Evenings with Experts | Messy or Magic? Biodiversity and the Perception of Beauty

Edwina von Gal
Founder, Perfect Earth Project

May 17, 2023 (Wednesday)
7:00 - 8:00 pm

IN-PERSON at the
NE Botanic Garden at Tower Hill 
11 French Drive, Boylston, MA

and ONLINE via Zoom Webinar

Landscapes built along conventional standards of beauty, such as the pristine American lawn, are typically ecological dead zones, and often maintained with chemicals that are harmful to humans as well as wildlife. Given catastrophic declines in biodiversity, it is imperative that we make room for nature in our neighborhoods. But habitat-rich native landscapes are still commonly read as “messy,” a barrier to the widespread cultural embrace of this movement. Edwina von Gal discusses how we can change the perception of what a “good” garden is, where healthy habitat is not disparaged as untidy but appreciated for its richness, complexity, and life-giving magic. Edwina von Gal has been the Principal of her eponymous landscape design firm since 1984. 

This lecture is presented in partnership with the New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill.