Fall/Winter 2018 A Publication of the Maryland Native Plant Society Volume 9, Issue 2 Letter from the President A Publication of the Maryland Native Plant Society Kirsten Johnson www.mdflora.org P.O. Box 4877 Silver Spring, MD 20914 Dear Members, Preparing Kerry Wixted’s article for this issue, I asked myself – What about my own small garden here CONTACTS in Baltimore City? It’s almost all native plants, but is it maximized for pollinators? Am I doing it Membership & Website right? ese thoughts were completely contrary to my typical exhortations to people wondering Karyn Molines, [email protected] about planting native. I always say, ‘Just get started! You don’t need to be an expert!” I still believe that Marilandica Editors and I applaud each individual decision to go with native sedges instead of (God forbid!) English ivy Kirsten Johnson, [email protected] as a ground cover. Or to tolerate a certain number of white snakeroots sneaking in, and to leave dead Vanessa Beauchamp, [email protected] stalks standing through the winter. No one will convert to native gardening if we make it too hard. General Inquiries But I personally will make two changes based on Kerry’s advice. I’ll stop buying a little of this and a [email protected] little of that. No more plant zoo. I’ll concentrate on a few piedmont native plants that will thrive MNPS CHAPTERS without tending (since I’m not going to tend them) and I’ll turn off my outdoor lights. Our planet is Eastern Shore in trouble. We all know that. Let me just do my best. [email protected] ~ Kirsten Johnson, President Greater Baltimore Kirsten Johnson, [email protected] Montgomery County We Welcome New Board Members [email protected] North East Tracey Ripani, [email protected] Kerrie Kyde was until recently the Invasive Plant Ecologist for Maryland’s Natural Heritage Program Prince George’s/Anne Arundel Counties at MD Department of Natural Resources. She served as Chair of the state Invasive Plant Advisory Robinne Grey, [email protected] Committee from its inception; she created the citizen science data collection Statewide Eyes, designed Southern Maryland to increase the volume of invasive species data available to Maryland land managers; she was a found- Karyn Molines, [email protected] ing member of the Maryland Invasive Species Council and the founding president of the Mid-Atlan- Washington, DC tic Invasive Plant Council. Now retired from DNR, she is catching up on her native plant ID skills Claudine Lebeau, [email protected] and stewarding her own little piece of land. Western Mountains Liz McDowell, [email protected] Michelle Wenisch, a native of Michigan, is a soil scientist/agronomist and environmental attorney EXECUTIVE OFFICERS with the US Department of Environmental Protection. She has a special interest in soil biology, par- Kirsten Johnson, President ticularly mycorrhizal fungi. In her spare time she’s a Montgomery County Weed Warrior Supervisor. Karyn Molines, Vice-president Anne Denovo, Secretary Other changes on the Board Sujata Roy, Treasurer – Matt Cohen is stepping down as Treasurer, to be replaced by Sujata Roy. Anne DeNovo will be Secretary in addition to continuing as Field Trip Coordinator. Our BOARD OF DIRECTORS organization could not function without the dedication of conscientious volunteers like Matt, Sujata, Vanessa Beauchamp and Anne. Carole Bergmann Allen Browne Michael Ellis All new positions were effective as of the Annual Meeting on November 27. Marc Imlay Beth Johnson Kerrie Kyde Liz Matthews ank you to our members whose dues and donations support all of these activities and more. Brett McMillan In addition to publishing Marilandica, Maryland Native Plant Society — Christopher Puttock · Sponsors at least 50 field trips each year in Maryland’s natural areas, free of charge, Roderick Simmons · Holds free evening programs monthly in Montgomery County and bimonthly in Jil Swearingen Allegany County, Michelle Wenisch · Lou Aronica, Emeritus Holds a 2-day conference each fall, Chris Fleming, Emeritus · Supports conservation projects in Maryland, Joe Metzger, Emeritus · Publishes and distributes a booklet on landscaping with native plants, · Supports scientific research on Maryland’s native plants and their habitats, · Has over 1500 members, Our Mission Promote awareness, appreciation and conservation AND does all this as an all-volunteer organization on a budget of less than $50,000 per year. of Maryland’s native plants and their habitats. We pursue our mission through education, research, On the cover: Common Milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, in winter. Photo: Kirsten Johnson. advocacy, and service activities. Graphic design of Marilandica is provided by Marjie Paul, [email protected]. Marilandica Fall/Winter 2018 page 1 Wildflower in Focus — Common Milkweed Asclepias syriaca L Common milkweed Dogbane Family, Apocynaceae ilkweed. So much to say, so little space. ere’s the Interestingly, a similar structure evolved independently in the Orchid complex flower structure, rivaling that of orchids, Family, although