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 ]
The NPSO membership year is January to December.
Check your address label on the Bulletin. If there is a 97 on the top line, we haven't received your renewal yet.
NPSO brings you field trips, programs, classes, the monthly Bulletin and the annual Kalmiopsis. Your membership and donations make it possible to carry out more of the many projects that are needed to pursue the goals of NPSO.
The Internal Revenue Service requires non-profit organizations to acknowledge in writing all contributions of $75 or more. We believe this has been done, but any member who has not received an acknowledgement should contact the Membership Committee immediately.
The Board of Directors has adopted the policy that the first $18 of any membership payment represents value received (subscription to Bulletin and Kalmiopsis), and only that part of dues payment exceeding $18 is considered tax deductible for federal and Oregon income tax purposes. Members requiring further information should consult their tax advisers.
May 8 - 10 Annual Meeting: Mosier, Oregon, the heart of the Columbia River Gorge! Fri. - Sun. Registration information will appear in the March Bulletin.
.May 10, Sun. Board Meeting: At the annual meeting, on Sunday morning.
Feb. 2, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Small Business Development Center, SE 1st & Dorian, Pendleton. Jean Wood will present "Wildflowers of Colville National Forest" (NE Washington).
March 2, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Small Business Development Center, SE 1st & Dorian, Pendleton. Kari Yanskey will present a program on the uses of native plants in dyeing.
Apr. 6, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Small Business Development Center, SE 1st & Dorian, Pendleton. Berta Youtie will update the activities of The Nature Conservancy in northeastern Oregon.
Feb. 9, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 2087, Cordley Hall, OSU campus. Boone Kauffman, a professor of fish and wildlife at OSU, will present a program on "The Causes of Degradation and the Solutions for Ecological Restoration in Riparian Zones in Eastern Oregon."
Feb. 15, Sun. Field Trip: Mosses and liverworts of Wolf Creek. Dr. David Wagner, local expert on bryophytes, will take us to sites where he has been conducing inventories and exploring, in the Wolf Creek drainage southwest of Eugene. Meet: 9 A.M., S. Eugene H.S. parking lot (19th and Patterson). Bring lots of warm clothes, a hand lens and lunch. For more information, call Dave at 342-4169.
Feb. 23, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 109, Science Building, main campus, LCC, Eugene. Nan Vance, plant ecologist, USDA Forest Service, PNW Research Station, will talk about "Ethnobotany, Natural Products Chemistry and Plant Conservation." Nan will discuss the natural history, chemistry and population ranges of the yew (Taxus) and other prized medicinal plants and their conservation. Directions: From 30th Ave., turn south on Eldon-Schafer Drive, go past Oak Hill School and park in LCC's south parking lot, east end. Walk downstairs to Science Building. Entrance to room 109 on south side of building.
Feb. 28, Sat. Field Trip: Biennial review of Lane County Rare Plant List, 10 A.M. - 3 P.M., room 109, Science Building, main campus, LCC, Eugene. Call Bruce Newhouse or Charlene Simpson if interested. See Feb. mtng. for directions.
March 30, Mon. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 109, main campus, LCC, Eugene. Ed Alverson, Nature Conservancy botanist at Willow Creek and featured on Oregon Field Guide, will tell us the "Ecological History of the Willamette Valley." He'll tell us about the history and fate of the wet prairie and other original habitats, and apply these ideas to conservation and restoration plans. See Feb. mtng. for directions. NOTE: CHANGE FROM 4TH TO 5TH MONDAY (this month only).
Ed will also lead a prairie field trip at Willow Creek, possibly in June. Details later.
Feb. 24, Tues. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Central Oregon Environmental Center, 16 NW Kansas, Bend. Ancient Junipers in Central Oregon. Dr. Rick Miller, an OSU professor and juniper researcher, will tell us about his efforts to develop a tree ring dating for central Oregon, and about an 1800-year old juniper he has studied.
March 24, Tues. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Central Oregon Environmental Center, 16 NW Kansas, Bend. Man and Nature in East Africa. Our own Stu Garrett will show slides of his photo safari to the Serengeti plains and northern Tanzania and tell us of his adventures among the Masai and Meru tribesmen.
Feb. 10, Tues. Meeting: 7 - 9 P.M. It's seed-starting time! Colleen Archibald, horticulturist with JH Stone Nursery in Central Point, OR, will give a presentation on propagating seeds and cuttings for the home garden. Room 202 at OIT. Refreshments will be served. Call Susan for more information.
