Bulletin of the Native Plant Society of OregonNOTE: This is an archived NPSO Bulletin.
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Bulletin of the Native Plant Society of Oregon[ Return to Bulletin Directory ]
Jan. ??, Sat.. State Board Meeting: 10 A.M. - 4 P.M. On a Saturday in January. Place and date to be determined
Oct. 6, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Small Business Development Center, SE 1st & Dorian, Pendleton. Kathy Cheap will explain the project we will be working on at the UNWR (see below). We will also plan future meetings. Bring slides from your latest excursions.
Oct. 18, Sat. Work Party: Plant native grasses, forbs and shrubs at the new Kenny Pond Visitor Area at the Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge. The Blue Mountain Chapter is a co-sponsor of the project which will restore a wetland and rehabilitate the surrounding shrub steppe plant community. Bring lunch, gloves and any favorite planting tools (refuge will supply water and basic shovels and rakes). Meet: NE corner, Pendleton Safeway parking lot, 8 A.M., or, the McCormack Unit Visitor Contact Station, Patterson Ferry Rd., Irrigon, 9 A.M. For information, contact Kathy Cheap. Call Jerry Baker to RSVP.
Oct. 11, Sat. Workshop: "Seed planting and hardwood cuttings workshop." 3 - 5 P.M. Contact Loren Russell for more information.
Oct. 13, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 2087 Cordley Hall, OSU campus. "We live in lichen heaven," a slide show by Dr. Bruce McCune.
Oct. 25, Sat. Field Trip: Foray to the central-western Cascades for mushrooms and truffles. We will contribute to the Mt. Pisgah Mushroom Show and keep our eyes out for "FEMAT" listed species. Meet: 9 A.M., Arco station, west side of I-5, Corvallis (Hwy. 34) exit. Light to moderate, short hikes. Return to I-5 about 4 P.M. Emerald Chapter members may meet at S. Eugene H.S. (19th and Patterson) at 8 A.M., or at the Corvallis meeting place. Contact trip leader Dan Luoma for more information.
Oct. 27, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 110 Science Building, main campus, Lane Community College, Eugene. Directions: From 30th Ave., turn south on Eldon-Schafer Drive, go past Oak Hill School and park in LCCžs south parking lot, east end. Walk downstairs to Science Building. Entrance to room 110 is on east side of the building. Dr. Barbara Wilson, of the Carex Working Group at OSU, returns to tell us "More Than You Ever Wanted to Know About Oregon Fescues."
Nov. ?? Field Trip: Marcia Peeters will take us mushroom hunting on some Sat. or Sun. in Nov. Details will appear in the next Bulletin.
Nov. 24, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 110 Science Building, main campus, LCC, Eugene. (See above, for directions.) Howie Brounstein, free-lance botany teacher and herbalist, who has visited Chile twice to study its botany and ecology, will speak on "The vegetation of Chile: parallels with the Northwest flora."
Dec. 8, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Come for our annual holiday party. Bring a dozen of your favorite slides, if you wish, and a finger-food snack, if convenient. Your chapter will provide punch and holiday decorations. See you there! (See Oct. mtng. for directions)
Oct. 28, Tues. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Central Oregon Environmental Center, 16 NW Kansas, Bend. This is the member slide show. Bring ten of your favorite, recent slides to share.
Oct. 15, Wed. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 218 Owens Hall, OIT campus. Wedge Watkins and Lou Whiteaker, BLM Klamath Falls Resource Area, will give a presentation on the Wood River Wetland Project. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call Susan Erwin.
Oct. 1, Wed. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Mosier School. Dave Shaw of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest will tell us about the canopy crane project in which biologists look at what goes on in the top story of an old-growth forest.
Nov. 5, Wed. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Mosier School. Lynn Cornelius of The Nature Conservancy of Washington will give us a presentation on the new oak woodland preserves in southern Washington.
Oct. 12, Sun. Field Trip: Columbia Shores. We will join trip leader Russ Jolley on a trip up the Gorge to St. Cloud and Beacon Rock to explore the many fall flowers on the Columbia River shoreline. Meet: 9 A.M., 99th and Glisan Park & Ride, southeast corner of the parking lot. For more information, call Greg Stone or Russ Jolley.
Oct. 14, Tues. Meeting: 7 P.M. First United Methodist Church, 1838 Jefferson St., Portland. Barbara Robinson of the Mosier Chapter will tell us about "Grazing effects on balsamroot and a ten-year study of balsamroot restoration attempts at the Tom McCall Preserve."
Nov. 11, Tues. Meeting: 7 P.M. First United Methodist Church, 1838 Jefferson St., Portland. Shane Latimer, Portland Chapter president, will give us "A trip to Ireland ... "
Oct. 16, Thurs. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 171, Science Building, SOU, Ashland. Russell Huddleston, a plant ecology student at SOU, will give a presentation on "Vernal Pools: ephemeral wetlands provide habitat oases for native plants on the Agate Desert."
