THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS

SPEAKER: Fred Roberts, CNPS-San Diego Rare Plant Botanist and author of the now out-of-print but once popular guide, The Illustrated Guide to the Oaks of the Southern Californian Floristic Province.

Oaks are an important element of the California landscape. As group, they are one of the most widely recognized plants in southern California. However, with the exception of a few readily recognizable trees, determining individual species can be a challenge. Many are similar in appearance. Within certain groups they are fairly promiscuous, producing many intermediate hybrids blurring the distinctions between otherwise easily recognized species. San Diego County boasts one of the highest diversity of oaks California with ten known species ranging in form from the intricately and tangled branched Nuttall’s Scrub Oak, a coastal oak that hid in plain sight of botanists for over a hundred years, to California Black Oak, a mountain species with large, bristle-tipped leaves that turn yellow and fall to the ground in the fall.  We also boast one of the state’s most problematic entities, Parry’s Oak (Quercus X acutidens), which has been considered anywhere from a variation of California Scrub Oak (Q. berberidifolia) to a full species worth recognition. Our speaker will introduce us to these oaks and others as we tour of our San Diego species, learning something of their ecology and how to tell them apart.

With over 40-years of botanical experience, Fred has worked as an assistant curator at an herbarium (UC, Irvine), a botanist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and volunteered as a conservationist. Most of those years focusing he has focused on the floristic diversity of Orange County but occasionally has picked up other interests such as understanding oaks, lilies and their relatives, and knows a thing or two about rare plants in southern California. He is currently a consulting botanist focusing on rare plant surveys, serves as rare plant botanist on several CNPS chapters, and has several book projects in the wings. In his spare time, he paints and creates botanically-themed T shirts.   

fmrpublications.com

6:30-7:00pm: FIRST PRESENTATION: TBD

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There are no fees to attend these presentations.

THIS CHAPTER MEETING IS CANCELED

The program for this meeting will be held at a future chapter meeting date.

Speaker: Mike Evans, Founder and President Tree of Life Nursery

To Mulch or Not to Mulch. Is that the question? 

The horticultural practice of mulching or top-dressing consists of periodically applying a layer of foreign material, (organic or mineral) to the soil surface, under and around your landscape plants. What are the pros and cons of this practice, especially in natural design using native plants? Is all mulch created equal? How do wild plants in native habitats do without someone showing up to “mulch them?” Come hear a presentation and join in a lively discussion. Hopefully we’ll find answers to all these questions.

Mike Evans was born and raised in Southern California and demonstrated an early love for the outdoors. He worked with several nurseries, both retail and wholesale, before establishing Tree of Life Nursery in 1976. The nursery specializes in native California plants and supports a style of authentic horticulture, specifically the concept of appropriate landscaping with native plants.

Mike is affiliated with numerous conservation, horticultural, and botanical organizations. He has served as past president of the Western Region of International Plant Propagators Society and of the California Society for Ecological Restoration. Mike is a leader in water conservation efforts and was a founding member of the Xeriscape Committee in the 1980's. Both Mike Evans and Tree of Life Nursery have earned numerous awards for their work in native plant horticulture.

 Mike was recently named 2019 Horticulturist of the Year (HOTY) by the Southern California Horticultural Society. An award banquet is in September at the LA County Arboretum.

TREE OF LIFE NURSERY: californianativeplants.com

6:30-7:00pm: FIRST PRESENTATION

The genus Dudleya is a charismatic group of native succulents with many rare species across California and Baja. Recent popularity has attracted poachers who uproot these plants by the tens of thousands in attempt to supply interests overseas for hefty profits. This project aims to utilize plant tissue culture (Micropropagation) to ethically produce large quantities of select Dudleya species to deflate the price incentives for poachers while providing agencies with an additional tool for conservation.

Kevin Alison is the Native Plant Production Specialist (R&D) at Tree of Life Nursery and a Masters of Conservation and Restoration Science (MCRS) candidate at U.C. Irvine.

INSTAGRAM: kevosphere

TREE OF LIFE NURSERY: californianativeplants.com

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There are no fees to attend these presentations.

SPEAKERS:

Rose Ramirez, Author, Photographer, Filmmaker and California Indian Basketweaver

Deborah Small, Author, Artist, Photographer, and Professor Emerita at California State University San Marcos

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

Speaker: Cynthia Powell, Executive Director Calflora

Join Calflora’s Executive Director Cynthia Powell to discuss new Calflora tools for CNPS Calflora users. Calflora’s plant database hosts over 2 million plant occurrences, some of which come directly from San Diego CNPS members. Cynthia will cover Calflora’s new plant photo project, planting guide, population monitoring tools, email alerts, and speak more generally about the uses of Calflora for CNPS chapters. She would also like to know how Calflora can better serve the San Diego CNPS Chapter and to answer any of your questions. This is a free event.

After 3 years as Calflora’s GIS Project Manager, Cynthia Powell is now Calflora’s Executive Director. She graduated with her MS in GIS in 2010 forecasting Mokelumne River water supply based on MODIS remote sensing snow pack images. She’s been examining what was under that snow — plants — ever since. She now coordinates all Calflora programs, research, outreach, and advocacy, as well as fundraising and management.

NOTE: Cynthia will be leading a walk on Wednesday, January 22 at 9:00am at Cabrillo National Monument. Details here

6:30-7:00pm: First Presentation

Andrew Meyer has an undergraduate degree from SUNY Binghamton in New York, then wandered the country for a couple years doing biological field work, and then got a Masters in Geography from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He worked for the Hudson River Estuary Program for several years on scenery preservation and reconnecting aquatic habitat through culvert mitigation and dam removal projects. In San Diego, he worked for the San Diego River Park Foundation and now is the Director of Conservation and ReWild Mission Bay Program Manager for San Diego Audubon Society. His favorite bird memories involve Oystercatchers on Anacapa Island, Auklets and Albatrosses on the Aleutian Islands and Short-eared Owls at Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

Speaker: Richard Louv, Journalist, Author, and Co-Founder and Chair Emeritus of Children and Nature Network

NOTE: Warwick’s bookstore of La Jolla will be at the presentation with copies of Richard’s book, Our Wild Calling, so that you can purchase a copy for signing.

