Chapter Events

In this special collaboration, Robin Wall Kimmerer, author, botanist, and founder of Plant Baby Plant, joins youth leader and Nurture Natives founder Esther Bonney for an intergenerational conversation about belonging, reciprocity, and native plant action. 

Together, they will explore questions such as:

How do we create opportunities for young people to have a voice and feel empowered, even when they are not homeowners or decision makers?What kinds of relationships and mentorships help people stay engaged in native plant work over decades?Why do stories, shared practices, and community invitations matter just as much as plant lists?

Robin and Esther will reflect on what invites people into this work, what keeps them here, and what elders and youth have to teach each other.

Bring empty envelopes & your dry seeds in containers labeled with name, color, soil type, sunlight needs, etc. 

if you have extra empty, clean plastic 1 gal. milk jugs, bring them to share for winter sowing

7:00 pm Election of 2026 board members

7:15 pm optional video: Filippine Hoogland's Seed Swap Meadow Garden Tour | Walk on the Wild Side  (12 minutes, 2025) Watch how Filippine grows stunning meadows from seed on a typical residential property. Learn her techniques for meadow management, discover the magic of community seed swaps, and see how neighbors sharing knowledge and seeds can transform entire neighborhoods. Experience how one yard becomes a catalyst for community-wide change. This is where the rewilding revolution actually lives.

Bring empty plastic 1 gal. milk jugs.

Our upcoming webinar with Basil Camu explores practical, evidence based ways to heal suburban and urban landscapes by working with trees, soil, and natural systems, drawing on real world practices from Leaf & Limb and community centered models for restoring life where we live, work, and play.!  

6:30 pm meet/greet, 7 pm chapter program

Joe Walewski - Wolf Ridge Naturalist and author of Lichens of the North Woods, Ferns of the North Woods, and the forthcoming Mosses and Liverworts of the North Woods - has spent years apprenticing under these "Masters of Sisu." Mosses and liverworts don't just survive; they teach us how to inhabit the land with tenacity and grace. This program is an invitation to shift your pace. By going "slow and low," you will discover the hidden agency of these ancient beings and learn practical skills to identify them in the field. Join us to bridge the gap between human observation and the vibrant, miniature world of the bryosphere.

Join Joey Santore, creator of Crime Pays But Botany Doesn’t, for a candid Wild Ones National Webinar examining how inherited garden aesthetics shape native plant landscapes. Drawing on field experience and real ecology, Joey challenges tidy design norms and explores why dense, irregular plant communities are often the most resilient and ecologically sound.

6:30 pm meet/greet, 7 pm chapter program

Tired of battling invasive plants on your own? Learn how to use aggressive native plants to outcompete invasives and restore ecosystems. This program will cover questions like seed vs. plugs, when to plant, and what to expect when using aggressive plant species as competition. Invasive buckthorn, honeysuckle, and tansy will be the focus, but these techniques can be adapted for competing with other invasive species too.

Nick Levine is the owner of Nick's Natives LLC, an ecological landscaping company specializing in native plant and permaculture gardens. Previously, he has worked on large ecosystem restoration projects with Friends of the Mississippi River and Northern Ecological Services. He is an active advocate for conservation and volunteers on the Minnesota DNR's Natural Heritage Advisory Committee (NHAC). Nick is also a Master Gardener and Master Naturalist who spends his free time slaying buckthorn and sowing native seeds. He lives in Duluth with his husband and their three pets.
 

6:30 pm meet/greet, 7 pm chapter program

 Free & open to the public. 

Andy Kasun, conservation specialist, will explain their services to the public, including water management, rain gardens and more. Handouts provided.

Join award-winning author, photographer, and educator Rick Darke for What Is Wild and Why It Matters, a free national webinar on Tuesday, April 28th at 10 am CT. Discover how inviting a bit of authentic wildness can create a vibrant landscape that sustains you and local biodiversity. This national event is presented in collaboration between Wild Ones and Homegrown National Park.

During the Duluth Garden Flower Society Plant Sale, starting at 8 a.m.

Open to the public - rain or shine!  

It's our Arrowhead chapter's fundraiser selling our own native plants.

This week dig, pot & label your plants, and help sell them at our Wild Ones table.  

Always remember to inspect the plants down to the bare root to minimize any risk of any invasive weeds or jumping worms.  See Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Jumping Worms.
dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/Invasives/fact/jumpingWorm.html

Look for our banner. Prices will be set when plants arrive.  Set up at 7:30 am., pack up by 9:30 am.  Dress for the weather!  Bring a table, if you can.

Spring maintenance & planting

Weds. May 27 - Help at our Wild Ones native demonstration gardens

Hartley Nature Center, Duluth   6:30 - 8 pm 

Bring a pruner, trowel, shovel, bin, work gloves, water bottle, kneeling pad if you wish. Dress for the weather. Meet in the parking lot.  Also, bring a jug/container filled with water for the new plants.

Many new native plugs to plant…bring some extras home!

Chapter field trip, free & open to the public. 

Join Nick Levine (chapter member & master naturalist) and Brynn Brons (master naturalist & birder) for this low-intensity walk to identify spring flowers and spot spring birds. 

Meet in the parking lot, dress for the weather (including light rain.) No alternate rain date.

Lakeside in Duluth 

Chapter tour, free & open to the public. 

Owners are looking forward to the group's insights and suggestions!

6:30 pm at Anna's yard   17 S 57th Ave E, Duluth

7:15 pm at Janice's yard  4902 Kingston St., Duluth

Dress for the weather & bugs (including light rain.) No alternate rain date.

You planted native. Your neighbor has opinions. Maybe your HOA does too. If you’ve ever felt like the hardest part of native plant gardening is the conversations, not the gardening, you’re not alone.

Wild Ones is thrilled to share this upcoming free webinar as part of the 2026 Less Lawn More Life Challenge. Join Lorraine Johnson for a practical conversation on navigating HOA rules, addressing neighbor concerns, and fostering community conversations about native plant gardening and ecological landscapes.

Native plants are the foundation of habitat, but wildlife need more than food to thrive. Join ecologist and Certified Wildlife Biologist Shaun McCoshum, PhD, to explore how nesting sites, shelter, water, soil conditions, and other often-overlooked resources can transform a yard into a functioning ecosystem that supports biodiversity year-round.

Registration link coming soon.

What does it really take to turn a conventional lawn into a thriving native meadow? Join Owner & Principal, New Directions in the American Landscape (NDAL), Sara Weaner Cooper for a candid look at her family's ongoing lawn-to-meadow transformation featured in The New York Times and BBC. Drawing from three years of hands-on experience, Sara will share the methods, lessons learned, successes, and challenges of converting turfgrass into a dynamic native plant community. Participants will gain practical insights into site preparation, planting, management, and the ecological principles that guide successful meadow establishment, along with realistic expectations for how these landscapes evolve over time.

Registration link coming soon.

Bats are among the most important and misunderstood wildlife in our communities. Join experts from Bat Conservation International to explore how native plants, healthy insect populations, and thoughtful landscape design can help support bats. Learn about the ecological role of bats and discover practical ways to create habitat for North America's night flyers right in your own backyard.

Registration link coming soon.

Monarch butterflies depend on a network of habitats stretching across North America, and home landscapes can play an important role in their survival. Join experts from Monarch Joint Venture to explore the science behind monarch conservation, including the importance of milkweed, nectar resources, and regionally appropriate habitat. Learn practical ways to support monarchs through native landscaping and help sustain one of the world's most remarkable migrations.
 

Registration link coming soon.