Lecture: When Trees Testify: Living With and Learning From Trees

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Join us for a compelling talk with biologist and author Beronda L. Montgomery as she discusses her new book, When Trees Testify: Science, Wisdom, History and America’s Black Botanical Legacy. Drawing from science, ecology, and lived experience, Montgomery invites us to reconsider trees not simply as background elements of the landscape, but as dynamic, communicative beings that offer insight into resilience, interdependence, and adaptation.

In this thoughtful presentation, she explores how trees “testify” through their growth patterns, responses to stress, and relationships with surrounding ecosystems—revealing lessons that extend beyond the natural world into how we understand community, care, and survival. Blending scientific research with reflective storytelling, Montgomery encourages audiences to slow down, observe more deeply, and reconsider what it means to learn from the living world.

A reception with the opportunity to purchase When Trees Testify: Science, Wisdom, History and America’s Black Botanical Legacy and book signing will follow the lecture.

Join us before the event for an in-person tour of Scott Arboretum & Gardens.

Register Here- In-person and Virtual

Program Details

• All registrations include access to the recording.
• In-person registration is limited to 190. Due to limited seating, virtual registrants cannot attend in person.
• Virtual registrants will be able to view the recording shortly after the presentation concludes.
• Registration is free, but required to receive the presentation recording link.
• Email us if you have accessibility needs for this program.
• For more information, review our program and event policies or call the Scott office at 610-328-8025

About the Presenter

Beronda L. Montgomery, PhD, is a writer, science communicator, and professor. Her research group investigates how photosynthetic organisms adapt to changes in their external environment. Her scholarship extends beyond biology and into studying mentorship and faculty development to develop evidence-based strategies to foster equity and inclusion in academia. In 2020, Montgomery was one of the co-founders and co-organizers of the first Black Botanists Week. A Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, she was named one of Cell’s 100 Inspiring Black Scientists in America.