The Power of Native Plants at February TEK Park Meeting

February MAREA Meeting

Susan Tansits of Edge of the Woods Nursery Discusses Native Plants

Understanding native plants and how to use them in our landscape is part of "The Dynamic Power of Native Plants," the topic of the February meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Association. Susan Tantsits of Edge of the Woods Nursery looks at some of the myths regarding native plants and shows that going native can bring sustainable benefits to our lives. The public is invited to the free program, which will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, February 22, at 1 TEK Park, 9999 Hamilton Blvd., Breinigsville, 18031.

Native plants are indigenous plants that existed in our region before settlement by Europeans. The plants are well-adapted to our environment according to Tantsits and there are native plants adapted to thrive in any condition from wet, soggy clay to dry, gravelly soil, and from hot sun to full shade. When well-placed, native plants do not require watering, fertilizer or pesticides. Native plants provide four seasons of pleasure, with flowers in the spring, berries in the summer, brilliant colors in the fall and interesting bark and twig patterns in the winter.

The Pennsylvania Department of Natural Resources has reported that warm-weather invasive species are expanding their range into Pennsylvania. Continued climate change presents opportunities for the expansion of invasive species and leads to bioinvasion, in which a non-native plant enters an area and threatens the livelihood of other plants. Bioinvasion harms ecosystems because it disrupts the balance between the origina¬l flora in that space and the fauna that feeds on it. The agency estimates some 40 percent of Pennsylvania's total plant flora is non-native.

Tantsits serves on the Lehigh Carbon Community College Horticulture Advisory Committee and the Floral Design and Greenhouse Management Occupational Advisory committee of Lehigh Career and Technical Institute. She has a B.S. in education from Bloomsburg University and a B.S. in Horticulture from Temple University.

Following the talk, there will be a networking session and planning meeting for this fall's Pennsylvania Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Festival. Volunteers are needed and anyone with an interest in renewable energy or sustainable living is welcome to participate.

Route 222 is located at the bottom of the photo. Our meetings are held on the 222-facing side of the TEK Park campus. Where the driveway that circles the building curves in on the lower edge, you'll see two blacktop driveways, one entering the complex and one exiting. That's where you want to enter the building. You can park on either side of the entrance. When you enter the building, head for the conferernce rooms on the right side of the main lobby toward the rear of the building. We use one or both of the rooms for our meetings. See you there!