Marion County Master Gardeners Association is partnering with Marion SWCD to provide this Pollinator Symposium and Native Bulb Sale to the community!

Attendees will have the opportunity to:

• Learn which native and ornamental plants are best for pollinators.
• Discover how to create habitat corridors and connectivity.
• Purchase native bulbs! Shop at the Symposium.
• Receive free native wildflower seeds donated by Heritage Seedlings and learn how to germinate them.
• Get to know common bees and butterflies of the Mid-Willamette Valley.
• Gain a better understanding of how to care for gentle, super-pollinating mason bees.
• Find out how to provide blooms for all seasons
• Participate in a silent auction for gardening books, mason bee nest boxes, and more!

Agenda

• 12:00-12:15 Welcome and Orientation
• 12:15-1:15 The Life of a Mason Bee: How We Can Help Mason Bees Thrive. (Carol Slavkovsky) Learn the life cycle of our early pollinator, the mason bee. How we can help our pollinators now, in the Fall, so these bees can flourish in the Spring. Learn about the different plants, housing structures, and pests that effect Mason bees. Bonus: you can purchase your own Mason bee house after the presentation!
• 1:30 -2:30 Providing for Pollinators Year-Round. (Aaron Anderson) Creating garden habitat for pollinators involves planting appropriate floral resources, but also enhancing nesting habitat and protecting habitat from pesticides. In this talk we’ll cover some top home-garden pollinator plants, and how to conserve pollinators year-round in your yard.
• 2:45-3:45 Gardening for Hummingbirds (David Craig) Craig is a Professor of Biology and the Co-director of Science Collaborative Research Program at Willamette University.
• 4:00-5:00 Gardening for Butterflies. (Stephanie Hazen) A photo-rich review of butterflies expected to be found in the Salem area, including directions for raising Monarchs butterflies, the host plant needs of caterpillars and nectar plant needs of adult butterflies.

Presenters

• Carol Slavkovsky is a Marion County Master Gardener with a passion for mason bees.
• Aaron Anderson of Xerces Society works with the public and Xerces staff to reduce pesticide use in residential landscapes, including promoting alternative pest control measures and pollinator-friendly gardening practices. Prior to joining Xerces in 2022, he researched pollinator conservation in urban landscapes, restored habitat for several endangered butterfly species, and worked in insect biocontrol. Aaron has a PhD from Oregon State University.
• David Craig is a  Professor of Biology at Willamette University who is a “naturalist and behavioral ecologist with field-oriented research that focuses on the response of animals to human modified ecosystems and their subsequent impact on community structure. The work combines life-history, physiological, and ecological information to address questions related to patterns of movement especially migration and changes in breeding range. [He has] a general interest in birds and have worked with a wide variety of species, but the conservation of seabirds and colonial waterbirds such as the Caspian tern (Hydroprogne caspia) have been especially important in [his] career.”
• Stephanie Hazen moved to Salem in 1977 right after graduating from Colorado State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. She owned and operated her own veterinary practice in Salem, selling it and retiring in 2010. She became interested in Monarch butterflies after seeing several in the milkweed seed production fields at Heritage Seedlings Farm in Salem in 2015. In 2017 Monarchs deposited eggs on their own plants. They raised, tagged and released 50 Monarchs that summer. One of their Monarchs was spotted in S. California 6 times that winter. Since becoming a Master Gardener in 2018, and a Master Mellitologist the same year, Stephanie has been involved in educating the public about Monarch butterflies, native bees and the benefits of native plants in their gardens ever since. To get a closer look at Ray and Stephanie’s back yard see the 9 minute video she made several years ago called “Our Back Yard.” Space is limited for this free event.

RSVP to reserve your spot.