Returning for its fifteenth year, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens’ Ina and Lewis Heafitz Endowed Lecture Series introduces Rebecca McMackin and her “Adventures in Ecological Horticulture.” The free lecture is held on Aug. 28 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the Gardens’ Bosarge Family Education Center. Tickets are available online now.

An “ecologically obsessed horticulturist and garden designer,” McMackin will share her passion and knowledge for creating gardens that can both be beautiful and support healthy ecosystems. Leveraging her experience cultivating gorgeous landscapes in the toughest environments possible, including urban parks, school playgrounds, and the sidewalks of New York City, she will share stories about her work at Brooklyn Bridge Park and the Brooklyn Museum. Participants will learn how they, too, can care for land in a beautiful and ecological way.

McMackin has been published by and featured in the New York Times, Gardens Illustrated, NPR, and PBS. Her garden for the Brooklyn Museum recently won the PPA’s Award of Excellence, and her TED Talk has been viewed over a million times. She holds MScs from Columbia University and University of Victoria in landscape design and biology, and she recently completed the Loeb Fellowship at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

The lecture is free and open to the public and will be held in person at the Gardens from 4:30 to 6 p.m. on Aug. 28. General admission to the Gardens is included in your registration. While tickets are free, they are limited and will sell out. Those interested in attending can register online at mainegardens.org or by calling 207-633-8000.