DAVIS BOTANICAL SOCIETY LASTHENIA

LASTHENIA, the Newsletter of the Davis Botanical Society, is published in collaboration with the staff of the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory UPCOMING EVENTS! and Center for Diversity. Editor: Kate Mawdsley Issue Contributors: E. Dean, E. San- doval, T. Barry, J. Clary, N. Williams, D. Sat. April 7 Jasper Ridge field trip Burge, S. Sumrall Design: Susan Gloystein Sat. April 21 Picnic Day Herbarium and Conserva- Layout: Ellen Dean tory open houses DBS OFFICERS, 2017-2018 President: Neal Williams Sun. April 29 Arboretum/Conservatory Plant Sale President-elect: Jeffrey Clary Membership Vice President: Thurs. May 3 Spring Meeting and Speaker, Judy Tom Starbuck, Johanna Kwan, & Kate Mawdsley Jernstedt will speak on “Stalking the wild Secretary: Chris Walden Welwitschia” Treasurer: Robert Rhode Past President: Judy Jernstedt Sat. July 14 Bliss State Park field trip Members at Large: Cherilyn Burton, Brenda Grewell Student Member at Large: Ross Brennan Ex officio: Dan Potter, Ernesto

Sandoval, Ellen Dean

UC Davis Mail ID: BTNY BTNY ID: Mail Davis UC

Davis, CA 95616 95616 CA Davis,

University of California California of University

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8 No. 49 Winter 2018 LASTHENIA NEWSLETTER OF THE DAVIS BOTANICAL SOCIETY

STEBBINS COLD CANYON RESERVE POST-FIRE: IS RECOVERY IN THE WORKS? A year and a half ago (Lasthenia number Stebbins Cold Canyon Reserve and 46), we published an article by Marcel the surrounding landscape went up in Rejmanek on the effects of the Wragg flames in July of 2015. A roadside ve- Fire on Stebbins Cold Canyon (one year hicular fire quickly leapt from Highway post-fire). We asked Jeffrey Clary, Director 128 up to the thick chaparral vegetation of Stebbins Cold Canyon Reserve and As- covering the west side of the Blue Ridge. sociate Director of the UC Davis Natural Within minutes, flames reached and Reserve System, to follow up on Marcel’s enveloped the UC Davis reserve. article and let our readers know how the The fire was ferociously intense, canyon is recovering. Jeffrey is currently especially along the upper slopes of the president-elect of the Davis Botanical So- Blue Ridge, the hikers’ destination for ciety. More information on Stebbins Cold panoramic views of the Coast Range Carpets of whispering bells in burned Canyon can be found at naturalreserves. and Lake Berryessa. chaparral at Stebbins Cold Canyon, spring 2016. Photo: J. Clary ucdavis.edu. Given the intensity of the fire and After multiple years of historic the extremely low reserve of moisture in revegetation was uncertain. How many drought and searing temperatures, the the soils, the pathway to recovery and of the trees and shrubs in the fire zone were truly dead? Which ones would successfully resprout and reseed? Would THE CONSERVATORY EXPANDS OUTWARD invasive gain a new foothold in The UC Davis Botanical Con- the area? servatory continues to expand Two and a half years have elapsed and provide as much live plant since the fire, meaning we are in the material for as many courses midst of the third growing season of as possible, both for UC Davis the recovery. Each year, the vegetation and other local colleges (if we has been starkly different from the year can). Sometimes these improve- before. The goal of this article is to track ments are a result of adding some of the big picture changes that we new ; in other cases, it’s have observed. because we’ve gotten better at continued on page 6 growing or propagating them. In a few cases, it’s because we can now afford biological con- trols to eliminate pesticide use. View of new paths of the Biological Orchard & IN THIS ISSUE Examples follow. Gardens (the BOG) which will provide more sam- Stebbins Cold Canyon...... 1 A couple of years ago, Kyle pling plots for biological sciences students as well Shankle, a graduate student in as heirloom fruit orchards. Photo: E. Sandoval Conservatory Expands Outward ����1 Plant Biology, donated a large Law Family Scholarships...... 3 and attractive elephantipes with a stem that regularly appears on social media after tours of the conservatory. Thanks to his donation of a large Darwin Pine Hill Native Bees...... 4 orchid (Angraecum sesquipedale), BIS 2C students this past fall were able to use Hedgerows Pollinators...... 5 live flowers with 1 foot long nectar spurs to examine the plant’s co-evolution Hmong Specimen Exhibit...... 