The Sequoyah Birthplace Museum in Vonore is hosting a free lecture on Sunday, Feb. 24 with interpretive naturalist, storyteller, and wild crafter Ila Hatter and Avi Askey, owner of the Overhill Gardens. The lecture starts at 2pm and will help kick off the 5th Annual TN Invasive Plants Awareness Week. The topic of the lecture will be “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Plants”
Ila Hatter is an interpretive naturalist, artist, storyteller, and wild crafter with more than 30 years experience teaching the cultural heritage of native plants. Ila is publisher of “Roadside Rambles”, a wild foods cookbook, and a video series: “wild Edibles and Medicinals of Southern Appalachia and Mountain Kitchen”. She hosted three Folkways programs for PBS/UNC-TV, and has appeared on CNN, Turner/South, RFDTV, and A&E.
There are more plant species here than in the entire North American continent including Canada. The indigenous people knew which plants were “the Good Plants” for food, medicines, and household use. In many cases they shared that knowledge with the incoming settlers. Even today we can enjoy having those plants, trees, shrubs, in our home landscape. There are flavors that cannot be bought, home remedies at hand, and interesting folklore to share.
Also joining Ila Hatter will be Avi Askey of the Overhill Gardens who will be lecturing on the removal of invasive plants.
This lecture is open to the public. Sequoyah Birthplace Museum is located at 576 Hwy. 360 in Vonore. This lecture is sponsored by the East Tennessee Foundation’s John D. Grubb & Louise G. Sumner Fund for Monroe County Grant. Info: Sequoyah Birthplace Museum (423) 884-6246.
– Sequoyah Birthplace Museum
