Garden Tours

11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. – Tour Clark Public Utilities Pollinator Garden

Take in a hosted garden tour at the festival and learn how to provide food and habitat for the many pollinators native to Clark County. Hosted by Michael O’Loughin.

Michael O’Loughlin is the Environmental Sustainability Manager here at Clark Public Utilities. In his spare time, he can be found working on habitat enhancement projects and pollinator seed trials on his farm in McMinnville, OR. The farm is a flagship farm where he teaches other landowners how to be better land stewards. He is a member of both the Oregon Bee Atlas and the Washington Bee Atlas and serves on the Washington State Pollinator Health Task Force. He is also a Master Gardener. In 2021 he and his brother were awarded the NAPPC Farmer-Rancher Pollinator Award for the US.

12:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. – Bee Walk & Solar Talk in the Pollinator Meadow

Community Solar invites you to visit the blooms in our Solar Pollinator Meadow and learn from Vancouver Bee Project about the plants you can use to create a pollinator oasis on your own property. Stand in the Solar Meadow to appreciate what 319,000 watts of pure sun power looks like and learn about our newest Community Solar project coming in East County. Hosted by Ashley King & Bella Padgett.

Ashley King is a Program Coordinator in Energy Services at Clark Public Utilities, supporting solar net metering and the commercial lighting incentive program. But her first home at the Utility was in StreamTeam for over 8 years. When she’s not at the Utility, she’s trying to figure out where she can squeeze another plant into her native garden, hitting the hiking trails, or volunteering at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Ashley holds a BA in Biology and Psychology from Wake Forest University and an MS in Organismal Biology and Ecology from the University of Montana.

Bella Padgett is serving as an AmeriCorps member with the City of Vancouver Naturespaces Pilot Program. She is also the Habitat Restoration Specialist at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge Complex and sits on the board of directors for the Vancouver Bee Project. They previously conducted and assisted on research through Oregon State University’s Forest Animal Ecology Lab pertaining to the wild bee communities of the Oregon Coast Range. She holds a B.S. in Biology from Oregon State University and is an Apprentice Master Mellitologist. In their spare time, they enjoy hiking, birding, and visiting the many bees in their backyard.