NPSO Bulletin

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Bulletin of the

Native Plant Society of Oregon

Dedicated to the enjoyment, conservation, and study
of Oregon's native vegetation

Volume 32

Number 4

May 1999

ISSN 0884-599

State News

July 30 - Aug. 1	Annual Meeting: The Emerald Chapter is hosting the 1999 Annual Meeting in the high country of McKenzie Pass. See April Bulletin for registration material. CORRECTION: THE REGISTRATION FORM HAS 2 DATES LISTED AS DEADLINE. CORRECT DATE IS JUNE 15. For pictures/notes of meeting site, check our website: http://www.NPSOregon.org/annual/annualmt.htm
Aug. 1, Sun.	Board Meeting: On Sunday morning at the annual meeting.

Chapter News

Blue Mountain

May 10, Mon.	Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 130, Morrow Hall, Blue Mt. Community College. Loren Russell will give a slide presentation on Oregon alpine wildflowers. This will be a joint meeting with the local chapter of Trout Unlimited.
May 16, Sun.	Field Trip and Barbecue: Meet: NE corner, Pendleton Safeway parking lot, to car pool to Bar M Ranch. There, at 9 A.M., Jerry Baker will lead a field trip up the Umatilla River toward Ruckle Ridge. Arrive back at the ranch about 1 P.M. for a barbecue. Bring salad or dessert. Jerry will supply hamburgers and buns.
May 23, Sun.	Field Trip: Jerry Baker will lead up Lincton Mtn. From the Walla Walla River to the Tollgate Chalet (elev. About 4000 ft.) Meet: NE corner Pendleton Safeway parking lot, 8 A.M., or call Jerry, ( policy), to meet elsewhere.
June 3, Sun.	Field Trip: Sandy Ott will lead to see the restoration project along McKay Reservoir, a project of McKay Refuge and the Federated Tribes native plant nursery. Meet: NE corner, Pendleton Safeway parking lot, 9 A.M.

Cheahmill

May 1, Sat.	Field Trip: Deer Creek County Park. Leader: Dave Hanson. We will observe the results of the prescribed burn conducted last fall in the wet prairie and in the upland where the colony of Kincaid's lupine should be in bloom. Meet at the park, 10 A.M. For more information, call Dave, ( policy). .
May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Gahr Farm. Leader: Ted Gahr. Upland forest, riparian and wetland tour. Meet: 9:30 A.M. For more information, call Ted, ( policy). .
May 22, Sat.	Field Trip: South Beach State Park and Mike Miller County Park. Leaders: Chuck and Patti Buffett. Plants of the dunes and coastal pine forests. Meet: South Beach State Park day-use parking area, 10 A.M. For more information, call Chuck, ( policy). .
May 27, Thur.	Meeting: 7 P.M. Carnegie Room, McMinnville Public Library, 225 NW Adams, McMinnville. Peg Mathewson, who holds a doctorate in anthropology from UC Berkeley and is currently a post-doctorate fellow at the Smithsonian Institution, will present "An Overview of Oregon Indian Ethnobotany." In this lecture/slide show, she will discuss the major plants used for food, tools and clothing in the Great Basin, Plateau, Willamette Valley and coastal regions of Oregon.
May 29, Sat.	Field Trip: Niagara Falls in the Nestucca watershed. Leader: Marilynn Karbonski. Easy to moderate hike (2 mi. R.T.) into a gorge to view this spectacular falls. Meet: Yamhill ESD, 8:30 A.M., to car pool. Bring lunch and water. For more information, call Marilynn, ( policy). .

