Fall is officially here. It's the best time of year to plant in your garden! The combination of cooler air and warmer soil in fall encourages strong root growth. Plants spend less energy on growing flowers and foliage and more on building a strong root system for winter. And just in time, the Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones is hosting its annual Fall Native Plant Sale this coming Saturday, October 5th. Read about the details below.
And as we're approaching our chapter's Annual Meeting in November, this is also a good time to think about volunteering to help. Please consider volunteering to serve on our board. Board members will be elected for a 1-year term, so you're not signing up for a "lifetime commitment." In 2025, members willing to serve on the board are not required to sign up for a particular position; rather the board will decide among themselves who will serve in what capacity. Our board is a great team of individuals who support each other to make a difference in our community. For more information or to volunteer, email us at: tnvalleywildones@gmail.com.
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Saturday, October 5, 2025
10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Grace Episcopal Church, 20 Belvoir Ave., Chattanooga TN
FREE and Open to the Public
Rain or Shine
Fall — and the best time to plant many of our natives — is here!
And so is the Tennessee Valley Wild Ones Fall Plant Sale, with a great variety of native species for fall planting!
Nurseries participating in the sale include: Reflection Riding, Tennessee Naturescapes, Thomas Nursery, Carolina Wild, North Georgia Natives and Hixson High Ag.
During the sale at 11:00 a.m., we’ll also be honoring our newest members, along with the recent Certificate in Native Plants graduates who’ve worked hard to complete their coursework and volunteer hours.
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Monday, October 14, 2024
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
green|spaces
63 E. Main St., Chattanooga TN
FREE and Open to the Public
Michael Strok, Chair of the Chattanooga Tree Commission, will describe the Chattanooga Tree Canopy Project and why it is titled Understory. This is a multi-year project with significant federal funding to increase the tree canopy in central Chattanooga.
The short presentation will be followed by a discussion of how Wild Ones can engage with the project to amplify its impact and success.
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The Certificate in Native Plants program is designed to expand students' knowledge of botany, ecology, conservation and uses of native flora in the southeastern United States. The CNP offers a blend of classroom instruction, hands-on learning and guided hikes. Discounted class fees are available for members of Wild Ones, the Tennessee Native Plant Society or Reflection Riding. Classes are open to all, including interested individuals who may not be working toward the Certificate.
Those working toward the Certificate are asked to volunteer in various capacities to support approved native plant projects in our region. Volunteer requirements will change slightly on January 1, 2025. More information and a downloadable volunteer form are available on our new website.
For more info about the Certificate in Native Plants program, click here.
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Instructor: Botanist/Ecologist Gary Kauffman
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Unfortunately, due to the effects of Hurricane Helene, this class has been cancelled.
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October 19, 2024
North Georgia area
Free for Wild Ones Members & Family Only
Join members of the Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones for a tour of two of our members' gardens in the North Georgia area - Rocky Face, GA and Tunnel Hill, GA.
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with Stephan Eselgroth
Saturday, October 26, 2024
Ochs Gateway Trail
Lookout Mountain GA
Free for Wild Ones Members Only
The Ochs Gateway Trail is just one of many interconnected trails along the northwest side of Lookout Mountain. Stephan Eselgroth, MD, will lead this hike and the exploration of the bluffs and woodland habitat to Jackson Spring via the Jackson Gap Trail. Consisting of mostly sandstone, there will be a great number of huge rock outcrops, cliffs, a few seeps, and a creek/falls-like spring fed from Jackson Lake just above. We should be surrounded by fall colors from the native trees and shrubs as we explore this trail and its vistas.
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This year’s Annual Meeting for the Tennessee Valley Chapter will be at the Joseph Glasscock Community Center in Red Bank on Saturday, November 16 from 11:00 am to 2:00pm.
All Tennessee Valley members and guests are welcome to attend. We will have a potluck lunch, election of officers, highlights of 2024, and a plant swap. Please bring a dish and plants to share. This is a great time to visit with other native plant enthusiasts!
