Meetings

Day and Time

Meetings are held on the 3rd Monday of the month, September through May. New in 2020, meetings will be held via Zoom. For the best experience we recommend you download the Zoom app ahead of time at https://zoom.us

Contact Karen Willey for technical assistance KarenWildFL@gmail.com or 941-704-4325

Serenoa Chapter will convene for a short business meeting at 7:00pm followed by the evening's program. A moderated Q&A session will be held with the speaker after the presentation.

Field trips are outdoors as usual. We will wear masks and social distance. Be sure to stay tuned to our Facebook Page and Website for the latest details.

Contact: Fran Palmeri franpalmeri@gmail.com 941-544-6148

SEPTEMBER 2020 (no General Meeting in September)

Sept. 20 Doug Tallamy Zoom 6pm with Venice Audubon Society. Zoom Registration Link: https://act.audubon.org/a/presentation-doug-tallamy

Doug Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home and Nature’s Best Hope, will present a special talk about birds and native plants. The title of his presentation is "A Guide to Restore the Little Things that Run the World."

Sept. 26 Field Trip 9 a.m. Container Gardening

Field Trip Registration Link: https://mailchi.mp/6719fb7eea7b/containergarden

Chris Meyer, Land Manager in Sarasota County, will tell us how Florida native plants can be grown in containers of all sizes. He will demonstrate how to create wetlands and uplands environments to get the best results.

OCTOBER 2020

Oct. 19 General Meeting on Zoom 7 p.m. Conserving Habitat Forever.

Zoom Registration Link: https://mailchi.mp/1afe910c0737/conserve

Debi Osborne, Director of Land Protection, Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast will share why and how Conservation Foundation protects land in southwest Florida and connects its land conservation mission to people of all ages to build a land ethic in our communities.

Oct. 24 Field Trip 9.a.m. Johnson Preserve

Field Trip Registration Link: https://mailchi.mp/f7d47b07d788/johnsonpreserve

Lee Amos, Land Steward of the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, will lead us on a tour of the Preserve. A trip back to Old Florida, this 44--acre natural oasis on the Braden River east of I-75.supplies drinking water for Bradenton and is home to an amazing diversity of plants and animals including longleaf pines and imperiled swallowtail kites and gopher tortoises.

Please note, Parking is available only on the road-shoulder at 99^th Street East on the preserve-side of the street. Do not burden the neighborhood by parking on the house-side of the street, or in strange places.

NOVEMBER 2020

Nov. 16 General Meeting on Zoom 7 p.m. Native Plant Gardening 101 and Beyond

Zoom Registration Link: https://mailchi.mp/49a3f0fd20c4/garden

Tom Heitzman, Owner, Sweet Bay Nursery. Experienced gardeners will enjoy Tom’s refresher course which includes not only basic approaches to native plant gardening but lots of tried and true tips. With many years of experience Tom will also share some new innovations.

Nov. 21 Field Trip 9 a.m. Sweet Bay Nursery

Field Trip Registration Link: https://forms.gle/oq2BhLhMfdDq5Vbp6

On a 20-acre site with beautiful old live oaks, areas of pines, and of course lots of plants for sale. View the Nursery’s demonstration gardens and plants. A trip to Sweet Bay is a fun experience for the whole family. Plan to picnic and shop after the tour.

DECEMBER 2020

Dec. 12 Field Trip 9 a.m. Myakka River State Park

Registration link: https://forms.gle/ymLUbQmCkajpzJEt8

Join Serenoa Field Trip leader Cathy Page as she leads us down Ranch House Rd to the prairie and then loops us back to the main road. This is an easy 2 mile loop. Bring your lunch if you wish to picnic afterwards.

Dec. 21 General Meeting on Zoom 7pm Horticulture for the Holidays

Zoom Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83354446968?pwd=enBqMXh0U1RNSXFKSGR2bzdLM1pMQT09

Join us for our Annual Holiday Party with fun and games via ZOOM! Depending on the number of participants, we will move into and out of breakout rooms with some fun Native Plant activities. Don’t worry about the technology – zoom will do it all for you!

January 2021

Jan 18 General Meeting on zoom, 7pm, Aquatic Butterfly Gardening, Sean Patton, Stocking Savvy

Zoom registration link : to be announced

Almost everyone in Florida lives along a retention pond, swale, marsh, swamp, ditch, or otherwise wet ground and far too often this space is under-utilized being left to invasive species or turf grasses. The goal of this talk is to go over some of the best management practices, different species available,
limitations and benefits of aquatic and wetland gardening, and have a small focus on butterfly host and pollinator plants. We will also briefly discuss aquatic ecosystems and beneficial species that can help with your lake, pond, or rain garden.

Sean Patton is the owner of Stocking Savvy Environmental consulting which advises homeowners, HOA's, businesses, and more on habitat restoration, algae and erosion control, native species, and specializes in aquatic ecosystems. Sean also works with Selby Gardens on the iNaturalist EcoFlora project doing the Sarasota Manatee Ecoflora Project whose goal is to catalog all plants in Sarasota and Manatee counties. Sean is also a graduate of New College of Florida and has been in Sarasota for almost ten years doing research and restoring habitat.

Jan 23 Field Trip 9am Robinson Preserve

Zoom registration link : to be announced

Field Trip 9 a.m. Robinson Preserve Extension, West Bradenton Damon Moore, Manatee County Ecological Resources Division Manager.

Febrary 2021

Feb15 General Meeting on Zoom 7 p.m. Community Playbook for Clean Waterways Jennifer Shafer, Science and Environmental Council

Zoom registration link : to be announced

The Clean Water Playbook is a digital tool aimed toward citizen action to reduce and remove excess nutrients from natural systems. Developed by local experts using research and stakeholder interviews, more than 40 activities are organized around 10 topics. Groups and individuals can use this tool to decrease their impact on local waterways leading to Sarasota Bay and ultimately the Gulf of Mexico.

Jennifer Shafer is a marine ecologist and Principal at Shafer Consulting specializing in facilitating and communicating science and science-policy issues. Highly analytical and detail-oriented, Jennifer loves research and analysis on coastal issues that lead to insightful and creative strategies for protecting the environment. She is also Co-Executive Director of the Science and Environment Council of Southwest Florida, a consortium of 40 local science-based environmental organizations, of which Serenoa Chapter is a member.

Feb 20 Field Trip Old Myakka Preserve

Zoom registration link : to be announced

Old Myakka Preserve (including the new addition) and Florida Native Plants Nursery

In-person meetings are currently on-hold.