Our Wild Calling: how connecting to animals can transform our lives — and help save theirs. In his newest book released on November 5, Richard Louv explores the powerful and mysterious bond between humans and other animals, including both domestic and wild animals. He makes the case that deepening our connection with other animals, both wild and domestic, can improve our mental, physical and spiritual lives; serve as an antidote to the growing epidemic of human loneliness; and is essential to the preservation of life on Earth. We love our pets. We say we love nature. We talk about the threat to other life in an almost technical way, about endangered species, disappearing habitat, but we seldom consider what may be the greatest potential loss, at least to us: the mysterious bond we share with other animals – that most fragile connection that has no name, the whisper we may not miss until it is too late, that essence that may yet save us – and them.

Richard Louv is a journalist and author of ten books, including Our Wild Calling: How Connecting With Animals Can Transform Our Lives - And Save Theirs; Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder; The Nature Principle; and Vitamin N. Translated into 21 languages, his books have helped launch an international movement to connect children, their families and communities to nature.

In 2008, he was awarded the Audubon Medal, presented by the National Audubon Society. Prior recipients have included Rachel Carson, E. O. Wilson, Sir David Attenborough and President Jimmy Carter. Among other awards, Louv is also the recipient of the Cox Award for 2007, Clemson University’s highest honor, for “sustained achievement in public service.”

He is co-founder and chair emeritus of the nonprofit Children & Nature Network, which supports a new nature movement.

He speaks frequently around the world, including keynote addresses presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference, the first White House Summit on Environmental Education, the Congress of the New Urbanism, the International Healthy Parks Conference in Melbourne, Australia, and the national Friends of Nature Conference in Beijing, China.  

Louv has written for the New York Times, the Times of London, Parents Magazine and many other publications. and has appeared on CBS This Morning, NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, NPR's Talk of the Nation, and other programs. Married to Kathy Frederick Louv, he is the father of two young men, Jason and Matthew. He would rather hike than write.

Book reviews:

https://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/sns-bc-us--book-review-our-wild-calling-20191111-story.html

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/animal-emotions/201911/richard-louvs-our-wild-calling-is-game-changer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90Qz6TBWiBs

6:30-DOORS OPEN

7:00pm-FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speaker: Nick Jensen, PhD, CNPS Southern California Conservation Analyst

At 270,000 acres, Tejon Ranch is California's largest contiguous piece of private land. It is located at a “biogeographical crossroads,”where five ecoregions: the San Joaquin Valley, Tehachapi Mountains, Mojave Desert, Western Transverse Ranges, and Transverse Ranges converge. Despite its size and ecological setting, until recent years, biologists knew little about the biodiversity on Tejon. In 2008, a controversial conservation deal set aside 88% of the Tejon’s acreage in conservation agreements and enabled the first comprehensive investigation of its botanical resources. 

My graduate research included the first comprehensive study of the flora of Tejon Ranch and resulted in the documentation of 1,073 vascular plant taxa, including more than 14% of the state’s native plants. Discoveries made by myself and others since 2008 include dozens of rare plants on the ranch, more than 30 new additions to the flora of Kern County, and dozens of range extensions and ecoregional records. 

After completing my PhD, I began work as the CNPS Southern California Conservation Analyst. In this position, a central focus of my work has been advocating against proposed development projects on Tejon that would place more than 30,000 homes and 100,000 future residents far from existing cities. Please join me on a tour of Tejon's botanical riches, a synopsis of the 2008 conservation deal, and an overview of the perils of three proposed development projects. Coming full circle, I will discuss why CNPS and many other individuals and organizations oppose development on Tejon. I will focus on what we are doing to ensure that this special place remains intact for future generations to study and appreciate. 

Nick Jensen, CNPS Southern California Conservation Analyst, coordinates the activities of the Conservation Program in Southern California. Nick earned his BS degree in Environmental Horticulture at UC Davis, and recently completed his PhD in botany at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG)/Claremont Graduate University. As a graduate student, Nick produced the first Flora of Tejon Ranch and studied evolutionary patterns in perennial Streptanthus (jewelflowers). From 2006-2010, he was employed by CNPS, first as a Vegetation Program Assistant, and later as the Rare Plant Program Director. Nick has also worked as a botanist for the U.S. Forest Service, Chicago Botanic Garden, and the private consulting industry. He has taught botany classes to professionals and interested members of the public for CNPS, RSABG, the Jepson Herbarium, and Theodore Payne Foundation. As a volunteer he has served on the Rare Plant Program Committee and the board of Southern California Botanists, serving as president in 2015-16. Nick is a fellow of the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation (https://www.switzernetwork.org/). In his free time, he enjoys cooking, hiking, rock climbing, and photographing wildflowers, activities that are often not mutually exclusive.

6:30-7:00pm: FIRST PRESENTATION

Cody will discuss his work with a coalition of state and federal agencies--including NRCS, CALFIRE, USFWS, and USFS--to assist in cone collection, seedling propagation, site prep, and reforestation on 310 acres of mixed conifer-oak forest and montane chaparral on the north slope of Volcan Mountain. Together they've planted nearly a thousand seedlings over the last five years and collected hundreds of thousands of seeds for propagation throughout southern California.

Dr. Cody Petterson is currently President of the San Diego County Democrats for Environmental Action. He serves on the governing board of the San Diego River Conservancy and is a director of the Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego and a member of the Volcan Mountain Foundation Stewardship Committee. He lives with his wife and two children in his hometown of La Jolla, where he is director of the Sequoia Foundation, a nonprofit social science research firm dedicated to assessing the socio-economic impacts of environmental disasters.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speakers:

Elizabeth R. Milano, Geneticist with the U.S. Geological Survey – Western Ecological Research Center, San Diego Field Station

Margie Mulligan, Botanist and a Department Associate in the Botany Department at the San Diego Natural History Museum.

