Spend an afternoon learning about woody plants with ethnobiologist marc williams. This in-person intensive class begins with a presentation about major tree and shrub families. Then head outside on a plant walk to learn how to identify woody trees and shrubs by their leaves, bark, flowers, fruit and growing conditions, and learn to spot characteristic clues to determine the plant families to which they belong. Discussion will include common and obscure uses for woody plants that can support overall human health, well-being and sustenance, along with relationships between woody plants and fungi.
Come discover the regenerative power of mindful engagement with nature. The Japanese tradition of Shinrin-Yoku, forest bathing, is a practice using all your senses to connect with nature. Many studies have found it to be helpful in decreasing stress, increasing immune system functioning and improving concentration, creativity and mood. In a slow-paced two-hour session, certified forest therapy guide Stephanie Campbell will offer a sequence of gentle invitations designed to help you immerse yourself in deeper connection with nature, ending with a forest-based tea.
Spend your lunch hour with Shannon Currey, education and outreach at Izel Native Plants, getting to know some of the best go-to plants for building ecologically sound landscapes. In the ongoing Native Plant Solutions series, we take a deep dive into a handful of specific native plants, focusing on a landscape situation or plant adaptation that makes them particularly helpful. Native trees are powerful plants in cultivated landscapes. They provide a host of benefits, from reducing ambient temperatures to raising property values and creating habitat for wildlife. However, because the sun exposure and soil moisture vary greatly under the tree canopy, figuring out what to plant underneath trees can be challenging. The default is often turfgrass or mulch. But this default misses an opportunity to realize the full potential of the trees and our landscapes. Soft landings is a strategy that uses diverse native plantings to help support wildlife and add ecological function. Many pollinators start their lives in our native trees. Soft landings provide the critical shelter and habitat underneath those trees that many species need to complete their life cycle. This approach also helps support the trees, improve soil health, and manage stormwater. It’s also much more appealing than mulch or turfgrass! Join us to go beyond the default and use herbaceous, native plants to add life, function, and beauty under your trees.
Scent tells stories and evokes memory. In celebration of Pauli Murray’s birthday month, use your sense of smell to learn about the legacy of this acclaimed Durham-raised civil rights activist, lawyer, feminist, writer, and the first Black person perceived to be a woman to be ordained as an Episcopal priest. Guided by the scent storytellers of Bright Black, experience the scent of three flowers—marigold, rose and magnolia. Learn how these three botanicals evoke the essence of the Durham neighborhood Pauli grew up in and symbolize the richness of faith, optimism, stability, resilience, hope and strength that Pauli’s commitment to community fully embodied. All participants will make a custom botanical body fragrance inspired by your own stories and the values that Pauli embodied, as well as receive a Pauli Murray mini candle. All proceeds go to Bright Black and the Pauli Murray Center. One scholarship spot based on financial need is available by emailing GardensEducation@duke.edu.
Join Kavanah Anderson, director of learning and community engagement at Duke Gardens, for a conversational stroll in the garden that deepens your relationship with plants. Swap plant stories, dig into horticultural history, question what you know and practice multisensory observation on a playful amble through the Gardens that delights and disrupts your understanding of what a garden can be. Expect to learn from each other, share what you know and leave with more questions than you started with.
Build your bird observation skills on a slow stroll through Duke Gardens with Liani Yirka, education program coordinator for Duke Gardens and experienced birder. If you have ever found yourself wondering about the birds that are flying or singing around you, join us to learn more together as a group. Bring your own binoculars if you have them (not required) and a sense of curiosity.
Duke Gardens' Michelle Rawlins, Ruth Mary Meyer Japanese Garden horticulturist, and Megan Brown, horticulturist of the Doris Duke Center Gardens, will demonstrate how to construct a holiday wreath for your front door using fresh-cut greenery from the Gardens. Each participant will learn how to build a wreath using provided greenery and other interesting botanical material. Please bring a pair of hand pruners and any additional adornments you would like to include. All other materials will be provided.
Duke Gardens' Michelle Rawlins, Ruth Mary Meyer Japanese Garden horticulturist, and Megan Brown, horticulturist of the Doris Duke Center Gardens, will demonstrate how to construct a holiday wreath for your front door using fresh-cut greenery from the Gardens. Each participant will learn how to build a wreath using provided greenery and other interesting botanical material. Please bring a pair of hand pruners and any additional adornments you would like to include. All other materials will be provided.
A garden in winter can be just as vibrant as in any other season. Join Dr. Neeti Bathala, professor, author, gardener, graduate of the Nicholas School of the Environment and Duke Gardens board member, to learn how to support local wildlife through thoughtful winter gardening practices. Discover native and select ornamental plants that provide food, shelter and unexpected blooms. Gain tools to deepen your connection to seasonal ecology and become a steward of your local environment by contributing to a mid-winter citizen science project aligning with the rhythms of nature.
Try your hand at carving a wooden spoon from raw wood collected at Duke Gardens. Vanessa Hernandez of Ask the Trees will introduce you to the tools, safety strategies and techniques of simple carving in this workshop. All materials, tools and instruction are provided so you can begin your own gorgeous, hand-carved wooden spoon. Information on tool purchasing, kitchenware maintenance and wooden blanks for you to choose from are included. All participants must complete a participation waiver when enrolling.
The Light Eaters is a deep immersion into the drama of green life and the complexity of this wild and awe-inspiring world that challenges our very understanding of agency, consciousness, and intelligence. In looking closely, we see that plants, rather than imitate human intelligence, have perhaps formed a parallel system. What is intelligent life if not a vine that grows leaves to blend into the shrub on which it climbs, a flower that shapes its bloom to fit exactly the beak of its pollinator, a pea seedling that can hear water flowing and make its way toward it? Author Zoë Schlanger takes us across the globe, digging into her own memories and into the soil with the scientists who have spent their waking days studying these amazing entities up close.