allow for exploration of the many “variations on the meadow theme” that can arise from the individual experiences and interests of course attendees.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Register today for Meadow Making
Photo by Steve Ford
Landscaping with Nature: Turning Battles into Partnerships | Session 4 of 4 | Conversation and Q&A
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
After a three-week opportunity to digest the information provided in the previous three sessions, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the course information. The freewheeling format will allow for exploration of the many variations inherent to an ecology-based approach.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Register today for Landscaping with Nature
Photo by Steve Ford
Indigenous Edible Landscape Design: Lessons from the Past and Present (Fall Virtual Series)
Lyla June Johnston
The notion that the Americas were "wilderness" prior to European arrival is false. The notion that Native Americans were sparsely populated and technologically stunted are also false. The Americas were inhabited for 25,000+ years according to recent archaeological finds, and within this time period humanity managed to transform vast regions into edible ecosystems that benefitted both humans and non-humans alike. Dr. Johnston's extensive research in the area draws lessons from paleo-archaeological stories of abundant and sustainable bioregional food systems and applies them to contemporary landscape design, with a focus on edibility ratings. How can we (and why should we) make our household, municipality and community landscapes more edible, moving away from the "ornamental" goals of Euro-centric landscape design?
Fee: $35
Meadow Making: A Brains Over Brawn Approach | Session 3 of 4 | Managing
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Meadow management, particularly in the first two years, is every bit as important as planning and planting. Here we will show how piggybacking on ecological processes can preserve the meadow’s long term integrity without the need to add supplements, cut incessantly, and endlessly pull weeds. In scientific terms this vegetative condition is called “relative ecological stability.” In landscape terms it is called “low maintenance.”
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Registration includes Sessions 1 - 4.
In Partnership with the Place: Site-Specific Native Design, New England-Style | NDAL In the Field at New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill | Boylston, MA | In-person
Uncovering the often-hidden vegetative characteristics of a site can help designers enhance botanic diversity, while curating inspirational places that elicit a true sense of place. This full day session will include classroom presentations and field exploration of both meadow and woodland landscapes. Presenters, including designer Larry Weaner and ecologist/horticulturist Steven Conaway, PhD, will show how deep site analysis can help designers recognize and incorporate a site’s inherent inclinations - be it for a restoration, a garden, or a blend of the two.
Category: Professional (CEUs available)
Fee: $310
Student rate (with ID): $246
Landscaping with Nature: Turning Battles into Partnerships | Session 3 of 4: Managing
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
“Relative ecological stability” is a term used by ecologists to describe a highly competitive vegetative composition that allows few new individuals to enter the system. In garden-speak, that translates to “low maintenance.” In our final session we will illustrate how piggybacking on this and other ecological processes can change garden management from a battle to a partnership. Using examples from his own property as well as diverse client projects, Larry will share how a brains-over-brawn approach can result in compelling, easily managed landscapes that liberate both plants and people.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Meadow Making: A Brains Over Brawn Approach | Session 2 of 4 | Planting
Larry Weaner, FAPLD and Sara Weaner Cooper
From rototilling to fertilizing, many garden planting techniques are actually counterproductive when it comes to meadow making. In this session we will illustrate how to sow meadow seeds and plant live plants in a manner that puts them in a position to succeed without the intensive maintenance requirements of turf grass or traditional gardens. This session will also include a brief presentation by Sara Weaner Cooper who will describe her chemical-free/no kill lawn-to-meadow transition project, now in its highly successful second year.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Registration includes Sessions 1 - 4.
Landscaping with Nature: Turning Battles into Partnerships | Session 2 of 4: Planting
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
In this session we will learn how “light touch” planting techniques can increase plant survival and reduce post-planting maintenance. The disturbance that results from deep digging, soil enhancement, and soil replacement always stimulates a flush of weeds. Applying fertilizer helps those weeds grow faster. In this session we will learn to match the plant to the soil, not the soil to the plant, an approach that avoids weed-enacting soil disturbance and places plants in soils that are familiar and conducive to their survival. We will also discuss how to select nursery plants that are most likely to thrive and proliferate in your landscape.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Ecology-based Design and Organic Practice at Glenstone Museum, Potomac, MD | In-person
The landscape at Glenstone, a newly-constructed, contemporary art museum in Potomac, Maryland, received the ASLA Honor Award in 2019. The property contains 90 acres of planted meadows, shrub thickets, and reforestation that stretch from the property borders to the museum buildings. This organically planted and maintained landscape illustrates how landscape architects (PWP Landscape Architecture), native plant consultants (Larry Weaner Landscape Associates), and an in-house management team can collaborate in the service of ecology, art, and a stimulating visitor experience. Our day will combine classroom instruction with a heavy dose of field observation to illustrate how this landscape went from landscape plans to vibrant reality.