Corvallis

May 1, Sat.	Field Trip: Walk up the gorge of the Mary's River, west of Philomath, along a railroad grade to look for Sagittaria latifolia, camas, other plants in flower. Meet: OSU parking lot, southwest of the Beanery, 26^th and Monroe, 9 A.M. Call Steve Northway, the trip leader, ( policy. for more information.
May 6, Thurs.	Field Trip: Exploring mosses and lichens at Finley Wildlife Refuge, with Dr. David Wagner, Northwest Botanical Institute. Meet: 3 P.M., Refuge headquarters. (The Refuge is west of Hwy. 99W, about 12 mi. south of Corvallis.) Corvallis participants may meet at 2:30 outside Senior Ctr., 2601 NW Tyler Ave., to car pool. Call Dr. Wagner, ( policy), for information, or Cliff Cooper, ( policy). , for more information.
May 10, Mon.	Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Avery House, Avery Park, Corvallis. Topic TBA. Call Steve Northway, ( policy), for information. , for information.
May 15, Sat..	Field Trip: Repeat of May 1 trip, probably with different species in bloom. Same time/place. Call Steve Northway, ( policy), for information.
May 22, Sat.	Field Trip: Visit remnant oak-savanna community near Hood River, including the orchid, Cypripedium montanum. Joint trip with Mary's Peak Orchid Society and NPSO's Mid-Columbia Chapter. Meet: OSU parking lot, southwest of the Beanery, 26^th and Monroe, Corvallis, 7:15 A.M. Call Steve Northway,or Barbara Robinson, ( policy), for information.
May 29, Sat.	Field Trip: Mary's Peak. We'll concentrate on the west slope. Look for Erythronium oregonum, Fritillaria affinis, Penstemon rattanii, Delphinium menziesii, more. Meet: OSU parking lot, southwest of the Beanery, 26^th and Monroe, Corvallis, 9 A.M. Contact Loren Russell, , or policy), for information. .

Emerald (20^th anniversary year)

May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Kathy Pendergrass, BLM botanist, will take us to look at establishing plant communities at wetland mitigation sites in the West Eugene wetlands. 8-12 A.M. Please call Kathy, ( policy), for information. .
May 15, Sat.	Wildflower Festival: To help with set-up of Mt. Pisgah Arboretum Wildflower Festival, come to Arboretum (off Seavey Loop Rd.) starting at 8 A.M. Your help will greatly benefit the show. For more information, call Gail Baker, or Dale McBride, ( policy). .
May 16, Sun.	Wildflower Festival: Set-up for MPA Wildflower Festival, at Arboretum (off Seavey Loop Rd.) starting at 7:30 A.M. Many tasks are needed to make the show come together, and your help will be much appreciated. For information, see above.
May 16, Sun.	Wildflower Festival: 10 A.M. - 4 P.M. Mt. Pisgah Arboretum Wildflower Festival. Celebrate the life and discoveries of David Douglas, in commemoration of the 200^th anniversary of his birth, at this annual spring festival, centered around a grand display of wildflowers collected throughout Lane County. All flowers are identified and experts are on hand to identify flowers you bring. The display includes a wide variety of native species, a section on poisonous and medicinal plants and their uses and a selection of grasses, rushes and sedges. There will be guided nature walks, nature craft vendors, live music, children's activities and, new this year, a wildflower photo contest. The event is a cooperative effort of Mt. Pisgah Arboretum, the NPSO and botany students and staff of Lane Community College. Call Dale McBride, ( policy), for information. $2 individual, $5 family.
May 24, Mon.	Meeting: 7:30 P.M. 7:30 P.M. Room 109, Science Building, main campus, Lane Community College. "The Long Happy Life of Louis F. Henderson" is the subject of Rhoda Love's talk on one of the Northwest's most remarkable plant collectors. Henderson saw mayhem and murder as a boy in Mississippi in the Civil War, went to Cornell, came west in 1874, and tirelessly botanized in OR, WA and ID until his death in 1942. Directions: From 30^th Ave., turn south on Eldon-Schafer Dr., go past Oak Hill School and park in LCC's south parking lot, east end. Walk downstairs to Science Building.

High Desert

Meeting: No meeting in May.