This project, a collaboration between the U.S. Geological Survey and the San Diego Natural History Museum, aims to provide a reference point for the current status of genetic diversity of rare plant species in San Diego County. We focused on six threatened or endangered plant species including Acanthomintha ilicifolia, Baccharis vanessae, Chloropyron maritimum ssp. maritimum, Deinandra conjugens, Dicranostegia orcuttiana, and Monardella viminea. This population genetic survey provides insight into the amount of genetic differentiation across each species’ range, identifies isolated occurrences potentially subject to inbreeding or genetic bottlenecks, and distinguishes areas that are rich sources of allelic diversity. The results of this project inform future preservation and restoration effortsand directly contributes to the conservation and management of these rare plant taxa in the San Diego Management Strategic Plan Area.

Elizabeth R. Milano is a Geneticist with the U.S. Geological Survey – Western Ecological Research Center, San Diego Field Station. She has a background in population and quantitative genetics with a focus on plant-pollinator interactions. She holds a B.S. in Genetics from the University of California, Davis and a Ph.D. in Plant Biology from the University of Texas at Austin.

emilano@usgs.gov

Margie Mulligan is an independent Botanist and a Department Associate in the Botany Department at the San Diego Natural History Museum. She has over 25 years of botanical experience with 15 years in San Diego County. She holds a B.S. in Environmental Studies from Northland College and an M.S. in Botany from Miami University of Ohio. 

mulliganbiocon@gmail.com

6:30-7:00pm: First Presentation:

This talk will present recent advances as part of the new collaborative initiative to conserve plants that are rare both sides of the US/MX border. San Diego Zoo Global, the San Diego Natural History Museum and the National Seedbank of Mexico are working together in Baja California to make conservation seedbank collections, update population status at each occurrence, and evaluate genetic diversity of the rarest plants of our borderlands.

Dr. Vanderplank is a postdoctoral fellow at San Diego Zoo Global, and a research associate at the San Diego Natural History Museum.  She is also adjunct faculty at San Diego State University and the Center for Research and Higher Learning in Ensenada (CICESE).

https://institute.sandiegozoo.org/science-blog/highs-and-lows-searching-our-cross-border-rare-plants-baja-california

http://www.indefenseofplants.com/podcast/2019/5/26/ep-214-unraveling-the-mysteries-of-bajas-botanical-bounty-a-conservation-story

SUVAResearch.com

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speaker: Dr. Michael Wall, Curator of Entomology at the San Diego Natural History Museum

The vast diversity of native plants in Peninsular California supports an even more vast diversity of native insects and their cousins. Michael’s presentation will focus on some of the highly specialized relationships between native plants and animals, and how those relationships fuel biodiversity and ecosystem services. 

Dr. Michael Wall, Curator of Entomology at the San Diego Natural History Museum has been slowly learning about our region’s insect diversity since arriving in San Diego in 2006. Before that, he worked at the Australian Museum after getting a PhD in Entomology at University of Connecticut. Before he saw the light, he earned both a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in botany at Auburn University in Alabama. 

https://www.sdnhm.org/science/entomology/

6:30-7:00pm: First Presentation:

How do you know it’s a bee? A little solitary bee biology. What landscape design features do they need to be successful in your yard? Seasonality? Emphasis will be on specific plant and bee interactions.  What bee behaviors to look for in your landscapes?

Julie Serences is a self-taught naturalist and professional educator with over twenty-five years of experience teaching learners of all ages. She has given presentations to many diverse groups from the Cal EPA, to Master Gardeners, to local gardening clubs, to the Pesticide Applicators Professional Association. She has been giving talks about native bees for the Xerces Society for the last 8 years.  She moved to San Diego five years ago, ripped out the lawn and started a garden for native bees.  

San Diego Bee Garden Presentation Resources (PDF)

https://xerces.org

email Julie

Habitat and Nesting Requirements: Some Backyard Bees (PDF)

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Guest: Sage Against the Machine (Evan Meyer, Antonio Sanchez, Nicole Calhoun)

An hour of native plant-themed music and stories about living and working with California native plants. From the punk rock-inspired ‘Kill Your Lawn!’ to the tragic love ballad ‘Your Love is Like a Manzanita’ and the toe-tapping ‘Rare Plant Blues’, native plant horticulturists and musicians Evan Meyer, Antonio Sanchez, and Nicole Calhoun promise to keep the night lively and fun. Their unique collection of original songs and stories explore native plant conservation and horticultural themes in a sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, but always entertaining fashion. A unique native plant presentation not to be missed!

Sage Against the Machine started as a piano/guitar duo of native plant nerds who joined forces at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in 2013. Pianist and vocalist Evan Meyer has played music professionally in New England and is currently Assistant Director of the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden at UCLA. Guitarist and vocalist Antonio Sanchez has been an amateur musician for over a decade, and is currently Assistant Nursery Manager at Growing Works Nursery in Camarillo. Cellist and bassist Nicole Calhoun recently joined the band and is the owner of Artemisia Nursery in Los Angeles.

6:30-7:00pm: First Presentation:

Join Nicole Calhoun of Artemisia Nursery for an exploration into the extravisual qualities of California's native plants.

www.artemisianursery.com

instagram.com/artemisia.nursery

facebook.com/artemisia.nursery

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speaker: Tom Oberbauer, Past President of the San Diego Chapter of CNPS and a member since the mid 1970s.  

Baja California is favored with a wide variety of islands.  The ones on the west side in the Pacific are floristically related to the islands of Southern California including Guadalupe Island which is an oceanic volcano, Cedros Island which is near the desesrts in mainland but which collects fog to support forests, and the Coronado Islands south of Point Loma. The islands in the Sea of Cortez are predominantly the product of the opening of the Gulf of California by faulting with some islands fragments of tectonic plates and others volcanic activity stimulated by the sea floor movements.  These islands form an archipelago that not only supports unique flora, with numerous species of succulents not found anywhere else, but also an extremely diverse array of reptiles and untouched natural habitats.  Because each island has different combinations of granitic, metamorphic and volcanic rock, each island has a unique character.  Some are small consisting of only a few acres while others are multiple miles long.  