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To access information and registration links for all upcoming programs, classes, hikes and members-only events presented by the Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones and Wild Ones national, click below: | |
Do you want to receive a reminder email
in advance of our free public programs?
If so, join our Meetup group.
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One of the ways Wild Ones seeks to accomplish its mission of promoting native plants and landscaping is by providing learning opportunities for both seasoned gardeners and those who are new to gardening and/or the native plant movement. All of these webinar opportunities are free and open to the public to attend.
“Matrix Landscape Design”
with Benjamin Vogt
October at 24th at 6 PM (CT)
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Thank you for spreading the word about our Seeds for Education Grants. We look forward to making an announcement about grant recipients in our November newsletter. | |
Great Smokies Eco-Adventure
Sunday, Oct. 27 - Tuesday, Oct. 29 Near Gatlinburg TN
Discover Life in America, a nonprofit partner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, will be hosting the fall 2024 Great Smokies Eco-Adventure. This event is an opportunity for outdoor, nature, and national park enthusiasts to experience the Smokies in an in-depth and fun way. It also doubles as an essential fundraiser for Discover Life in America, funding vital research on biodiversity in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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Tennessee Native Plant Society Seminars
The Tennessee Native Plant Society hosts monthly Native Plant Seminars via Zoom on the third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. Central (7:30 p.m. Eastern) and lasting about one hour. All members, and potential members, are welcome to attend the seminars. Videos of previous seminars are available via the link below.
October 15 – Elizabeth Hermsen, Plant Fossils of Tennessee
November 19 – Adam Bigelow, Wildflowers of Southern Appalachia
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The Reflection Riding Native Plant Nursery is open for the fall planting season. Visit the nursery from Thursday to Saturday, 9 am to 4 pm, to browse the selection of native perennials, grasses, vines, shrubs, and trees. |
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Wild Ones is growing in Tennessee and the Southeast!
Check out the events at nearby chapters!
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Native Landscapes Can Be Hard to Plant. But Help Is Here.
In this article from the New York Times, the work of Wild Ones and the creation of its free library of garden designs is highlighted. And there's a "shout out" to our own Sally Wencel, who helped make it all happen, as well as Preston Montague, one of our Certificate in Native Plants class instructors.
Read more.
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Do You Want to Help Monarch Butterflies?
How You Plant Matters.
We know that planting milkweed is important if we want Monarch Butterflies to reproduce in our gardens. But HOW we plant that milkweed is important in maximizing the effectiveness of the garden. Learn more in this posting from Northcreek Nurseries.
Read more.
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Ant Queens Practice 'Hygienic Cannibalism' Out of Tough Love
The act of 'hygienic cannibalism' stops other larvae and the queen herself from falling ill while sealed up together in a nest. It also ensures the mother has more energy to produce eggs the next time around.
However, once a colony has been established, workers and soldiers have actually been found treating ill or injured peers with medicine or life-saving operations. But those measures won't do in the nursery of a black garden ant (Lasius niger), especially when the colony is just getting started.
Read more.
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Mature 3.5” long Northern Walking Stick
This is a wingless insect, and the female is larger than the male. At rest, it will align its front and/or rear legs with its body to accentuate its twig-like camouflage. This slow-moving species is very common, but may be hard to find in foliage. They are primarily herbivorous insects that prefer Oak and Hazelnut trees in their forested natural habitat.
Photo by Mike O'Brien.
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Two-lined Spittle Bug
This insect, approximately 3/8" long, is responsible for the spit-like foam found on mints and other plants during the summer. This whitish foam is generated by the tiny Spittlebug larvae from its anal waste products and mucous secretions, and it serves as protection from predators. It sucks sap from the host plant while hidden within the foam.
Photo by Mike O'Brien.