7 continued on page 2 1 CONSERVATORY (CONT. FROM PAGE 1) lab building, finally saw the installa- tion of curved concrete paths. The site will provide a real-world opportunity for students to conduct quadrats and/ or transects in field-like conditions rela- tively close to the Sciences Lab Building (SLB). The students will perform their measurements in one of three plots containing South African, Californian, or Mediterranean plants. When possible they will use these plots instead of the three small sampling beds on the east side of the Sciences Laboratory Building, which were first planted in 2008. Other habitats used by BIS 2B in- The Darwin orchid. Photo: E. Sandoval clude: the epiphyte walls in the SLB The cacao plant. Photo: E. Sandoval greenhouse, as well as small planters with the Darwin moth (Xanthopan fea arabica). Marlene Simon, staff horti- with carnivorous plants, succulents, or morganii), using a life-size photo of the culturalist, has facilitated the transition shade plants, Fowling plates brought in moth. This was done as part of one of on these and a number of other plants by 2B staff from Bodega Bay, and an as- six exercises that students present to with the result that when our depart- sortment of terrariums and aquariums. each other during their visit to the Con- ment chair brought multiple classes for These five sets of “habitats” make it servatory. We had enough flowers in the Conservatory tours earlier this quarter, possible for up to five concurrent labs to fall for all 15 groups to do this! we were able to harvest cacao pods (the have 24 students performing measure- This past fall, just after the last fruit of Theobroma cacao) and allow ments in six smaller teams of four to Lasthenia newsletter went to press, we these tourists to sample the sweet and get a very good idea of what it takes to successfully rooted three Amborella tart pulp around the seeds. If they were sample diversity. trichopoda cuttings! These are very so inclined, we felt at ease in encourag- sought-after plants for systematics ing them to sample the bitterness that research into the ancestral lineages of a Central American monkey would flowering plants (as well as courses experience if it were to nibble on the teaching these concepts). Amborella is actual seed. To be able to harvest the quite slow to root, and the cuttings took cacao fruit, we must hand-pollinate the nearly nine months to grow their roots. chocolate tree, and thanks to a number Is this slow rate of growth perhaps due of interns and volunteers we have had a to Amborella’s adaptation to the low steady supply of fruit for the past three light and cool understory of its habitat years. But only now can we confidently in New Caledonia? allow its consumption. As reported in the previous Last- The transition to biological pest henia, the mother plant, a female, is control, predatory insects that either now growing quite well in Room A of consume or parasitize pest insects such the Conservatory, so we’ll take many as aphids, mealy bugs, and mites, has Ernesto Sandoval with rooted Amborella more cuttings this spring in hopes of cutting. Photo: S. Sumrall been made possible by funding sources having enough specimens to guarantee that are vital to the continuation of the live plants positioned at the base of This spring and summer we’ll be Botanical Conservatory. The Conserva- the angiosperms branch on the Tree of installing the irrigation at the BOG, and tory has continued to fulfill and expand Life demonstration for BIS 2C, where immediately afterward plants will be put our mission to provide as much live students literally stand amongst the in of all sorts and sizes, some moved plant material for UC Davis and beyond branches of an evolutionary tree of from the smaller SLB planting beds, to by expanding outdoors (the greenhouses plants. Ernesto took the opportunity be ready for fall quarter’s five concurrent have both environmental and physical this past fall to take some high quality labs. The BOG project was started in restrictions). This is all made possible macro photographs of the flowers, now 2012 and, thanks to a variety of recent through our connection to our users available to educators. donations, BIS 2B lab fees, and endow- and continued generous donations that We’re also literally paving the paths ment funds, we’ve been able to fund this support our efforts. We, the staff of the for increased capacity of the Botani- major expansion. Botanical Conservatory, are the care- cal Conservatory to provide live plant Also thanks to the same funding takers of this wonderful assortment of materials, in this case for BIS 2B lab 1, sources, we’ve made a major transition plants that we have the pleasure of shar- where students perform rapid biodiversity this past year away from pesticide use ing in a multitude of ways, and we are assessments in one of several “habitats.” on popular plants in the Conservatory thankful for your help in realizing these This February, the Biological Orchard and such as cacao (aka the chocolate tree, ever-growing goals. Gardens (the BOG), north of the Mann Theobroma cacao) as well as coffee (Cof- E. Sandoval 2 RECENT GIFTS Herbarium Endowment Herbarium Operations Conservatory Gifts in Kind