Feb. 4, Wed. Meeting: 6:45 P.M. Mosier School. BUSINESS MEETING: All members interested in helping with the upcoming annual meeting are invited to attend. 7:30 P.M. PROGRAM: Peter Zika presents "Who Eats the Fruits of the Amazon," a discussion of Amazonian natural history.
March 4, Wed. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Mosier School. Chapter member and Great Plains native, Arlene Larrison, will present a slide show, "The Wildflowers of the Southern Great Plains."
Feb. 10, Tues. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 355, First United Methodist Church, 1838 Jefferson St., Portland. Mike McKeag's Alaska program, scheduled for January but very appropriately -- considering the subject -- snowed out, will arrive (but not by dog sled) for the February meeting. This time the serum will get through to Nome.
Officers: Because the January meeting was canceled, chapter officers will be elected at the February meeting. For information, call Shane Latimer.
Feb. 19, Thurs. Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 171, Science Building, SOU, Ashland. Maria Ulloa, the new botanist for the Siskiyou National Forest, will present a slide show on the "Rare Plants of the Trinity." Maria was previously the botanist for the Trinity side of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest.
For information on South Coast Chapter, contact Bruce Rittenhouse.
Feb. 12, Thurs. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 310, Douglas County Courthouse, Roseburg. Tentatively, there will be a program on Kalmiopsis and fire.
Feb. 23, Mon. Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 225, United Methodist Church, 600 State St. NE, Salem. Members' slide show. Come and bring your Unidentified Flowering Objects.
Feb. 11, Wed. Meeting: 7 P.M. Forest and Range Sciences Laboratory, Gekeler Lane and C Ave., La Grande. Berta Youtie, Northeast Oregon Regional Ecologist for The Nature Conservancy, will present a slide show on the Conservancy's preserves in central and northeast Oregon. She will describe projects at the following preserves: Middle Fork of the John Day River, Clear Lake Ridge in the Wallowas, Boardman Navy Bombing Range, Lawrence Grasslands near Shaniko. Business meeting at 8 P.M. Join us for a fun and informative evening.
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.Art Kruckeberg and I continue to be grateful to NPSO for the generous support of our upcoming book on the plant collectors of Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho and British Columbia. I am able to report that we have made excellent progress in the past year. As readers may remember, Art and I, as editors-in-chief, have signed a contract with the University of Washington Press. We have found excellent regional editors in each of the northwestern states and British Columbia who have done a superb job of finding writers -- botanists, historians and others -- to write individual biographies. We experienced a set-back due to the unexpected death of Douglas Henderson, our original Idaho editor. However, Barbara Ertter and Patricia Packard have now kindly stepped in as editors of essays on Idaho botanists.
Borrowing material from several completed essays and one which is still in the research stage, I would like to give you a brief taste of some of the information our writers are discovering. Here are summaries of the lives of four remarkable Northwest women botanists, as well as a bit about the authors who have researched and written about their lives. Taking the women botanists in chronological order, they are: Helen Gilkey (1886-1972), Lilla Leach (1886-1980), Erna Gunther (1896-1982), and Theodora Stanwell-Fletcher (b. 1906)
Helen Margaret Gilkey was born March 6, 1896 in Montesano, Washington. She was one of six children of an orchardist who moved the family to Corvallis in 1903. That year, Helen entered the Oregon Agricultural College (now OSU) and graduated in 1907. She stayed on for a Masters Degree in 1911 and then transferred to the University o California at Berkeley where she was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. from from the Department of Botany. Mycology was her major research area. While at Berkeley, Helen did some of the botanical drawings for the first "Jepson Manual." In 1918 Dr. Gilkey was asked to join the faculty at OSU as Professor and Curator of the Herbarium. She remained there until her retirement in 1951 and continued to carry on research as Professor Emeritus until her death in 1972. During Gilkey's tenure as curator, the herbarium grew from a collection of 25,000 sheets to more than 75,000 sheets. In 1995, at the suggestion of Barbara Ertter, Helen Gilkey was inducted into the Berkeley Women's Hall of Fame. LaRea Dennis Johnston is the author of our very fine essay on Helen Gilkey. Mrs. Johnston knew Dr. Gilkey well, worked with her, and has herself been an assistant curator and outstanding teacher of botany at OSU.
