Volume 21, Number 8 May 2016
the
Phlox Phlyer
Columbia Basin Chapter, Washington Native Plant Society
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P.O. Box 221, Richland, WA 99352
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www.cbwnps.org
COMPOSITAE Gaillardia aristata Congratulations Grand Prize Photo Contest Winner: Ted Alway, Derby Canyon Natives, Peshastin
Election of Officers Our chapter is run by volunteers in all that we do. We could do more and we could do better if we had YOU to help with your ideas, your extra pair of hands, and your enthusiasm and passion for native plants and the ecology they’re a part of. Carol Coker and Marita Lih are serving as the nominating committee for the chapter’s upcoming election of Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer in June. If you or are interested in serving in one of these positions or in helping on a committee, please contact them at mplih@charter.net or carolpascoc@outlook.com. Our committees currently have but a single member and they would love some help. Committee’s and their duties are:
Programs – arranging for speakers at our monthly meetings Field Trips – organizing wild flower hikes, leading hikes, helping with hikes Restoration/Salvage – being the point of contact for salvage and restoration opportunities Heritage Garden Program – coordinating with the Benton & Franklin Conservation Districts to help people create water-wise landscapes with native gardens and assist with workshops and special events Education – looking for ways to educate children and/or adults about native plants through schools or other venues Books – bringing books and other materials to monthly meetings Communication –publishing the Phlox Phlyer (newsletter), updating the webpage, posting to Facebook, and working on displays showcasing native plants
In addition, we would like to have a Conservation committee, if anyone is interested in keeping up with local and state activities related to native plants and ecological issues and providing input to the newsletter and Facebook , please contact Marita or Carol.
The Soil Microbiota It’s so easy for us to think no further than what we see in front of us – something thriving or something dying from disease or unknown causes. But what causes one to be healthy and the other unhealthy? There’s been a lot of news stories recently about the “flora” or gut microbiota in humans and the good or bad impacts those microbes can have on our health. A story in the current edition 1
of High Country News describes research in Montana looking at soil microbes that occur in healthy stands of white pine and how those microbes can help seedlings thrive and lack of them may be a factor in low survival rates of seedlings. Check out the story at http://www.hcn.org/issues/SecretsOfTheDeep/to-save-a-pine-tree-researchers-fightfungus-with-fungus.
PHOTOGRAPHS NEEDED FOR NATIVE PLANT ID CARDS – Late Spring / Early Summer Here are some late spring / early summer characteristics we need for the 10 plants. It’s not too late to start photographing. We’d like to get more photos of birds, insects, or other animals using ALL of these plants for shelter, food, or perches. (The March newsletter lists the early season characteristics). golden currant Ribes aureum turpentine wavewing Cymopterus terebinthinus long-leaf phlox Phlox longifolia Carey’s balsamroot Balsamorhiza careyana Munro's globemallow Sphaeralcea munroana Indian ricegrass Achnatherum hymenoides snow buckwheat Eriogonum niveum bluebunch wheatgrass Pseudoroegneria spicata big sagebrush Artemisia tridentata grey rabbitbrush Ericameria nauseosa
The Phlox Phlyer is the newsletter of the Columbia Basin Chapter, Tri-Cities and Walla Walla, Washington Native Plant Society. Chapter Officers Co-Presidents — Mickie Chamness, mickiec@charter.net & Janelle Downs, sagejld@aol.com Vice-President — Rik Smith,
rsmith@columbiabasin.edu Secretary — Marilyn Lemar, dwlemar@hotmail.com
Berries
Treasurer — Cheryl Smith
Wavy margins on seeds
cyankee@charter.net
Seed heads and the little “star” after the seed drops Seed head, leaf shape
Chapter Committees Program Chair — Kim Hamblin-Hart,
Orange flowers; pie-shaped seed heads, leaf shape
kimhamblinhart@gmail.com Field Trips — Ernie Crediford, ernest_crediford@live.com
Flowers, fuzzy little seeds
Restoration/Salvage — Bill Mast, bmast1@live.com
Robust plant in spring Plant in bloom; seed head; entire plant; plant in shrub-steppe habitat 2 sets of leaves: the smaller long-lived leaves and the bigger leaves that will drop in summer Robust plant in spring
MEETINGS/WORKSHOPS
Heritage Garden Program — Donna Lucas, donna_lucas@hotmail.com Education — Open Newsletter Editor — Mary Ann Simmons, msimmons_1@charter.net Publicity — Mickie Chamness, mickiec@charter.net
Wednesday, May 4, 2016, 7:00 p.m. Monthly Meeting at Columbia Basin College, Room TD 439 – Bees: Biology, Habitat, and Helping Our Native Species, Dr. Heidi Dobson, Whitman College. There are 600 native bee species in Washington State, most of which have a solitary lifestyle. How do we recognize them, protect them, and give them what they need to live? Dr. Dobson studies the evolutionary ecology of plants and animalplant interactions, with emphasis on insect-flower pollination associations. Maps and directions are available at: http://www.cbwnps.org/calendar/ At 6:30 pm, we will continue with our “What is THAT Plant?” feature. Bring in your unknown plant (non-ornamental) and we will attempt to identify it. This is also an opportunity to socialize before our meeting. Friday through Sunday, May 13-15, 2016. Botany Washington – Spring on the Olympic Peninsula, Jefferson County WA. Registration is open (http://www.wnps.org/2014botanyreg.htm Friday through Sunday, June 17-19, 2016. WNPS Study Weekend at Leavenworth. Hosted by Central and Wenatchee Chapters. Registration is now open: http://www.wnps.org/study_weekend/home.html