Beth Lowe Corbin Allyson Ayalon Ian Baker Joseph & Susan DiTomaso Dylan Burge John Brittnacher Lewis Feldman Amy Hiss Fred Gaumer Brenda Grewell & Stephen Kidner Johanna Kwan & Kevin Hague Chuck Powell Joseph Lin Katherine Mawdsley Barry Rice Sue Nichol Jack Maze Kyle Shankle Stephen & Jill Rae Jean & Scott Shepard Robert & Thomas Rhode Shirley Tucker Davis Botanical Society Craig Thomsen Chris Walden Student Grants Fund J. Giles Waines (in memory of Gerald Dickinson B. Webster) Conservatory Endowment Brenda Grewell & Stephen Kidner Gerald Dickinson Emily Griswold Herbarium Gifts in Kind Stephen & Jill Rae Susan Harrison Barbara Crampton Stephen & Jill Rae Johanna Kwan & Kevin Hague Conservatory Operations Marylou and Robert Powell Carmichael Cactus & Succulent Society Jack Major Student Grant Fund Marcel Rejmanek Jade Neely Anonymous Reynotta Hoberecht Mary Hektner Thank you for San Francisco Succulent & your support! Cactus Society LAW FAMILY ENDOWMENT SCHOLARSHIP STUDENTS

wonderful food, and did outreach to the Hmong community to make sure that they knew about the exhibit. She is an incredibly organized individual, and I very much appreciated her hard work. Our second scholarship is being awarded to senior Evolution and Ecol- ogy major, Lahari Indraganti. Lahari began volunteering at the herbarium last year as a Junior transfer student. Mai Xiong (left) at the herbarium tea with Leng Yang and Johnny Moua. Photo: E. Dean Matthew Conner (left) with fellow intern Emily Hernandez. Photo: E. Dean We once again have the opportunity Our third scholarship is be- to give out undergraduate scholar- ing awarded to Matthew Conner, a ships to students who have been sophomore Plant Sciences major. involved with the Center for Plant Matthew wandered into the herbarium Diversity herbarium. The scholar- as a freshman and began working as a ships are funded by the Law Family volunteer filer (often with Lahari). Al- Endowment, established by Dr. E. Eric though he was too early in his academ- Grissell (see Lasthenia Vol. 41, 2014). ic career to receive credit, he joined This spring we are recognizing three the herbarium internship this past fall students. and the plant collection internship last We are awarding the first schol- Lahari Indraganti at Picnic Day 2017. spring. Along with Lahari, Matthew arship to senior Mai Xiong, who is Photo: E. Dean sat in on my one-day introduction to mentioned in this issue in our article She has volunteered as a specimen filer, keying workshop last spring, and he on the Hmong plants exhibit. Mai, taken both the herbarium internship has since been teaching himself how a Sociology major, first came to the and the plant collection internship, and to key cultivated plants using both the herbarium as a student plant mounter. helped us at numerous outreach events. Jepson Manual and Bailey’s Manual of She then helped curate our Hmong She is currently working on a senior Cultivated Plants. He is also helping me plant collection and was instrumental research project on jewel flowers Strep( - measure Lycianthes specimens in prep- in making our January 2018 Her- tanthus) with a graduate student mentor aration for writing species treatments. barium Tea/Hmong Plants Exhibit a in Evolution and Ecology. Lahari is a joy I really appreciate his help with this successful outreach event. Mai helped to work with and always enthusiastic tedious work! Congratulations, all! plan the event, made signage, cooked about plants. E. Dean 3 NATIVE BEES OF THE PINE HILL GABBRO

Dylan Burge, an alum of UC Davis, is a collect pollen and nectar to provision biodiversity consultant based in northern the nest, and then lay eggs that will California. He has done taxonomic work turn into next year’s bees. A solitary on several important native California bee might visit as many as 300 flowers genera and has donated many interesting to provision a single egg, flying several specimens to our herbarium. He would kilometers per day to do so, and then like to thank Graciela Hinshaw (Bureau working all night long in its nest. The of Land Management) for her work in food that a solitary bee provides to its funding and administering the research young is in the form of “bee bread,” a described in this article, Landon Eldredge mixture of pollen and nectar that is al- for assistance with bee collection and lowed to ferment, releasing amino acids, identification, and Robbin Thorp for as- Pinned bee and other insect specimens ready sistance with bee identification. to be labeled and identified. Photo: D. Burge The importance of native bees crops that are the foundation of human More than 80% of the world’s plant life. Given their importance to humans species depend on insects for pollina- and the environment, the steep decline tion, making insect pollinators critical of native bees has triggered a surge in