We have two great gardening presentations lined up for you. The following presentations will occur at 10:00 and 1:00 pm on March 21, 2026, and will be held in the north room of the Dreher building, just east of the Extension Office on the Douglas County Fairgrounds.
10:00-11:30 “Spiders are Fascinating” by Betsy Betros
People tend to immediately kill a spider upon seeing one. They are not going to attack you! Spiders are an important part of the food chain. There are lots of spiders from very colorful to dull. Spider webs are an amazing engineering feat. Spiders are —–fascinating! I hope you leave with a better and more positive outlook about spiders!
Bio: Betsy Betros’ lifelong love of insects began in childhood, and she went on to earn a degree in entomology from Colorado State University, focusing mostly on aquatic insects. She worked for 35 years for the Environmental Department of Johnson County, Kansas, and worked to earn a Master’s degree from Kansas University in environmental health science. She taught environmental science for 15 years, part time at Johnson County Community College, and found time to write a book on the butterflies of the Kansas City Region, which was published in 2008. In her retirement, Betros studies and photographs invertebrates on her five acres of land. So far, she has submitted more than 4,000 of her invertebrate images to Bugguide.net, including several rare species.
Email: eebetros@gmail.com
1:00-2:00 Fort Leavenworth history and natural history
by Neil Bass, CIV US Army — Natural Resource Specialist
Join me on a “Voyage of Discovery” of the U.S. Army’s history and the natural history of Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The Fort Leavenworth area has a human history dating back to pre-contact tribes. The Europeans have had permanent settlements here dating back to the French in the 1740’s and of course there was and is the American presence. The Army of the United States was the vanguard, in addition to just projecting the power, they also were accompanied by scientific discovery. Discovery and stewardship are still part of the Army’s presence at the Fort today. Fort Leavenworth is home to several species of flora and fauna that reach their western range limits in eastern Kansas. The Fort is also home to some of the most unique forests in the state of Kansas. Most of these natural wonders still exist there because of the Army’s long term occupation.
There will be time for Q&A after the presentation.
Bio: Neil Bass grew in the swamps of central Florida but has spent the past 38 years learning to love the grasslands and other habitats of Kansas and Missouri. He has worked for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, the Missouri Department of Conservation and been a federal biologist for over 30 years, the last 10 of which have been as, only the second, Natural Resources Specialist at Fort Leavenworth. Working for and in the natural world is just an extension of his personal interests. He loves most outdoor pursuits: hunting, fishing, backpacking, paddling, and biking. He feels extraordinarily blessed to be in a career that has often made it hard to distinguish work from play.
Email: michael.n.bass.civ@army.mil