Bulletin of the Native Plant Society of Oregon Dedicated to the enjoyment, conservation and study of Oregon’s native plants and habitats VOLUME 37, NO. 4APRIL 2004 The Mountains of Northeastern Oregon, Pt. 1 by Loren Russell, Corvallis Chapter center of scenic beauty and floris- Blue Mountain Region and extend for lumbia Basin to the north, and of the Atic diversity—home to about 2400 more than 200 miles, from the north- northern Great Basin to the south. species of vascular plants, more than 60 eastern corner of Oregon and adjacent There are also large areas of lower, drier percent of the state’s flora—the moun- southeastern Washington to Prineville grassland along the John Day and tains of northeastern Oregon have long in central Oregon. Diverse in its geolo- Crooked rivers, and prairies such as been one of my favorite destinations for gy, soils, and landforms, half of the re- those of the Grand Ronde Valley near hiking and botanizing. The Wallowas gion is covered by eruptive igneous La Grande and of high basins (e.g., Big and the Blue Mountain complex, which rocks, primarily the vast Columbia Summit Prairie in the Ochocos). In the includes the Ochoco, Maury, Aldrich, River flood basalts and the older John western part of the region, timberline is Strawberry, Greenhorn and Elkhorn Day River ash and rhyolite deposits. reached only on Strawberry Mountain, ranges, are collectively known as the There are also large exposures of granite but in the Elkhorn and Wallowa and of sedimentary rocks, including Mountains, alpine and subalpine vege- limestone, and some exposures of serpen- tation is the most extensive and diverse tine rocks; there are significant parallels in Oregon. Unfortunately, most of the In This Issue to the geology of the Klamath region of alpine zone in these ranges is remote southwestern Oregon (Bishop 2003). accessible only on multi-day backpack Yamhill SWCD Native Plant The western ranges of the Blue or horseback trips. Sale a Huge Success..........38 Mountain Region are generally lower It is impossible to do justice to this and drier, the eastern ones higher and rich floral region in a single article, so Mosses and Liverworts of the wetter. The region is largely covered by here I will cover just a few reasonably PNW Workshops................38 ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) or accessible sites with alpine and sub- mixed conifer forest (Langston 1995), alpine vegetation; I have not men- Eastside Conservation which makes it stand out on a relief tioned sites at the western (Ochoco) Coordinator Needed ..........38 map, vegetation map, or satellite image and eastern (Hells Canyon) ends of the Chapter Calendar ..............39 from the adjacent, lower-elevation region. grasslands and semi-desert of the Co- continued on page 44 Other Events ....................42 25 Years of Wildflower Posters ...........................43 Don’t Forget to Register for the NPSO Items for Sale..........44 NPSO Annual Meeting, June 25-27! The Jean Davis Scholarship Award ............45 This year’s NPSO annual meeting will take place in La Grande and will be hosted by the The William Cusick and Blue Mountain Chapters. Information on lodging, In Memorium: Bonnie Hall.46 hikes and registration were included in the March Bulletin. Mark your calendars now, and save June 25-27 for a terrific weekend of botanizing. NPSO Contacts..................47 April 2004 37 Yamhill SWCD OCIE T S TY N O Friends of the Oregon A F Native Plant Sale a L P O R Flora Project E E Huge Success V G I O T A N N The annual Native Plant Sale host- ed by the Yamhill Soil and Water Con- servation District in mid-February was Fo 1 once again a huge success. According und 196 ed to Tim Stieber, District Manager, over 70,000 bare root and potted native Native Plant plants, including trees, shrubs flowers and grasses, were sold to landowners Society of Oregon and homeowners. A large measure of the sale’s success www.oregonflora.org World Wide Web is owed to the many volunteers who The Friends of the Oregon Flora http://www.NPSOregon.org helped the SWCD staff pre-package and sell the plants. In addition to many Project acknowledges with sadness individuals who donated their time, a the death of Bonnie Hall. Her kind- E-mail Discussion List special thanks is due to the Cheahmhill ness, her enthusiasm and support To join send a message to Chapter of the NPSO, the Yamhill of the Flora Project, and her talent- [email protected], with the Basin Council, and FFA students from ed artistry will be greatly missed. following in the body of the message: Perrydale, Dayton, McMinnville and subscribe npso Friends of the Oregon Flora Project Amity high schools. P. O. Box 402 Next year’s Native Plant Sale will Corvallis, OR 97339-0402 General