to the health of ecosystems around the scientific and public attention, leading world. Insect pollination is crucial for to new research and insights on native the success of many crops that human bees. society depends on, for example al- mond, apple, tomato, squash, and more Native bees are different from honey- than 120 others. The services provided bees to humans by insect pollinators are Many readers have probably heard valued at more than 200 billion dollars about the problems that are facing annually, worldwide. honeybees around the world. Honey Despite the value of these organ- is produced by the western honeybee, isms, little is known about pollinator a domesticated species that originated diversity around the world, including in eastern Africa, but was domesti- Funnel trap used to collect bees, Pine Hill ecological conditions that maintain cated by humans thousands of years summit, El Dorado County. Photo: D. Burge healthy pollinator populations. In addi- ago and is presently found world-wide. tion, some recent research suggests that This domesticated species is suffering sugars, fats, and vitamins (as well as populations of many pollinator species, from a number of devastating diseases alcohol) that are needed by the growing especially native bees, are in steep de- and disorders, most of them linked to bee. The adult bee, on the other hand, cline, likely a consequence of pesticide parasites (mainly mites) and over-use of survives on only nectar. use, climate change, and introduced pesticides by humans. While honeybees parasites. The decline of the bees is are definitely in trouble, their problems Native bees of the Pine Hill gabbro particularly worrying, as these insects pale in comparison to the plight of the I am currently studying the relation- are the primary agent of pollination world’s roughly 20,000 species of native ship between native plants and pollina- among flowering plants, including the bees, which are declining in diversity tors in the Pine Hill area of El Dorado and abundance worldwide, likely due County. The Pine Hill area supports a to the same factors that are injuring unique, hyper-diverse assemblage of honeybees. Scientists are hard at work plants (more than 10% of California’s solving the problems facing honeybees, native flora is found here), several of but much less attention is being given to them endemic to the region. Hyperdi- native bees. versity in this area is associated with outcrops of gabbro rock. Soils derived How native bees make a living from gabbro are unique, with low nutri- Native bees are almost all solitary. In ent levels and high iron and magnesium contrast, honeybees are colonial, with content, similar in some ways to serpen- many workers all serving a single queen, tine soils. They are thought to exert a working together to raise hundreds of very strong influence on plant ecology young and lay in provisions of honey so and evolution, supporting unusually that the hive can survive the winter. In high levels of diversity, as well as five fact, the term “busy bee” applies better rare plant taxa, all of which are consid- A native bee, Halictus ligatus, pollinating to our native nectar hunters than it does ered endangered at the state or federal Gilia in the Pine Hill area. Photo: D. Burge to domesticated honeybees; a solitary level. Supported by the BLM Pine Hill bee must construct its own nest (often Preserve, I am studying bee species that digging several feet into the ground), pollinate plants on the Pine Hill gabbro, 4 HEDGEROWS AND NATIVE POLLINATORS with the goal of identifying ecological Over the past 10 years, the staff of the factors that predict highly diverse and UC Davis Center for Plant Diversity robust native bee communities. have assisted with plant identification In the past year and a half, I have for numerous hedgerow research projects. collected native bees at 20 sites around Our current Davis Botanical Society the Pine Hill Preserve, using hand Board President, Neal Williams, has nets as well as a diversity of traps that written this article on the importance of are out all year, ensuring that a large hedgerows to California pollinators. cross-section of native bee diversity is captured for later analysis. Captured California’s native flora plays a funda- bees are preserved dried on pins and mental role in supporting natural eco- identified. Although the number of bee systems. This same native flora is play- species foraging at a site on a given day ing a novel role as a central element of might be as low as six or seven, each strategies to help diversify agricultural species of bee has a unique phenolo- landscapes and support pollinators gy—a special time of year when it flies. and pollination in California. Thus, over the course of the year, hun- Native pollinators, especially bees dreds of bee species are