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Books — Carmen Wooten, canoecarmen@yahoo.com Web Site Editor — Mary Ann Simmons msimmons_1@charter.net
Walla Walla Subchapter Darcy Dauble, Walla Walla, dadauble@gmail.com
This issue reproduced by
THE DIGITAL IMAGE Richland Washington 509-375-6001
Wednesday through Friday, June 22 – 24, 2016. Know Your Grasses: The Identification & Appreciation of Grasses. Clay Antieau, instructors. Hitchcock Hall, University of Washington. Registration and course information at: http://www.wnps.org/workshops/grass-workshop.html Saturday, June 25, 2016, 9:00 a.m. to12:00 p.m. Pollinator Appreciation Week Program at the WSU Tri-Cities Wine Science Center Native Plant and Pollinator teaching garden. There will be 30 minute Garden Tours every hour from 9:30am. To help with this event please contact Gretchen Graber (gretchen.graber@gmail.com ). Wednesday, July 8, 2016 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Access and Wilderness. Senior Center at the Park 720 Sprague St., Walla Walla. Hosted by Umatilla National Forest. More information is available at http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd491835.pdf
WILDFLOWER HIKES All hikes are open to the public. Dress appropriately (it can be windy on the ridges), bring water, a snack or lunch, and, if car-pooling, some money for the driver to cover gas. Please check the calendar (http://www.cbwnps.org/calendar/ ) on our webpage for updates and contact the trip leader.
Saturday, April 30, 2016, 9:00 a.m., Frenchman Coulee. Meet at the Park & Ride in Richland (corner of Van Giesen and Bypass Highway/Hwy 240).This coulee is a hidden geologic treasure. Return between 1and 2 p.m. Leader Janelle Downs (509-588-9094 or Sagejld@aol.com ) Saturday, May 7, 2016 10:00 a.m., Mc Bee Grade-Horn Rapids. Meet at the Park & Ride in Benton City, just off the I-82 (exit 96 at Benton City).Park & Ride now on opposite side of freeway from gas station. We will carpool up the hill; then return to the cars and continue to Horn Rapids to look at some of our sand dwellers. Approximately 3 hrs. Leaders: Marilyn Lemar (509-460-8302) and Carol Coker. Saturday, May 14, 2016 10:00 a.m. Twin Sisters. Meet at CBC Parking lot across from Red Lion. Approximately 2 hrs. Leader Rik Smith (rsmith@columbiabasin.edu) Saturday, May 21, 2016 9:00 a.m. Bickleton. Meet at Benton City Park & Ride, just off the I-82 (exit 96 at Benton City). Return between 1and 2p.m. Leader: Terri Knoke (tlknoke@charter.net)
If you would like to explore on your own check out Places to Visit ( http://www.cbwnps.org/places-to-visit-1/ ) and our wildflower trails map (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_sm0-kbVqTxVVEyWVJuMEZYR1U/view ) Also check out field trips for the Central Washington Chapter: http://www.wnps.org/chapter_info/chapter_trips.html and hikes at Wildhorse Wind Farm on April 30th and May7th (https://www.facebook.com/wildhorseREC/events ).
Columbia Basin Chapter Photo Contest The 1st category is biotic crust: you could take close-ups of lichens, mosses, mushrooms, club mosses etc. or step back and take a photo of a mini-landscape of the textures and colors that occur together. The 2 nd category is wildlife (birds, animals, insects) and native plants. Contact Mickie Chamness at mickiec@charter.net if you have any questions. Entries are due by November 6, and a 2017 WNPS calendar will be awarded to the winner in each category
Other Items 2016 CITIZEN SCIENCE EARLY DETECTION, REPORTING AND IDENTIFICATION OF INVASIVE PLANTS WORKSHOP. Hosted by Pacific Northwest Invasive Plant Council. Their mission is to train citizens to identify a suite of invasive plants in a 2.5 hour free training where you will learn how to identify priority invasive species, how to record basic data and how to report findings on EDDMapSWest, a national early detection reporting system. See: http://www.pnwipc.org/calendar.shtml To register contact Julie Combs at pnw.ipc.org@gmail . The remaining east side session is: Thursday, May 12th; 1:00pm-3:30pm USFS Naches Ranger Station, 10237 U.S. Highway 12, Naches, WA 98937
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NEW RESOURCES SHOW WHY ROOTS MATTER IN THE SAGEBRUSH SEA In sagebrush country, most of the plant matter grows below ground like an upside-down forest. Conserving these western roots -- and the healthy, diverse plants that grow them -- protects our soils, helps the land retain water, and supports critical ecological functions. To rekindle conversations about why roots matter, the Sage Grouse Initiative (http://www.sagegrouseinitiative.com/ ) has developed two new visuals that give a glimpse of the hidden world beneath our feet (and livestock's hooves!). Download (http://www.sagegrouseinitiative.com/roots/ ) the new poster and postcard to learn more about conserving western roots.
Columbia Basin Chapter Washington Native Plant Society P.O. Box 221 Richland, Washington 99352
To receive the newsletter electronically – email msimmons_1@charter.net 4