Spring 2010

Plants and Plant Communities

Landscapes commonly seen in our dry western region often have needs contradictory to what our climate and resources offer. These resource-hungry landscapes have typically been determined by a sense of aesthetics generated from areas with greater rainfall, and a long tradition of ideas about complete hierarchy over nature, producing landscapes that function as resource sinks, and are detrimental to the environment and the insects and birds that live in or migrate through our communities. This class explores the origins and development of our relationship with nature and how these traditional associations often guide our current approach to the landscape. After setting the landscape in a historic context, we consider a more sustainable approach for our climate and look at key considerations to this more objective tactic, such as right plant/right place, plant, soil and climate interactions, plant communities, native plants, Mediterranean region plants, lawns and lawn alternatives, plants for habitat, edible plants and plant data bases.

Prerequisite(s):

ENSP800; 7 hours CEU; $160

Instructor: Kate Frey

Kate Frey has extensive expertise in sustainable landscaping beginning with her work at Fetzer Vineyards in Hopland, a nationally recognized laboratory and demonstration site for many leading-edge sustainability practices. She worked at Fetzer for 18 years, where she managed and designed the six acre, profuse and colorful organic gardens, as well as seven acres of sustainable landscaping, combining plants appropriate to a hot inland climate with plants that encouraged biodiversity around the facilities. In May 2003 her garden design at the Chelsea Flower Show in London won a silver medal and in 2005 and 2007 her gardens illustrating many elements of biodiversity and sustainability won gold medals and were visited by Queen Elizabeth. She currently works as a consultant, designer and teacher of sustainable landscaping, gardening and speaks and writes extensively about the subject.

  • 1 mtg: Sa, May 15, 8:30am-4:30pm
  • Darwin Hall 102
  • ENSP800; 7 hours CEU; $160
  • class# 3897