In November of 2018, a group of researchers traveled to a number of these islands and collected plants, observed vegetation, viewed scenic landscapes, monitored the birds, reptiles, mammals, insects and scorpions, and even camped out on several of them. Tom Oberbauer was able to participate in this trip and will provide an account of some of the phenomenal features of the islands with an emphasis on the plant flora.

Tom Oberbauer is a past president of the San Diego Chapter of CNPS and a member since the mid 1970s.  Third generation San Diegan who is fascinated by the islands of Southern and Baja California.  Tom has published a number of articles and papers on the plants of San Diego and Baja California. He has generated small documentaries on the west coast islands at PL Natural Resources and is working on more.

6:30-7:00pm: FIRST PRESENTATION

California is a center of biodiversity of pines. In this talk I would highlight the importance of hybridization in species of pines which are foundation species of the California woodlands. Several species of the subsection Cembroides grow in semiarid areas of California and occupy different ecological niches. In the Southwest there are one- and two-needle pinyon pines, which have been suspected to hybridize. Using morphological, ecological and genomic data we have 1) addressed whether these taxa hybridize and 2) established species boundaries. Dr. Flores-Renteria will discuss the taxonomic controversy of the one- and two-needled pinyon pine complex, their species boundaries and their ecological roles. The gene flow among these species might teach us how species exchange genes with adaptive value, which might help them cope with climate change. 

Dr. Flores-Renteria is an evolutionary ecologist interested in phylogenetics, population genetics, evolution of reproductive systems, and the evolutionary ecology of plant-insect-microbe interactions under climate change.

WEBSITE

Research Horizons: Lluvia Flores-Rentería - California Flora Research

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speaker: Susan Krzywicki, San Diego Canyonlands Board Member & Native Plant Landscape Designer

The presentation will review the formation of San Diego’s canyons and the history of San Diego Canyonlands (SDCL) as an organization. It is SDCL’s goal to create Friends Groups for each canyon, engaging neighbors and local stakeholders in advocating and stewarding their local open space. There are many ways to get involved with SDCL or your local Friends Group and this will be discussed during the presentation.

Susan Krzywicki is a native plant landscape designer in San Diego. She has been an active member of this chapter and was the first Horticulture Program Director for the California Native Plant Society, as well as chair of the San Diego Surfrider Foundation Ocean Friendly Gardens Committee. She is now on the Bayfront Design and Cultural Committee for the Chula Vista Convention Center and parklands project. Susan joined the board of San Diego Canyonlands three years ago and curated the La Jolla Historical Society’s 2018 show on canyons and their impact on our ecology, politics and society.

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

Upon retiring from a career in science and biotechnology, Beth turned her attention to habitat restoration. She worked for 9 months with Arne Johanson as a part of the CNPS Invasive Plant Committee. She then obtained a QAC, joined the Black Mountain Committee Advisory Committee, and in 2012 started working in the Black Mountain Open Space with Mike Kelly and the Black Mountain Open Space rangers.  

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with Les Braund, President of Friends of Los Penasquitos Canyon and Former President of the San Diego Mycological Society

From Les: “For a living I worked as a carpenter and general contractor. The majority of the time was spent doing restoration work. I attended Mesa College and San Diego State where I studied biology. 

I have always been interested in environmental issues.  I joined the Friends of Los Penasquitos Canyon probably in 1985 or 86. I began doing nature walks a few years later and continue to this day. I have been the President of the Friends now for the last six years and this current term will be my seventh year. I joined the San Diego Mycological  Society in 1998. I served as President for a total of seven years. My most recent term ended this past December.

Other interest include collecting pollen, wood, duck decoys, and books. I volunteer with Project Wildlife for the last 16 years (racoon team) and I volunteer at the Antique Gas and Steam Engine Museum (Wheel wright shop).”

5:30-7:30pm CNPS-SAN DIEGO FLOWER SHOW

Winter rains have brought us an amazing abundance of lovely flowers on our California native plants. Let’s celebrate by sharing flowers from our favorites - we can all admire them! We'll have some judges and award prizes for fun. The main objective is to show and share the diversity of spring blooms of our favorite natives.

Rules

• Must be a native plant from California or Northern Baja. 

• Flowers can be garden collected, or private property collected with owner's permission.

• Provide one or two stems of each. If you have a potted plant that is blooming, bring the pot to the show.

Setup will be from 5:30-6:00. Judging for the People’s Choice award begins at 6:00. Main judging begins at 7:00 - winners to be announced before the meeting begins at 7:30.

We'll have some clear glass containers for cut specimens if needed. Better yet, bring your your own container (put your name on the bottom with tape). Plain glass jars work well.

Check our plant profile page https://www.cnpssd.org/plantprofiles  to see if your specimen has an information sheet that can be printed and displayed alongside your specimen (if not, a 3×5 card with scientific and common name listed will do). Please include your name and where the plant was grown.

AWARDS
Best Cut Flower, Annual
Best Cut Flower, Perennial
Best Flower on Potted Plant
People’s Choice
Best in Show

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with David Newsom, Founder, Wild Yards Project

David will speak about Wild Yards Project, a collaboration of story-tellers and native plant professionals working together to inspire people not just in California but across the country to transform their yards into native-plant habitat. 

David Newsom is a lifetime naturalist, an amateur native-plant gardener, and a 27 year veteran of film and television, the last 10 years of which has all been adventure-documentary. With the arrival of his two kids, however, he suddenly realized that they may never cultivate an intimacy with nature unless he brought nature to their yard. So, he did. Hence the WYP was born.  

wildyardsproject.com

Instagram

Facebook Group

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

Kojiro Shiraiwa will introduce his most recent book, Butterflies of Dictionary Hill, and will also discuss his earlier book, Butterflies of San Diego County. The books contain full color figures of butterflies for easy identification, as well as discussions of butterfly biology and ecology. These pictorial books are great for kids as well as the general public. Dictionary Hill supports coastal sage scrub and a wealth of native plants, birds, wildflowers, small animals, and hill-topping butterflies. In 2017 the County added 175 acres of Dictionary Hill to the MSCP preserve. http://www.sdparks.org/content/sdparks/en/park-pages/dictionary-hill-county-preserve.html

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with Matthew Garrambone, Program Manager and Ecologist for the Irvine Ranch Conservancy

Matthew will share his experience managing a program that develops site appropriate native plant materials for ecological restoration across multiple habitat types in Southern California. Topics such as: plant palette design, wild seed collection, farming native plants for seed, seed processing and storage, seed testing, and seed test interpretation will all be covered, with a focus on successful strategies and lessons learned over ten years of production.  

