Presentation Archive

Growing Native Plants from Seed and Spore

March 15, 2025
Classroom Presentation at Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
Location; Coastal Maine Botanical Garden, Boothbay, ME
Summary: This propagation class focused on under-represented groups of native plants that we rarely consider and rarely grow. Throughout this class and all of my classes and presentations is the emphasis on self-empowerment to do something about the biodiversity crisis by growing these plants ourselves. Much of the class focused on propagating ferns by spore; how to collect spores, when and where, sowing spore, and that somewhat confusing “alternation of generations” concept observed in the fern lifecycle. We looked at examples of ferns at different stages of their lifecycle that I (Shawn Jalbert) had grown out from spore since the 2024 growing season. To keep this 6-hour presentation spicy we spent time on Maine’s native carnivorous plants, of which we have surprisingly many! Growing pitcher plants and sundews from seed requires a high light and humid environment that mimics their boggy homes. Sedges are easy to grow from seed, we just have to do it! The sedge genus Carex is prominent in many plant communities but is not commonly available in the native plant trade. Lastly, we covered the so-called emergent vegetation of lakes, ponds, and wetlands. Plants such as pickerel weed, green arrow arum, and water plantain are important for erosion control and provide habitat for many species. The require some interesting propagating techniques that differ from most other plants we grow. Thanks for looking!

“Where do baby plants come from?” Propagating Native Perennials

March 11, 2025
Presented to the Longfellow Garden Club of Portland, ME
Location; Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm, Falmouth, ME
Summary: This presentation covers the essentials required to successfully propagate our spectacular native herbaceous perennial plants from seed and division. A concise yet thorough overview of the whole process; where to get seed from, how to plant it, dormancy breaking requirements, soil media selection and recommendations, germination, and growing on. As Shirley from the Longfellow Garden Club so eloquently stated “We are already convinced of the need to grow native plants. We want to know how to grow them.” Many thanks to Maine Audubon for hosting.

Native Plants 101; Welcoming Native Plants into Your Home Landscape

March 8, 2025
Presented in collaboration with Frinklepod Farm, Arundel, ME
Frinklepod Farm, Arundel, ME
Summary: There’s a lot of talk out there nowadays on native plants and why they are so important to integrate into our home landscapes. This presentation looks into what exactly a native plant is and the many we ways can co-exist with them. We don’t have to plant “just” for pollinators and other wildlife; there’s lots of tasty natives we can plant and utilize ourselves including beach plums and blueberries! Thanks to Frinklepod Farm in Arundel for the invitation to present at their wonderful facility.

The Sea Breeze Property Services Sessions

January 28th, 2025
Presented to Sea Breeze Property Services
Portland, ME
Summary: This presentation has two main sessions. Session 1 discusses the philosophy and reasoning behind which plants we call “weeds”. That old saying “Sticks and stones can break my bones but words will never hurt me” can be a killer for plants! Think of all the wonderful native plants that have weed in their name; milkweed, Joe Pye Weed, fireweed, just to name a few. The suffix weed carries an ugly connotation that instantly strips the perceived ecological value of a plant, many of which are early pioneering species that pop up in disturbed areas.Than there are those noxious invasive plants, that few would deny are weeds. How come bitter sweet, asiatic honeysuckle, and multi-flora rose don’t have “weed” in their name? Session 2 covers how to make native plants happy in the landscape. As gardeners we went to give the richest most organic soil, ample watering, and fertilizer to make our native plants happy. But, this is the worst thing you could do for many species like little blue stem grass which is wonderfully adapted to quick draining soils and lean nutrient poor soils. We discussed matrix planting using woody plants. The method minimizes ugly mulched-in space that we typically see in beds and emphasizes a concentrated planting style in different height layers and blocks of plants instead of individuals. The parking lot area at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens has an exceptional example of this matrix type planting. Thanks to the great folks at Sea Breeze Property Management for inviting me!

The Unexplored Regions of Pollinator Landscapes 2.0

January 9th, 2025
Presented to the Saco Bay Garden Club
Dyer Library, Saco, ME
Summary: When we are planning our pollinator landscapes, woody plants are often overlooked components. The importance of our native trees and shrubs cannot be overstated; they provide pollinator feeding options at the extreme ends of the season and nearly every point in between. Even wind pollinated species like red maple are critical early season nectar and pollen sources for bees. Our native woody species serve as larval host plants for hundreds of species of insects, which in turn is the major source of protein for hundreds of bird species. I also discuss what exactly is a “weed”. We really need to re-think what we are calling a weed; a plant that is perceived to be problematic to us, could be a lifeline for other species we share our world with (e.g. monarchs and milkweed). Thanks for your support!

What We Need to Know to Grow Native Plants

October 24, 2024
Presented to the Camden Garden Club
Camden, ME
Summary: Growing native plants from seed and spore (ferns) is a fun and enriching experience that will propel our horticultural skills to new heights! This presentation explains the dormancy breaking requirements of native plant seeds (cold stratification, scarification, light exposure, etc) and how these requirements correlate with species habitat and seed dispersal method. Encouragement and guidance is given on how to collect your own native plant seed in in the garden or in the wild. Let’s not forget about our other native plants like ferns and sedges, they deserve our attention and should be grown as well. The presentation concludes with different container and media choices to consider when growing from seed. Happy growing!

