Native News Newsletter of the Maryland Native Plant Society March/April 2003 Volume 3 Number 2 Inside This Issue: Upcoming Monthly Meetings President’s Letter Page 2 “A Celebration of our Spring Woodland Wildflowers” ~ Tuesday, March 25, 7:30 pm MNPS Contacts White Oak Library Page 2 Montgomery County ~ Membership Update Join Rod Simmons, field ecologist, for a presentation on many of the Page 3 native plants that flower during the months of March, April, and May, ~ including the spring ephemerals. Spring-flowering woodland grasses Chapter Events & Updates and sedges, herbaceous plants, shrubs, and small trees will be Page 4 discussed, with an emphasis on identification, plant associations, and ~ where they can be found in the region. Early Spring Field Trips Directions: Exit the Washington Beltway at New Hampshire Avenue Page 5 (exit 28). Go north about 2 miles. The library is the first building on ~ the right, once you have passed under Route 29, just after the Sears Invasive Exotic Removal store. Workdays Page 8 ~ “Mosses, Liverworts, and Lichens” Announcements Tuesday, April 29, 7:30 pm Page 9 Aspen Hill Library ~ Montgomery County Brickbats and Kudos Page 11 Leah Oliver, a botanist with NatureServe, will give a presentation on the fascinating world of bryophytes, including their ecology, identification, and importance in maintaining air quality and biological diversity. Directions: From the Washington Beltway (495) take Connecticut Avenue North to Aspen Hill Road. Turn left onto Aspen Hill Road. Library is about 2 ½ miles on right, just past stoplight at Parkland Drive and Aspen Hill Road. You will see a large parking lot. Refreshments served and door prizes awarded at each monthly Sphagnum species meeting. Potluck refreshments are welcomed. Peat Moss Polytrichum commune Please see Upcoming Chapter Events on the back cover. Hair Cap Moss Native News Maryland Native President’s Letter Plant Society Greetings, P.O. Box 4877 During this wintry cold-spell, I’m inclined to snuggle under a blanket with a Silver Spring, MD 20914 good book, a sweater to knit, and a cat on the lap. But it’s also the time for my www.mdflora.org annual search for the first flower of the year—skunk cabbage. (I must admit I search for it in December to be my last flower of the year as well!) If this plant can summon Native News is published the strength to break through the cold, frozen ground, surely I can get myself six times a year by MNPS. motivated to do something besides crave a warm spot by the hearth. Finding this bizarre pocket of a flower does give me pause, for the coming spring days will soon Contacts: be upon me—when so many things are happening at the same time I get in a tizzy trying to keep up. I try to savor these slightly quieter months, reflecting on what has Botany……………….. Rod Simmons been done over the past year and looking forward to the future. [email protected] I have been involved with the Maryland Native Plant Society since its inception Conservation………….. Lou Aronica in January 1992. I am impressed with the strength and diversity of the services we 202-722-1081 provide, functioning solely on our membership dues and volunteer effort. Each year Field Trips………….….Meghan Tice it seems we are able to expand a little bit to fulfill our mission to “increase awareness [email protected] and appreciation of native plants and their habitats, leading to their conservation and 301-809-0139 restoration.” For the third year, the Board of Directors met for a ‘retreat;’ more of a Flora of Maryland………Joe Metzger yearly evaluation and planning meeting, actually. One of our proud achievements [email protected] (among many, which you will hear about in coming months) is the expansion of our Invasive Exotic Plants….. Marc Imlay Chapters, and we hope to further develop new and existing Chapters over the coming [email protected] year. Membership……………Chris Partain Have you noticed over the past few issues of Native News that page 3 has [email protected] featured Chapter Updates? We have four active Chapters (Catoctin, Greater Monthly Meetings…….Rod Simmons Baltimore, Southern Maryland, and Washington, D.C.) and two inactive (Eastern [email protected] Shore and Northeast). The objective of chapter development has a history that stems 301-809-0139 from the Society’s initial founding. When we began in 1992, our active members President………..……Karyn Molines were concentrated in Montgomery County. Many reasons contributed to this, [email protected] primarily because the Society was started through a close network of people Publications: interested in native plants. As with any clique, encouraging a wider and more Marilandica………….. Rod Simmons diverse membership to join your circle of friends is a challenge. The success of our [email protected] Montgomery County evening programs demonstrates the success of our ‘word of Native News………….. Meghan Tice mouth’ development. But Maryland is much more than Montgomery County. [email protected] Our field trips and fall conferences are the main avenues for reaching out to Website.