William A. McAvoy Joins DBG Board

William A. McAvoy

Ray Sander, President of the Delaware Botanic Gardens, announced that William A. McAvoy has joined the DBG Board of Directors. Sander noted, “We are honored that Bill has agreed to serve on our Board and that this public garden continues to attract people with his knowledge, experience and enthusiasm.”

DBG Executive Director Sheryl Swed said, “Bill has been involved with DBG since 2014, when he participated in a key decision to revise our original site plan that led to our current, visitor-friendly site. Bill also inventoried the plants and trees in our 12-acre Woodland Gardens, helped site the placement of our Outdoor Living Classroom, and inspired the re-creation of the Inland Dunes. Now, as a DBG Board Member, he will help DBG protect and preserve this public garden and advise our staff and volunteers.”

McAvoy, a native Delawarean, received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, with an emphasis on Botany and Vegetation Management, from Delaware State University. Bill brings 30 years of experience studying the flora of Delaware and the Delmarva Peninsula, and he has been a leader in documenting the flora of Delaware with a focus on rare plant species. Through the years, he has written many professional articles on the plant life and habitats of Delaware and the Delmarva Peninsula. He is the primary author of, and responsible for annually revising, the web-based “Flora of Delaware Online Database.”

McAvoy said, “I am pleased to join the DBG Team. I walked this 37-acre site when it was more a field of dreams than a Garden reality. Actually, it was a field of weeds and a forest full of greenbrier! I am so impressed with how far the Gardens have progressed since that time. What makes Delaware Botanic Gardens so special are three things: the preservation and promotion of native plants, that it was built with a very small staff and an army of dedicated volunteers, and they had top professional garden designs by Piet Oudolf, the well-known Dutch plantsman. Delaware Botanic Gardens is a major treasure for Delaware and Sussex County.”