Garden Friends Annual Meeting and Lecture

Plant conservation and stewardship are hallmarks of Omaha’s Lauritzen Gardens. Jim Locklear, the gardens’ director of conservation, will talk about their efforts.

The lecture, “More than a pretty place: Conservation initiatives at Lauritzen Gardens,” highlights the work being done at one of the Great Plains most valuable botanical gardens.

Lauritzen Gardens is a participating institution in the Center for Plant Conservation, a coalition of the nation's leading botanical institutions working to prevent the extinction of America's endangered plants. Lauritzen’s conservation work is focused on the Great Plains region where more than 100 plants are in danger of becoming extinct in their native habitat. The work of conserving endangered plants involves research, seed banking, and restoration projects.

Locklear has headed Lauritzen’s conservation efforts since 2010. He has conducted conservation assessments of imperiled plants in the Great Plains for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The Nature Conservancy, the Colorado Natural Areas Program, and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. He is a former director of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum.

He is editor of “Jewels of the Plains: Wildflowers of the Great Plains Grasslands and Hills.” This classic guide, originally written by the late South Dakota plantsman Claude A. Barr, was updated by Locklear and republished by University of Minnesota Press in 2015. Books will be available for purchase at the event.

This lecture, sponsored by UNL Garden Friends, is free and open to the public. For more information, visit facebook.com/unlgardenfriends.