Klamath Basin

May 11, Tues.	Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 219 Owens Hall, OIT, Klamath Falls. Guest speaker to be announced. For more information, please call David Lebo, ( policy). .
May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Sycan Marsh along with Klamath Basin Chapter of Audubon Society. Leader: Paul Bakke. Meet: Veteran's Park (downtown) 8 A.M., to car pool to the Marsh. Please join us to view flora and fauna and celebrate spring's arrival after a long winter.

Mid-Columbia


May 2, Sun.May 5, Wed.	Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Discovery Center Theatre, The Dalles. Linda McMahan, of the Berry Botanical Garden, tells us about the Partners for Plants program in which volunteers spend a week in the field in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest studying rare plants, and can receive college credit.
May 22, Sat.	Field Trip: Visit Jerry Igo's lovely acreage in the oak woodlands of the Gorge. See lady slipper orchids and many other flowers. Jerry will show us around. Trip is in conjunction with Corvallis Orchid Society. Meet across from the Mosier Store, exit 69 off I-84.
June 2, Wed.	Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Discovery Center Theatre, The Dalles. Bruce Taylor will present a program on the Oregon Wetlands Joint Venture, to acquaint us with this project's aims and accomplishments.
June 19, Sat.	Field Trip and Weed Pull: See a beautiful Nature Conservancy preserve that is normally not accessible to the public, and help pull knapweed. Meet: Goldendale, 9:30 A.M., caravan 30 min. east to this 400 acre oak/grassland canyon preserve. Call Lynn Cornelius, ( policy), for information, to sign up and get details on mtng. Place. Limit: 25.

North Coast

For information on the North Coast Chapter, call Christine Stanley, ( policy), for information.

Portland

May 2, Sun.	Field Trip: McCall Point. Car pool from Gateway/99^th Ave. Park & Ride, southeast corner of parking lot. Take exit 7 off I-84, turn immediately right onto NE 99^th Ave. Leave 8:30 A.M. Meet trip leader at trailhead. Pre-registration required. See Mid-Columbia Chapter for more information.
May 9, Sun.	Field Trip: Bald Butte. One of last year's most memorable hikes. See calypso orchid, Arabis sparsiflora, Phoenicaulio cheiranthoides, and many more on this moderate hike up on the ridges overlooking the beautiful Hood River Valley. Car pool from Gateway/99^th Ave. Park & Ride. Leave 8:30 A.M. Pre-registration required. Call trip leader Beth Magnus, ( policy), to sign up.
May 11, Tues.	Meeting: 7 P.M. First United Methodist Church, 1838 Jefferson St., Portland. Botanist and Forest Ecologist Christine Ebrahimi will speak about "A Love Affair With The Steens," after 12 years of studying the flora, from the grasslands to the alpine areas. THIS PROGRAM, CANCELLED IN APRIL, IS NOW PRESENTED.
May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Roaring River. Join trip leader Carol Horvath on this beautiful forest hike where the two rivers meet along the Clackamas. See Iris tenuis, Fritillaria lanceolata, Selaginella douglasii, plus a few mosses, lichens and liverworts on this moderate 2 to 4 mi. R.T. trail. Leave 9 A.M. from Gateway/99^th Ave. Park & Ride. Call Carol, ( policy), for information.
May 22, Sat.	Field Trip: Jerry Igo's place. Car pool from Gateway/99^th Ave. Park & Ride. Leave: 9:30 A.M. See Mid-Columbia Chapter for more information,
June 5, Sat.	Field Trip: Saddle Mt. One of the most-talked-about trails in Oregon, for its wildflowers. Trip leader Christine Stanley takes us on this moderate, 5 mi. R.T. climb. Leave 8:30 A.M., east end of Cedar Hills Shopping Center parking lot. (Westbound from Portland on Hwy. 26, take exit 69-B, follow signs to Cedar Hills. Northbound on Hwy. 217, take exit to Hwy. 26E/Cedar Hills, follow signs to Cedar Hills). Trip limit is 12, so pre-registration is required. To register, call Greg Stone, ( policy), for information after May 23.
June 19, Sat.	Field Trip: See Mid-Columbia Chapter.
June 20, Sun.	Field Trip: Bald Mt. Along with great views of Mt. Hood, trail should lead to the spectacular Lilium washingtoniam, Calochortus subalpinus, plus the rhodies and beargrass should be in show as well. Moderate, 4-6 mi. R.T., with 800 ft. elev. Gain. Trip leader: Beth Magnus. Meet: Gateway/99^th Ave. Park & Ride, southeast corner of parking lot. Leave: 8:30 A.M. For more information, call Beth, ( policy). .
July 11, Sun.	Field Trip: Sheep Canyon near Mt. St. Helens. Details later.

