Events

County Extension Service agents share information about backyard projects and the available funding 

Family Friendly Activity! Free! Come make a natural bird feeder with seeds and pinecones. then take it home and hang it up for the birds. The activity takes about 30 minutes, so we're asking people to signup for a time slot (either 1:00 or 2:00) so we don't have "traffic jams". Pick Your Time Our chapter often has an activity--a hike, a workshop, a gardening event, etc.--on the 3rd Saturday of the month. Time and location vary, so please check our Facebook page and this site for details.

We'll join Steve & Janet Kistler on one of their wildflower hikes on March 17th. We will meet in front of the visitor center at 10:45 AM. Steve will be leading other spring birding and wildflower hikes at Mammoth Cave N.P. again this year. Bird hikes begin at the visitor center at 8:30 a.m. CDT. Wildflower hikes start at 11:00 a.m., also at the visitor center. Steve will be there every Tuesday and Thursday between March 15th and April 28th; all ages and experience levels are welcome to join us Our chapter usually has an activity--a hike, a workshop, a gardening event, etc.--on the 3rd Saturday of the month. Time and location vary, so please check our Facebook page and this site for details.

ReLeaf Bowling Green!  The Wild Ones SoKY Chapter gave away 200 native oak trees at the Bowling Green Arbor Day. 

Wild Ones SoKY Chapter offers Native Plants for sale at the Simpson County Earth Day Festival at Jim Roberts Park. Come enjoy the festival! Earth Day Franklin-Simpson is the community's annual festival event. This year, the Earth Day celebration is happening at Jim Roberts Community Park in Franklin. Join us to see vendors, recreational demonstrations, educational talks, participate in hands-on activities and enjoy live music and food! Our chapter usually has an activity--a hike, a workshop, a gardening event, etc.--on the 3rd Saturday of the month. Time and location vary, so please check our Facebook page and this site for details.

Alicia Bosela of Ironweed Native Plant Nursery will be talking with us about native plant alternatives to exotic plants in the garden. She will also have native plants for sale. Contact Alicia prior to the event to place an order or to make sure she has what you want! This is a FREE event open to the public. Visit the Ironweed Native Plant Nursery website for more information about the nursery. Contact Alicia to place an order at [email protected] or 270-250-3587. Check out the event page and find Ironweed Native Plant Nursery on facebook. This event is hosted and sponsered by the the Master Gardeners of the Warren County Cooperative Extension Office.  

Native Bats like to eat the insects that eat native plants. Learn what to plant to attract these amazing flyers. Speaker: Erin Cord of Bat Conservation International (batcon.org) Erin joined the Bat Conservation International staff in 2019. She is currently managing BCI's Community Engagement Programs. Erin double majored in Wildlife Conservation and Entomology from the University of Delaware and received her MS in Wildlife Ecology from the Cesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. She has a special affinity for pollinators and is excited to have the opportunity to focus on bats. Erin has more than 10 years of experience working as a wildlife biologist and running environmentally-focused volunteer programs. She is happiest working at the intersection of science communication and citizen empowerment. She loves working with volunteers and getting people excited about environmental stewardship and wildlife conservation. In her spare time, Erin enjoys gardening with native plants, playing ukulele, hiking, reading and being outside. Plants for the garden that feed bats:  https://soky.wildones.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/92/2021/07/Plants-for-Bats.pdf Guide to Gardening for Bats from BatCon.org: JOINING THE MEETING Join us on Zoom for our regular  presentation via Zoom (2nd Thursdays) Zoom meeting opens at 6:30 PM for socializing and talking about plants.  Erin's presentation starts 7 PM. ONLINE MEETING via Zoom Everyone is welcome to come to the meetings of Southern KY Wild Ones Meeting ID: 889 8531 1131 Passcode: 9#Quercus One tap mobile +16465189805,,88985311131# US (New York) +16513728299,,88985311131# US (Minnesota) Dial by your location +1 646 518 9805 US (New York) +1 651 372 8299 US (Minnesota) +1 929 436 2866 US (New York) +1 267 831 0333 US (Philadelphia) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 470 250 9358 US (Atlanta) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) Meeting ID: 889 8531 1131 Find your local number: https://wildones-org.zoom.us/u/kbIcv9LARD

Come  meet at the Warren County Extension Office for a short tour of the Monarch Waystation and then have a Social time afterward. The Monarch Waystation was established last year as a research project for Warren County Master Gardeners to complete their community volunteer service hours. Experienced and intern Master Gardeners participated in a contest and a combination of garden designs was used to create the 40x30' area.  Many species of butterflies, moths ,and bees were observed throughout the season.  And, there was success with Monarchs nectaring, laying eggs, and eclosing during the first year.

