The WildStory: A Podcast of Poetry and Plants by The Native Plant Society of New Jersey – Details, episodes & analysis

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The WildStory: A Podcast of Poetry and Plants by The Native Plant Society of New Jersey

Native Plant Society of New Jersey

Science

Frequency: 1 episode/33d. Total Eps: 31

The Wildstory: A Podcast of Poetry and Plants by The Native Plant Society of New Jersey, is hosted by Ann E. Wallace, Poet Laureate of Jersey City. Art and nature intercept in each episode to bring listeners inside the world of poetry about the natural world and to introduce them to other well-known voices from the world of ecology. It is an independent project of The Native Plant Society of New Jersey, a state-wide nonprofit organization dedicated to the appreciation, protection, and study of the native flora of NJ. Learn more at npsnj.org.

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🇨🇦 Canada - nature
29/08/2026
#98
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
26/08/2026
#100
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
25/08/2026
#87
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
24/08/2026
#75
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
23/08/2026
#70
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
22/08/2026
#52
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
21/08/2026
#39
🇺🇸 USA - nature
31/07/2026
#84
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
14/07/2026
#93
🇨🇦 Canada - nature
13/07/2026
#82

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https://www.toadshade.com/
18 shares
https://npsnj.org/the-wildstory-podcast/
5 shares
https://www.annwallacephd.com/
3 shares

https://www.instagram.com/kimcorrero
10 shares
https://www.instagram.com/annwallace409
9 shares
https://www.instagram.com/thewildstory_podcast
6 shares

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Score global : 32%

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Episode 16: Poet Penny Harter, Naturalist Mark Garland and Naturalist Pat Sutton

Wednesday, September 11, 2024 • Duration 01:39:47

This episode of The WildStory is all about the southernmost point in New Jersey—beautiful Cape May, known to beachgoers as a summer destination. But for nature lovers, September is migration season and the very best time to head to Cape May. Which is exactly what many of us from the Native Plant Society of New Jersey will be doing, for a special trip to Cape May the weekend of September 27th through the 29th. The retreat sold out faster than we anticipated, but we wanted to share some of the wonders of the area with you in this episode, which includes an inspiring roster of guests from South Jersey.

Our featured poet is Penny Harter (4:00), who has lived and written in May’s Landing for the past dozen years. Penny and Ann spoke about memory, grief, and the everyday creatures and objects that become the imagery that fills her poetry. Penny also offers a mini-lesson on haibun, a beloved Japanese form near to her heart, a form that allows ideas to ripple and expand, like rings upon a lake,

In Ask Randi, Dr. Randi Eckel (0:32:00), a native plant expert for NPSNJ and owner of Toadshade Wildflower Farm, talks about entering fall, when the many species of goldenrod come into their glory. She clears up the confusion between goldenrod and ragweed and shares why Seaside Goldenrod, which grows along the seashore, is one of her favorites.

We then hear from naturalist Mark Garland (0:44:54) the Director Emeritus of the Cape May Monarch Monitoring Project. Mark has lived and worked in Cape May for more than 20 years and is the author of Watching Nature: A Mid-Atlantic Natural History. Mark talks with Kim about the Monarch butterfly and why its migration is unlike any other that we know of on this planet.

In our final segment, Kim and Ann catch up with naturalist Pat Sutton (01:09:04), who has lived and worked in the Cape May area for over 40 years. Pat shares her knowledge of Cape May Island, one of the top spots in the world to see butterfly and bird migration. She points out her favorite places to visit and tells us about her film, "The UNFOLDING of Pat Sutton’s WILDLIFE GARDEN,” which features her 1/2 acre home wildlife habitat which encompasses 202 native plants, 61 trees, shrubs, and vines, 9 grasses, 5 ferns, 213 bird species, 79 butterfly species and 113 other pollinators.

Thank you for joining us on The WildStory. Follow us on Instagram Here to see clips.