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Red-banded Hairstreak Butterfly
This well-worn butterfly is nectaring on fall-blooming, garlic chives, a favorite flower of the species. Its missing wing parts are evident as part of the wear and tear of a butterfly’s life cycle. This occurs from predators, normal flying and encounters with vegetation. Its colorful wing scales also shed over time, and its color becomes more drab.
Photo by Mike O'Brien
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Female Green Lynx Spider
The photo on the left shows the spider with her tan egg sac on a Cosmos flower. Mike has not observed the typically predatory female spider with any prey after she makes her egg sac. She progressively gets thinner while she guards, but she will move her egg sac to another flower. Mike has observed this event when the spider makes a web sling between the adjacent flowers and then carefully moves the egg sac slowly along the sling to the new location.
The Green Lynx female, in her normal green color, appears to initially prefer blooming flowers, then with time moves the egg sac to withered flowers for better camouflage. She also becomes darker with a purple hue. This color difference is seen in the two photos above.
The female spider will guard the egg case until the tiny spiderlings emerge, molt several times and then disperse. At this time, the adult female spider dies.
Photos by Mike O'Brien.
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Banded Tussock Moth Caterpillar
on Willow, its host plant
Salt Marsh Moth Caterpillar
Salt marsh is not required.
Isabella Tiger Moth Caterpillar (Wooly Bear Caterpillar)
The orange and black rings vary considerably and may be solid colored too. The colored rings arrangement is not related to the coldness of the coming winter, despite folklore that would say otherwise.
Photos by Mike O'Brien.
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Sleepy Orange Sulphur Butterfly Caterpillars
on Sicklepod Senna host plant
Photo by Mike O'Brien.
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Cloudless Orange Butterfly Caterpillar
The Cloudless Orange Caterpillar (larger than the Sleepy Orange Butterfly Caterpillar above) has small, blue, segmentally arranged dots and yellow lateral bands.
Photo by Mike O'Brien
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Becoming a Wild Ones member shows your commitment to the native plant movement and is a great way to connect with a helpful and knowledgeable native plant community that will prove invaluable in your native garden journey!
Benefits of a Wild Ones membership include:
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Access to the current electronic issue of the quarterly Wild Ones Journal
- Invitations to workshops, garden tours, seed exchanges, plants sales, and stewardship project
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Discounts for partner educational webinars such as NDAL, etc. and Wild Ones chapter programs
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Participation in an annual national photo contest
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Access to the Wild Ones Member Center for learning resources
- Participation in Wild for Monarchs and Native Garden recognition programs
- Involvement in citizen science and networking with conservation partners
- Receiving Wild Ones National e-Newsletters
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Invitation to Wild Ones' private Facebook discussion group and the national Wild Ones Annual Member Meeting
- Networking opportunities and camaraderie with like-minded people who care about native plants and our planet
Additional benefits for members of the Tennessee Valley chapter:
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Discounted admission to all Certificate in Native Plants classes year-round.
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Free admission at members-only programs, including local and regional guided hikes, garden visits (Landscapes in Progress), the annual meeting, an annual plant swap, and other member social events.
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Annual Welcome Party and Orientation for new members.
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Monthly email Member Update, with news about chapter activities.
- All members of the family who live at the same address are entitled to member benefits!
Your membership dollars help forward our mission of promoting the restoration of native landscapes by allowing us to:
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Provide free, educational resources and learning opportunities that are open to the public from respected experts like Wild Ones Honorary Directors Doug Tallamy, Neil Diboll, Heather Holm and Donna VanBuecken
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Support the efforts of over 65 local Wild Ones chapters in 23 states
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Publish a quarterly, award-winning, online journal featuring current native plant information and resources
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Share free, professionally-designed native garden templates for multiple regions in the United States.
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The Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones is 100% volunteer run!
Here are a few ways you can get more involved in the chapter
and in our Chattanooga Pollinator Partnership.
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the Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones!
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