Chapters in Maryland

Come and see this property to appreciate how Mother Nature has done most of the work on Rujuta and Rahul's front and back yards! 

This property has been acknowledged as winners of the Green Towson Alliance native garden contest 2024 and featured in a Nuts for Natives blog. 

Featuring a rain garden set up with the help of GVC and University of Maryland, a water feature in the back yard that uses oxygenating plants to maintain organic balance, and a native front yard built and featured on 'Kill Your Lawn' Maryland Chapter on Earth FX - there is a lot to explore on these small (0.3 acre lot) urban native centric yards. 

There is a focus on conserving rainwater in woodchip filled lanes that are walkways between native plant rows that sustain the plants and have reduced watering needs by over 80% spring through summer. 

**Members receive advanced access to register for events with limited space. If space is available, registration will open to the public 4-5 weeks prior to the event.

Experience The Extraordinary Caterpillar, a visually stunning documentary featuring Doug Tallamy and Sam Jaffe of The Caterpillar Lab. Through breathtaking macro videography, the film reveals the critical role caterpillars play in supporting birds, pollinators, and healthy ecosystems.

Refreshments will be available at 5:30 pm. The 60-minute film will begin at 6 pm. Advance registration is required.

A presentation of the Ecological Landscaping Speaker Series & Native Garden Tours:

In 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026, Adkins Arboretum received funding from the Chesapeake Bay Trust (CBT) to provide outreach and education to local Homeowner Associations (HOAs) and the general public, supporting environmentally friendly landscaping practices. 

This series was developed by building on the Naturally Better Landscaping project, in partnership with ShoreRivers, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy, Pickering Creek, Phillips Wharf, and Wild Ones Delmarva. It is offered free of charge thanks to funding from CBT and Queen Anne’s County, and open to the general public.

We are collaborating with Ecoplantia to promote our “Starter Gardens”.   Don’t know how to start a native plant garden or can’t afford one? Our starter gardens come with your very own Wild Ones Mentor to guide you in site selection depending on sun or shade, planting  and maintaining your garden and advice along your garden journey. Our launch date for this program is Sept 20th. Please stay tuned for info on how to apply for a free or paid mentor native plant garden. There will be 8 free gardens and 12  affordable paid gardens available this fall.  We will have an application form available Sept 20th 

Join Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay, University of Maryland Extension Master Gardeners, and the Chesapeake Beach Green Team for Best Stormwater Practices for Your Backyard. Learn about stormwater control and plans to plant a buffer garden along Fishing Creek on the Chesapeake Beach Railway Trail. 

The event is supported by a Chesapeake Bay Trust grant and features numerous free giveaways for all who attend, including:

Native plants courtesy of Wild Ones Chesapeake BayRain barrel raffles (2)Raffles for books for children and adults by Douglas Tallamy and Robin Wall KimmererRaffles for gift certificates for native plants from a local nursery (Must be present to win)

The program will introduce the partnerships that makes the project possible, our planting plans, how planting this garden can help to protect the water resources from the impacts of stormwater all while providing co-benefits like supporting pollinators and improving the aesthetic of an area. The information presented will give attendees ideas they can apply to their own homesites to help control stormwater onsite to protect local waterways, address erosion challenges or persistently wet areas. 

The program will conclude with an invitation to sign up for a community planting day on Saturday, October 17, to help plant two new buffer gardens along Fishing Creek on the Chesapeake Beach Railway Trail. At the trail planting, we will raffle off two rain barrels (must be present to win), and each participant can take home a FREE native plant from Wild Ones Chesapeake Bay. We will provide tools and expect the planting to take about two hours. Parking is at Kellams Field.

As the buffer garden grows over the years it will serve as an educational model members of and visitors to our community can visit for inspiration for Bay friendly landscaping ideas to use at their own homes!

Families are welcome! Registration is encouraged, walk-ins are also welcome.

This is the final of 3 tours of this property in 2026 giving us an opportunity to see the garden change throughout the seasons. 

This woodland residential garden is in the busier area of Howard county, but the property is adjacent to a county recognized green space/wildlife corridor featuring many naturally occurring native spring ephemerals like Mayapples, Jack in the Pulpits and Spring Beauties. This garden, which has been certified as a Demonstration Garden under Howard County’s BayWise program and is also Bee City Certified by the County, features a 100+ years old specimen white oak, a professionally installed raingarden, a permeable parking pad, a native “lawn” with no turf grass anywhere on the property, a pond for the aquatic wildlife, and flagstone walkways snaking through the entire yard. It is also recognized by National Wildlife Federation as a Wildlife Habitat and serves as a Monarch Waystation with its diversity of native plants that sustain the bees, butterflies, moths, etc. Among the prized natives, there also are plenty of non-natives that the owners continue to eradicate.