Hosted by Ann E. Wallace, PhD

Poet Laureate of Jersey City

Co-host Kim Correro,

Rutgers Master Gardener and Director of State Programs

Special Contributor Dr. Randi Eckel

Entomologist and Vice President of Membership NPSNJ

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Episode 15: Poet Barbara Kingsolver, Director of Horticulture Katie Bliss and Naturalist Nancy Lawson

Wednesday, August 14, 2024 • Duration 01:33:10

This episode features an interview with best-selling author Barbara Kingsolver (0:04:34) from 2022. It was recorded for The WildStory’s predecessor, an Instagram series called Saturday Morning Poetry, hosted by the Hudson County Chapter of NPSNJ. Barbara Kingsolver is of course most widely known for her brilliant novels, but she is also a poet with two published collections. In this interview, recorded a week before the release of the internationally acclaimed novel Demon Copperhead, we talked about Barbara’s 2020 poetry collection How to Fly (in Ten Thousand Easy Lessons), leaning into poetry’s capacity for delight and whimsy with a conversation about trees as good people, followed by a more sobering discussion about climate change and the need to cherish and protect the natural places on this earth. We reprise this interview here on The WildStory with special permission from Barbara Kingsolver.

In Ask Randi, Dr. Randi Eckel (0:25:35), the native plant expert for NPSNJ and owner of Toadshade Wildflower Farm, talks about the impact ecologically damaging plants have on the environment, with a focus on the Butterfly Bush. Although eye-catching, hardy, and seemingly helpful to butterflies and other pollinators, Butterfly Bush is actually an invasive species that can impair the health of our local ecosystems.

We then hear from Katie Bliss (0:39:28), the Director of Horticulture for the Cape May Point Science Center, formerly known as St. Mary by the Sea retreat house. The Center is located in the middle of the Atlantic flyway and is the location for this year's NPSNJ retreat for membership in late September. Katie talks with Kim about the center's rich history and the pollinator garden she created with her husband, which is a recipient of a 2024 NPSNJ mini-grant.

Episode 6: Guest Host N. West Moss interviews Jersey City Poet Laureate Ann E. Wallace and we talk with Best-Selling Author Brie Arthur about Alpha Gal Syndrome and more.

Saturday, November 4, 2023 • Duration 01:12:42

Guest host N. West Moss, author of the memoir Flesh and Blood (Algonquin Press), joins us for the opening interview of this episode. West turns the tables to interview The WildStory host and Jersey City Poet Laureate Ann E. Wallace about her new poetry collection, Days of Grace and Silence: A Chronicle of COVID’s Long Haul, forthcoming from Kelsay Books in winter 2024. They speak about Ann’s isolation and turn to writing when she fell ill at the start of the pandemic and through her long recovery, but also about community and the presence of nature as a reminder of hope and resilience. We then hear from Dr. Randi Eckel, who offers suggestions for shady ground cover plants in a new installment of Ask Randi. Co-host Kim Correro joins Ann in conversation with Brie Arthur—a frequent contributor to the PBS television show “Growing a Greener World” and leader in the foodscape revolution. Brie, the Plant Lady, discusses her move years ago toward foodscaping and how you might visually blend food crops into your yard. Brie also opens up about the severe health impacts she has faced from tick-borne illnesses and the preventive measures gardeners and nature enthusiasts might take to protect against Alpha-Gal Syndrome and Lyme Disease.

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Episode 5: Migration with Poet Susan Glass and Don Torino, President of Bergen County Audubon Society

Wednesday, October 18, 2023 • Duration 01:14:28

Poet Susan Glass, who has been blind since birth, speaks with Ann Wallace about the integral role birds have played in her life—and in her poetry—as she uses their songs and calls to locate herself, spatially and metaphorically, in the natural world. She also brings listeners into the creative process of completing her chapbook The Wild Language of Deer, published in 2022 by Slate Roof Press. It is a collection filled with delight, birdsong, and wonder.
Dr. Randi Eckel announces what members can expect from this year's NPSNJ Fall Conference, Hidden In Plain Sight: The Outstanding Natural Diversity of New Jersey on Saturday, November 4th, and answers a question from Cheryl about additional native plants she can add to her garden to support birds and pollinators.
Co-host Kim Correro joins Ann in conversation with Don Torino of the Bergen County Audubon Society and author of Life in the Meadowlands. Don, who has spent a lifetime exploring New Jersey’s Meadowlands, shares his deep knowledge of the habitat's birds, and the plants they depend on, and he reminds us of the steps we can take to protect the birds in our communities.