there, the mechanism for attaching the pollinia to the and there’s the poison, and the evolution… I could insect is different and orchids generally don’t require pollination by large go on and on. In the last issue, I wrote about the strong insects the way milkweeds do. effect of insect herbivory on milkweed evolution. is time, let’s start with pollination and end up at So why combine the milkweeds into the Dogbane Family? A goal of taxonomy. Our focus this year is on the Dogbane Family (Apocynaceae) taxonomic grouping is that all the species in each family should be of which the milkweeds comprise one of five subfamilies. What are the derived from a single ancestor and that all the species derived from the milkweeds doing in that family anyway? Didn’t we learn that they had a family ancestor should be included in the family. A family that meets family of their own, the Asclepiadaceae? Or to reverse the question, why these criteria is called “monophyletic.” It has long been understood that were the milkweeds ever classified in a separate family? the milkweeds and the members of the narrowly defined Dogbane Family Pollinia of common milkweed cling to the foot of a margined Apocynum cannabinum, Indian hemp, with a grapeleaf skeletonizer moth. leatherwing beetle. Photo: Robert Ferraro Compare the flower structure to that of milkweed. Photo: Robert Ferraro. Anyone who’s spent time in the field knows that milkweeds have charac- are closely related. In fact, they were derived from the same common teristics in common with Indian hemp and other dogbanes. Not so ancestor. is meant that the absence of the milkweeds created a hole in visible is an important feature that distinguishes them and that was at the old Dogbane Family tree, a condition known as “paraphyly” that least one reason for their prior taxonomists avoid whenever classification as a separate family. possible. With the addition of the Milkweeds do not produce pollen milkweeds, the Dogbane Family is in the form of a loose powder as monophyletic, and better reflects most plants do. Instead, they the evolutionary relationships produce pollen in waxy sacs called among the species in the newly pollinia, located in two anther constituted family. pouches adjacent to vertical ~Kirsten Johnson stigmatic slits. An insect trying to drink nectar from the slippery References flower will sometimes accidently Agrawal, A. 2017. Monarchs and slip its leg or other appendage into Milkweed. Princeton Univ. Press. the opening at the bottom of the Eldridge, E.P. 2015. Milkweed stigmatic slit. is slit is lined with Pollination Biology, https://www. bristles that force the leg up into Close-up of Asclepias quadrifolia, whorled milkweed. Note the reflexed petals, nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_ the opening of a clamp-like and the vertically oriented scoop-shaped “hoods.” e stigmatic slits are PLANTMATERIALS/publica- between the hoods. Photo: Jim Stasz. tions /nvpmctn12764.pdf structure that pinches tight onto the insect’s leg. As the insect struggles to escape, it withdraws pollinia Endress, M.P. and P.V. Bruyns 2000. A Revised Classification of the from the anther pouches. Each of the pollinia contains an enormous Apocynaceae s.l, e Botanical Review, Vol. 66, pp. 1–56. number of pollen grains, so that this mechanism is a highly efficient method of transporting pollen. e effort requires strength, and the Johnson, S.D. and T.J. Edwards 2000. e structure and function of best pollinators are large hymenopterans (bees and wasps). Smaller, orchid pollinaria, Plant Systematics and Evolution, Vol. 222, pp. 243–269. weaker insects (including non-native honeybees) are likely to become Nazar, N. et al. 2013. e taxonomy and systematics of Apocynaceae: trapped and die. A photo on this page shows a beetle with pollinia stuck where we stand in 2012, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, Vol. to its foot. 171, pp. 482–490. Marilandica Fall/Winter 2018 page 2 placing it on timers or on sensors. Light pollution also affects birds It was fun watching the workers snag bugs from my garden and drag Concerned about Pollinators? Here are Some Points to Consider. and bats. Florida Fish and Wildlife has a comprehensive site on them down into their nest. A raccoon eventually dug it all up and certified fixtures and bulbs that reduce impacts to wildlife. http://my- made a meal after the second year. fwc.com/conservation/you-conserve/lighting/ Editor’s Note: In July Kerry Wixted, Wildlife Education and Outreach Society has a chart showing the relative toxicity of various pesticides: · Don’t forget the beetles! Some beetle-pollinator associations, like Specialist of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, posted an https://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/xerces-or- that of magnolia, have ancient evolutionary origins. Beetles also extremely informative email on the Maryland Master Naturalists’ listserv ganic-approved-pesticides-factsheet.pdf pollinate more recently evolved species like goldenrods and viburnums.