Matthew Garrambone is a Program Manager and Ecologist for the Irvine Ranch Conservancy (IRC). He oversees a variety of projects, including the development of native plant material for ecological restoration. In this capacity he oversees the collection of genetically local seed from the wild, the production of native plant materials using IRC’s native seed farm and plant nurseries, management of a physical and digital seed inventory, and development of custom seed mixes for IRC staff and partners. Matthew has 15 years of experience working with native plants, in both applied and academic settings. He received his Bachelors from Northern Arizona University in Environmental Communications, with a minor in Biology and his M.S. in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology from University of California Irvine, where his thesis work focused on “Germination Patterns of Coastal Sage Scrub Plant Species”. 

irconservancy.org/science--stewardship-staff.html

linkedin.com/in/matthew-garrambone-aaa26133

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES:

Hailey’s Master’s capstone project addresses the spatial characteristics of the rare plants in Orange County to develop future monitoring and management for each species. This work is a continuation of a previous rare plant project through CEB and NCC to compile species occurrences within Orange County. Working with undergraduate UCI interns to compile the data from external and internal sources for 90 species ranked as rare by the CNPS, Hailey will share how data were analyzed to characterize the range, distribution, and recorded abundance of species while identifying gaps or patterns in the data. With this information, Hailey hopes to benefit NCC land managers by providing them an opportunity to address rare species management while choosing a restoration site or allocating resources for monitoring.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with Jessie Vinje, Botanist and Biologist with Conservation Biology Institute

In 2016, 2017, and 2018, the Conservation Biology Institute (CBI) and AECOM coordinated and implemented the San Diego Management and Monitoring Program (SDMMP) Management Strategic Plan (MSP) Inspect and Manage (IMG) regional rare plant monitoring protocol for 30 rare plant species on conserved lands in western San Diego County. SDMMP, in collaboration with the City of San Diego, CBI, and The Nature Conservancy, developed the threats-based monitoring protocol based on existing rare plant and habitat assessment protocols. The 2016 - 2018 monitoring effort involved greater than 50 entities, including federal and state wildlife agencies, local jurisdictions, non-profit land conservancies, private landowners, military, and volunteer organizations. We trained agency staff and volunteers through workshops and site visits, assisted land managers with monitoring, and monitored ‘orphan’ populations.

We monitored a total of 235, 205, and 227 rare plant occurrences in 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively. For each occurrence, we collected data on species status, habitat attributes, and threats.  Monitoring as many occurrences of a species within the same year using the same method improved our understanding of species status, threats, and management priorities. High priority occurrences will be eligible for regional management funding.

Jessie Vinje is a botanist with Conservation Biology Institute. She has over 20 years professional experience in field biology, botany and land management throughout California with a strong background in coastal and desert ecology, and natural resource management and restoration.  She specializes in the flora of central and southern California coast and coastal ranges, western and central Mojave Desert, and central and southern Sierra Nevada Mountains where she has surveyed for and located more than 120 threatened, endangered, or sensitive plant species.  She is a member of the San Diego Rare Plant Oversight Committee and the San Diego County Weed Management Area steering committee.

Jessie.vinje@consbio.org

Conservation Biology Institute:

Web consbio.org

Twitter twitter.com/ConsBio

Facebook facebook.com/Conservation.Biology.Institute

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

Amy teaches Plant Propagation in the Cuyamaca College Ornamental Horticulture Program. She works for Sweetwater Authority as a Watershed Caretaker. She has served as a volunteer with CNPS-San Diego for over ten years having served on the Plant Sale Committee, Propagation Committee, and as the Seed and Bulb Sale Team Leader.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with Stacy Anderson and Joe Davitt, San Diego Zoo Global Native Plant Seed Bank

San Diego Zoo Global’s Native Plant Seed Bank has been making seed collections for restoration and conservation purposes since the early 2000’s. The seed bank houses over 750 seed collections from plant populations located throughout the county and beyond. In recent years the program has become an integral part of the California Plant Rescue project (CaPR). Focusing on rare and imperiled plant populations, our seed banking efforts have resulted in over 115 seed collections in the past 4 years, from San Diego’s most endangered plant populations. We’ll discuss our process from collecting, drying, and freezing, to germination testing and propagation research, as well as many of the fascinating species we’ve been working with recently.

Stacy Anderson began collecting seeds for the Native Plant Seed Bank in 2004 as part of a collaboration with the Millennium Seed Bank at the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens in London. Joe Davitt began in early 2015 as the program became making CaPR rare plant seed collections. Both Stacy and Joe were raised in rural sections of San Diego County and native plants and animals hold a special place in their hearts. “We are so happy to be working to conserve the native plants of this important and unique region for future generations, and we’re excited to share our work with you!”

sanderson@sandiegozoo.org

jdavitt@sandiegozoo.org

Joe’s blog page - institute.sandiegozoo.org/science-blog/by-author/6187

California Plant Rescue - caplantrescue.org

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

The CNPS-San Diego Seed and Bulb Committee acquires, packages, and sells California native seeds primarily from the San Diego area. Hundreds of volunteer hours go into maintaining our inventory of over 100 species which are available to the public for purchase. This talk will cover the steps we take to acquire and prepare our seeds, as the well as how to cross reference the current inventory list with plants that are known to grow close to your home using the “What Grows Here?” tool in Calflora.org.

