Nature U Series
Upcoming Workshops
Pollinators, Predators, Plants, & Pesticides
Postponed
Location: Online Live Instruction
Instructors: Brannen Basham and Jill Jacobs
Cost: $90 per participant for all 4 sessions
Beginning with native bees and other beneficial pollinators, learn how to foster populations
of these animals in your outdoor spaces through native plantings and other practices.
Discover the countless benefits of viewing your land as part of the ecosystem and
mimicking the incredible power of natural spaces. Recreating that process is possible
within your own garden, and it all starts with gaining a deeper understanding of the
native beneficial creatures that are the cogs of our ecosystem. Explore methods of
creating a balance in your garden through native plantings and other key pieces of
habitat to attract the pollinators, predators, prey, and microbes needed in a thriving
and well-balanced ecosystem. Information on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and a
general IPM template will be provided as part of this course.
May 7th: Intro to Native Pollinators
May 14th: Intro to Native Predators
May 21st: Intro to Native Plants
May 28th: Intro to Pesticides
Bio of Instructors: Brannen Basham and Jill Jacobs are owners of Spriggly's Beescaping, a nature education and habitat restoration business with a special focus on native plants and native pollinators. On the habitat restoration side of their business, they offer in-person and online consultation services for wildlife-focused sustainable landscaping, full-scale 2D and 3D design, and on-site implementation when available. On the nature education side, they offer a variety of educational courses, both in-person and online, including a 16+ hour on-demand video series called Gardening for the Planet. Their Native Plant Conference course will be a condensed version of that content, which covers everything from attracting pollinators to integrative pest management, to tackling drainage issues. In addition, they create nature-based interpretive exhibits and informational signage and have published two books with more on the way. In addition, Brannen serves as the resident nature writer for the Sylva Herald.
The Art of Nature Journaling
Postponed - June 5 from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm
Location: 91热爆网 Picnic Area
Instructor: Debby Singleton
Cost: $60
Nature Journaling helps to deepen your observational and drawing skills of the natural world around us. The practice of keeping a nature journal is an extremely effective and engaging way to observe, spark curiosity, and think creatively. When we use words, pictures, and numbers to journal it helps us to think differently and make a more complete record of what we see. Starting (or maintaining) a nature journal is a way to rediscover the thrill of science. It helps us to slow down, look, ask questions, and piece together answers.
Join Debby Singleton for this supportive, engaging, and nature-based workshop for journaling and creating art. Debby will provide all materials needed for this workshop. At the end, each participant will take home a completed nature journal of their observations and a resource list to further their practice. Debby is a firm believer that everyone can 鈥渃reate鈥� and uses this mantra to help others find the joy in the 鈥減rocess鈥�.
Forest Bathing at Pinnacle Park
Friday, May 23, 2025 from 1pm to 4pm
(Register by May 9th to ensure your spot)
Friday, June 6, 2025 from 1pm to 4pm
(Register by May 23rd to ensure your spot)
Location: Pinnacle Park, Sylva
Instructor: Debby Singleton
Cost: $40 per class
Certified guide, Debby Singleton, will offer invitations for safely engaging with
nature through our sense of sight, smell, touch, hearing, and taste. This is an opportunity
to slow down, unplug, de-stress, and practice presence in the moment. Inspired by
the Japanese practice of Shinrin-Yoku, which translates to 鈥渂athing in the forest鈥�,
this immersion is an opportunity to experience the restorative benefits of the forest
around us. At the end of this immersion, participants will share their experiences
with a peaceful tea ceremony.
About the Instructor: Debby Singleton is a retired professor of Parks & Recreation Management from Western Carolina University and a certified Nature & Forest Therapy Guide. Debby is also an educator, experiential facilitator, and a multimedia artist who uses observation, creating, and journaling to connect with nature. She specializes in pen and watercolor mediums, but also dabbles in just about every source of creating. Primarily a landscape and wildlife artist, Debby captures the natural world on paper while adventuring and from her basement studio overlooking her hollow near Cullowhee, NC. She is a firm believer that everyone is an 鈥渁rtist鈥� and uses this mantra to help others find the JOY and the WELLNESS benefits of connecting art with nature. She currently guides Forest Bathing walks, nature immersion hikes, and creative explorations in Western North Carolina and beyond. Debby is excited to share her love of nature journaling, writing, sketching, and exploration with everyone in this workshop.
Supports, Modifications, and/or Accommodations for Participants
All participants are welcome. For questions regarding access and accommodations, please contact 91热爆网 Educational Outreach at learn@wcu.edu or by phone at 828.227.7397.