Past Presentations 2025

Essential Pollinators and Native Planting in our Community!

Panel Discussion

Date: September 16, 2025

Join the North Oaks Garden Club for an evening of community fellowship and inspiring education with panelists from:

• Prairie Restorations

• VLAWMO (Vadnais Lake Area Water Management Organization)

• UMN Bee Lab

• The Prairie Enthusiasts - Minnesota Oak Savannah Chapter

Providing a pollinator-friendly environment for bees and butterflies and including plants native to Minnesota are the the most significant actions each of us can take to sustain strong crop, plant, and seed production for years to come. You will have the opportunity to talk to our experts and take home beautiful color-coded templates for creating your own native planting garden, including lists of native plants to get you started. Go to Events - Upcoming Presentations for more information.

Bluebird Recovery Project

Presented by George Brown and Dave Schmidt

Date: March 25, 2025

The Garden Club is sponsoring efforts to help restore the local bluebird population. David Schmidt and George Brown will speak about the upcoming Bluebird Trail creation and implementation project on the Hill Farm property in North Oaks. They will educate attendees on the restoration and preservation efforts to sustain and expand a healthy population of bluebirds. David Schmidt is the Board Chairperson for the Bluebird Recovery Program of Minnesota. George Brown is the Ramsey and Washington counties coordinator for the Bluebird Recovery Project. He has assisted communities in selecting locations, setting up and monitoring bluebird trails for over 15 years. All community members are invited to come and learn more about this important effort.

How Architecture can Serve as a Guide for Landscape Design

Presented by Diane McGann

Date: April 8, 2025

The North Oaks Garden Club invites the community to a presentation on landscape design given by Diane McGann, an award-winning garden writer and design columnist for the Northern Gardener magazine. The field of architecture has much to offer landscape design. This presentation borrows from that genre to guide gardeners in designing their surroundings. Not taught in the usual landscape design class, these “rules” offer guidance to anyone working on their yard projects, including hardscaping and greenscaping. They help gardeners avoid costly mistakes and awkward spaces. Borrowed from landscape architects who also specialize in building architecture, they provide a no-fail recipe for creating pleasing garden spaces. All interested community members are invited. Light refreshments will be served.