Cindy Hazuka has been the Coordinator of the CNPS-SD Seed and Bulb Committee since 2016. She has been a member of CNPS since the early 1990s and been involved in many native plant garden and propagation efforts. She holds a PhD in Molecular and Cellular Physiology from Stanford University.

Seed and Bulb Committee webpage: cnpssd.org/seeds-and-bulbs
Current list of seeds for sale on Calscape: goo.gl/6Nk3xr and on Calflora: calflora.org//app/ipl?list_id=px419

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

with Dr. Jon Rebman, Curator of Botany at the San Diego Natural History Museum

With approximately 50 different fern and fern ally taxa documented to occur in San Diego County, this group is well represented locally, but not well known. Come join Dr. Jon Rebman as he presents this fern diversity and goes into depth on many of the taxa that grow in our region. He will also be showing various ferns that might possibly occur in our County, but have not yet been discovered here.

Jon P. Rebman, Ph.D. has been the Mary and Dallas Clark Endowed Chair/Curator of Botany at the San Diego Natural History Museum (SDNHM) since 1996. Dr. Rebman is a plant taxonomist and conducts extensive floristic research on the Baja California peninsula and in San Diego and Imperial Counties of California. He leads various field classes and botanical expeditions each year and is actively naming new plant species from the region. His primary research interests have centered on the systematics of the Cactus family in Baja California, especially the genera Cylindropuntia (chollas) and Opuntia (prickly-pears). However, Dr. Rebman also does a lot of general floristic research and he has co-published the new Annotated Checklist of the Vascular Plants of Baja California, Mexico and the most recent edition of the Checklist of the Vascular Plants of San Diego County.

He has over 25 years of field experience with surveying and documenting plants including rare and endangered species. As a field botanist, he is a very active collector of scientific specimens with his personal collections numbering over 35,000. He is the director of the San Diego County Plant Atlas project (www.sdplantatlas.org) and identifies/verifies all of the new specimens (currently over 69,000) coming into the herbarium through this scientific endeavor. As the curator of the SD Herbarium at the SDNHM, he is in charge of this dried plant specimen collection that contains over 270,000 specimens dating back to the 1870s. Rebman published the newest edition of the Baja California Plant Field Guide with co-author Norman Roberts in 2012, and is working on a new bilingual, plant field guide for the Cape region of Baja California Sur. 

Email: jrebman@sdnhm.org

San Diego County Plant Atlas website: sdplantatlas.org / Baja Flora website: bajaflora.org

We will host our annual holiday potluck at the December meeting. Bring a dish to share.

6:30pm-7pm: There will be no NATIVES FOR NOVICES presentation this evening. Share and enjoy the potluck beginning at 6:30.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

Speaker, Madena Asbell, Director of Plant Conservation Programs at the Mojave Desert Land Trust in Joshua Tree, CA.

The Mojave Desert Land Trust was founded in 2006 by a group of local environmentalists. In 2015 the organization moved into an old nursery facility and began restoring it to working order. Over the past 2½years, MDLT has established a native plant restoration nursery, a conservation seed bank, and an herbarium to dedicated to the documentation, preservation and restoration of native plants on its properties. In this presentation, Madena Asbell will discuss MDLT’s mission and plant conservation programs. 

Madena Asbell is Director of Plant Conservation Programs at the Mojave Desert Land Trust in Joshua Tree, CA. She has a background in art and horticulture and has over 15 years of experience working with CA native plants. Prior to joining MDLT, she was director of horticulture at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants in Sun Valley, CA. 

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

This presentation will introduce our audience to what a Land Trust is, and will discuss the important work that these community-based organizations are doing in San Diego County and around the country to protect open-space lands, restore habitat conditions, and protect public recreation opportunities. The Back Country Land Trust (BCLT) is one of our local, homegrown land trusts here in eastern San Diego County. Based in the semi-rural community of Alpine, this local conservation group has helped to protect over 6,000 acres of critical habitat in eastern San Diego County since 1990. BCLT currently manages 4,000 acres of open-space land from Alpine and Peutz Valley to La Posta and Potrero. Their conservation lands are open to the public for passive recreation opportunities, such as hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding. BCLT also endeavors to protect the working landscapes in the East County for their cultural heritage and history of farming and ranching, by working with local communities and tribal groups to identify key historic properties and places of ancient cultural significance to the Kumeyaay people, local settlers, and current residents of the Back Country.

Jon Green is the Program & Outreach Director for the Back Country Land Trust.  Jon has been working on conservation land management and habitat restoration in the East County for the last 7 years. His work with BCLT and other local partner groups in San Diego has increased the visibility of privately owned conservation lands and the need for community-based stewardship in the Back Country. By encouraging residents to take charge of their own community’s future by actively working against inappropriate development and preserving land through a public-private partnership model, Jon’s work with BCLT has built a strong coalition of local residents, partner groups, and wildlife agencies to protect and restore our natural lands and native plants and wildlife. http://backcountrylandtrust.org

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.
7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

There is no fee to attend these presentations.

Speaker: Jodie Cook, Landscape Architect and Designer, ASLA

Watershed Gardens are the future of California home landscaping. Join NatureScape and MyAvantGarden.com creator Jodie Cook to learn how to create a wildlife-friendly, naturally low-water native garden with curb appeal using the watershed approach to landscaping. 

 Our gardens can do so much more than just look pretty – designing with the watershed means creating a garden that flourishes in the face of change. You will be introduced to basic rainwater capture theory and contouring soil for rain.

As a professional landscape designer, instructor and former public garden Director Jodie Cook immerses herself in plants, gardens and landscapes daily. She was certified in Landscape Architecture through the University of California, Berkeley and has trained at the New York Botanical Garden School of Horticulture and Design. Jodie is an EPA Watersense certified Watershed-Wise Landscape Professional, a Watershed-Wise Landscaping Qualified Trainer, a US Green Building Council ‘Sustainable Sites’ Certified Advanced Professional. She has taught Metropolitan Water District’s California Friendly Landscape Workshops.