Siskiyou

May 1, Sat.

Field Trip: Illinois River Canyon. Leaders: Don Heinze, Steve Marsden. Along with many other flowers, you will see the most accessible stand of kalmiopsis (for which the Wilderness was named) and a population of western sopora. Both are rare plants that were originally found and named after one of Oregon's best-known pioneer botanists, Lila Leach. Meet: 9 A.M., south side of Selma Market parking lot in Selma. For more information, call Don,( policy). .

May 20, Thur.

Meeting: 7:30 P.M. Room 171, Science Building, SOU, Ashland. Dr. Dominick DellaSala will present "Saving the Klamath Knot: A Living Community Vision for a World Class Region."

South Coast

For information on the South Coast Chapter, call Bruce Rittenhouse, ( policy), for information.

Umpqua Valley

	Officers: Newly elected officers are: Cheryl Beyer, president; Richard Sommer, vice president; Russ Holmes, secretary/treasurer.
May 2, Sat.	Field Trip: Cheryl Beyer will lead to a native plant restoration project. Meet: Umpqua Community College flag pole, 10 A.M. Call Cheryl, ( policy), for more information.
May 13, Thur.	Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 310, Douglas County Courthouse, Roseburg. Jeanne Klein, BLM botanist, will speak on noxious and exotic weeds. Call Cheryl Beyer, for more information.
May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Jeanne Klein will lead to the North Bank ACEC to see noxious weeds and BLM management efforts. Meet: BLM parking lot, 777 Garden Valley Blvd., 8 A.M. Call Jeanne, ( policy) for information.
June 10, Thur.	Meeting: 6:30 P.M. Kanipe Memorial Park, Elkhead Rd. Annual potluck dinner. Main dish provided, bring side dishes and dessert. Call Cheryl Beyer, for more information.

Willamette Valley

May 1, Sat.	Field Trip: Independence Rock, near Marion Forks. Leaders: George and Harriet Schoppert. Meet: 9 A.M., Gingerbread House in Mahama. Please check with the Schopperts the evening before, to make sure we can get there.
May 15, Sat.	Field Trip: Finley Refuge. Leaders: Glenn and Barbara Halliday. Check with the Hallidays, ( policy), for information.
May 17, Mon.	Meeting: 7 P.M. Room 225, United Methodist Church, 600 State St. NE, Salem. Miles McCoy will give a talk and show slides on the Oregon Garden at Silverton.
May 29 - 31, Sat. - Mon.	Field Trip: Trips to Illinois Valley and the Siskiyou Mountains of SW Oregon, led by Wilbur Bluhm. Come for one, two or three days. Meet: 8 A.M. each morning, Junction Inn, Cave Junction, intersection of US Hwy. 199 and State Hwy. 46. Easy to moderate hiking. Take lunch and water each day.