Lilla Irvin Leach was born March 13, 1896 (one week after the birth of Helen Gilkey) on a farm in Barlow, Oregon. She had an older sister, Clara. Lilla was educated in public schools in Barlow and Aurora, at the Tualatin Academy, and at the University of Oregon in Eugene, where she studied under Albert R. Sweetser. In 1913, Lilla married John R. Leach, a Portland pharmacist. Together the two roamed the interesting botanical areas of the West, concentrating on the back country of the Siskiyou Mountains. Aiding them in their travels and collecting were the two famous burros, Pansy and Violet. Lilla is credited with discovering 15 new species and two new genera. Her most famous find was Kalmiopsis leachiana, which she discovered in 1930. The Leach Garden in Portland is the former home andgarden of John and Lilla Leach, a place they called Sleepy Hollow. The private life of Lilla Leach remains something of a mystery. Lilla and John were childless, but it is known that her sister, Clara, had children; however, attempts to locate them or their descendants have not been successful. The author of our excellent Plant Hunters essay on Lilla Leach is Jessica Wade of Portland, a fine writer and a volunteer at the Leach Garden.
Erna Gunther, author of "Ethnobotany of Western Washington," was born of immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York on November 9, 1896, studied English at Barnard College and anthropology at Columbia University. For her Ph. D., the young Gunther came west with her husband and two baby sons to study the Indians of the Puget Sound country. By 1929, Gunther was a divorced, single mother and had been offered a professorship in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Washington. At the same time, she was appointed director of the struggling Washington State Museum of Anthropology. This tiny woman (she was 5'2") apparently had a backbone of steel. As she struggled with personal and professional problems, Gunther regularly visited Northwest Indian tribes, gathering information on their use of native plants. Her landmark book on ethnobotany has been continuously in print since 1945. As Christine Colasurdo, author of our wonderful essay on Gunther wrote: "The book now stands as a precious glimpse of how early Northwest Coast peoples regarded indigenous trees, shrubs and wildflowers." Gunther's book chronicles the ethnobotany of 19 tribes and the uses of more than 100 plants. Gunther's collections are housed in the University of Washington Herbarium. Writer Christine Colasurdo is a San Francisco resident who has recently completed a book on Mt. St. Helens.
Theodora Cope Stanwell-Fletcher was born in Pennsylvania on January 4, 1906. She was educated at Mt. Holyoke and earned her Ph.D. at Cornell in the field of vertebrate ecology. On a summer study trip to northern Canada, she met John Stanwell-Fletcher, an English-born zoologist, trapper and outdoorsman. In 1937 the two made a contract with the British Columbia Provincial Museum in Victoria to collect plants and animals in a remote area of British Columbia north of Babine Lake and east of the Skeena River. This was a wild, unexplored region of fierce winters, totally cut off from civilization, without roads and basically uninhabited except for occasional visits by Indian trappers. John and Theodora built a log cabin beside a tiny lake they named Tetana, and spent three years there studying the wildlife. Theodora later chronicled their adventures in a delightful book, "Driftwood Valley" World War II brought an end to their life in the wilderness. John Stanwell-Fletcher returned to duties in the army, and although they had a daughter, Patricia, their marriage did not survive. Later, Theodora wrote two more books about the Canadian arctic. She remarried twice and is now a 92-year-old widow living at her family home in Pennsylvania, where, her daughter tells me, she can identify every flower and bird. With the help of a good many people, I have been piecing together the life story of this remarkable woman and look forward to writing the essay about her.
Again, Dr. Kruckeberg and I express our gratitude to NPSO for its continuing support of this project. We would be glad to hear from any "Bulletin" readers who have information about any of our Northwestern botanists or who would like to help with the project in any way.
Rhoda Love
Emerald Chapter
OSU Press would like to publish all of Mary's 60+ illustrations in color, but they also would like the retail price of the book to be as affordable as possible. Siskiyou Audubon has been asked to raise a minimum up to $5,000 to help out. The Siskiyou Chapter of NPSO has contributed $200 to the project. Other local businesses, groups and agencies have also donated ($3,000 as of December 10), but additional funds are needed from any other folks or groups willing to help out. Make out your tax-deductible check to "Siskiyou Audubon" -- write "Mary Paetzel's Journals" in the lower left hand corner, and send to "Siskiyou Audubon Society, Mary Paetzel Journal Fund, PO Box 1047, Grants Pass, OR 97528." Non-profit organizations will be allowed to purchase the books from OSU Press at 40% off retail; books could then be resold by the organization to raise funds. Individuals who contribute will be able to buy a copy of the book from the Siskiyou Audubon Society at cost. The fund drive will end on February 15, 1998. For information, please call Lee Webb at (541) 479-6859.
