Native Shrubs for your Garden

Native plants are gaining popularity for both ecological and aesthetic reasons. As they become more available, deciding which species to add to your garden can be overwhelming. In this webinar, we will take a close look at the plants “in between.” Not the giant trees, nor the small forbs, but the shrubs. Species in this group vary greatly in form, size and habitat, meaning there are options for each and every application or situation in your garden – shade or sun, wet or dry, specimen or hedge, naturalized or formal.

Canada is home to hundreds of native shrub species; however this webinar will consider only a small selection of mostly wide-ranging species that work well in gardens and can be found in nurseries.

About the speaker:

Colleen has spent many years in the world of nature interpretation, protection and restoration, including 12 years at Toronto and Region Conservation and 2.5 years at Ontario Nature. From 2015 to 2020, she was Director of Education at the Toronto Botanical Garden. In this capacity, Colleen brought a conservation and sustainability perspective to programs, policies and practices. Since January 2022, she has worked with David Suzuki Foundation on the Butterflyway Project.

Colleen has served on many committees and boards, including those of Ontario Invasive Plant Council, NANPS, LEAF and Project Swallowtail. She is also a long-time volunteer with a local community meal program called Dinner with Dignity.

Long ago, Colleen completed undergraduate and Master’s degrees in environment and resource studies. It was an urban tree-planting gig following her first year of university that turned her on to native plants. This obsession continues today.

Since 2009, Colleen has chaired the Horticulture Outreach Collaborative (HOC), which brings together ecologists and horticulturalists to protect native plant diversity in Ontario. The Grow Me Instead guide, now in its third edition, is HOC’s most popular initiative.

Colleen’s children accuse her of loving her garden more than them. Sometimes the truth hurts.

This webinar is offered with support from a TD - Friends of the Environment Foundation grant and in partnership with the David Suzuki Foundation.