PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT

Tuesday, March 15 at 7:00 p.m., Hershey Public Library

Your Garden Can Make A Difference: The Importance of Encouraging Native Ecosystems in Your Backyard

Dr. Douglas Tallamy, Professor and Chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware will present "Your Garden Can Make A Difference: The Importance of Encouraging Native Ecosystems in Your Backyard" on Tuesday, March 15 at 7:00 p.m., in the Hershey Public Library.  Tallamy is a Behavioral Ecologist with a BS in Biology from Allegheny College; MS in Entomology from Rutgers University; PhD in Entomology from the University of Maryland and a  Postdoctoral Fellowship from the University of Iowa.  He has served on the faculty at the University of Delaware for 24 years.

Dr. Tallamy's program will focus on ornamental landscape plantings that serve vital functions in suburban ecosystems.  The success of these functions is not a matter of chance, but instead is determined by the species we choose to plant.  With a research interest in the impact alien plants are having on native ecosystems, Dr. Tallamy states that his dream is to redesign suburbia in a way that supports much of the biodiversity that disappeared when our communities were built.  His program will address how we can re-establish and encourage biodiversity by restoring native plant communities in our own backyard gardens.

This program is sponsored by Derry Township Parks and Recreation, Friends of the Hershey Public Library and The Manada Conservancy, a non-profit, land trust organization, dedicated to the preservation of the natural, historic, agricultural and scenic resources of the Manada and Swatara Creek Basins in Dauphin and Lebanon Counties.  The lecture is free and open to the public.  Those who wish to attend should register by calling Derry Township Parks and Recreation at 533-7138.

Manada Conservancy

P.O. Box 25

Hummelstown, PA 17036

717-566-4122

www.manada.org