Darkness into Light; Native Shrubs to Plant after the Invasive Removal

October 17, 2024
Presented to the Southern Maine Garden Club, at the Springvale Library
Springvale, ME
Summary: You’ve removed the invasive shrubs on your property or in your project area, now what do you do? “Nature abhors a vacuum” so its a good idea to plug that space before something else does. In this presentation we discuss our rich diversity of native shrubs that we can plant to fill those voids. What was once a ecological wasteland can be converted to wildlife sustaining bounty! Included is a quick reference chart of native shrubs and the conditions they thrive in.

Propagation of Native Maine/New England Wetland Woody Plants

October 12, 2024
Presented at the Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
Boothbay, ME
Summary: This class at the Coastal Maine Botanical Garden focused on the different ways we can propagate ecologically significant wetland trees and shrubs, through vegetative and seed propagation. Discussions on the pros and cons of vegetative or “clonally” reproducing species like the willows that are very easy to grow from cuttings, but arguably prohibitively difficult to grow from seed for various reasons. Seed germination requirements for wetland species are presented in a concise quick reference guide. Using multi-layered media set-ups with humidity domes and fluorescent lighting for growing small seeded ericads like Rhodora. The American elm; why we shouldn’t give up on this ecologically important species, and more! Dig in!

Native Plants-An Urban Approach

Sept 16, 2024
Presented by McArthur Library and Biddeford Community Gardens Program
Biddeford, ME
Summary; Native plants can be right at home in urban areas making significant improvements to the local ecology.
Learn how to integrate native plants into urban landscapes and why it is so important.

More Buffer, Less Lawn. How We get There.

Aug 2, 2024
Maine Lakes LakeSmart Program Volunteer Appreciation Meeting
Hartford, ME
Summary; There’s a big push to safeguard our lakes and ponds by planting vegetated buffer zones at and near the shore line, and the Maine LakeSmart Program is at the forefront. In this presentation we tackled the issues head on that were slowing the process down, including how and where to get native plants, and making sure the LakeSmart recommendations matched with species that are readily available in the nursery trade. Maine has a thriving community of native plant growers, which means they are getting easier and easier to buy.

The Unexplored Regions of Pollinator Landscapes

April 18, 2024
Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM)
Zoom presentation

Growing Native Woody Plants from Seed-Session 2

March 6, 2024
Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
Boothbay, ME

Growing Native Woody Plants from Seed-Session 1

February 15, 2024
Coastal Maine Botanical Garden
Boothbay, ME

The Native Plant Market Place; “All I want are seed grown, pesticide free, native plants of know origin. Is that too much to ask? (Yes, it is. Here’s why.)

June 17 2023
Maine Audubon Native Plant Festival
Gilsland Farm, Falmouth, ME

Untangling the Messy Business of Invasives

May 18, 2023
A joint presentation to Great Works Regional Land Trust and the South Berwick Conservation Commission
Presented on ZOOM

Native Perennials in the Garden; Planting for Pollinators

April 27, 2023
Town of Ogunquit,ME and The Marginal Way Trail Committee
Ogunquit,ME

Integrating Native Plant into Your Backyard; Practical Considerations.

April 20th, 2023
A joint presentation to Great Works Regional Land Trust and the South Berwick Conservation Commission
Presented on ZOOM

Native Plants; The Best Medicine for our Ailing Landscapes

April 18, 2023
Presented to York County Audubon
Wells, ME

The Secret Life of Maine’s Native Plants

April 13, 2023
Buxton Garden Club
Buxton, ME

Planting for Pollinators

January 28th, 2023
Presentation of the Southern Maine Planeteers at the Kennebunk Town Hall
Kennebunk, ME

Zen and the Art of Native Plants

Oct 5, 2022
Ferry Beach Resort and Conference Center
Saco, Maine

Fresh Ideas-Unique Native Trees and Shrubs for the Landscape

June 11, 2022
Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm, Falmouth, ME.
Live presentation at the Native Plant Festival

The Secret Life of Ferns

June 1st, 2022

Zoom Presentation to the Nashua New Hampshire Garden Club

Shoreline Buffer Plants Adapted to Bauneg Beg Pond, Sanford/N. Berwick ME

May 29, 2022
In person presentation for the Bauneg Beg Lake Association

Using Native Plants to Make Pollinator Friendly Backyards

February 14, 2022
Zoom Presentation for the York County Bee Keepers Association

The Secret Life of Ferns

October 11, 2021
Presented to the Milford, New Hampshire Garden Club

Sow for the Future; Seed Propagation of Native Woody Plants

September 25, 2021
“Walk and Talk” presentation at the Coastal Maine Botanical Garden

Native Plants: Good for What Ails your Garden

May 5, 2021
Zoom Presentation for Highland Green Community in Topsham, ME

Sow for the Future: Seed Propagation of Native Woodland Perennials

April 12, 2021
Zoom Presentation/Webinar for The Coastal Maine Botanical Garden Lecture Series

Integrating Native Shrubs into Pollinator and Wildlife Friendly Landscapes

June 15, 2019
Audubon Native Plant Sale
Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth, ME

Conserving Native Plants through Nurseries

April 12, 2019
Native Plant Conservation in the 21st Century Symposium
Co-sponsored by Maine Audubon and the Native Plant Trust (formerly New England Wildflower Society)
Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth, ME