Mt. Cuba Center, a premier native plant garden, is dedicated to supporting the environment through the practice and promotion of ecological horticulture. Their trial program has been evaluating native plants and their related cultivars for more than a decade. Join George Coombs as he discusses the new approach Mt. Cuba is taking to evaluate plants for both garden performance and ecological value. In his presentation, “Knock Out Natives”, you will learn about several top-performing selections of Coreopsis, Baptisia, Monarda, and Phlox, including a few species and cultivars that you’ve probably never heard of.

George Coombs is the Director of Horticulture at Mt. Cuba Center and formerly managed the horticultural research programs, including the trial garden where he evaluated native plants and their related cultivars for their horticultural and ecological value. He has authored evaluation reports on Heuchera, Coreopsis, Baptisia, Monarda, and Phlox. In addition to the trials, George also evaluated plants for introduction to the nursery trade. This work has helped bring to market five new native plant cultivars. George is a graduate of the University of Delaware and prior to joining Mt. Cuba Center, he worked in the nursery industry at both the wholesale and retail level.

Join us for an interesting and informative evening on Tuesday, December 3, 2019, in the Goldsmith Room at the Memphis Botanic Garden. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. and the program will begin at 7:00 p.m.  Visitors – $5