Category: Professional (CEUs available)
Fee: $310
Student rate (with ID): $246
Native Landscaping 101 | Part Two: Landscapes Open House | Free In-Person Program in Blue Bell & Erdenheim, PA
Part Two: Landscapes Open House in Blue Bell & Erdenheim, PA
Participants will stop by Larry’s over 30-year-old woodland landscape and Sara’s 3-year-old organic lawn-turned-meadow.
Category: Home Gardener
Free
Meadow Making: A Brains Over Brawn Approach | Session 1 of 4 | Design
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
In our opening session we will illustrate how to select the meadow plants that are most likely to thrive on your property as well as fit your aesthetic and practical preferences. This will include guidance for site analysis, seed mix formulation, and the potential to hasten meadow development through the supplemental addition of live plants.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Registration includes Sessions 1 - 4.
Landscaping with Nature: Turning Battles into Partnerships | Session 1 of 4 | Design
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Designing with site-adapted native plants is a good thing, but designing with the ecological processes that govern those plants in the wild is even better. Our opening session will examine a series of garden-relevant concepts from the ecological sciences including plant community, plant proliferation, competition, and ecological succession. Each concept will be defined and followed by a concrete example of its incorporation into a residential design. While rarely considered in traditional garden design, these ecological characteristics are actually key to achieving the environmental, aesthetic, and maintenance promise of ecology-based garden design.
6:00 - 7:15 PM ET
Lawn to Meadow: A Light and Gradual Transition (Fall Virtual Series)
Larry Weaner, FAPLD and Sara Weaner Cooper
No chemicals, no smothering, no scraping and hauling, no early-stage ugly phase.
Sounds too good to be true.
Yet by gradually applying a series of light-touch actions, you can achieve this transition organically without breaking your back, sparking ecological angst, or infuriating your neighbors. These actions can include strategic plant selection, timed mowing, selective height cutting, pH manipulation, organic herbicide application, and a phased planting approach. In our first session, Larry will illustrate case studies that exemplify the technical underpinnings behind this approach from a landscape designer's perspective. Next, Sara will discuss her lawn to meadow conversion from a homeowner’s perspective. Her meadow, now in its third growing season, has been featured in the The New York Times (2024) and the BBC (2025). Together, they will illustrate how the experience of meadow making can be transformed from daunting to uplifting.
Category: Home Gardener & Professional
Fee: $35
At Home With Nature: Beauty, Ecology, and Experience (Fall Virtual Series)
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Even on the smallest residential property, sharing garden decisions with nature changes everything. In this eye opening presentation, Larry will illustrate how an ecology-based, brains-over-brawn approach to home landscaping can reduce management needs, increase desirable wildlife habitat, and enhance the visual and intellectual experience of being in your yard.
FREE SESSION
Intensive Course Session 7 of 7: The Artistic Overlay: Making “Wild” Legible (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Ecological design need not be a bitter aesthetic pill that our clients must swallow to do the right thing. The order inherent in our wild native landscapes is widely considered beautiful. By translating that ecology-based order into the aesthetically-based language of fine garden design, the results can be much more universally embraced by our clients. In addition, Larry will illustrate how highly gardenesque - and even formal - elements can gracefully interact and intermingle with wilder woodland, shrubland, and meadow compositions. This approach can result in landscapes that are both ecologically productive and visually pleasing to clients with a variety of aesthetic preferences.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Intensive Course Session 6 of 7 | Plants of the Canopied Landscape: Woodlands, Edges, & Hedgerows (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Ian Caton
In this session, native plant authority Ian Caton will examine plants of the canopied landscape that exemplify the ecological characteristics described by Larry Weaner in previous sessions. His presentation will include plants found at all of the woodland’s vertical layers, from canopy to understory. He will also discuss their specific abilities to integrate with the unique colonization strategies inherent in woodland development and enhancement. Finally, Ian will present a group of “workhorse” native species for the woodland, including those that combine reliability with desirable aesthetic characteristics.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Garden Chat with Larry | Free, Live Q&A (Summer)
Join us for our Live Q&A Series with Larry Weaner! "Garden Chats with Larry" will be a FREE, live Zoom series with our very own Landscape Designer Larry Weaner.