Jennifer Beigel
Siskiyou Chapter
SFI will offer science-based field courses beginning in 1998 during the week of June 12-19. The thread tying all the programs together will be their focus on the ecology of the Siskiyous and hands-on learning in the field. SFI will bring together scientists, educators and community members, as well as people from throughout the country interested in studying the Klamath-Siskiyou region. Courses will be designed for a range of participants, including adult non-scientists and people with some scientific background, such as students of ecology, experienced naturalists, and professional ecologists.
Courses offered this year include "Lichens of the Klamath Mountains" with Dr. Steve Jessup (SOU); "Geo-Botany of the Siskiyous" taught by Dr. Bob Coleman (Stanford) and Dr. Art Kruckeberg ((UW); "Nature Writing in the Siskiyous" with David Rains Wallace, author of the Klamath Knot; "Botany (Taxonomy) for Beginners" with Dr. Rhoda Love; and "Nature Illustration" with Dr. Frank Lang (SOU). All of these courses will be available for college credit through SOU. Other courses include "Birds of the Siskiyous," "Native Plants: Ethnobotany and Folklore," "Introduction to Geology of the Siskiyous," "Dyeing with Lichens," "Herpetofauna of the Siskiyous" and "Wilderness First Aid." Courses for youth include, "Flora and Fauna of the Siskiyous" and "Wet and Wild" (for children), and "Wilderness for Teens." We will also offer workshops for primary and secondary school teachers on environmental education curriculum focused on the natural history of the Siskiyous. Regardless of their length, all courses will overlap during the weekend of June 12-14 so participants can come together to engage in evening activities, such as keynote presentations, round-table forums, and social gatherings.
For more information about course offerings, contact: Jennifer Beigel or Erik Jules, or email institute@siskiyou.org
Jennifer Beigel
Siskiyou Chapter
We are also entering a large number of species lists into the Atlas database, which currently has about 70,000 records. Three students and Jay Lunn, a volunteer and member of the NPSO, are entering data from our files in the OSU Herbarium. We continue to receive species lists from volunteers in various parts of Oregon,who are going through notes from last spring and summer.
Still, their are many gaps in our data on distributions of Oregon plants. For example, we have few records from many parts of eastern Oregon and no lists from Columbia County. If you have species lists that we can use in the Oregon Plant Atlas database, please send copies to me at the address below.
Scott Sundberg
Department of Botany and Plant Pathology
Oregon State University
2082 Cordley Hall
Corvallis, OR 97331
We are currently recruiting for two full-time summer interns to assist with our program's ongoing field projects. Interns contribute field and/or laboratory assistance to ODA/OSU scientists working on several projects in the summer. Internships will run for 16 weeks from early May through August, and will be involved with a diversity of projects dealing with plant demography, population monitoring, habitat management, species reintroduction and plant breeding system studies. Also, interns will be expected to contribute an article to the NPSO Bulletin summarizing some aspect of their summer work.
Interns receive a stipend of $2500 in addition to a trip stipend of $20-45 a day for food and lodging. Extensive field work (often including overnight car camping) will be required, so applicants should be in good physical condition. All activities will be coordinated out of Oregon State University in Corvallis, requiring applicants to live in the mid-Willamette Valley area.
The application deadline is March 27, 1998. To apply, send a letter of interest, resume, college transcripts (unofficial copies okay), and a writing sample (such as a recent term paper) to the address below. Be sure to say when you would be available to start work. Finalists may be interviewed in Corvallis or Salem. For any questions, please contact: Tom Kaye, Dept. of Botany and Plant Pathology, 2082 Cordley Hall, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-2902; (541) 737-2346; e-mail: kayet@bcc.orst.edu.
Persons interested in applying for funding can obtain a copy of the program policy and guidelines from Dan Luoma, Research Grants Committee Chair, 3740 NW Harrison Ave., Corvallis, OR 97330. The material may also be obtained at NPSO's World Wide Web site, http://www.teleport.com.:80/nonprofit/npso/grants.htm. Research proposals are due by April 1, 1998.