For information on South Coast Chapter, contact Bruce Rittenhouse.
Oct. 9, Thurs. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 3110 Douglas County Courthouse, Roseburg. Bring fungi for discussion and identification. Mycologist Jack Hausotter will preside.
Oct. 11, Sat. Field Trip: Fungi is (or are) the subject(s). Meet: 8 A.M., BLM parking lot, 777 Garden Valley Blvd, just off exit 125 of I-5.
Nov. 13, Thurs. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 3110 Douglas County Courthouse, Roseburg. Lichens this time.
Nov. 15, Sat. Field Trip: And into the field for lichens. Meet: 8 A.M., BLM parking lot, 777 Garden Valley Blvd., Roseburg, just off exit 125 of I-5.
Dec. 11, Thurs. Meeting: 6 P.M. Annual Christmas potluck, HillCrest Vineyard. Bring slides, photos and experiences. Directions: From Roseburg, proceed west on Garden Valley Rd., Melrose Rd. to Melrose, passing its store, church and fire station, up the hill, then west on Doerner Rd., and north on Elgarose Rd. to Vineyard Lane. For information, call Richard Sommer.
Oct. 20, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 225, United Methodist Church, 600 State St. NE, Salem. Julie Thiel will present -- a surprise! Come and find out what it is!
Oct. 15, Wed. Meeting: 7 P.M. Forest and Range Laboratory, C Ave. & Gekeler Lane, La Grande. Business, 7-8, dessert/potluck, program, 8-9. All members are invited to share their summer native plant experiences as part of the program. Bring stories, slides, or whatever youžd like to share. We would like to hear about it. Please call Barbara if you would like to share, so we can plan the program. No pressure, though, it will be fun and informal. And remember your dessert! Drinks provided.
Oct. 18, Sat. Field Trip: Dick Kenton and Sandy Rothžs Plantworks Native Nursery, 1801 U Ave., La Grande, 9 A.M. Lasts a couple of hours. We will tour the nursery and discuss native plant propagation. Bring your experiences and questions to share.
Officers: Election of officers will take place in January, 1998. Barbara is not planning on running for office, so a new president will be needed. Please consider how you may want to contribute to the ongoing vitality of our chapter. Thanks!
IMPORTANT NOTE TO FIELD TRIP PARTICIPANTSField trips take place rain or shine, so proper dress and footwear are essential. Trips may be strenuous and/or hazardous. Participation is at your own risk. Please contact the trip leader or chapter representative about difficulty, distance, and terrain to be expected on field trips. Bring water and lunch. All NPSO field trips are open to the public at no charge (other than contribution to carpool driver) and newcomers 'and visitors are always welcome.NOTICE TO FIELD TRIP CHAIRS AND LEADERSThe Forest Service and other agencies have set policies limiting group size in many wilderness areas to 12. The reason is to limit human impacts on these fragile areas. Each group using wilderness areas should be no larger than 12.POSTAL NOTICEBulletin of the Native Plant Society of Oregon; John Robotham, Editor; 117 NW Trinity P1. #28, Portland, OR 97209.Published monthly. Subscription price $18/year. ISSN 0884-599. Date and issue number on page 1. |
Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors of the articles. They do not represent the opinions of the Native Plant Society of Oregon, unless so stated.
Guidelines for Contributors to the Bulletin
The NPSO Bulletin is published monthly as a service to members and the public.When was the last time anyone revisited the mission of NPSO to see if it needed to be modified in response to changes that take place over time? How long has it been since we identified core values of NPSO and developed a list of critical concerns or issues that we should be addressing? Do we have a vision of what NPSO should be at some specific date in the future?
I believe it would be appropriate to appoint a committee to review our mission, develop a vision, identify core values and put together a list of critical issues of concern to NPSO. This would be a basis for producing a long-term plan and goals for NPSO. I believe we should do this because the problems we face change as time goes on and it is necessary to re-evaluate our program to be certain that what we are doing is the best way to meet the needs of todayžs problems.
I plan to propose the establishment of a committee to plan the future for NPSO at the Board meeting in Bend on September 27, 1997. If the Board agrees, I will report on the formation of this committee in the next issue of the Bulletin and ask members who have ideas about the future of NPSO to contact this committee.
I was prompted to propose this committee, in part, because the Washington Native Plant Society is undertaking a program to produce a plan for their future. A progress report in their summer bulletin indicated that they were able to establish useful goals and focus attention on current problems. Planning for the future seems to be a way to revitalize NPSO and make the organization more attractive to a broader group of members. If we can generate an interesting and exciting program, we should find more members interested in participation.