The SoKY Chapter is creating an educational display about Nectar for the "You're a Grand Old Flag" Flower Show. The show is  accredited by the National Garden Clubs and sponsored by the Cardinal Council of Garden Clubs. If you want to help create, setup, or take down the display, please contact us. Come and see our display--and all the other exhibits and flowers--on Tuesday, June 14th, between 1pm and 6pm! Our chapter usually has an activity--a hike, a workshop, a gardening event, etc.--on the 3rd Saturday of the month. Time and location vary, so please check our Facebook page and this site for details.

June's monthly meeting will occur at Wild Ones Member Lizabeth Likins' house. Lizabeth's main goal with her garden is to attract native wildlife including bluebirds, waxwings, bats, owls, hummingbirds, butterflies, dragonflies, moths, and lightning bugs. She has been at this property for 5 years and has worked to remove invasive plants and add native, ecologically beneficial plants. We will tour her garden focusing on native plants and talk about ways to attract native insects and animals. Come and share your ideas and thoughts or get inspiration for your own garden!  

July's monthly meeting will occur at Wild Ones Member Kathee Morgeson's house. Healing the Earth, One Yard at a Time is the Wild Ones motto.  Join us to get practical ideas for introducing native plants into your landscaping.  Sustainable ideas such as reducing lawn size, creating a rain garden and planting for wildlife (e.g., birds, butterflies, pollinators and beneficial insects) will be shared. A list of plants will be available upon request. Please bring lawn chairs for the meeting. Kathee lives in a neighborhood with a Homeowner's Association. See how she meets requirements for her neighborhood while still having a garden that is ecologically beneficial to our native insects and animals. One of her main goals is to reduce the size of her lawn in order to add to the "Homegrown National Park" movement. A rain garden has been incorporated into her landscaping to aid in reducing water runoff as her property holds a low spot in her neighborhood. Most of the trees, forbs, and sedges were planted 5 years ago in the newly created wooded area (1600 sq. ft) and the rain garden (120 sq. ft.). Come and gain information and inspiration for adding to your own home garden!

Join Wild Ones SoKY Chapter for a tour of the Backyard Habitat and the Meadow Restoration at Lost River Cave! Wild Ones Members Kathee and John have been instrumental in planning, planting native plants, removing invasives, and continuing the work on these great local projects at Lost River Cave. Come hear all about these great local projects! 

Meadow Restoration at Lost River Cave. Photo Credit: Lost River Cave https://www.lostrivercave.org/blog-post/meadow-planting-april-26-28/

Jack in the Pulpit at Lost River Cave. Photo credit: Barbara DeGraves

Our August monthly meeting will be held at Lost River Cave in the Birch Room. We will meet at 5:30 pm to discuss future Wild Ones SoKY Chapter events and Chapter business. All are welcome to attend! Our monthly chapter business meeting will wrap up at 6 pm and we will begin the training portion of our meeting for the LRC Plant Inventory that will take place on Saturday, August 13th. The training will last 45-60 minutes. This will be an introductory training on how to conduct a BioBlitz inventory in which native plants are identified in a specific habitat.  This training will focus on learning how to identify and inventory the plants within Lost River Cave’s meadow area.  The history of meadow habitats in KY as well as the LRC meadow restoration project will be shared. Lost River Cave is a WildOnes partner and seeks your help at its first BioBlitz inventory of the meadow. This effort is suited for novice native plant enthusiasts to those with years of experience. A guide is being created that highlights plants likely to be found. Come and learn about native plants and how to identify them! Sign up here! The actual meadow BioBlitz event will be Saturday, August 13 from 8am-11am. All are welcome to attend the meetings of Wild Ones SoKY Chapter.

