HOME CONTACT US VISITOR INFO PROGRAMS EVENTS  
Roaring Brook Speakers - Programs


The Nature Center staff have a variety of presentations available
that may be of interest to your club or civic organization.
Programs can also be tailored to your club's interests.

Program fee $250 plus mileage.

 

Presentation Topics: Margery Winters mwinters@thechildrensmuseumct.org
860.693.0263

Soil – It’s Not Just Dirt
Rarely discussed by gardeners, soil is, nonetheless, the foundation of a garden. Each tablespoon of healthy soil is alive with millions of creatures, many working to keep your plants healthy. Learn why you should care about this intriguing ecosystem.

Beyond Birdfeeders
Learn what you can plant in your yard to provide food to an even greater variety of birds throughout the year while promoting biodiversity in your neighborhood.

Butterfly Gardens Are For The Birds
Butterfly gardens may attract a host of beautiful winged creatures to your yard, not just butterflies. Find out what makes a successful butterfly habitat.

Gardening for Bees, Butterflies & Other Pollinators
Pollinators play a critical role in in the production of most fruits and vegetables and they need our help. Learn about our many native pollinators, their important role in keeping our ecosystems healthy, and how you can manage your garden to provide just what they need.

Beyond Flower Gardens: Native Woody Plants in a Pollinator Garden
Native shrubs and trees are often important, but often overlooked, nectar & pollen sources in a pollinator garden. Learn why these plants provide even more.

Gardening with Frog & Toad
A garden filled with the peeps, trills, quacks, or croaks from our native frogs and toads is one of the fastest ways to judge the health of your local ecosystem. Learn how to garden to help the amphibian populations in your yard and beyond.

Gardening for Wildlife
Your garden is home to many wonderful creatures. Learn about their life cycles, their ecological value, and how to bring life to your garden by planting the right plants, as well as providing shelter and water.

Critters in the Garden
Chipmunks, rabbits, and deer – oh my! These and many other animals can wreak havoc our gardens. Learn how to humanely co-exist with these furry creatures.

Plant Communication: Let’s Listen In
Scientists are learning more about how plants communicate with each other. Learn how they get their messages to each other and what they are they saying. Fascinating new scientific findings on the battle tactics and alliances between plants, insects, and fungi (including the discovery of the Wood Wide Web) should make us rethink some of our gardening practices.

Native Plants: Not Just a Pretty Face
Native plants are not just another pretty addition to your garden. Discover the ecological benefits of our native plants and how we can recapture native habitats in our own gardens.

Seeing Red (or Why Friends Don’t Let Friends Plant Burning Bush)

Nationwide, three million acres are lost each year to alien plants.  Removal is expensive & time consuming.  Learn what makes these plants so damaging and how gardeners can restore ecological balance to our neighborhoods.

Spring Wildflowers
Connecticut has a myriad of spring wildflowers. Discover why they bloom in the spring, where to find them, how they got their names and what makes these plants so special.

What’s Up With Fall?
A lot is going on in our woodlands and our yards in the fall. Find out what makes for the idea fall foliage season, what happens to all those fallen leaves, why there are so many acorns one year and none the next, what garden plants have the best fall colors, and much more.

Winter Wonders
Learn the many ways winter transforms our gardens and our landscape, why snowflakes have six sides, and how strangely beautiful and startling winter can be in this fun visual presentation.

Saving Our Wild Areas, One Yard at a Time
Unlike Vegas, what happens in our yards does not always stay in our yards, and can affect areas far from our homes. By reconsidering how and why we garden as we do, we can help promote wildlife diversity in our own back yards and in our wild areas beyond.

Changing Land, Changing Wildlife
landscape has changed dramatically over the last 500 years, from forest, to field, to thicket, and back to forest. As the land has changed so has our wildlife. Learn how our current land use and gardening practices impact our wild areas.

Connecticut’s Story
Geologically, Connecticut was once the center of the world, with mountains higher than the Himalayas and was once located just off the coast of Africa. Unravel the stories in of Connecticut’s exciting geological past that are told by the rocks around us.

The Importance of Wetlands
Seventy percent of Connecticut’s wetlands have been destroyed since colonial days. Learn about the various types of wetlands in Connecticut, their importance to our ecosystem, and how we can preserve our remaining wetlands or mimic their functions in our gardens.

FOR A COMPLETE PRINTABLE LIST, click here.

 

Presentation Topics: Jay Kaplan

jkaplan@TheChildrensMuseumCT.org
860.693.0263

Changing Land, Changing Wildlife: Connecticut’s landscape has changed dramatically over the last 500 years, from forest, to field, to thicket, and back to forest. As the land has changed so has our wildlife. Learn how our current land use practices may impact our wild areas.

Birdlife of Connecticut (or Canton): Find out what birds can be found in Connecticut (or Canton), where they can be seen and when. How are bird populations are changing and why.

Attracting Birds to Your Yard (or Attracting Wildlife to Your Yard): Learn what you can do to make your yard more attractive to our feathered friends.

Connecticut's Wildlife Digest (or Wildlife of Canton): Learn what animals call Connecticut home, which animal populations are declining, which are increasing and why.

Reptiles & Amphibians: From box turtles to the mysterious spadefoot toad,learn more about these fascinating groups of animals.

Snakes Alive!: Whether they fascinate you or scare you, there is much to learn bout snakes.This presentation includes live snakes. 

Butterflies (and Moths): Connecticut has a wide array of interesting butterflies and moths. Learn about these creatures including some of our more exotic varieties.

Animal Adaptations: Animals require clean air, water, food and shelter from the environments in which they live. Learn how animals adapt to meet their needs and hat happens if they are unable to do so.

The Farmington River - a Multi-use River: Our Farmington River is the most heavily utilized River in State. Find out what makes it important, what creatures call it home and what we must do to keep it “wild & scenic”.

Owls of Connecticut: Whoo can be found here? Learn about the owls that live here or visit our area and how to find them.

Travelogues:  Atlantic Rain Forest of Brazil