Danae Wolfe is a writer, photographer, and educator focused on promoting appreciation and stewardship of backyard bugs and nature. Through her website, social media, children’s books, public speaking, and column in The American Gardener magazine, she has reached global audiences with science-based education about the importance of gardening for wildlife.

January 25 – 7 PM
“What’s in Your Garden Today? Discovering the Insect Life in Your Garden” – presented by Ann Cicarella

Ann Cicarella has been designing landscapes for thirty years, in the Cleveland area, but was thrilled to design gardens at an eco-boutique resort in Caldera, Panama, as well as residential gardens in Fairfax, VA and Sea Island, GA. In 2005, Ann Cicarella Landscape Design LLC was awarded a Gold Medal by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers for a project she designed and managed in the category of $150,000 and above.

Ann received her Certificate in Landscape Horticulture from Cleveland State University and continued to absorb landscape design ideas and principles by visiting fantastic gardens in the US, Italy, France, England, Germany, and the Netherlands.

She has been featured in numerous magazines throughout her career and was most recently on the cover of the 2015 April Ohio Magazine and the 2016 May cover of Country Gardens.

In 2015, Ann founded the Cleveland Pollinator and Native Plant Symposium to bring in national and regional speakers to educate and inspire ways in which we can design, build, and maintain biodiverse landscapes and habitats for pollinators and wildlife. www.clevelandpollinatorsymposium.org

Ann has designed a pollinator and vegetable garden for her four grandchildren so they can experience firsthand the wonder of the rich insect life and beauty you find in gardens. Ann hand raises monarch butterflies and is a beekeeper with ten hives in her garden. She also maintains the beehive at the Cleveland Botanical Garden and conducts educational programs. Ann is Ohio Certified Pollinator Specialist and an Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist.  If you see her talking to her bees, butterflies, and plants, she is just having a staff meeting

February 8 – 7 PM

“Home-grown Restoration: Creating Pollinator Plots, Fields, and Strips on Private Land” – presented by Abby-Gayle Prieur

Abby Prieur is a Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Biologist serving eastern Ohio. She collaborates closely with landowners who wish to improve their land for wildlife. Her specialty is providing guidance on restoring habitat that supports pollinating insects.

Abby is a graduate of the University of Georgia (BS) and Purdue University (MS,) where she studied wildlife management and science. She has a special interest in conservation projects that benefit wildlife and people.

February 22 – 7 PM

“Gardening Across the Lifespan” – presented by Laura Akgerman

Laura Akgerman is the Disability Services Coordinator for Ohio AgrAbility & Ohio State University Extension. She is a two-time Ohio State University Alum, with degrees in English and Rehabilitation Services. She presents workshops on Gardening with Arthritis, Farming with a disability, AgriTourism, and other disability related issues for Ohio AgrAbility and OSU Extension. She grew up outside Sunbury Ohio, was active in 4-H in Delaware county, and was very proud of her Dad and brother who ran Cherryhill Aquatics, the family waterlily nursery, from 1986 to 2012.

March 8 – 7 PM

“Ecology of Wild Edibles” – presented by John Wright, Jr