Join Wild Ones SoKY Chapter and other plant groups in the region for the 1st Lost River Cave BioBlitz! After the training on August 11 we will have learned about native plants that were added to the meadow at Lost River Cave over the years and how to identify them. During the BioBlitz we will put that knowledge into action by identifying plants in subdivided sections of the meadow. At the end of the BioBlitz we will know all the native plants thriving in the meadow so that Lost River Cave staff can decide on future actions for the meadow! Sign up here! Mark your calendars for August 11 @ 5:30 pm and August 13 @ 8 am and come participate in a local citizen science project!

While working on the meadow BioBlitz, August 13th, it became clear that Rudbeckia triloba (aka Brown-Eyed Susan) was taking up too much real estate in the meadow. It’s time to thin them out before they go to seed. In doing so, we’ll create space for a better balance of grasses, sedges, and other forbs. So LRC is asking for volunteers to help pull out the rudbeckia. Wear closed-toed shoes, long pants, and consider a long-sleeved shirt. Some folks prefer it when removing plants, but others wear short sleeves. Bring gardening gloves and a water bottle. We will provide a cooler with water.  

All are welcome to attend the Cross Pollinator Party at Lost River Cave's River Birch Room from 6pm to 7:30pm on Thursday, September 8th! Get to know other Wild Ones Southern Kentucky Chapter members, explore books and magazines (and bring yours to show!), share some stories of your native plant experiences, and learn about what the results of the recent Lost River Cave BioBlitz mean for the meadow restoration! Do you have an experience with successfully growing a favorite native plant? Have trouble growing a native plant? Running into garden problems? Or just want to be inspired by fellow native plant and wildlife enthusiasts or check out some new resources? The cross pollinator party is meant to be an informal meeting of the Wild Ones Southern Kentucky Chapter where we can talk to fellow members, share stories or experiences around native plants, share resources or information, and request resources or information about native plants or our native ecosystems. Refreshments will be served. Come join the party!

Wild Ones SoKY Chapter is happy to announce our 2nd Annual Fall Native Plant Sale will be held on October 8th from 9am until noon at the Unitarian Universalist Church parking lot in Bowling Green, KY! Native plants and seeds from Wild Ones Member gardens will be available for purchase and/or swap. We are pleased to welcome back Alicia from Ironweed Native Plant Nursery and Shannon from Busy Bee Nursery and Consulting as well! Everyone is encouraged to bring plants and seeds to sell and/or swap. Please label your plants. Botanical names are much appreciated. The sale is open from 9-12.  Set up time starts at 7AM.  Restrooms will be available in the church's buildings. Location: Parking lot of UU Church of Bowling Green, 2033 Nashville Road, Bowling Green KY.    

The 1st Re-Tree BG Tree Giveaway will be held Saturday, October 15th in downtown Bowling Green. Trees will be given to those who have gone through our tree request process described below. Re-Tree Bowling Green is a group of volunteers with a mission to restore and add to the pre-tornado tree canopy of Bowling Green, KY. If you lost one or more trees in your yard from the December 11th tornado and are interested in receiving a free tree (approximately 4'-6' tall) please fill out the form linked at the bottom of this post completely. Volunteers will be in contact to set up a site consultation in order to recommend the ideal location, type of tree, etc. for your yard before you can receive a tree. Re-Tree Bowling Green is an ongoing volunteer project. The first 50 trees will be given away on Saturday, October 15, 2022. More tree giveaways will be scheduled as funding, volunteer numbers, and grant stipulations allow. At this time, only one tree per household will be provided. In the future, we may be able to accommodate those who would like to replace multiple trees that were lost to the tornado. All trees are provided at no charge and are supplied through donations and grant funding applied for by volunteers. If you would like to make a donation you may do so via PayPal at the link below or by mailing a check to the address below. Please be sure to make out your check to "Operation Pride" with a note specifying "Re-Tree BG." PayPal Link—Be sure to choose Re-Tree BG in the drop down: https://www.paypal.com/donate/... Mailing Address: Operation Pride 1141 State Street, Bowling Green, KY 42101 Please be sure to make out your check to "Operation Pride" with a note specifying "Re-Tree BG." If you have questions please email [email protected] and a volunteer will get back with you as soon as possible. Form to request a free tree from Re-Tree BG: https://forms.gle/gKvV9cy47zGqegnu7 Interested in volunteering with us? Fill out the form at the link below and tell us how you want to get involved! https://forms.gle/hZpsmjg1cgjAXMicA

Chapter Elections are this week. Please read the Voters Guide.