She operates Jodie Cook Landscape Design, LLC and MyAvantGarden.com, a collaboration with Tree of Life Nursery offering turn-key front yard landscape conversions from turf to native gardens. www.jodiecookdesign.com, www.myavantgarden.com

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES 

Brook is co-owner and CEO of CatchingH2O and H2OME. She started H2OME in 2008 with the mission to be a resource to the San Diego Community for water harvesting. She was determined to create change from the ground up by showing homeowners, educators, and policy makers how simple and effective rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling can be. Her continued mantra has been that individual contributions create tremendous impact toward a larger water conservation strategy. @sandiegosaveswater, www.h2o-me.com, www.catchingh2o.com, brook@h2o-me.com

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

Speaker: Patrick Montgomery, Sales Manager, RECON Native Plants

Patrick will speak about using California native plants to connect urban and designed landscapes with our California wild lands.

Patrick Montgomery is the Sales Manager for RECON Native Plants and has a B.A. in Landscape Architecture.

He can be contacted at patrick@reconnativeplants.com

6:30pm-7:00pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES 

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

Speaker: Tom Oberbauer, Chapter President CNPS-San Diego

The Revillagigedo Islands are a remote group of islands that consist of three islands and a large rock that range from 250 miles to 435 miles south and southwest of Cabo San Lucas. The largest is Socorro which ranges to over 3,300 feet in elevation and is 51 square miles in area. Clarion, the farthest out, is 7.6 square miles and San Benedicto, the closest one is 3.86 square miles. The rock is Roca Partida, a large sea stack far out in the ocean. They are semi-tropical but also have plants that are related to those in California and of course, southern Baja California. They all formed as the result of volcanic activity. San Benedicto violently erupted in 1952 and caused the extinction of an endemic form of rock wren. 

All the islands support endemic species of plants and birds, and Socorro and Clarion were subjected to extensive sheep grazing for approximately 100 years. The impact was extensive but the removal of the sheep by the Grupo de Ecología y Conservación de Islas and their partners including Island Conservation Ecology Group, has allowed the islands to make progress toward recovery.

In February 2017 an expedition was made to the Revillagigedo Islands, stopping at a series of other islands on the way: Acunsion, San Roque and Magdalena Islands along the Baja California coast. Tom will provide a visual description of these fascinating, remote and little visited islands. He will describe the vegetation and many of the endemic species that inhabit the islands as well as some of the birds that utilize the islands as breeding areas.

Tom Oberbauer is a third generation native San Diegan with a life-long passion for Baja California and, in particular, the nearby islands. Beginning while at San Diego State University, Tom worked for the County of San Diego for 35 years while indulging in visits to nearly all of the islands off the coast of Southern California and Baja California. His interests emphasize native and rare plants, but they also include all birds, mammals, and reptiles that inhabit the region.

Note: There will be no NATIVES FOR NOVICES this month

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Bob Perry, Professor Emeritus Cal Poly Pomona, Academician, Author, Landscape Architect

Designing native plant gardens can be organized in many facets including science, form, function and art. Taken together, Bob Perry has found the challenge of designing a native plant garden to be quite overwhelming. This challenge has been made easier, but not simple, by spending years studying plant ecology, morphology, physiology, principles and elements of are, and design form. He is still imprinted by my early years in landscape architecture with two axioms: ‘Design is a Process’, and ‘Form follows Function’.  Today, he has come to the view that he has been learning how to write a story. A story that is called: ‘My Native Plant Garden’. He looks forward to sharing his story.

Robert Perry is Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture at Cal Poly Pomona. His academic career began in 1972 and still continues today. During this time he has taught in the UCLA Extension Program in Landscape Architecture, Landscape Architecture Studies at USC, and at Cal Poly University Pomona. His career has been focussed on the study of plants and water conservation. Bob has written two previous books on landscape plants and water conservation including: Trees and Shrubs for Dry California Landscapes, 1980, and Landscape Plants for Western Regions, 1992. His latest effort, Landscape Plants for California Gardens, continues in this tradition. This latest book greatly expands the scope of coverage and thoroughness of photography.

Bob has been a licensed landscape architect since 1972 and has actively participated in many professional projects where his expertise on California native plants and landscapes for water conservation has been applied and refined. He continues to be an active proponent of resource conservation in landscapes through teaching, writing, public speaking and professional work.

6:30pm-7:00pm NATIVES FOR NOVICES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Jeff Moore, Owner and Operator of Solana Succulents

Jeff will present a showcase of photographs and descriptions of many Dudleya species (liveforevers) from Southern California and Baja California. His talk will include some other succulents and also cacti species from the region. Of special interest will be highlights from a Dudleya excursion last year to Cedros Island off the west coast of Baja. Dudleya is a genus of succulent perennials in the Crassulaceae (Stone-crop Family).

Jeff Moore is owner and operator of Solana Succulents, a retail succulent nursery that has been in Solana Beach for 25 years. He has published three books on succulents: Soft Succulents (about Aeoniums, Echeverias, Dudleyas, Crassulas, Sedums, Kalanchoes and other species in cultivation); Aloes & Agaves in Cultivation; and Under the Spell of Succulents. His books will be available at the meeting for perusal and sale. Some plants will also be for sale.

WEBSITE: solanasucculents.com  INSTAGRAM: solanasucculents

6:30pm-7pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Carol Bornstein, Author and Director of the Nature Gardens at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

We eat and drink them, build with them, and play on them. Of the 10,000+ species of grasses, discover some of the many California native choices for ornamental value as well. Whether replacing your water-guzzling lawn with a low-care alternative, creating habitat for wildlife, or simply adding movement to your garden, this talk will offer up many climate-appropriate native grasses and grass-like plants to consider. 

