Looking to give Mother Nature a little boost from your own backyard? Mark your calendars for Earth Day, folks, because Westwood Hills Nature Center at 8300 W. Franklin Ave. is hosting a sit-down with the bees—figuratively speaking, of course. They've roped in Dan Shaw, a bona fide green thumb and Senior Ecologist with the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources, to talk about turning your garden into a haven for pollinators.
According to St. Louis Park, MN, on April 22, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm, you can catch Shaw not just waxing poetic about the birds and the bees but actually giving out some sage advice. Thanks to his 25-year stint teaching design and ecological restoration at the University of Minnesota, he's got a lot to share on conservation partnerships, stormwater practices, and invasive species control. And, since we're not all professors of dirt, he'll be translating that into simple do-it-yourself projects for the everyday gardener.
This isn't just about adding some pizzazz to your flower beds. The Earth Day event is a clarion call to urban dwellers to pitch in with urban natural landscapes. Shaw's track record with plant community restoration and climate mitigation is as long as a prairie grass root, and he's not shy about sharing his expertise in publications like “Plants for Stormwater Design,” “Planting for Pollinators,” and “The Blue Thumb Guide to Raingardens.”
What's the catch? There isn't one. Thanks to the Westwood Hills Nature Center, entrance won't cost you a dime. Free knowledge, free insights, and potentially, a free pass to help the planet—just remember to register in advance. Those who have a penchant for creating life, one pollinator-friendly petal at a time, should find this quite the treat.