Michael Fahey President, NPSO
NPSO Window Stickers are decals with NPSO's trillium logo in green over an opaque white background, for use inside car windows. Available from Stu Garrett, $1, minimum order five.
NPSO T-Shirts are available in various colors and designs, and are sold through NPSO chapters.
NPSO's Original Wildflower Poster depicts 13 Oregon wildflowers in a striking artist's rendition. Soon to be a collector's item. Available from Stephanie Schulz, 84603 Bristow Rd., Pleasant Hill, OR 97455. $5 each, plus $3 per order for shipping. Posters are mailed in tubes.
NPSO Membership Directory list names, addresses, and phone numbers of members (April, 1997). Available from Jan Dobak, $2 each.
My name is Ellen Schneider, and this summer I had the opportunity to work with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), as a botany field assistant. I was able to do this through the RAPS program, which stands for Resource Apprenticeship Program for Students. Funding was provided through RAPS and the Training and Employment Consortium of Baker City. The Native Plant Society of Oregon provided funding for the final week and I really appreciate that.
Throughout this seven week program, I mainly worked with botanist Barbara Russell conducting a rare plant survey. We surveyed for Haplopappus radiatus, commonly known as the Snake River goldenweed. It is part of the sunflower family and only found within a twenty-five mile radius of Huntington.
Every day seemed to be an adventure. It could start pouring, soaking you to the bone or sticking you in the office all day, or it might be extremely hot and wežd be working all day. We would usually leave the office between 8 and 9 A.M., drive for an hour or more to our desired location, hike for about five hours counting plants, and take a half hour lunch break. Where we went depended on weather conditions, but by the end of the day one is extremely tired out.
Ižve learned an incredible amount of plants, especially the different kinds of grasses. Ižve also learned a lot about using topographic maps, as well as some general survival tips. As a rule it was just Barbara and me up in the hills, and we usually split up, so it is very important to orient oneself. Remembering where the car is parked, where one has gone and is going, and how to get back are essential. Otherwise, one ends up disoriented and lost. I speak from experience. It is a very scary feeling to be all alone in the middle of endless hills which all look the same. I thought we were parked somewhere else and adjusted my map to fit, I ran out of water in the heat, lost contact on the radio, and was about to give up in frustration when I saw a familiar landmark and made my way back to the truck, physically, mentally and emotionally drained.
There are many obstacles to overcome, including snakes, heat, rain, roads, steep hills, and many others. But every day I learned something new
and it was always interesting.
One week when Barbara was gone, I had the opportunity to work in several different fields of work, including wildlife and archeology. I also had the opportunity to work at the interpretive center.
I think this was a really good program. I got a grasp of several work fields, learned a lot and got some exercise while doing so. RAPS will be helpful in the future. I received job experience I otherwise would not have and I learned some about punctuality and responsibility. Thanks again for providing me with the funding to work another week.
The Resource Apprenticeship Program for students is a program implemented through the BLM and the U.S. Forest Service that introduces youth to resource management careers, provides a bridge from school to the workplace, and encourages students to stay in school and pursue higher education. RAPS invites other schools, organizations and agencies to assist them in serving Oregon and Washington youth. My experience with the program is that it is very well run, provides an excellent opportunity for youth and much needed help to agencies. Anyone interested in participating in any way can contact:
Shannah Anderson
BLM State Office
RAPS Coordinator
1515 SW 5th
P.O. Box 2965
Portland, OR 97208
(503) 952-6343
Women in the Field; Americažs Pioneering Women Naturalists by Marcia Myers Bonta. Texas A & M University Press, 1991.
As botanists, we all love to be in the field. Bontažs book celebrates that delight as she recounts the histories of 25 North American field biologists who have contributed to their disciplines with exceptional field work and life long devotion to explorations of the natural history of a variety of organisms.
The book is organized chronologically and by field disciplines. The opening section, titled "The Pioneers," highlights the lives of Jane Colden, a Colonial botanist (1724-1766) and Maria Martin, a naturalist of the middle of the nineteenth century. The subsequent five sections are arranged by disciplines and include "The Naturalists," "The Botanists," "The Entomologists," "The Ornithologists" and "The Ecologists." This last section ends with Rachel Carson, however, all the other women profiled in this book are less familiar to the general public. The botanists include Kate Furbish, Kate Brandegee, Alice Eastwood, Ynes Mexia, Mary Sophie Young, Elizabeth Gertrude Knight Britton and Agnes Chase.
