For more than a quarter century, The Akron Garden Club has supported efforts of the Center for Plant Conservation, the Holden Arboretum and Summit Metro Parks to rescue, protect and propagate the endangered wild Northern Monkshood, Aconitum noveboracense.


Photo credit: Joe Levack

Northern Monkshood, which is on the Ohio and federal endangered species lists, is found in only three other states, Iowa, Wisconsin and New York. The Akron Garden Club and its community partners collect seed, protect existing plants, support genetic testing and establish potential satellite populations. Northern Monkshood is located in Summit County’s Gorge Metro Park, with 192 plants in the 2018 count, up from as low as 13 in prior decades. This site is one of only two monkshood habitats in Ohio.