On Wednesday, Feb. 20, the St. Mary’s Arboretum Association and the Natural Science and Mathematics Colloquium Series at St. Mary’s College will sponsor the talk “Disasters by Design: How Global Change Threatens Landscape Sustainability.” Michael Raupp, University of Maryland professor and ornamental horticulture specialist, will present on how human activities contribute to pest outbreaks, and what these outbreaks mean to the citizens of Maryland. The talk will be held in St. Mary’s College’s Schaefer Hall, room 106, starting at 4:40 p.m. It is free and open to the public.  

At the conclusion of the event, participants can take home free tree and shrub seedlings from the arboretum’s plant nursery. The seedlings are sponsored by the arboretum and the Chaney Foundation of Waldorf, Md. 

The St. Mary’s Arboretum Association was founded in 2010 at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. As the state’s public honors college, St. Mary’s is committed to exemplifying an honors commitment in all that it does, be it in the classroom or in its grounds practices and management. The St. Mary’s Arboretum Association holds public education sessions relevant to its waterside home in St. Mary’s County, and this year’s overall theme is “Seeing the Forest…and the Trees…Landscaping with a Sustainable Future in Mind.” All education sessions are free and open to the public. Upcoming events are listed on the arboretum’s website: www.smcm.edu/arboretum.