September 2025
Click here to read the written recap of this program.
Alan Branhagen, Executive Director of the Natural Land Institute, will show the marvelous array of butterflies and moths that can be found in our area. Learn about the various species found here, their status, how you can attract them to your yard with their host and nectar plants and even ways to garden or maintain your landscape so that you don’t harm them.
Alan hopes the program inspires some reverence for these amazing insects, that sadly, are in trouble.
Luckily, they have resiliency to rebound if given a chance.
Alan is an all-around plantsman and naturalist specializing in birds, butterflies, botany, and planning and design with nature. He is the author of three books: The Gardeners Butterfly Book, Native Plants of the Midwest, and The Midwest Native Plant Primer. Alan’s books will be available for purchase and signing after the presentation.
Alan was Director of Operations at the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in suburban Minneapolis-St. Paul from 2017-2023 where he managed Horticulture, Plant Curation, and Natural Resource Management. For over 20 years he was the Director of Horticulture at Powell Gardens, Kansas City’s botanical garden where he oversaw all horticulture and site planning as well as resource management of the 915-acre site. His career began at the Forest Preserves of Winnebago County in Rockford, Illinois where for almost a decade he oversaw all forest preserves planning, development, and management. He was part of the beginning of the Klehm Arboretum which launched his public horticulture career. Alan has a Bachelor of Science degree in Landscape Architecture from Iowa State University and a Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture from Louisiana State University.
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