By Craig Maxwell
The 39th annual Cullowhee Native Plant Conference kicked off with more than 400 attendees, setting a record for the conference. That morning, some boarded buses headed for guided hikes through the mountains, while others attended all-day workshops on subjects from botanical illustrations to stone casting.
The annual event at Western Carolina University is in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Cullowhee, North Carolina.
I chose a hike led by Preston Montague, who took our group of 15 on a 7-mile hike that focused on using the natural landscape as inspiration for garden designs. His talks prompted us to look at the structures that our garden plants create, focusing less on specific native species and more on the mutualistic communities that can be built from different shapes and forms. Perhaps his most intriguing suggestion was using a string trimmer on tree seedlings to create a ground cover effect, rather than pulling them like weeds.
The kickoff was about social media
Wednesday night officially kicked off the conference with a welcome speech and a panel discussion on the use of social media in furthering our efforts with native plants. Kyle Lybarger from the Native Habitat Project and Joey Santore of Crime Pays, Botany Doesn’t, talked to the crowd about how they established their social media presence and why they think it has resonated with so many new viewers. Both speakers urged us to start with what we love and show the world our passion first and foremost. Rather than fostering negativity about what’s wrong with our landscapes, they highlight the beauty of what’s out there already and the possibility of what else we can do to support it.
Events included hikes and workshops and there was a wide variety of plants for sale from vendors at the Ramsey Center.
Thursday and Friday hosted speakers on the main stage as well as concurrent breakout sessions where we could pick and choose which subjects we’d like to hear about. In the midst of all this, attendees from Florida to Texas, Illinois to Connecticut met old colleagues and new friends as ideas were exchanged and stories from previous conference years were recounted. Friday night ended as it always does with a talent show and live music, while our own local Lenny Lampel held a small experiment to showcase moths and other nighttime insects.
“The most informative event”
A first-time attendee, garden manager, and brand new friend of mine from Kentucky said it quite well: “This place feels more like summer camp than a conference. It doesn’t look as professional from the outside, but it’s the most informative event I’ve been to.” Folks at the conference ranged from lifelong researchers, to landscape designers, to amateurs like myself who have caught the native plant bug. This is a conference for anyone who appreciates native plants and I encourage you to give it a try. I know I’ll be going back next year for my third time! Registration for the July 2024 conference opens next April 1.
I’ll be back! It was great. Photo by Craig Maxwell
By Craig Maxwell
Native Plant News – Fall 2023
Craig Maxwell is the Southern Piedmont chapter chair and lives in Charlotte. He discovered a passion for native plants during 2020 and has been working towards a native garden certification and certificate of native plant studies ever since. In addition to organizing chapter events, Craig spends his free time hiking, kayaking, and helping friends convert their yards into native plant communities.