………….James MacDonald other parts of the state, and we have been mildly successful recruiting new members [email protected] from outside the metropolitan D.C. region. (FYI: The breakdown of our members by Maryland County, Washington, D.C., and other states follows). What we hope to Executive Officers: achieve by forming chapters is to provide a backbone to increase our presence in Karyn Molines, President various geographic regions of the state. But we are caught in a catch-22. How can we increase our presence if we don’t have active members in a region? But we can’t Marc Imlay, Vice President get active members if we don’t have a presence in the region. So our challenge is to John Parrish, Vice President try to reach out, offer field trips, work with other active organizations, and ask our Roderick Simmons, Vice President current members to help us out. Jane Osburn, Secretary Each Chapter has a slightly different flavor, which is dependent on the Jean Cantwell, Treasurer volunteers who are making the Chapter happen. We need member input about what Board of Directors: each Chapter should accomplish; ideas are great but warm bodies are better. Here is just a short list of ideas: Lou Aronica James MacDonald - Bring a friend to one of the evening meetings or field trips in your region. Carole Bergmann Joe Metzger, Jr. - Put copies of our publications in a public location (library, nature center, Lisa Bierer-Garrett Chris Partain community center, office, garden store)—we have extra copies for anyone who asks, Cris Fleming Mary Pat Rowan just let me know where to mail them. If we can get 100 new locations (we have Carolyn Fulton Meghan Tice about 100 nature centers and other sites on our list right now) we can save postage Beth Johnson costs by sending items out ‘bulk’ mail. Page 2 March/April 2003 Volume 3 Number 2 Native News President’s Letter Continued Membership Update - Download any of our publications from the web site and Current MNPS Members make more copies to distribute. (Maryland and Washington, D.C.) - Reprint MNPS brochures, articles, or other publications in Allegany 1 other newsletters (with appropriate credit, of course). Anne Arundel 37 - Volunteer to send emails or postcards to Chapter members Baltimore 41 about upcoming events. Baltimore City 25 Calvert 12 - Volunteer to write press releases or articles about MNPS Caroline 4 events for local papers. Carroll 13 - Contact the Chapter Liaisons for other jobs that need to get Cecil 2 done. Charles 10 - Speak at a community event about why you are a member Dorchester 3 of MNPS. We have a display that is available for Chapter Frederick 18 use. Garrett 2 All skill levels are needed, as our Treasurer Jean Harford 5 Cantwell says, “I don’t know much about native plants, but I Howard 30 can keep track of money.” So as you reflect on why you are Kent 5 Montgomery 162 a member of MNPS, think about how you might help us Prince George's 37 reach out to new audiences to spread the word about the Queen Anne's 10 importance of native plants and their habitats. Saint Mary's 4 Talbot 8 Enjoy the emergence of spring and hope to see you at Worcester 2 one of the many programs offered this year. Washington, D.C. 33 Members in Other States Delaware 2 Oregon 1 Illinois 1 Pennsylvania 7 Massachusetts 1 Virginia 16 Karyn Molines Michigan 1 West Virginia 2 New Jersey 1 Members in Maryland and Washington, D.C., January 2003 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 Number of members 40 20 0 Kent Cecil Talbot Carroll Calvert Garrett Charles Harford Howard Caroline Allegany Frederick Baltimore Worcester Dorchester Saint Mary's Montgomery Queen Anne's Anne Arundel Baltimore City Prince George's Washington, DC Page 3 March/April 2003 Volume 3 Number 2 Native News discussed landscaping practices such as keeping lawn areas to Chapter Events & Updates a minimum and having varied, native plants that cause less damage than traditional, lawn-oriented landscaping does. A Look at the Southern Maryland Chapter, 2002 Field trips have included: Chapter meetings, 2002 through January 2003: - An August walk through Battle Creek Cypress Swamp led The Southern Maryland Chapter of MNPS was formed on by Karyn Molines, allowing participants to enjoy the relative Earth Day 2002 by a gathering of MNPS members and coolness under the great bald cypress trees, and observe supporters. This Chapter will focus on Charles, Saint Mary's, lizard tail, turtlehead, and cardinal flower. and Calvert Counties, although Anne Arundel and Prince - A November walk exploring the northern side of Parker’s George's will be encouraged to be involved as well.