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CONTACT: Brian Ososky
Director of Marketing & Public Relations
863-734-1210; bososky@boktower.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 12, 2014

Living Landscapes & Magical Springs - Authors Doug Tallamy and Rick Kilby to Speak at Bok Tower Gardens

 

LAKE WALES, Fla. – Two noted authors are scheduled to speak at Bok Tower Gardens next week.

On Saturday, September 20 at 10 a.m. in the Visitor Center Theater, Dr. Doug Tallamy will share his expertise about attracting wildlife to residential landscapes. Author of Bringing Nature Home and The Living Landscape, Tallamy provides insights and answers questions about how to make your yard a fascinating part of nature. A book signing will follow at 11 a.m. in the Tower & Garden Gift Shop.

Once you have decided to share your property with other species, how do you go about it? Can we bring life into urban areas? How do you reconstruct complex food webs in your yard? How can we get more plants into your landscape without it looking wild and messy? Will living landscapes be more prone to insect damage and vermin? Are they higher maintenance?

Tallamy is a professor and the Chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has written more than 65 research articles and has taught insect taxonomy, behavioral ecology, and other subjects. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities.

In his free time, Tallamy enjoys photography (particularly of insects and birds), hiking and backpacking with his wife in remote places, swimming and canoeing, and teaching young people about the importance of the life forms around them.

Tickets are $20 per person and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Pre-registration at 863-734-1222. More information at www.BokTowerGardens.org.

Earlier in the week, on Wednesday, September 17 at 6 p.m. in the Visitor Center, the Gardens presents Rick Kilby, author of Finding the Fountain of Youth: Ponce de Leon and Florida’s Magical Waters. Learn about the legacy of Ponce de Leon's search for the legendary Fountain of Youth in Florida, and other secrets of old Florida.

For more than 25 years, Orlando graphic designer Rick Kilby has studied Florida’s popular history and helped clients present historical topics in interesting, visual ways.

A 1986 graduate of the University of Florida, Kilby was creative director of the Church Street Station attraction in Orlando before launching his own design studio, Kilby Creative. In 2008, Kilby launched a blog about Florida history and culture on which he’s posted more than 400 articles. He has also contributed articles to the Society for Commercial Archeology’s Road Notes and presented papers at the Society’s conferences, including one on Florida’s Fountain of Youth as a roadside attraction. In February 2014, his book received a Florida Book Award in the Visual Arts category.

Part of the Gardens new “Culture & Cocktails” series, tickets are just $10 per person. Pre-registration at 863-734-1222. More information at www.BokTowerGardens.org.

 

Bok Tower Gardens hosts the Florida Wildflower Symposium Sept. 19-20

Bok Tower Gardens partners with the Florida Wildflower Foundation (FWF) to bring the 2014 Florida Wildflower Symposium to the scenic Lake Wales attraction Sept. 19 and 20. The event includes field trips to natural lands, workshops, walks in the Gardens, and presentations by experts on wildflowers, native plants, butterflies and bees.

Symposium registration includes access to Friday field trips ($10 each), and admission to Bok Tower Gardens for Friday and Saturday activities. Registrants attending Saturday also will receive a beautiful "La Florida: 500 Years in the Land of Flowers" poster ($10 value). Cost to attend the event is $35 for FWF and Bok Tower Gardens members, and $45 for non-members.

To learn more about symposium activities and to register, visit the Florida Wildflower Foundation website at www.FlaWildflowers.org. Special hotel rates are available.

 

Saturday, September 20 is "Wildflower Day" at Bok Tower Gardens, with events such as short films, wildflower tours, and book signings in the gift shop.

 

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About Bok Tower Gardens:
Voted Florida’s best garden, Bok Tower Gardens is a National Historic Landmark located 10 miles from LEGOLAND Florida, 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa near Lake Wales in Central Florida’s rolling hills of citrus. Open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Visitor Center, Café and Gift Shop are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $12 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. LEGOLAND ticket holders will receive free admission for children under 12. For more information, contact Bok Tower Gardens, 1151 Tower Boulevard, Lake Wales FL 33853; 863-676-1408 or visit www.BokTowerGardens.org.

 

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