able to co-exist and butterflies, have grabbed the atten- by focusing on the types of flowers that tion of the public as well as scientists A wildflower/hedgerow planting. bloom while they are foraging. On the around the world. These insects play Photo: N. Williams Pine Hill gabbro, bees fly long into the an important role in sustaining popu- summer, as many native plants bloom lations of native plants across Califor- flowering phenology, flower traits, and much later on gabbro than they do on nia, but they also contribute pollina- sometimes even pollinator visitation adjacent soils. This research will contin- tion service to agriculture. Intensive that can be used to help design plant ue for at least two more years, with one agricultural landscapes that blanket mixes. With such information in hand, year dedicated to bee collecting, and an- many parts of California are not only researchers can work with NGOs, na- other to writing. Overall, the results of denuded of their native plant diversity, tive plant nurseries, and seed produc- this work will aid in preservation of bee but offer unpredictable and insuffi- ers to source plant materials and then diversity in the Pine Hill Preserve and cient resources to sustain many of our partner with farmers, land managers, in other parts of California by providing native pollinators. A leading strategy and regional Resource Conservation data on how plant diversity influences to mitigate these threats is to plant Districts to install habitats. pollinators. hedgerows and wildflower borders Information collected by research- within agricultural lands. ers at UC Davis and UC Berkeley What you can do for native bees Hedgerow and wildflower plantings documents striking increases in the While it may seem that native bee benefit pollinators and, with informed diversity of pollinator species support- decline is inevitable, given the many plant choices, also support native ed by such plantings. In one study of challenges that these species face, as plant diversity. These plantings aren’t wildflower borders along crop fields, well as the lack of knowledge of basic quite natural communities because 47 different native bee species were aspects of bee ecology, there is still hope they bring together species that would collected, over 6 times the number for native bees. Part of the solution rarely occur side by side, but none- found in other parts of the landscape. to native bee decline will come from theless come from the same floristic Hedgerows also support rare species major changes to the way that humans province. Because plant materials can and those with specialized habitat tend their crops, which is tied to public be sourced from local ecotypes, they needs over time. awareness of how crops are grown. As offer novel ways to promote Califor- Pollinator plantings are imple- a consumer, you can choose organic nia’s flora and a diversity of bees, but- mented following principles of plant fruits and vegetables, which are grown terflies, and other pollinators. restoration and a series of streamlined, without the use of the pesticides that Native forbs and shrubs are a though perhaps not always easy, steps. are known to kill native bees. If you good choice for building pollinator Solarization uses the sun’s energy to are a gardener, you can also help native plantings because they are often well kill invasive weeds prior to planting bees by planting flowers that provide adapted to regional soils and are highly the seed mix. Mechanized drop seed- the nectar and pollen that bees need. drought tolerant. These characteristics ers speed the work of sowing large Those who are interested in native plant increase the probability of successful plantings. gardening to support native bees should establishment. Native plants can be Much of the effort to date has consult the recommendations of the drawn from a wide palette of colors, explored the use of native plants and Xerces Society, a non-profit that focuses flower forms, and flowering times to plantings in agricultural landscapes. on bee conservation. build mixes that provide diverse flow- Native plants also offer options for ur- D. Burge ering over large portions of the grow- ban landscaping, where they can sup- ing season. Herbaria (like UC Davis’ port diverse pollinators and provide Center for Plant Diversity) provide key amazing displays for humans as well. information on geographic location, N. Williams 5 STEBBINS COLD CANYON (CONT. FROM PAGE 1)

