UW News

February 5, 2005

From flames to flowers, lecture series focuses on sustaining NW world

News and Information

Wildfires in western forests have become uncharacteristically severe and widespread yet society remains distrustful of management options that include removing trees and controlled burns, says Jim Agee, University of Washington professor of forest resources, whose talk “Forests Aflame: Strategies and Challenges for Managing Fire in the West,” Feb. 10, is the first in a series of three public lectures about sustaining our Northwest world.

The lectures begin at 7 p.m. in Kane 110 on the UW campus and are followed by a reception. General admission is $5 ($12 for all three lectures), alumni association members pay $4 ($9 for all three) and students pay $3 ($7 for all three). To reserve a seat and pay in advance, visit http://www.washington.edu/alumni/clubs/cfraa/2005cfrlectures.html

Gordon Bradley, UW professor of forest resources, speaks Feb. 24 on “Who Shapes the Visual Landscape? And Does it Matter?” Changes when forests and the rural countryside are used — be it for timber harvesting, road building, home building or other activities — can cause some concerns because of how the alterations fit with the existing landscape. After ecological, economic and other social concerns about a project are met, the question becomes, is there also an obligation to meet people’s visual preferences?

Dan Hinkley, a UW alum and founder and manager of Heronswood nursery near Kingston, Wash., speaks March 10 on “Exclamation, Accentuation, Punctuation: The Importance of Form and Textural Contrast in Garden Design and Plant Selection.” Hinkley says visually satisfying gardens rely on three concepts: creating depth in plantings by using vertical elements (exclamation), using plants with different textures (accentuation) and repeating elements for continuity and cohesiveness (punctuation).

The lecture series, titled “Sustaining Our Northwest World: From Fire to Flowers,” is sponsored by the UW College of Forest Resources and paid for in part from the Rachel A. Woods Professorship in Reforestation.

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Reporters: For more information, Cecilia Paul, (206) 543-3075, cece@u.washington.edu