ACHS hosting lecture on prairie grasses, gardens
A small patch of tall grass prairie has been planted at the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences campus in Wooster, with an interpretive marker explaining the importance of tall grass prairie. Guy L. Denny will present a free lecture, Tall Grass Prairies of Ohio and a Recipe for Making a Prairie Garden, at the Apple Creek Historical Society on Tuesday, July 25.
Guy L. Denny, an interpretive naturalist, writer and photographer, will present Tall Grass Prairies of Ohio and A Recipe for Making a Prairie Garden at the Apple Creek Historical Society, 185 Church St., Apple Creek, on Tuesday, July 25 at 7 p.m.
In this presentation Denny will examine the origin, makeup and occurrences of the tall grass prairies of North America and specifically the various types of tall grass prairie remnants still found in Ohio. Guests will be introduced to a number of prairie species as they make their appearance throughout the growing seasons — plants that are characteristic of Ohio’s remnant native tall grass prairies.
Denny will give a description on how to go about making and managing your own prairie garden, whether covering an area of only a few square yards or several acres in size. Lastly, he will explain the benefits of having a tall grass prairie garden, from the beauty of prairie wildflowers to the diversity of wildlife prairie gardens attract and support.
Denny retired in 1999 from his position as chief of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Natural Areas and Preserves after a professional career spanning 33 years of public service. As chief of DNAP, he was responsible for administering the state’s natural areas and scenic rivers programs. He co-authored “The Prairie Peninsula” with Gary Meszaros and wrote “Peatlands of Ohio and the Southern Great Lakes Region.”
Since retiring, he has served on several boards. He served as the executive director of the Ohio Biological Survey, vice chair and chair for District 17 Natural Resources Advisory Council for the Clean Ohio Fund, and on the boards of the Midwest Biodiversity Institute, the Ohio Environmental Council, Trust for Public Lands, and the Brown Family Environmental Center at Kenyon College. Currently, he serves as president of the Ohio Natural Areas & Preserves Association, which he helped establish in 2012, and is secretary-treasurer for the Outdoor Writers of Ohio. He resides on a small farm with a 22-acre tall grass prairie he created, which is situated in Fredericktown.
The lecture is free to the public, but donations to Apple Creek Historical Society are always welcome.