From kbilton at gmail.com Tue Feb 6 13:02:55 2024 From: kbilton at gmail.com (Kathy BILTON) Date: Tue, 6 Feb 2024 14:02:55 -0500 Subject: [Botsocwash] (BSW) REMINDER: Meeting tonight at 7pm + MISC Message-ID: REMINDER: BSW meeting tonight, February 6, at 7pm. The next Botanical Society of Washington meeting will be on Tuesday, February 6 at 7pm with the Zoom doors opening by 6:45pm. The speaker: Andrea Weeks, Ph.D., George Mason University Topic: "Common Ground of Fellow Botanists: Lena Artz and Francis W. Hunnewell II in the Shenandoah Valley" https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89154323931?pwd=MG1jZStnNW1sUFpHcnpIRC9QNEJiZz09 Meeting ID: 891 5432 3931 Passcode: 991986 ----------------------------------------------------- The speaker at our March 5 meeting will be Melissa McCormick, Senior Scientist, SI Environmental Research Center. Her general topic will be orchid ecology. ----------------------------------------------------- Thursday, February 8 - 7pm - Botanical Art, Illustration and Journaling with Lara Call Gastinger [via Zoom] https://vnps.org/potowmack/events/botanical-art-illustration-and-journaling-with-lara-call-gastinger-via-zoom/ Saturday, February 10 - 9am to 4pm - 6th Annual Prince William Native Plant Symposium (Hybrid) https://vnps.org/princewilliamwildflowersociety/events/6th-annual-prince-william-native-plant-symposium/ Tuesday, February 27 at 7pm - MNPS: Tiny Forests, Big Results? https://mdflora.org/event-5450029 Thursday-Sunday March 7-10 - American Conservation Film Festival https://conservationfilmfest.org/ Friday, May 17 - 21st Smithsonian Botanical Symposium, Advancing Plant Conservation Through Horticulture https://naturalhistory.si.edu/research/botany/news-and-highlights/smithsonian-botanical-symposium ----------------------------------------------------- The Nation?s Capital, Built on Water, Struggles to Keep from Drowning https://wapo.st/3HPKzG8 VNPS Events Calendar https://vnps.org/events/categories/type-of-event/programs/ Restoring Red Spruce Forests | The Nature Conservancy https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/priority-landscapes/appalachians/stories/red-spruce-forest-restoration/ Rare 3D Fossils Show that Some Early Trees Had Forms Unlike Any You've Ever Seen https://phys.org/news/2024-02-rare-3d-fossils-early-trees.html Flowers are Evolving in Ways that Could Spell Further Trouble for the Planet?s Pollinators https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2024/01/23/world/flower-self-fertilization-pollinator-decline-scn/index.html Global warming and invasive species threaten seagrass meadows in the Mediterranean https://phys.org/news/2024-02-global-invasive-species-threaten-seagrass.html Feral Pigs and Donkeys May Be More Salvation than Scourge for Ecosystems https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/4445182-invasive-animals-ecosystems-study/ A Celebration of Sound: Macaulay Library Reaches 2 Million Recordings https://youtu.be/pPs-4V2Y0Qc?t=59 This Pay Phone is Free, but You Can?t Make a Call. It Only Plays Birdsongs. https://wapo.st/480ljY8 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kbilton at gmail.com Wed Feb 7 21:52:11 2024 From: kbilton at gmail.com (Kathy BILTON) Date: Wed, 7 Feb 2024 22:52:11 -0500 Subject: [Botsocwash] (BSW) March 5 meeting + Further info regarding February Lena Artz talk + Fieldtrips + Dues Message-ID: Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, March 5 at 7pm with Zoom "doors" opening by 6:45. This will be a hybrid meeting. Those planning to attend in person should plan to enter the museum using the Constitution Avenue entrance and wait to be escorted up to VZ Conference Room (WG 33). Please arrive by The speaker will be Melissa McCormick, Senior Scientist, SI Environmental Research Center whose general topic will be orchid ecology. https://serc.si.edu/staff/melissa-mccormick/mccormickm6122002 Zoom info: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86118100862?pwd=akJraFhNZzg5TEJMSkhITlRHRmF3QT09 Meeting ID: 861 1810 0862 Passcode: 862175 -------------------------------- Information about 2024 dues can be found towards the bottom of this email. --------------------------------- Spring Field Trips Four Saturday trips are planned. There will be two to Bear Island near Great Falls on March 30 and April 13; and on April 6, a trip to Turkey Run. Finally, and further afield, a trip to Ferry Hill near Sharpsburg on April 20. All trips are rain or shine. Trip information can be found here: http://botsoc.org/bswfieldtrips.html. --------------------------------- Re: the February meeting with Andrea Weeks: A website she had found useful in her research: Link natural history specimens to the world's collectors: https://bionomia.net/ A very recent article she wrote: Weeks, A. 2024. In Memoriam: Lena Artz (1891?1976), a Hidden Figure of 20th century Southeastern US Botany. Castanea 88(2): 297-311. https://bioone.org/journals/castanea/volume-88/issue-2/0008-7475.88.2.297/In-Memoriam--Lena-Artz-18911976-a-Hidden-Figure-of/10.2179/0008-7475.88.2.297.short The February 6 meeting was not recorded, however, there is a recording of a similar talk she gave at the Fort Worth Botanical Garden in September 2022 entitled: The Life and Scientific Legacy of Lena Artz: A Hidden Figure of Central Appalachian Shale Barren Botany. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8esJ5UGk98 And I see that on this coming Sunday, February 11, there is a VNPS presentation at Belle Grove, an estate formerly owned by Francis W. Hunnewell II, the botanical associate of Lena Artz who was featured in the presentation given for BSW. This event is sold out, but the presentation will also be offered on February 18. https://vnps.org/piedmont/events/plant-life-in-the-shenandoah-valley-with-richard-stromberg/ https://www.bellegrove.org/calendar/plant-life-in-the-shenandoah-valley ------------------------- Dues for 2024 There are two ways to pay Botanical Society of Washington 2024 Dues ($10 for individual or $15 for two at one address) to the Treasurer. 1) Mail check payable to Botanical Society of Washington and send to: Paul Peterson, Treasurer Department of Botany, MRC 166 National Museum of Natural History Washington, DC 20013-7012 2) Pay using Venmo: Paul Peterson: @BotSoc-Wash Instructions for those new to Venmo: 1. Set up Venmo app on your phone 2. Link to method of payment, such as a bank account or credit card 3. Select pay 4. Enter @BotSoc-Wash on the Add Recipients line 5. Enter dollar amount, such as $10 or $15 6. Enter Dues on the What's it for line 7. Select Pay and follow instructions, if you have more than one bank listed you are prompted to select one or the other You actually do not need to use Paul's name. All you need is the Venmo name @BotSoc-Wash. If you search Paul Peterson in Venmo you will see the Botanical Society of Washington logo taken from the coffee mug and the Venmo name @BotSoc-Wash. There are no fees if you use your bank account; there is a 3% fee if you use a credit card. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kbilton at gmail.com Wed Feb 21 17:04:19 2024 From: kbilton at gmail.com (Kathy BILTON) Date: Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:04:19 -0500 Subject: [Botsocwash] March 5 Meeting + Fieldtrips + Dues + MISC. Message-ID: Our next meeting (hybrid) will be on Tuesday, March 5 at 7pm with Zoom "doors" opening by 6:45. Those planning to attend in person should enter the museum using the Constitution Avenue entrance and wait to be escorted up to the VZ Conference Room (WG 33). Please arrive no later than 6:45. Mary McKenna will be there to go escort you. She's planning to get to the lobby at 6pm. Our speaker will be Melissa McCormick, Senior Scientist, SI Environmental Research Center. https://serc.si.edu/staff/melissa-mccormick/mccormickm6122002 Her topic will be "Unveiling the Secrets of Why Orchids Grow Where They Do and What It Means for Their Conservation". Flyer: http://www.botsoc.org/mar24.pdf Zoom info: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86118100862?pwd=akJraFhNZzg5TEJMSkhITlRHRmF3QT09 Meeting ID: 861 1810 0862 Passcode: 862175 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Information about 2024 dues can be found towards the bottom of this email. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Spring Field Trips Four Saturday trips are planned. There will be two to Bear Island near Great Falls on March 30 and April 13; and on April 6, a trip to Turkey Run. Finally, and further afield, a trip to Ferry Hill near Sharpsburg on April 20. All trips are rain or shine. Trip information can be found here: http://botsoc.org/bswfieldtrips.html. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Native and Invasive Plant Legislation in the 2024 Virginia General Assembly https://vnps.org/2024-native-and-invasive-plant-legislation-in-the-2024-general-assembly/ The Uncertain Future of the Duke Herbarium: Impact on Botanical Research and Conservation Efforts https://medriva.com/health/environmental-health/the-uncertain-future-of-the -duke-herbarium-impact-on-botanical-research-and-conservation-efforts/ Duke Shuts Down Huge Plant Collection, Causing Scientific Uproar https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/21/science/duke-herbarium.html?unlocked_article_code=1.XE0.eUWs.ypowxhH_q7Ip&smid=url-share The Persimmon May Become Maryland?s State Fruit https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-power/state-government/the-persimmon-may-become-marylands-state-fruit-P3PA3KVBKVF7FA5U6HC66EQHY4/ Climate Experts Sound Alarm over Thriving Plant Life at Greenland Ice Sheet https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/13/flourishing-vegetation-greenl and-ice-sheet-alarm-climate-crisis Biofluorescence: Unseen World of the Celtic Rainforest Revealed by UV https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-68301119 Nature Has Value. Could We Literally Invest in It? https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/18/business/economy/natural-assets.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Wk0.OPbO.bprSHSbKlJgO&smid=url-share The Wollemi Pine was Long Thought Extinct. Now Experts are Trying to Regrow the Tree in Top Secret Locations https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-06/the-wollemi-pine-dinosaur-tree-was-long-thought-extinct/103292808 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dues for 2024 There are two ways to pay Botanical Society of Washington 2024 Dues ($10 for individual or $15 for two at one address) to the Treasurer. 1) Mail check payable to Botanical Society of Washington to: Paul Peterson, 4520 Cheltenham Dr., Bethesda MD 20814 2) Pay using Venmo: Paul Peterson: @BotSoc-Wash Instructions for those new to Venmo: 1. Set up Venmo app on your phone 2. Link to method of payment, such as a bank account or credit card 3. Select pay 4. Enter @BotSoc-Wash on the Add Recipients line 5. Enter dollar amount, such as $10 or $15 6. Enter Dues on the What's it for line 7. Select Pay and follow instructions, if you have more than one bank listed you are prompted to select one or the other You actually do not need to use Paul's name. All you need is the Venmo name @BotSoc-Wash. If you search Paul Peterson in Venmo you will see the Botanical Society of Washington logo taken from the coffee mug and the Venmo name @BotSoc-Wash. There are no fees if you use your bank account; there is a 3% fee if you use a credit card. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kbilton at gmail.com Sun Feb 25 18:42:12 2024 From: kbilton at gmail.com (Kathy BILTON) Date: Sun, 25 Feb 2024 19:42:12 -0500 Subject: [Botsocwash] Fwd: Please Support the Maryland Invasive Plant Species Bill (HB979/SB915) In-Reply-To: <72c4bdd4-ec6d-4e6b-be41-6f0c16fefb16@gmail.com> References: <72c4bdd4-ec6d-4e6b-be41-6f0c16fefb16@gmail.com> Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Judy Fulton Date: Thu, Feb 22, 2024 at 8:45?AM Subject: Please Support the Maryland Invasive Plant Species Bill (HB979/SB915) Kathy, as discussed, please provide the information below and attached to the Botanical Society of Washington. Are you interested in supporting the Invasive Plant Species bill in the current Maryland legislative session? The bill is also called the *Biodiversity and Agriculture Protection Act* (HB979 /SB915 ). If you'd like to help get this bill passed, you have two options: 1. Ask your Maryland legislators to support this bill. Click on this district look-up to pull up a page with your legislators names at the bottom. Clicking on their names will pull up their contact information. Then call or email them to ask them to vote in favor of the bill. Phoning will take you only a couple of minutes, and you don't need to know any of the bill details. 2. Submit written testimony in favor of the bill. This is more involved; so, I'm attaching instructions on how to submit online, along with a fact sheet and FAQs written by Kirsten Hoffman and Marie LaPorte. Here?s a summary of the bill (HB979 /SB915 ), which is meant to amend the existing invasive plant species law: - Increase the number of plant species prohibited from sale and propagation in Maryland. The State has banned just six (or 2%) of the almost 300 invasives listed by the Maryland Invasive Species Council. In the existing law, prohibited plants are called ?Tier 1.? - Transfer the plant species that currently require signage at point of purchase (i.e., Tier 2) to the Prohibited List, with a reasonable transition period to minimize impact on the nursery trade. Tier 2 species are often more established and just as harmful as Tier 1. The existing assessment process does not allow plants that have been here at least 50 years or have become widely established to be banned regardless of the harm they cause to the environment, economy, and human health. This limitation effectively gives up on destructive species like English ivy, Japanese barberry, and running bamboo. - Allow for the prohibition of aquatic invaders impacting our waterways and of plants not currently available for sale at local retailers. The existing law only addresses commercial terrestrial plant species; however, non-commercial species are increasingly sold online and could become available at Maryland nurseries at any time. - Replace Maryland?s existing, time-consuming risk assessment tool with a more efficient status assessment protocol. The State needs to address invasive plants more quickly to reduce eradication and management costs in the future. The proposed professionally recognized assessment tool is in use and has been proven effective by other Mid-Atlantic states, including Delaware. The bill sponsors are Delegate Linda Foley and Senator Ben Brooks. If you decide to submit testimony: - HB979: Written testimony for the House hearing needs to be submitted 8 AM - 6 PM on *Feb. 26*. This is the required two days before the Feb. 28 hearing in the Environment and Transportation Committee (ENT). - SB915: Written testimony for the Senate hearing needs to be submitted 8 AM - 6 PM on *Mar. 4*. This is the required one day before the Mar. 5 hearing in the Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee (EEE). In case you're interested in other environmental legislation, I'm also attaching a chart with additional Maryland bills that are worth supporting. If you have any questions, please give me a call at 410-337-3701 (landline) or 410-404-8201 (cell). Thanks for any support you decide to provide. We really need to get this important invasive plant bill passed. Judy _______________________________________________ Judith P. Fulton EcoPlant Consulting: Native and Invasive Plants Vice President, Maryland Native Plant Society Board, Mid-Atlantic Invasive Plant Council Chair, Maryland Invasive Species Council's Committee on Invasives Lists Voice: 410-337-3701, Text: 410-404-8201 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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