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Episode 4: Poet Christine Klocek-Lim and Author Jennifer Jewell on her new book What We Sow

Thursday, September 28, 2023 • Duration 01:10:56

In this episode, poet Christine Klocek-Lim talks with Ann Wallace about the ways in which her work engages with nature, whether she is taking us onto the trail with her or creating the sequence of persona poems in her new chapbook Nomenclatura, forthcoming from Glass Lyre Press. Christine reflects on the human history held within seemingly wild spaces, the precarity of life, and the communal element of the being outdoors. We then hear from Dr. Randi Eckel for a new installment of Ask Randi. And co-host Kim Correro joins Ann in conversation with Jennifer Jewell, host of the podcast Cultivating Place: Conversations on Natural History and the Human Impulse to Garden in advance of her appearance at the Garden Futures Summit in New York City hosted by The Garden Conservancy on September 29. Jennifer speaks with us about her new book What We Sow, from Timber Press, a book germinated in the early months of the pandemic, when the widespread seed shortage led Jennifer into a fascinating and moving reflection on the cultural, environmental, and metaphoric meaning of seeds.

WIN AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF WHAT WE SOW

At the end of the episode, we share a special creative giveaway offer of Jennifer’ book What We Sow! Write a short poem or memoir piece on your own seed or germination story. Think about the communal or generational connections held within the seeds and plants that you sow and pass on. Send your entry of a poem, no more than 20 lines, or a memoir, 150 words or fewer, to us at TheWildStory@npdnj.org with Seed Challenge in the subject line by October 20. Three winners will receive signed copies of What We Sow, thanks to Jennifer Jewell and Timber Press, AND they will be invited to record their pieces to air in Episode 6 of The WildStory. So have fun writing—we look forward to reading your work!

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Episode 3: Poet January Gill O’Neil and Landscape designer Edwina von Gal

Friday, September 15, 2023 • Duration 01:07:58

Poet January Gill O’Neil speaks with Ann Wallace about her new collection, Glitter Road, forthcoming from CavanKerry Press in February 2024. January discusses her year as the John and Renee Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi, and her immersion in the difficult cultural history of the south, as laid against its rich and fertile landscape. She also reflects on the ways in which the pandemic, which began toward the end of residency, allowed time for family, writing, and observation of the natural world. We then hear from Dr. Randi Eckel about the new season of NPSNJ webinars during the next installment of Ask Randi. And co-host Kim Correro joins Ann Wallace in the final segment for an important conversation with renowned landscape designer Edwina von Gal in advance of her appearance at the Garden Futures Summit in New York City, which is hosted by the Garden Conservancy on Sept 29 and 30th. Edwina speaks about sustainable design and the Perfect Earth Project, as well as her Two Thirds for the Birds initiative, which offers an easy-to-remember strategy for incorporating native plants into our gardens.

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Episode 2: Lisbeth White, author of American Sycamore, and Katy Lyness, Botanical Illustrator

Saturday, September 2, 2023 • Duration 01:02:06

Episode 2: Lisbeth White, a poet from Washington State and author of American Sycamore (Perugia Press, 2022) speaks with Ann Wallace about how ancestry, myth, and stories are contained within the American landscape, reflecting on the simultaneous beauty and historic violence evoked and held within the trees and waterways of this nation, and how ritual might help restore connection to the land. We also hear from Dr. Randi Eckel, President of the Native Plant Society of New Jersey, about the upcoming trip to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. And co-host Kim Correro joins Ann Wallace for a lively conversation with botanical illustrator Katy Lyness, delving into the past roles and present joy of the art form.