William Cusick

	Meeting: No meeting in May.
May 8, Sat.	Field Trip: 8:30 A.M. - mid-afternoon. From Forest and Range L, Gekeler and C, we will car pool to William Cusick Canyon. This site, near Thief Valley Reservoir, has the same name source as our chapter. It's a small canyon in the middle of rolling, sagebrush hills. You can see some of the species Mr. Cusick named and some of the wild, edible plants in this area. Take lunch, hiking boots, dress for any weather. For more information, call Bob Ottersberg, ( policy). .
May 16, Sun.	Field Trip: 2 - 4 P.M. Barbara Russell will lead a trip on Jennie Tucker's land near Summerville to point out different native plant habitats and the communities that inhabit each one. Helpful to people wondering what will grow in their yards. Meet at Barbara's house, ( policy), in La Grande (by 1:30 to car pool, or drive to Jennie's on your own.
May 19, Wed.	Field Trip: 6 - 7 P.M. Karen Antell will lead an evening stroll in the Ladd Marsh meadow to view spring wildflowers. Meet: overlook on Foothill Rd., south of La Grande; from there we will car pool to the meadow. For more information, call Karen, ( policy).
May 22, Sat.	Field Trip: 9 A.M. Washington NPSO, Tri-Cities Chapter, will hold a field trip near Jubilee Lake, north Union County, to see calypso orchids, yellow bells and many others. Leader: Inez Austin, Tri-Cities DEQ. Call Andy Huber, ( policy), for specifics.
June 5, Sat.	Field Trip: 9:30 A.M. - Noon. Visit Andy Huber's experimental site for native plant propagation -- GROWISER/Grande Ronde Overlook Wildflower Institute Serving Ecological Restoration. Expect to see mountain lady's slippers, Blue Mountain penstemon, columbine, orange honeysuckle and many more. Meet: Bean Coffic Rd., 2 mi. east of Summerville Hwy.(The turnoff is 5 mi. north of Summerville or 1 mi. south of Hwy. 204 (the Tollgate Hwy.) For information, call Andy Huber, ( policy).
Mid-June	Field Trip: Watch the Observer for a tour of noxious weeds near La Grande. Led by Dick Kenton.

Ants and Plants

(a Mutualism)

Naturalists spend much time being botanists or zoologists or perhaps just "birders" or "mushroom specialists". Often overlooked are the fascinating ways in which plants and animals inter-relate in what are sometimes called mutualisms (i.e. relationships that benefit two or more participating species). One mutualism relates ants to plants in an important way — ants gain food, plants gain a means of dispersal. The seeds of some of our native and introduced plants have, attached to their seed coat, small food bodies called elaiosomes. They are usually rich in fats but are now known to contain other compounds such as sugars, amino acids and aromatic substances. As seeds fall to the ground ants and possibly other organisms take them to crevices and nests, consume the food body but leave viable seed in sites where they may germinate. The dispersal mechanism was recognized as significant by

Sernander in 1906. The phenomenon of ant-mediated dispersal of seeds has been termed myrmecochory. More study of the phenomenon is warranted.

Other organisms "eat" elaiosome-bearing seeds — rodents, birds, slugs, insects. Some elaiosomes appear to produce aromatics and therefore may be attractants. Thus far however only ants are known to have a truly mutualistic relationship with elaiosome-bearing seeds. Recently we looked on the forest floor in Pacific Spirit Park (Vancouver BC) for plants which have seeds with elaiosomes. Several species were found to possess them including the native Pacific bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa), Siberian spring beauty (Claytonia sibirica), violets (Viola spp.), wild ginger (Asarum caudatum) and trillium (Trillium ovatum), and the European shrub Scotch Broom (Cytisus scoparius). A scanning electron micrograph of a seed of Dicentra from the park shows a food body on the seed coat.

Mutualisms are attracting more attention (1,2). The authors would encourage naturalists to collect native plant seeds, to examine them for elaiosomes and to search for evidence of mutualisms. Elaiosomes appear to us as very beautiful in form, even under a hand lens.

Elaiosomes are characteristic of many species but seem to occur rather randomly within genera and families. They are found in grass, sedge, legume, aster, borage and mint families, to name a few, and in a wide range of habitats.