Carol Bornstein is Director of the Nature Gardens at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, where she oversees the long-term care and development of this 3.5-acre habitat for urban wildlife. For nearly 30 years, she was horticulturist at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. Carol co-authored two books, the national award-winning California Native Plants for the Gardenand Reimagining the California Lawn: Water-conserving Plants, Practices, and Designs, both of which champion the benefits of designing gardens in harmony with nature. She continues to advocate for sustainable, regionally appropriate landscaping and to share her knowledge of plants native to California and other mediterranean and dry-climate regions through her writing, teaching, and design work. She received a B.S. in Botany from the University of Michigan and an M.S. in Horticulture from Michigan State University.

WEBSITE: carolbornstein.com  CONTACT: carol@carolbornstein.com  

6:30pm-7pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Hartmut Wisch, retired Naturalist Guide

An illustrated talk that will explore the great diversity of bees that have co-evolved with California's native flora. Approximately 1600 bee species are known to be native to California. Some bees are generalists pollinating a variety of flowers from different plant families, others are more specialized. This informative talk featuring beautiful images of our native bees will cover the six recognized families of bees (Anthophila) extant in California. 

Hartmut Wisch led European visitors through natural areas of the U.S. and Canadian West for 35 years. After retiring, Hartmut discovered a love for macro photography. His principal interest are insects, mostly our native bees. He has taken several bee identification classes with Robbin Thorp, is a member of the Lorquin Entomological Society, and a contributing editor at Bugguide (hosted by Iowa State U. Entomology).

6:30pm-7pm: PRE-MEETING BUZZ ABOUT BEES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Christopher McDonald, PhD., Natural Resources Advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension, San Bernardino, San Diego, Riverside and Imperial Counties. 

California is home to a wide variety of plant and animal species, with Southern California being particularly diverse. Southern California has a unique climate pattern, topographic and geologic diversity which all contribute to create a wonderful place to call home. Native plants form the base of the food web in our wildlands and are essential to many species of wildlife, yet our traditional suburban landscapes are dominated by non-native plants that offer little benefit to wildlife. When land managers and homeowners learn some of the causes of species diversity they can view the world through the eyes of a native pollinator, or a bird, and adapt their landscapes to increase the amount of native wildlife that visit their yard. Through the increased use of a variety of native plants, and by providing food, water and shelter, we can create backyard habitats for small species of wildlife that can enrich our yards and our lives.

Dr. McDonald has been working on vegetation management research for over 15 years. His research focuses on reducing and managing invasive plants, including highly invasive and novel species, as well as restoring native plants after weed removal among other wide-ranging interests.

6:30pm-7pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Tom Oberbauer, Vice President CNPS-San Diego

Anza Borrego has been identified as one of the best locations in the Country to observe wildflowers.  With rainfall that came at well timed intervals, the 2017 season was reported as a potential Superbloom.  It did not disappoint with sheets of color in Henderson Canyon from Desert Gold, Evening Primrose and Sand Verbena as well as Desert Lily and Desert Dandelion. Over a period of a few weeks the Brittlebush/Incensio and Ocotillo flowered as well.  

Nearly the same time period, the coast was having its own bloom that was the best in years with Sea Dahlia, California Encelia, California Poppies and Fringed Ground Pinks being prominent on Point Loma and Torrey Pines State Reserve.  

Tom Oberbauer will provide images of the season for these areas and explanation of the flowers and vegetation.

Tom Oberbauer is a third generation San Diegan with a long history of visitation to the San Diego Desert as a guide for the NAT and exploring on his own and with an equally long history of observing wildflowers on the Coast.  He is a long time member of CNPS and is a member of the Board of the NAT.  He also has written numerous articles on the natural history of San Diego and the islands of Baja California, has a YouTube site: PLNaturalResources featuring documentaries on the Pacific Coast Baja California islands, and is currently working on a documentary for the 2017 wildflower season.

6:30-7:00pm NATIVES FOR NOVICES: "The Journey of the Anza-Borrego Desert Region Guidebook—Now in Its 6th Edition" with author and honorary California State Park Ranger, Diana Lindsay

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Sula Vanderplank, Ph.D, Conservation Botanist

Sula will speak about her explorations of the flora of the Santo Tomás, San Vincente, San Jacinto, and San Quintín Valleys, which are core habitats for the California Quail.

Sula Vanderplank, Ph.D., is a conservation scientist who works as a Biodiversity Explorer for the Botanical Research Institute of Texas, and serves as Science Advisor for Terra Peninsular, AC. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside, and is a research associate at the San Diego Natural History Museum. She has spent the last 10 years studying the flora of NW Baja California, where her favorite habitat is maritime succulent scrub. She wrote her masters thesis on the flora of San Quintin and later authored the regional field guide, "Quail-friendly Plants of Baja California". She is also the co-author with Jim Riley & Jon Rebman of "Plant Guide: Maritime Succulent Scrub Region, Northwest Baja California, Mexico".

We will host our annual holiday potluck at the December meeting. Bring a dish to share.

6:30pm-7pm: There will be no NATIVES FOR NOVICES presentation this evening. Share and enjoy the potluck beginning at 6:30.

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION

with Michael Wilken-Robertson, Anthropologist

For thousands of years, the Kumeyaay people of northern Baja California and southern California made their homes in the diverse landscapes of the region, interacting with native plants and continuously refining their botanical knowledge. Today, many Kumeyaay Indians in the far-flung ranches of Baja California carry on the traditional knowledge and skills for transforming native plants into food, medicine, arts, tools, regalia, construction materials, and ceremonial items. Kumeyaay Ethnobotany explores the remarkable interdependence between native peoples and native plants of the Californias through in-depth descriptions of 47 native plants and their uses, lively narratives, and hundreds of vivid photographs. It connects the archaeological and historical record with living cultures and native plant specialists who share their ever-relevant wisdom for future generations.

Anthropologist Michael Wilken-Robertson’s lifelong collaborative relationships with Native Baja Californians have allowed him to explore traditional indigenous uses of plants in the diverse habitats of their territory, from the ancient past into the present. His new book provides in-depth descriptions of forty-seven California native plants and their uses.

6:30pm-7pm: NATIVES FOR NOVICES

7:00pm-7:30pm: A time for discussion, camaraderie, visiting, and enjoying the sales table.

7:30pm: FEATURED PRESENTATION