Cornell Botanic Gardens presents the first in its annual lecture series. The William and Jane Torrence Harder Lecture welcomes Kathryn Aalto, author of The New York Times best-seller, The Natural World of Winnie-the-Pooh.

A. A. Milne's classic tales Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner have delighted readers for nearly a century. The stories' characters -- Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore and the rest of the gang -- are famous, but how much do we know about the setting, the Hundred Acre Wood? Join Kathryn Aalto, author of The New York Times best-seller, The Natural World of Winnie-the-Pooh, for a look at what we can learn from the intersection of nature and culture in Winnie-the-Pooh.  Aalto will take people on a vivid journey into one of the most iconic settings in children's literature. Learn about Milne's extraordinary childhood in the natural world. Discover places that inspired the stories along with the forest's rare flora and fauna. Part travelogue and natural history, this talk weaves history with humor and birdsong with booklore as we learn how these masterpieces of children's literature were created.  

Aalto's talk is directed toward adults. 

Garden Party to follow in the Gardens at the Nevin Welcome Center

Kathryn Aalto is a writer, designer, historian, and lecturer. For the past twenty-five years, her focus has been on places where nature and culture intersect: teaching literature of nature and place, designing gardens, and writing about the natural world. She is the author of three books: Nature and Human Intervention (2011), The Natural World of Winnie-the-Pooh (2015), and Writing Wild: Women Poets, Ramblers, and Mavericks Who Shape How We See the Natural World  (March 2020). She lives in Exeter, England, with her family. You can read more about Aalto and her work at www.kathrynaalto.com, @kathrynaalto (instagram, twitter), Kathryn Aalto Landscapes on Facebook.