Wednesday November 12, 2025
Five Oaks on Warson
Photos and highlights by Donna Short
Editors note: Special thanks to Donna Short for putting together the gathering highlights each month! We appreciate her efforts that keep members informed who are not able to attend our gatherings.
Over 83 Wild Ones Members gathered at the Annual Meeting and Seed Exchange searching for opportunities to expand their gardens with new plant varieties, exchange gardening information and share stories.
This year’s venue was Five Oaks on Warson which provided a larger facility with space to expand the seed selection tables into two areas for members to explore the seed offerings. Seating for the meeting was in the same room.
Light refreshments were available in the kitchen which provided another gathering area
Renee’ Benage, Kevin Mowery and Kathy Bildner were available to answer questions as members queued up to select seeds
Kathy Bildner was available to answer questions as members queued up to select seeds
Laura Arthur demonstrated techniques for winter sowing, container options and timing considerations
Besa Schweitzer demonstrated various designs for creating wreaths and corsages from seeds and stems and invited members to create their own
A 3-D microscope was available to observe seeds and insects mounted on slides.
We are saddened by the passing of our Keystone member Fran Glass in August of 2025. Some photo displays at the gathering reminded us of her welcoming and warm personality, chapter contributions, and longstanding love of native plants. We were honored to share books from her collection with the chapter members.
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The Annual Meeting portion of the event began with a report on the Wild Ones St Louis Chapter, by President Marsha Gebhardt. Board Members recently elected or reelected by Wild Ones St. Louis members through an online ballot were: Dawn Weber – Vice-President, Penny Holtzmann – Treasurer, Renee’ Benage – Membership Chair, and Brenda Adams and Charles Carey – Members-At-Large.
Marsha introduced all Board Members and recently elected Member-at-Large, Charles Carey.
Sign-up sheets were available for members to Volunteer for various committees. It’s never too late to volunteer! See Volunteering is a Win-Win on our web site, where you will find a description of the various committees and the tasks they perform as well as a form where you can volunteer.
Committee chairs provided a description of their committee’s responsibilities, including Kathy Bildner (Grant committee) and Pam Hass (Advocacy Committee), pictured here.
Sara McClenning announced a $2,000 grant Wild Ones St Louis is receiving from her employer, Enterprise Leasing. This is in addition to the $1,000 grant she requested and the chapter received last year.
At the close of the meeting Attendance Prizes were awarded which were $50 gift certificates donated by local nurseries and purchased by Wild Ones St. Louis.
Forrest Keeling Nursery
Greenscape Gardens
Missouri Wildflowers Nursery
River City Natives
Sugar Creek Gardens
Garden Heights
We look forward to a native-plant filled 2026!