a landmark year, with plants in many plants are starting to mature and flower areas growing taller than a person! at just a few inches tall. Whether March These weeds served the useful role of rainfall will be enough to favor new temporarily hedging in the trails and waves of weeds remains to be seen, but keeping hikers from straying cross- it seems like they always find a way. country, as is tempting when natural In this context, the regrowth of barriers are removed by wildfires. native trees and shrubs is much more visible. Seemingly every skeleton of Year 2 – Winter/Spring 2017 live oak (Quercus wislizeni), chamise The second post-fire season featured (Adenostoma fasciculatum) and toyon near-record high amounts of rainfall, (Heteromeles arbutifolia) has a vigor- and the canyon responded with lush ous tangle of regrowth, now beginning carpets of green. Unfortunately, much of the process of shading out neighboring Stebbins Cold Canyon in February 2018. the lush green was the result of non- understory weeds. Glossy new seedlings Photo: J. Clary native species taking advantage of the of buck brush (Ceanothus cuneatus) are Year 1 – Winter/Spring 2016 favorable conditions. also pushing skywards. The first rainy season after the burn In particular, Italian thistle (Carduus It is clear that these native woody was a bit of a disappointment; in spite of pycnocephalus) grew thick and tall along plants intend to reclaim the territory strong El Niño conditions, rainfall was the trails and across great expanses of temporarily lost to the understory short of normal. Even without abundant still-open chaparral areas. The annual weeds. Because of this natural process of rain, the nutrients and space liberated grasses had another great year. Yel- shading out light-hungry non-natives, by the burn led to a superb wildflower low starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) we are holding off on most intensive year in the canyon. reappeared in some natural areas, and weed control efforts, focusing instead For the first time in decades, the super-sized purple starthistle (Centaurea on any new arrivals (such as the purple fire-following species whispering calcitrapa) showed up around the park- starthistle). bells, (Emmenanthe penduliflora) with ing lots - our steward and his volunteer It is also apparent that after just its small pale-yellow flowers, carpeted crews hand-removed those prickly three growing seasons, there is enough much of the reserve. Calystegia occiden- monsters. biomass at Stebbins Cold Canyon to talis, the native morning glory, aggres- Through the sea of weeds, native carry a new wildfire, should we have the sively climbed the skeletons of burned trees and shrubs began to make them- misfortune to have another one break trees and shrubs for a magnificent floral selves visible again, as resprouts and out in the area. display (this species is still particularly seedlings took hold. I encourage everyone to take ad- showy on the reserve). And the spec- vantage of mild spring conditions to tacular - but usually rare - red ribbons Year 3 – Winter/Spring 2018 visit the canyon and see fire recovery in (Clarkia concinna) blanketed shadier So far this year (as of February 23rd), action. Happy trails! areas of the canyon. limited rainfall has kept weed growth J. Clary Non-native annual grasses, espe- stunted. Italian thistle looks like it will cially wild oats (Avena spp.) also had be far less common, and many wild oats BIODIVERSITY DAY 2018 WAS A BIG SUCCESS!

Biodiversity Museum Day started at UC kids glued dried plants onto cards, dem- ly large of Amorphophallus titanum. Davis in 2013 with six campus natural onstrations on pressing and mounting Other notable plants for the day’s visi- history museums, including the Center plants, flowers to view under the micro- tors included cool stuff such as seeing for Plant Diversity Herbarium and the scope, specimens on exhibit (including the chocolate and coffee trees in fruit as Conservatory. This event was designed a portion of the Hmong exhibit from well as sampling the sweetener found to allow the public, students, staff January’s tea), tours of the collection, in Stevia . Although it was a bit and faculty to visit our great collec- and a table of touchable plants, that we busy with lots of bodies in the Botanical tions, many of which are not regularly referred to as the “plant petting zoo.” Conservatory, everyone seemed to enjoy open to the public. This year, thirteen On the tours, guests got to see some themselves. museums and collections participated of our special specimens, such as one We would like to thank all of the in the event. There was a lot of positive of our oldest specimens, an Adiantum staff and volunteers who helped us feedback from all of the participants, pedatum (maiden hair fern) collected in make this day a success. We could not including the Herbarium and the Con- 1878. have done it without you! For more servatory, both of which received nearly At the Conservatory, guests were information about this annual Febru- 1000 visitors. able to tour the collection and experi- ary event or to learn more about all the Both the Herbarium and Conser- ence a wide assortment of succulents participating collections please visit the vatory offered much to see and do. from South Africa to South America, event website at http://biodiversitymu- The Herbarium had a make-your-own ponder the purpose of carnivorous seumday.ucdavis.edu/ herbarium specimen craft table where plants, and/or be in awe at the amazing- T. Barry & E. Sandoval 6 HMONG SPECIMENS FOCUS OF WINTER/SPRING EXHIBITS