Dan Luoma, Chair
Research Grants Committee
Requests for funding should be limited to one to two pages and include 1) the purpose of the research, 2) the methodology to be used, 3) a budget, and 4) a resume.Grant recipients will describe their project and results either at a chapter meeting, or in a Bulletin article. If the research requires collections of plant material, specimens shall be donated to the Oregon State University Herbarium. Send requests for funding to Dick Brainerd, 1377 NW Alta Vista Dr., Corvallis, OR 97330. The deadline is March 31, 1998.
Dick Brainerd, Treasurer
Corvallis Chapter
Duties include: corresponding with elected officials regarding the impacts of proposed legislation on Oregon's native plants and ecosystems (via letter, e-mail, FAX, phone, and personal contact); commenting on planning documents (EIS's, timber harvests and other plans); working with resource managers to protect and conserve Oregon's native plants; working with the NPSO Board of Directors and chapter conservation chairs on statewide (although mostly west of the Cascades) and local conservation issues.
Please contact me SOON if you are interested and I will tell you more about this important and interesting position. Oregon's native plants need you!
Kate Dwire
Westside Conservation Chair
(541) 737-6423 (OSU campus)
dwire@ucs.orst.edu
Meet at the Mount Pisgah Arboretum Visitor Center, 33735 Seavey Loop Road, Eugene, (541) 747-3817. Two dollar donation.
Of specific interest to Native Plant Society of Oregon members is the proposed expansion of the tiny national monument. The preferred alternative would bring the Siskiyou National Forest's Bigelow Lakes Botanical Area under the management of the National Park Service and eliminate cattle grazing, among other things. We need to support the Park Service on the expansion. Written comments must be received by March 13. For a copy of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement or the summary of the DEIS call (541) 592-2100, or check the web at the above address.
Barbara Ullian
Siskiyou Chapter
Barbara Ullian
Siskiyou Chapter
Participants should rendezvous at the refuge headquarters at 9:30 A.M. on Friday and Saturday mornings. Meet at ONRC's southern Oregon field station (Wendell Wood's cabin) for evening "marsh music marches" through the refuge, and for slide shows and the Sunday field trip. Evening slide presentations will focus on refuge bird species and conservation issues concerning the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges. (Great gray owls have been sighted in the early morning hours on previous willow planting events).
Directions: The refuge is located approximately 90 miles south of Bend and 48 miles north of Klamath Falls and is approximately a 2.5 to 3 hour drive from Medford, Roseburg or Eugene. Turn off Highway 97 on to the Silver Lake Highway near mile post 228 (and half a mile south of the Sand Creek Store). There are signs for Klamath Forest Wildlife Refuge and Silver Lake. Refuge headquarters (there are signs) is about 17.5 miles down this paved road, east of Highway 97, on your left.
When you know you plan to attend, please RSVP before arch 28, 1998. For more information, write Wendell Wood, ONRC Southern Oregon Field Representative, 943 Lakeshore Drive, Klamath Falls, Oregon 97601 (541) 885-4886, FAX (541) 885-4887, www@onrc.org. Please tell us your estimate of the number of people in your party and the day(s) you can attend. Please come fully self-contained with food, sleeping bag, extra pair of shoes, flashlight, binoculars, gloves, small hand (and heavy-duty) branch clippers. Let us know if you can volunteer a pickup truck for branch hauling. While ONRC will coordinate weekend reservations, the Klamath Marsh NWR can be contacted at: HC 63 Box 303, Chiloquin, OR 97624, (541) 783-3380.
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 tubes.
NPSO Membership Directory lists names, addresses and phone numbers of members (April, 1997). Available from Jan Dobak, $2 each.
Conservation and Management of Native Plants and Fungi: Proceedings of an Oregon Conference on the Conservation and Management of Native Vascular Plants, Bryophytes and Fungi. Edited by Thomas N. Kaye, Aaron Liston, Rhoda M. Love, Daniel L. Luoma, Robert J. Meinke, and Mark V. Wilson, with a foreword by Reed F. Noss. Available from NPSO Conference Proceedings, 804 Jefferson Ave., La Grande, OR 97850, (541) 962-7749, $20, plus $5 for shipping for first copy, $2.50 each additional copy.
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© Copyright 1998 Native Plant Society of Oregon, All Rights Reserved
Last Modified August 3, 1998