Using Native Grasses and Sedges with Shannon Currey 

For those looking to boost their landscape's ecological impact, native grasses and sedges offer smart solutions to common landscape challenges. Unlike oceans of mulch and vast expanses of turf grass, native graminoids add biodiversity and increased resilience. These extraordinary plants help preserve and build the soil, manage stormwater, serve animals and insects with shelter and food, and reduce weed competition. From low-key groundcover to seasonal superstar, their varied habits and unique aesthetic qualities make them essential for looks as well.

Join Shannon Currey for a classroom overview of true grasses, which are in the family Poaceae, along with sedges in the genus Carex and a few other graminoids. We'll touch on their physiology - including some tips for distinguishing between them - and talk about why they're helpful for solving landscape challenges. We'll cover cultural conditions, planting, and management. Then we'll stroll outside to explore the landscape, apply our tips for identifying them, and see how the native grasses and sedges are working (or not) on this site.

Part of this class will be in the classroom and part will be in the field so please dress accordingly and bring any snacks/drinks you may need.

 Instructor: Shannon Currey, Education & Outreach, Izel Native Plants. 

Shannon Currey is a horticultural educator with Izel Native Plants. She began her work life as a social scientist but changed careers to pursue horticulture in 2003. She studied horticultural science and landscape deisgn at North Carolina State University and worked short stints at a landscape design firm and at Niche Gardens, a pioneering native plant nursery in North Carolina. In 2007, she began working at Hoffman Nursery, a wholesale grower specializing in grasses, sedges, and other graminoids. There, she developed a deep understanding of these specialized plants. Along the way, her interest in and commitment to using native plants grew. In 2022, she joined Izel Native Plants to focus on education and outreach. An online retailer, Izel helps consumers source native plants to create environmentally sound landscapes that support local ecosystems.

Shannon has shared her knowledge in nationally published articles and traveled throughout the country speaking to professional organizations, community groups, and at public gardens. She currently serves on the Perennial Plant Association's Board of Directors and the North Carolina Plant Conservation Scientific Committee. She's based in Durham, North Carolina and is enchanted by the incredible plant diversity that North Carolina holds.

This course is an elective course and provides 4 credits toward the completion of the Certificate in Native Plants program.

Registration Policy:  As with all Certificate in Native Plants classes, class size is limited.  To give everyone the best opportunity to participate, there is a non-refundable cancellation fee of $10, with the balance refunded if you cancel at least 7 calendar days before the class will be held.  If the class is cancelled by the instructor or the CNP program, registrants will get a full refund. You will not be registered until your payment is received.