PNPS 2026 Annual Meeting
Saturday, October 24th, 2026
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Saturday, October 24th, 2026
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Join us for our 2026 Annual Meeting
Shaver's Creek Environmental Center, Petersburg, PA
Come discuss new topics on Native plant research in the state of Pennsylvania, and meet other Native Plant enthusiasts, as well as the Pennsylvania Native Plant Society members.
2 great speakers, Plant walks, a short business meeting, and a plant sale.
Bring your own lunch and enjoy the beauty of Shaver's Creek.
No charge but registration is required and will be available closer to the date. Donations are welcome.
Open to the public.
Shaver's Creek Environmental Center, Petersburg, PA
Come discuss new topics on Native plant research in the state of Pennsylvania, and meet other Native Plant enthusiasts, as well as the Pennsylvania Native Plant Society members.
2 great speakers, Plant walks, a short business meeting, and a plant sale.
Bring your own lunch and enjoy the beauty of Shaver's Creek.
No charge but registration is required and will be available closer to the date. Donations are welcome.
Open to the public.
Schedule
8:00 - 9:30 AM: Optional pre-meeting walks, choose one:
Bird Walk, Doug Wentzel, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center. Meet at the Outdoor Classroom at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center (no participant limit)
Fall is a great time to see migrant songbirds passing through on their trip south. Join Shaver’s Creek’s Naturalist and Program Director, Doug Wentzel, on a morning bird walk around the grounds before the PNPS meeting begins. Bring your own binoculars or borrow a pair from Shaver’s Creek! All are welcome.
Doug is a PNPS member and president of the State College Bird Club. He leads weekly Migration Morning bird walks in the spring and fall at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center, accessible for all abilities and experience levels.
Forest Therapy Walk, Merrill David, Rooted Heart Forest Therapy. Meet at Lake Perez Boat Launch. (Limited to 10 participants).
Before our PNPS meeting begins, start your day in a mindful way and renew your relationship with the earth. Merrill David (@RootedHeartForestTherapy) will guide participants through a series of peaceful sensory invitations -- to engage with nature, open the senses, and begin the day feeling present and refreshed.
Merrill is a certified forest therapy guide, a PA Master Naturalist, and a PA Native Plant Society board member. With over 30 years of experience in teaching and educational programming for all ages, she leads gentle guided experiences that invite relaxation, mindfulness, and connection with the natural and more-than-human world -- helping people reconnect with nature while reconnecting with themselves.
9:00 - 10:00 AM - Registration and Plant Sale
10:00 - 10:15 AM - Business Meeting
10:15 - 11:00 AM -Riparian Buffers: Eat, Weave, and Conserve, Cat Pugh, PNPS President and Penn State Forestry Educator
A riparian buffer is the intentional planting of trees and shrubs along waterways, commonly used as a conservation practice on agricultural lands. Beyond their many ecological benefits, buffers often include species that provide harvestable products for human use. Several species will be highlighted for food and art in this presentation that takes the audience from creek to basket.
Beyond her role as the PA Native Plant Society president, Cat Pugh works as a Forestry Educator for Penn State Extension, offering statewide programs on agroforestry, non-timber forest products, and native plants.
8:00 - 9:30 AM: Optional pre-meeting walks, choose one:
Bird Walk, Doug Wentzel, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center. Meet at the Outdoor Classroom at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center (no participant limit)
Fall is a great time to see migrant songbirds passing through on their trip south. Join Shaver’s Creek’s Naturalist and Program Director, Doug Wentzel, on a morning bird walk around the grounds before the PNPS meeting begins. Bring your own binoculars or borrow a pair from Shaver’s Creek! All are welcome.
Doug is a PNPS member and president of the State College Bird Club. He leads weekly Migration Morning bird walks in the spring and fall at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center, accessible for all abilities and experience levels.
Forest Therapy Walk, Merrill David, Rooted Heart Forest Therapy. Meet at Lake Perez Boat Launch. (Limited to 10 participants).
Before our PNPS meeting begins, start your day in a mindful way and renew your relationship with the earth. Merrill David (@RootedHeartForestTherapy) will guide participants through a series of peaceful sensory invitations -- to engage with nature, open the senses, and begin the day feeling present and refreshed.
Merrill is a certified forest therapy guide, a PA Master Naturalist, and a PA Native Plant Society board member. With over 30 years of experience in teaching and educational programming for all ages, she leads gentle guided experiences that invite relaxation, mindfulness, and connection with the natural and more-than-human world -- helping people reconnect with nature while reconnecting with themselves.
9:00 - 10:00 AM - Registration and Plant Sale
10:00 - 10:15 AM - Business Meeting
10:15 - 11:00 AM -Riparian Buffers: Eat, Weave, and Conserve, Cat Pugh, PNPS President and Penn State Forestry Educator
A riparian buffer is the intentional planting of trees and shrubs along waterways, commonly used as a conservation practice on agricultural lands. Beyond their many ecological benefits, buffers often include species that provide harvestable products for human use. Several species will be highlighted for food and art in this presentation that takes the audience from creek to basket.
Beyond her role as the PA Native Plant Society president, Cat Pugh works as a Forestry Educator for Penn State Extension, offering statewide programs on agroforestry, non-timber forest products, and native plants.
11:00 - 11:45 AM - Grant Awardees
11:45 - 12:30 PM - Lunch (Bring your own) and Plant Sale
12:30 - 1:15 PM - Native Plant Landscape Design, Derek Kalp, Registered Landscape Architect (RLA)
Learn about the way a professional landscape architect approaches native plant gardens. Derek will discuss his design approach, shaped by the site's unique character and the client's values, balancing ecological benefits with aesthetic considerations. Derek’s work has been diverse in size, scale, and location such as residential design, site master plans, healing gardens, park master plans, and of course countless University landscape projects.
Derek is a registered landscape architect (RLA) in State College, Pennsylvania. In addition to his private practice, Derek is the Senior Landscape Architect for Penn State University in the Planning Design & Properties Division of Office of Physical Plant.
1:15 - 2:00 PM - Plant Sale
11:45 - 12:30 PM - Lunch (Bring your own) and Plant Sale
12:30 - 1:15 PM - Native Plant Landscape Design, Derek Kalp, Registered Landscape Architect (RLA)
Learn about the way a professional landscape architect approaches native plant gardens. Derek will discuss his design approach, shaped by the site's unique character and the client's values, balancing ecological benefits with aesthetic considerations. Derek’s work has been diverse in size, scale, and location such as residential design, site master plans, healing gardens, park master plans, and of course countless University landscape projects.
Derek is a registered landscape architect (RLA) in State College, Pennsylvania. In addition to his private practice, Derek is the Senior Landscape Architect for Penn State University in the Planning Design & Properties Division of Office of Physical Plant.
1:15 - 2:00 PM - Plant Sale