Garry Oak Lecture Series

Garry Oak woodland - Mike Vouri photo

Gar­ry Oak Prairie: A Unique Habi­tat (Lec­ture Series)

What are Gar­ry Oaks and how do Gar­ry Oak habi­tats sup­port the ecol­o­gy of the San Juan Islands and the Pacif­ic Northwest?

Join experts from San Juan Island and beyond March 8,15, 22 and 29 at the San Juan Island Grange to learn about the his­to­ry of Gar­ry Oaks in the Pacif­ic North­west, their extra­or­di­nary eco­log­i­cal sig­nif­i­cance in the San Juans, and steps the steps you can take to pro­mote Gar­ry Oak habi­tat in your very own backyard!.

Sarah Ham­man of the Cen­ter for Nation­al Lands Man­age­ment will begin the lec­ture series speak­ing on what dri­ves con­ser­va­tion of the unique prairie-oak com­mu­ni­ties of the Pacif­ic Northwest.

SJC Land Bank San Juan Island Pre­serve Stew­ard, Doug McCutchen will then host a tour the fol­low­ing day (March 9, 1–4pm) show­cas­ing var­i­ous loca­tions around San Juan Island that are home to some of the most beau­ti­ful Gar­ry Oak habitats

Kath­leen Foley of the San Juan Preser­va­tion Trust, along with Ruth Mil­ner of the Wash­ing­ton Depart­ment of Fish and Wildlife will then lead a dis­cus­sion regard­ing the impor­tant wildlife that Gar­ry Oak habi­tats encourage.

Eliza Habeg­ger of the SJC Land Bank will then speak about restora­tion strate­gies and tech­niques that can help landown­ers restore the Gar­ry Oak habi­tat in their backyards.

The fourth and final lec­ture will address the tra­di­tion­al and cur­rent cul­tur­al sig­nif­i­cance of Gar­ry Oaks to indige­nous folks in the Pacif­ic North­west Region. Speak­er TBD.

The event will take place Fri­days, March 8, 15, 22 and 29 at the San Juan Island Grange,152 1st St, Fri­day Har­bor at 6:00pm. There will also be a tour on Sat­ur­day, March 9 meet­ing at the Fri­day Har­bor High School park­ing lot on Guard St at 1pm.

Gar­ry Oak Prairie: A Unique Habi­tat is part of the Grange Lec­ture Series, which strives to fos­ter social and polit­i­cal engage­ment, dis­cus­sion, and to main­tain our his­tor­i­cal Hall as a home for cel­e­bra­tions and programs.

The San Juan Island Grange has been a com­mu­ni­ty of grow­ers, mak­ers, and keep­ers since 1931. The Grange is non­par­ti­san, and so is this event. All are wel­come, includ­ing kids! 

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