1. Ecological relations of plants with and termites J.C. Uphof. the Botanical Review

8:563-598 (1942).

2. Ecological relationships of plants and animals H.F. Howe and Lynn C. Westley, Oxford University Press (1988)

Frank Skelton and Bert Brink

Reprinted, with permission, from the Vancouver, B.C. Natural History Society's journal, "Discovery."

___________

Shady Cove Wildflower Show

The 18^th annual Shady Cove Wildflower Show will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 1 and 2, 1999, from 10 A.M. to 4 P.M.

It will be located in the Shady Cove School Multipurpose Building on Cleveland Street (just off Highway 62) in Shady Cove, which is about 15 miles north of Medford. Admission is by donation.

NPSO Items for Sale

Oregons Rare Wildflower Poster depicts Punchbowl Falls and three of the Columbia River Gorge’s endemic wildflowers. Text on the back describes the natural history of the Gorge and the mission of the NPSO. Available from Stu Garrett, 21663 Paloma Dr., Bend, OR 97701 (541) 389-6981. Individual may order posters at $12 each, plus $3 per order for shipping. Posters are mailed in tubes. Chapter treasures may contact Stu for wholesale prices to chapters.

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’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.

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. Louma, 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. SALE PRICE: $5, plus $2.50 for shipping.

Mt Pisgah Arboretum Wildflower Festival to Honor David .
Displays will illustrate his Willamette Valley Search for the Sugar Pine.
Sunday, May 16, Mt. Pisgah Arboretum

Eugene Oregon. 10 A.M. - 4 P.M.

Celebrate the life and discoveries of David Douglas in commemoration of the 200^th year of his birth, at this annual spring festival, centered around a grand display of wildflowers collected throughout Lane County. The display includes a spectacular variety of beautiful native species, a special section identifying poisonous and medicinal plants and their uses and an extensive selection of grasses, rushes and sedges. There will also be a plant sale, guided nature walks, nature craft vendors, live music, children's activities, and, new this year, a wildflower photo contest.

This event is a cooperative effort of the Mt. Pisgah Arboretum, the Native Plant Society of Oregon and the botany students and staff of Lane Community College. Suggested donation: $3 individual, $6 family. Mt Pisgah Arboretum is located off Seavey Loop in Eugene OR. For directions, and detailed information about this special event call the Arboretum (541) 747-3817 and visit the web site at: www.efn.org/~mtpisgah/

Pecks Manual Available

Emerald Chapter member, Mari Baldwin, wishes to sell a copy of A Manual of the Higher Plants of Oregon by Morton Peck, 1961.

Scientists to Meet

The Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Society of Wetland Scientists will have their 1999 regional meeting at the Hallmark Inn and Performing Arts Center in Newport, Oregon on May 19, 20 and 21. The Wednesday evening icebreaker will be held at the Hatfield Marine Science Center. Dune Ecology, Estuaries, Grasses, Rushes and Sedges and Wetlands and the Endangered Species Act are a few of the topics. There will be field trips to Neskowin Marsh, Salmon River Estuary and Beaver Creek Marsh, among others.

A registration packet can be obtained from PNW Chapter of SWS, c/o Heather Stout,

1999 Natural Areas Conference

The Holiday Inn, City Center, Tucson, Arizona, is the setting for the 1999 Natural Areas Conference which will take place October 13 - 16. "Invasive Species, "Fire as a Restoration Tool" and "Native Plant Conservation Initiative" are some of the themes.

One day, one night and two night field trips will be available to such places as Saguaro National Park, Muleshoe Ranch and the Sea of Cortez.

Registration packets, available May 21, can be had by sending name, address, e-mail address and phone number to: Natural Areas Conference, PO Box 5365, Tucson, Arizona 85703, or: confreg@twp.org

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NPSO Webmaster: Judy Castle webmaster@NPSOregon.org

Last Modified May, 1999