Business Address take place in mid-February. To be in- P.O. Box 902 cluded on the mailing list for the event Eugene, OR 97440 please contact Dalena Belden, Admin- or correspond directly with Officers istrative Assistant at the Yamhill Workshops on and Committee Chairs listed on the SWCD, at 503-472-6403 or e-mail her inside of the back page. at [email protected]. Pacific Northwest Mosses & Liverworts Membership Inquiries Only Clayton Gautier wo Bryophyte Workshops are 3927 Shasta View St. Conservation T being offered by David Wagner on Eugene, OR 97405-4442 the University of Oregon campus in Coordinator Needed Eugene, Oregon. The three-day work- Bulletin of the Native Plant shops will be May 6-8 and May 12-14. Society of Oregon arlene Southworth has kindly They are directed toward practicing D volunteered to be the Westside botanists who desire intensive training Editor: Tanya Harvey Conservation Coordinator. Her contact in identifying bryophytes. The first ISSN 0884-599. Published 11 times information is listed under Officers workshop, using an ecological ap- per year. Subscription price $18/year. and Committee chairs on page 47. proach, is intended for people with Date and issue number on page 1. We still need a Conservation Co- minimal experience with bryophytes ordinator/Chair for the Eastside. Re- and the second, using a taxonomic ap- The submission date is the 10th of sponsibilities include working with proach, will be at a more advanced each month for the following month’s chapters and the state board to identify level. A serious botanist could take issue except for the Aug./Sept. issue and participate in public input on fed- both workshops to good advantage; which is July 24. Send submissions by eral, regional, state, and local conserva- there will be little overlap of prepared e-mail to [email protected]. tion-related issues that affect Oregon. material. For more info, contact: Opinions expressed in this publica- Letter writing, research, and occasion- tion are those of the authors of the ally meetings with officials or agency David H. Wagner, Ph.D. articles. They do not represent the staff are typical duties of the position. Northwest Botanical Institute opinions of the Native Plant Society A large time commitment is usually P. O. Box 30064 of Oregon, unless so stated. not required. If you are interested in Eugene OR 97403-1064 the position, please contact the presi- 541-344-3327 dent at [email protected]. [email protected] 38 NPSO Bulletin NPSO CALENDAR State of Oregon. We will learn about specific 225 N. Adams St. For more about the famous trees as well as interesting cul- talk call Erin Rainey at 503-435-8589. April 24, Saturday, 10:00 am tural uses for various species of trees. April 25, Sunday, 8:00 am Board Meeting: Oregon Fish & Her presentation will include an enter- Wildlife office, 4192 North Umpqua taining quiz and an unforgettable Field Trip: Rowena Crest. Join us for Hwy., Roseburg. It’s about half a mile method for identifying Northwest our annual trip to the Nature Conser- beyond the city limits on State Hwy. Evergreens. Ms. Appling’s program is vancy’s Tom McCall Preserve in the 138; a large building on the left. There’s made possible by funding from the Columbia Gorge. On this moderate a sign about 1/4 mile before you get Oregon Council for the Humanities, hike, we will see many beautiful Gorge there. Take exit 124 off I-5 and follow an independent, non-profit affiliate of endemics, vernal pools, and spectacular the signs for 138 and Diamond Lake. the National Endowment for the Hu- views. Meet at the Linfield Ave. manities. OCH is dedicated to provid- entrance to Murdock Hall at Linfield June 25–27, 2004 ing opportunities for life-long learning College. For more information or to Annual Meeting: The William Cusick in communities throughout Oregon. pre-register, call Kareen Sturgeon at and Blue Mountain Chapters will host For more about OCH or Oregon 503-472-0866. this year’s meeting in La Grande. For Chautauqua, contact Carol E. Hick- information on lodging, hikes and reg- man at 503-241-0543. Carnegie istration see the March issue of the Bul- Room, McMinnville Public Library, Corvallis letin or check out the NPSO website. April 3, Saturday, 10:00 am IMPORTANT NOTE TO Work Party: Corvallis Chapter Blue Mountain FIELD TRIP PARTICIPANTS Native Garden. Come learn some of Field trips take place rain or shine, the native plants that can be used in April 5, Monday, 7:00 pm so proper dress and footwear are landscaping and restoration in the Meeting: Rare Plants on the Umatilla essential. Trips may be strenuous Willamette Valley. Volunteers will each National Forest presented by Jean and/or hazardous. Participation is receive a complementary native plant Wood, Umatilla NF botanist.