Bonta describes her motivation for assembling this book in her preface.She enjoyed reading about naturalists and found an abundance of literature by and about Muir, Thoreau, Burroughs and other male nature writers, but were there any females? Could she turn to the words of women naturalists to to enrich her own love of nature? It was very difficult to find information about women field biologists because neither the women nor their friends and colleagues had thought that information about them was important enough to save. This collection of biographies allows us to learn about the women who were active at the same time as, and often contemporary with, their more famous male colleagues. Bonta uses quotes from all these women, but her "Selected Bibliography" steers interested readers to the original works so that we may all enjoy their words first hand.
I had the opportunity to read this book in July while on a trip to the East Coast. One of our destinations was Maine and one of the botanists profiled is Kate Furbish (1834-1931) from Maine. I happened to ask my Maine friends if they had heard of Kate Furbish. This led to a wonderful se
ries of encounters that ended up in the special collections section of the library at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. There I was able to view Furbishžs original botanical illustrations of her Flora of Maine. These fabulous illustrations with exceptional botanical detail and Furbishžs accompanying notations were quite a treat for this botanist to behold.
This book is more than a collection of biographies. It is informative about both the history of nature study and a source for the recognition of the tremendous contributions of each of these individuals. It also affirms that our botanical predecessors shared the same excitement about, and devotion to, field biology and discovery that we feel today.
I would like to thank Roy and Lisa Miller and Edith Allard of Somerville, Maine and Susan Ravdin, Assistant Curator of Special Collections, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, for being part of my Kate Furbish adventure.
Gail Baker
Emerald Chapter
Barbara Mumblo
Siskiyou Chapter
The sixth and latest installment of the Intermountain Flora series was published in May. Volume 3A is authored by Arthur Cronquist (who completed many of the family treatments before his death in 1992), Noel Holmgren and Patricia Holmgren of the New York Botanical Garden. This major regional Flora, when completed, will provide descriptions, identification keys, and illustrations of all vascular plants in the Intermountain region of the western United States. This vast area covers the Great Basin and is bounded by the Rocky Mountains to the east and the Sierra Nevada to the west. The geographic coverage encompasses all of Utah, most of Nevada (excluding the southern tip), and adjacent parts of California, Arizona, Wyoming, Idaho and Oregon. For Oregon, this includes most of Harney and Malheur counties, eastern Lake, the "panhandle" of Deschutes, and a small area of Crook. The northwestern boundary follows "in general the eastern limits of the forested land that stretches out from the main Cascade Range." Thus the Intermountain Flora is an essential resource for botanists and plant enthusiasts interested in the flora of the southeastern quarter of this state.
Volume 3A provides treatments of 40 families of the subclass Rosidae including some of the largest families found in the region such as Rosaceae and Apiaceae (Umbelliferae), represented by 28 and 29 genera, respectively. Other families well-represented in the Flora include Saxifragaceae, Hydrangeaceae, Onagraceae, Euphorbiaceae and Geraniaceae. Volume 3A continues the high standards set in previous volumes. The taxonomic descriptions are clear and accurate, and are supplemented by notes on distribution, ecology, unresolved taxonomic problems, etc. Every species is illustrated by a line drawing, generally one half size for the plant habit, with magnifications of flowers, fruits and/or foliage providing sufficient detail for accurate identification. It is appropriate that Volume 3A is dedicated to the illustrators, especially Jeanne Janish, Bobbi Angell and Robin Jess, "whose skillful drawings give vivid life to the text." Volume 1 of the Intermountain Flora appeared in 1972, and the present volume 25 years later, for an average of one volume every four to five years.Two additional volumes (2A and 2B) are planned, covering the subclasses Magnoliidae, Hamamelidae, Caryophyllidae and Dilleniidae. Volume 3A is an important addition to the floristic bookshelf of Oregon botanists, and represents a significant step toward the completion of this valuable Flora.
Aaron Liston
Corvallis Chapter
There will be a variety of activities for children and adults. Featured again this year is the Scarecrow Contest, with prizes awarded for originality and humor. Individuals, families, businesses, teams, groups and organizations are welcome to enter and should call the Arboretum office to obtain an entry form. An expanded childrenžs booth will offer arts and crafts, science and nature exhibits, a "Touch Table," and educational games and entertainment. Expert trail guides will offer guided walks of the Arboretum to allow visitors to learn more about its flora and fauna. As always, visitors should be prepared to enjoy our hot and delicious food items including home baked goods and fresh pressed cider. Live music will be featured throughout the day.
Mount Pisgah Arboretum is located off Seavey Loop Road in the Buford Recreation area of Eugene. Follow signs from the I-5 overpass beyond Lane Community College on 30th Avenue. Free and continuous shuttles will run from the Mobius parking lot, Franklin Boulevard and Seavey Loop Road. Suggested donations are $2 per person or $5 per family. Call 747-3817 for more information.
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© Copyright 1996 Native Plant Society of Oregon, All Rights Reserved
Last Modified April 6, 1996