NATIVE PLANT CENTER HOSTS ELEVENTH ANNUAL NATIVE PLANT SALE ON APRIL 24; OFFERS APRIL LECTURE, MAY FIELD TRIP

Once again, The Native Plant Center (NPC) at Westchester Community College is offering a one-day sale of choice North American plant species and varieties selected especially for our region, along with limited quantities of elusive rarities. The April 24 sale will include an exciting mix of native trees, shrubs, flowering perennials, ferns and grasses in a multitude of shapes, textures and colors. Whether your garden is large or small, sunny or shady, wet or dry, Native Plant Center staff and volunteer plant experts will be on-hand to help you find that perfect plant!

Previous Wildflower and Native Plant Sales have been huge successes with lots of intrepid shoppers in attendance and plants available on a first-come basis, so we encourage you to arrive early. The sale will be held, rain or shine, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. Native Plant Center members will be allowed early admission at 9:30 a.m. - if you are not already a member, join now to take advantage of this great membership perk. Anyone is interested in volunteering to help with set up and sales day, please phone 914-606-7870.

The sale, which will include a bake sale by Phi Theta Kappa, will take place on the campus of Westchester Community College at 75 Grasslands Road in Valhalla, New York. Please park in Lot #1 near the Administration Building. Credit cards will be gratefully accepted.

Meanwhile, Carolyn Summers, chairperson for the sale, and author of Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East, will present a lecture on this topic on April 16. The fee for the 10:00 a.m. lecture and book signing is $22 for NPC members and $25 for non-members.

On May 22, the NPC’s Spring Field Trip will showcase the Angle Fly Preserve in Somers, New York. This 654-acre sanctuary holds the last natural brook-trout spawning stream in Westchester. The field trip is free to members; $10 for non-members.

The Native Plant Center is dedicated to educating individuals about the importance of wildflowers and native plants of the Northeast. As the first national affiliate of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas, the college’s Center is extending the educational and environmental concepts of the Texas Center to this region. It shares information on choosing, growing, and maintaining native plants and offers lectures by native plant experts. Its mission is education on the environmental necessity, economic value, and natural beauty of native plants in the Northeast.

The Native Plant Center is a project of the Westchester Community College Foundation. For information on Native Plant Center events, see the web site at www.nativeplantcenter.org or phone 914-606-7870.