All members and guests are invited to the first live presentation by NNVNPS in two years!
This open to all meeting on Thursday, April 21st, begins at noon in Kilmarnock’s Lancaster Community Library meeting room (second floor). We invite all to bring a lunch, if so inclined, while meeting-greeting friends and, following announcements, the actual presentation will begin at 12:30. Some snacks and beverages will be available.
The Chapter will have a splendid presentation entitled “Turf to Natives: A Transformation in Virginia Beach” by Janet Pawlukiewicz, a former resident of the Northern Neck but now calling Virginia Beach’s Westminster Canterbury on the Chesapeake Bay her home.
“Active for many years with our Northern Neck VNPS Chapter, Janet was instrumental and the project lead for our Chapter’s Go Native, Grow Native campaign along with several publications including the first edition of the Guide to the Native Plant of the Northern Neck”, said Nancy Garvey, President of the Chapter. “This essential guide to NN native plants was expanded and updated and will be available free at the April 21st meeting for the first time”. Janet also has served on the state Board of the Virginia Native Plant Society as First Vice President.
Janet has a BA in Biology from Long Island University and a MA in Public Administration from The George Washington University. Following a career at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the US Environmental Protection Agency Water Program, and the Trust for Public Land, she and her husband Michael moved to the Northern Neck and then to Virginia Beach.
Her fire and enthusiasm for Virginia native plants did not burn out upon moving to Westminster Canterbury campus. When she arrived, she found a large unappealing turf area between her building and the Bay and jumped on the Building’s Landscaping Committee, becoming the Chairperson. Leading the charge for change over the past three years, she oversaw the conversion of approximately 2.5 acres, about 1/3 of the community’s landscaped area, to native plant gardens. When asked why she pursued this transformation, she responded “There are very disturbing trends that drive us. A staggering number of birds and insects have died off in the last 40 years, so the primary goal of this transformation has been to create wildlife habitat while beautifying the campus. Create the native plant garden and it will be filled with birds and other wildlife. And no fertilizer, no pesticides.”
Janet will showcase the conversion of 2.5 acres of barren turf to native plant gardens, creating wildlife habitat and beautifying the sandy, windy site on the Bay. Among the successes of this endeavor has been the formation of a butterfly club among residents and the appearance of the Southern Plains Bumble Bee, a species with decline in both population (14%) and distribution (range reduced 30%) over the past decade! Janet has witnessed bees taking pollen and nectar from the Joe Pye Weed planted in the new wildlife gardens where only turf existed previously.
Janet hopes the success of this endeavor may be inspirational for other communities and commercial properties.
When not botanizing, Janet enjoys knitting, kayaking, walking, photography and singing with Christ & St. Luke’s Choir in Norfolk.
The meeting will also feature the Chapter’s April Plant of the Month by the Chapter’s Conservation and Horticulture Chair, Betsy Washington, which for April is the intriguing Pawpaw, Asimina triloba, known for its tasty fall fruit and which is blooming now.
The Northern Neck Chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society is one of 11 chapters in the state. It is a volunteer non-profit dedicated to the protection and preservation of the native plants of Virginia and their habitats, in order to sustain for generations to come the integrity of the Commonwealth’s rich natural heritage of ecosystems and biodiversity for purposes of enjoyment, enlightenment, sustainable use, and our own very survival.
Any questions, please email nnvnps@gmail.com