FREE AND OPEN TO ALL
Intensive Course Session 5 of 7 | The Canopied Landscape: Woodlands, Edges, & Hedgerows (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Larry Weaner, FAPLD
An ecology-based approach to woodland design is more like guiding a vegetative process than implementing a static planting plan. Guided succession can foster the orderly transformation from an open field to a multi-tiered forest through planting, managed natural recruitment, or a combination of the two. Under existing canopy, where few herbaceous species can be established through direct seeding, we will discuss the planting of small “seed source colonies,” and management strategies to encourage their proliferation into the larger landscape. Management techniques that are unique to woodlands including selective height cutting, sunlight manipulation, and assisted seed dispersal, will also be described in detail.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Intensive Course Session 4 of 7 | Plants of the Open Landscape: Meadows, Old Fields, & Shrublands (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Ian Caton
In this session, native plant authority Ian Caton will examine plants of the open landscape that exemplify the ecological characteristics described by Larry Weaner in previous sessions. His presentation will span the successional period from herbaceous meadow, to mixed woody/ herbaceous old field, to the ecologically important but often neglected clonal shrub thicket. He will also present a group of “workhorse” native species for the sunlit landscape that combine reliability and weed suppression with attractive aesthetic character.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Intensive Course Session 3 of 7 | The Open Landscape: Meadows, Old Fields, & Shrublands (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Wildflower meadows and native grasslands are in high demand, but effective protocols for successfully achieving them are in short supply. Here we will delve into the nitty gritty of meadow design: site analysis, species selection, seed mix formulation, live plant inclusion, planting and management. The inclusion of shrub thickets and drifts will also be covered, including the arrangement of clonal vs. clump forming species, and the use of shrublands as ecological and visual “connective tissue” between meadow and woods.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Intensive Course Session 2 of 7 | Ecology-based Design (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Larry Weaner, FAPLD
*Sessions 1 & 2 recommended prerequisite for all other Sessions
Larry will expand upon the ecological principles described in Session 1 by illustrating them in the context of landscape plans, planting protocols, and management procedures. He will also describe often-neglected plant characteristics that are crucial to ecology-based practice. These will include habitat fidelity, colonization patterns, seasonal growth period, life spans, spatial and temporal niche, and proliferation strategies.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Intensive Course Session 1 of 7 | Foundational Ecological Principles (Summer 2025)
Professional Virtual Intensive Course
Instructor: Larry Weaner, FAPLD
*Sessions 1 & 2 recommended prerequisite for all other Sessions
Our opening presentation will examine the species traits, vegetative patterns, and ecological processes found in spontaneous plant communities. The patterns and processes explored will include disturbance, succession, competition, and relative ecological stability. This session will serve as the theoretical basis for the practical design, planting, and management procedures detailed in all subsequent sessions.
Registration is open and the recording is viewable for 3 months after the live session date.
Native Perennials: Flower Border or Functional Ground Layer (Spring Virtual Series)
Larry Weaner, FAPLD
Perennials have long been planted for the beauty of their flowers, but in the wild they are a functioning part of virtually every ecological system. Their roots hold soil in place. Their seeds provide food for birds. Their flowers provide crucial nectar for pollinators while their stems and leaves host insect eggs (including declining Monarch butterflies). Finally, when planted as a dense ground layer, they can reduce the most time-consuming aspect of garden maintenance....weeding. In this presentation you will learn how to use seed and live plants to create perennial compositions that enhance the aesthetic, practical, and ecological character of any landscape.
Category: Home Gardener & Professional
Fee: $35
Lawn to Meadow: Transition with a “Light Touch” (Spring Virtual Series)
Larry Weaner, FAPLD and Sara Weaner Cooper
No chemical use, no hauling, no digging, no smothering - no early-stage ugly phase.
Sounds too good to be true.
Yet by gradually applying a series of light touch actions, you can achieve this organic transition without breaking your back, sparking ecological angst, or infuriating your neighbors. These actions can include timed mowing, selective height cutting, pH manipulation, and organic herbicide application.
In this session, Sara will discuss her lawn to meadow conversion (featured in The New York Times, 2024), including 2025 updates and plans, illustrating a homeowner’s perspective. Larry will explore case studies exemplifying the technical underpinnings behind this approach, from a landscape designer's perspective. This brains over brawn approach can transform the experience of creating residential meadows from daunting to uplifting.
Category: Home Gardener & Professional
Fee: $28