Native Plant Series- Iowa's Endangered Plants + Landscaping for Wildlife

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Event Summary

Build conservation practices at home by adding native plants to your landscape. Learn from local experts through a new Native Plant Series. Johnson County Conservation will host four native plant sales and a speaker series in the spring and fall of 2025: May 4, June 1, Aug. 3, and Sept. 7.  Each date will include a native plant sale. Our 2025 native plant vendor is Troutleaf Native Plants, based out of Johnson County. You do not need to register to attend the plant sale but registration is required for the native plant series. 

* Please note: You must register for each date of the Native Plant Series separately. 

Program Schedule: 

• 9:00-9:40 am- Native Plant Sale w/Troutleaf Native Plants
• 9:40-9:45 am- Welcome & Introduction
• 9:45-10:45 am- Landscaping for Wildlife w/Stephanie Shepherd
• 10:45-11 am- Break/Shop Plant Sale
• 11 am- noon-  Iowa's Endangered Plants & Threatened Species
• Noon- 1 pm- Program ends but plant sale continues until 1 pm

Session Descriptions: 

Landscaping for Wildlife w/Stephanie Shepherd

This presentation will explore 5 things anybody can do to create a wildlife friendly space at their home and in their town. These actions will help support pollinators, birds and other wildlife whether you live on an acreage or apartment building and are highly adaptable for your needs and preferences.  Connecting with nature can happen anywhere and this presentation will help you do that closer to home! 

 

Iowa's Endangered Plants & Threatened Species w/Tom Rosburg

In the last 200 years, Iowa's native landscape has been dramatically and tragically transformed. The impact on native biodiversity has been heartbreaking and imperiled many plants and animals. Currently there are over 400 vascular plants that are imperiled in Iowa, which is nearly 25% of Iowa's native flora. This presentation will provide an overview of these species and their ecology. 

Speaker Bios: 

Stephanie Shepherd:

A native of Virginia, Stephanie received a BS in Biology from the University of Richmond. She landed in Iowa to study prairie reconstruction and butterfly communities to earn a Master’s degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Iowa State University. Since then, she’s worked in Missouri and Virginia before settling into a job as a wildlife diversity biologist at the Iowa DNR for the last 20 years. She is passionate about prairies and the wildlife that depend on them, especially its smaller denizens. She is also an avid gardener and for the last several years she has enjoyed meshing prairie reconstruction, wildlife conservation and gardening in Urban and suburban spaces. Her mission is to help more people feel like they are part of the natural world no matter where they live.

Tom Rosburg:

Tom was born in Sioux City, Iowa and grew up on a farm near Mapleton on the eastern edge of the Loess Hills. He earned three degrees from Iowa State University – B.S. in Fish and Wildlife Biology, M.S. in Plant Ecology, and Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. He currently has appointments as a Professor of Biology at Drake University, a Visiting Professor at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory, and Collaborating Faculty in Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, at Iowa State University. Tom and his wife, Carman, live on a small farm near Colo, Iowa.

 

Thanks to our partner organizations!

The plant sales and speaker series are being supported by the Johnson County Master Gardeners of Iowa and Troutleaf Native Plants.

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Programs

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