and immigrated to the United States be- tween the late 1970s and mid-1990s, of- ten with long stops in refugee camps in Thailand and elsewhere. There are large populations of Hmong in the United States in California and Minnesota. In Hmong culture, the boundary between food and medicine is not well defined, and many plants are used for both food and medicine. Their connection to the plants that they used in their homeland continues here in the United States. So, how did the Center for Plant At the January Herbarium Tea. From left Diversity acquire more than 100 speci- to right: Mai Xiong and Jan Corlett with herbarium interns Lydia Chin Yi Kao and mens of Hmong herbs? Our Hmong Benjamin Murphy. Photo: E. Dean specimens were collected for two dif- ferent research projects. The first was In January, the Center for Plant Diversi- Dr. Jan Corlett’s PhD project in the UC ty hosted a well-attended Herbarium Tea Davis Dept. of Nutrition documenting with an exhibit featuring our specimens the plants grown in home gardens and A specimen of chayote collected by Jan of Hmong culinary and medicinal herbs. used by Hmong families in Sacramento Corlett in a Hmong home garden in Sacra- The specimens were also exhibited at between 1997-1999. The second was mento in 1997. Photo: E. Dean Biodiversity Museum Day in February and will be put up again at Picnic Day on Hmong plants, with field trips to in April. The January exhibit and tea Hmong farms. They also produced a refreshments were organized by un- poster that Ellen presented at a national dergraduate Mai Xiong and herbarium botany conference. curator Ellen Dean, with additional set- In the fall of 2005, the museum up help by a number of other herbarium Copia in the city of Napa mounted an staff and volunteers. exhibit on Hmong herbs that high- Mai, an active member of the cam- lighted Jan’s specimens. The Copia pus Hmong Student Union, connected curators created beautiful signage, and with the herbarium several years ago they acquired a valuable Hmong story when she became one of our plant cloth for the exhibit. When Copia lost specimen mounters. As someone who its funding, they donated the exhibit grew up farming and using Hmong Specimens of Hmong medicinal and culinary signage and cloth to the Center for herbs on exhibit at our January Herbarium herbs, Mai told us early on about her Plant Diversity. This signage and cloth Tea. Photo: E. Dean interest in the herbs used by her family. were part of the herbarium tea exhibit Ellen encouraged her to collect some Richard Molinar and Michael Yang’s in January, along with the specimens of the plants used by her family, and Cooperative Extension project docu- themselves. A much smaller exhibit Jean Shepard (our collection manager) menting the plants grown and used was arranged for Biodiversity Museum involved Mai in curating some of our by Hmong families in Fresno between Day and will be shown again on Picnic Hmong specimens that still needed 2005 and 2011. The plants studied and Day. We are grateful for all the help we specimen labels. collected by Jan Corlett, Richard Mo- have received in mounting this exhibit Fast forward to the fall of 2017, linar, and Michael Yang were identified several times. E. Dean when Mai heard about our plan to at UC Davis by Ellen Dean. Ellen identi- exhibit some of our Hmong specimens, fied the specimens using keys in many she went into high gear organizing all different floras (Thailand, Vietnam, aspects of our tea, including making ex- China) and other books, as well as lists hibit placards, adding live plants to the of plants in research articles that docu- exhibit, taking Ellen to a Hmong New ment herbs used by different southeast Year celebration, inviting local Hmong Asian cultures. students, taking Ellen shopping for Jan’s project culminated in an article typical Hmong snacks, and making the in the journal Economic Botany entitled Hmong three-colored dessert Nab Vam. “Hmong Gardens: Botanical Diversity in We are very grateful to Mai for her help. an Urban Setting,” a highly cited work The Hmong people are most recently that includes a list of all the plants she native to the mountains of northern documented. Richard and Michael’s The story cloth and Mai’s mother’s baby Vietnam, Laos and southern China. project included an excellent commu- carrier on exhibit at the Herbarium Tea. They were displaced by the Vietnam war nity-centered conference in Fresno Photo: E. Dean 7