Members can vote with one of these methods

*with this online form (before 4pm on Thursday, 10 November 2022)    

*with this paper ballot (must be received by 4pm on Thursday, 10 November 2022) or brought to the Chapter meeting by 6pm

*in person at the Chapter Meeting at 6pm Thu 10 November at the River Birch Room at Lost River Cave (2818 Nashville Road, Bowling Green KY). 

Join us for our Chapter Elections where we will vote for Wild Ones SoKY officers for 2023 and discuss what activities, events, and meet-ups we want to plan for the upcoming year. We will meet at the River Birch Room at Lost River Cave.

Dinner at a local restaurant (TBD) afterwards!

Everyone is welcome to join us for dinner!  We'll be posting the location on Thursday. 

Growing Natives from Seed for Our Landscapes, presented by three members of Wild Ones SoKY Chapter. Kathee Morgeson shared information about seed treatment for growing Kentucky native wildflowers.  Barbara Brand  shared information about the Barren River Lake State Park Monarch Waystation efforts. Natalie Barman shared her efforts at using natives to landscape her home. Refreshments were served. Free seed was given to those who attend. Hope to see you there! 

Propagation seed treatments (handout) from Shaw Nature Center Native Plant School.

WHERE: Allen County Library, 106 W Public Square, Scottsville, KY 42164 WHEN:  November 15, 2022 at 4:00 PM Central time

The Board of Directors holds planning meetings at 7:30pm via Zoom on 3rd Thursdays. All club members are encouraged to send in agenda items and are welcome to attend.

Topic: SoKY chapter Planning
Time: Nov 17, 2022 07:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
        Every month on the Third Thu, 4 occurrence(s)
        Nov 17, 2022 07:30 PM
        Dec 15, 2022 07:30 PM
        Jan 19, 2023 07:30 PM
        Feb 16, 2023 07:30 PM
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Monthly: https://wildones-org.zoom.us/meeting/tZwtd-6uqz8pHdHAg057oG4VcQZ5CQ_XqEyF/ics?icsToken=98tyKuGgrjstHNGRsx6CRpw-AoigKO7wmClegqd1vRi1VndcRVfANdN4Z5FOL-DB

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 880 0765 4375
Passcode: G1*ttk
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+16465189805,,88007654375# US (New York)

Dial by your location
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        +1 646 518 9805 US (New York)
        +1 651 372 8299 US (Minnesota)
        +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
        +1 267 831 0333 US (Philadelphia)
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Meeting ID: 880 0765 4375
Find your local number: https://wildones-org.zoom.us/u/kdnes3dvZ

The Board of Directors holds planning meetings at 7:30pm via Zoom on 3rd Thursdays. All club members are encouraged to send in agenda items and are welcome to attend.

Topic: SoKY chapter Planning
Time: Nov 17, 2022 07:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
        Every month on the Third Thu, 4 occurrence(s)
        Nov 17, 2022 07:30 PM
        Dec 15, 2022 07:30 PM
        Jan 19, 2023 07:30 PM
        Feb 16, 2023 07:30 PM
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Monthly: https://wildones-org.zoom.us/meeting/tZwtd-6uqz8pHdHAg057oG4VcQZ5CQ_XqEyF/ics?icsToken=98tyKuGgrjstHNGRsx6CRpw-AoigKO7wmClegqd1vRi1VndcRVfANdN4Z5FOL-DB

Join Zoom Meeting
https://wildones-org.zoom.us/j/88007654375?pwd=b2s3YVRNK1Y0aXZYS3hEZGRWUFl3Zz09

Meeting ID: 880 0765 4375
Passcode: G1*ttk
One tap mobile
+14702509358,,88007654375# US (Atlanta)
+16465189805,,88007654375# US (New York)

Dial by your location
        +1 470 250 9358 US (Atlanta)
        +1 646 518 9805 US (New York)
        +1 651 372 8299 US (Minnesota)
        +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
        +1 267 831 0333 US (Philadelphia)
        +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
Meeting ID: 880 0765 4375
Find your local number: https://wildones-org.zoom.us/u/kdnes3dvZ