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Episode 1: Poet Sati Mookherjee and Kim Rowe of the Independent Garden Center Initiative

Season 1 · Episode 1

Monday, August 21, 2023 • Duration 01:02:45

Episode 1: Sati Mookherjee, a poet from the Pacific Northwest, speaks with Ann Wallace about her new collection Ways of Being (MoonPath Press, 2023) and the way grief, language, and the natural world intersect within her work. NPSNJ President Dr. Randi Eckel discusses the role of cultivars in our gardens. Co-host Kim Correro then joins in for a conversation with Kim Rowe, leader of the Monmouth Chapter of NPSNJ, about the Independent Garden Center Initiative and strategic efforts to bring more native plants into New Jersey’s nurseries. Learn more about The WildStory and about The Native Plant Society of Jersey at NPSNJ.org and follow us on Instagram @NativePlantSocietyNJ, @AnnWallace409 and @KimCorrero.

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Episode 14: Poet Kai Coggin, Ecological Horticulturalist Rebecca McMackin and Botanist Jared Rosenbaum

Wednesday, July 10, 2024 • Duration 01:38:32

In episode 14, Kai Coggin, Poet Laureate of Hot Springs, Arkansas, and host of Wednesday Night Poetry (0:02:56), talks with Ann Wallace about her new book Mother of Other Kingdoms, published in April 2024 by Harbor Editions. Kai speaks about the many ways in which the tender act of mothering living things, whether wild or human, has enriched her life and provides sustaining lessons on finding joy and wonder through difficult times.

In Ask Randi, Dr. Randi Eckel, the native plant expert for NPSNJ and owner of Toadshade Wildflower Farm⁠ (0:35:34), explains why native Jewelweed is hard to find for sale. She then answers a listener question from Maude about how we define local when purchasing native plants. Randi also makes a special announcement about the September trip to Cape May for NPSNJ members.

Kim Correro then speaks with Rebecca McMackin (0:45:41) about the power of ecological horticulture in creating a more just and equitable world. Rebecca discusses the emotional and physical benefits of living in a thriving ecosystem and suggests that access to beauty should be a human right. She wraps up by sharing tips on the importance of knowing how to water your plants and why fall is the ideal planting season. We encourage you to sign up for Rebecca's free NEWSLETTER, which is filled with valuable information for gardeners. Don't forget to check out her d" with almost one million views!

Episode 13: Poet Camille T. Dungy, Designer Claudia West and New Jersey Artist Susan Darwin

Wednesday, June 12, 2024 • Duration 01:28:00

In episode 13, Camille T. Dungy (0:03:00), a renowned poet, essayist, and memoirist, joins Ann Wallace in conversation about her book Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden, published by Simon and Schuster in 2023 and now out in paperback. Soil is a book that invites us into Camille’s native plant prairie project at her home in Colorado, but it is also about much more than that, taking us back to the year 2020 and making record not only of the story of a garden but of the context—familial, national, historical, ecological, social—from which it sprang.

In Ask Randi, Dr. Randi Eckel (0:35:00) makes a special announcement about the 2024 NPSNJ mini-grant program. She then answers a question from Tom in Connecticut, who is on a tight budget and needs help choosing colorful native plants that will bloom throughout the seasons.

Ann then speaks with Susan Darwin (0:46:48), New Jersey artist and member of the Native Plant Society, who discovered us through the annual conference while working on her New Jersey 2023 series of paintings. Susan is nearly halfway through her 10-year location series, in which she artistically explores a different place each year. Her New Jersey 2023 exhibit, featuring 20 paintings from across the state, is currently on display at Reeves-Reed Arboretum in Summit and all are invited to attend the artist reception on the afternoon of Saturday, June 29.

To close out the episode, Kim and Ann talk with Claudia West (1:03:31), a seasoned professional in her field. Claudia is a landscape designer, grower, installer, and land manager. She is also co-owner of Phyto Studio and co-author of the highly acclaimed book Planting in a Post-Wild World, which has been a valuable resource for many gardeners.

The WildStory: A Podcast of Poetry and Plants by The Native Plant Society of New Jersey – Details, episodes & analysis

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The WildStory: A Podcast of Poetry and Plants by The Native Plant Society of New Jersey – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other99+

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Bookshop8

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other99+

Instagram32

Bookshop8

Apple Podcasts

Spotify