Sunday, April 3 at 4 p.m. — CHITTENDEN — Sunday’s Science Pub will, for the first time, be held at the Mountain Top Inn & Resort in Chittenden on Sunday, April 3 at 4 p.m.
The subject will be in keeping with the season. Titled “Weeds We Love to Hate,” it will be presented by Mary Droege, biology laboratory and greenhouse manager and adjunct professor at Castleton University.
The Science Pub series is very popular, attracting up to 100 people with the cocktail-party atmosphere, the visual presentations by experts, and the lively discussions that follow. People order drinks and many stay for dinner, creating a forum for learning, dialogue, and community building. The Pubs are open to the public and free, except for drinks and food.
“Weeds, invasives, exotics—we hate them all. But are they one and the same?” asks Mary Droege by way of introduction to her subject. She explains that non-native plants range from the common dandelion to the towering poison parsnip, but also to apples and roses. She will lead a discussion on good and bad non-native plants, their incursion into Vermont, and our response, as well as the limits of our abilities to manage nature.
Sunday will mark the end of the fifth Science Pub season, which has been outgrowing many of its venues. “It’s popular because there’s a hunger for learning and for community,” explains Martha Molnar, who organizes the series. “In the end, people come month after month, year after year, because it’s fun. They learn, they meet people, they drink and eat.”
Mountain Top Inn & Resort is located at 195 Mountain Top Inn, Chittenden. For more information, contact 802-468-5574 or mlmolnar3@gmail.com.
