2008 Walks & Workshops 2007
| 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012  PROGRAM & GENERAL MEETING
Audubon Society Environmental Education Ctr
1401 Hope Street (Route 114)
Bristol, Rhode Island
Saturday, November 8, 2008
1:00 pmGuest Speaker: John Burns
NEWFS Plant Conservation Volunteer Coordinator
"The Vital Role of the New England Plant Conservation Volunteer Corps"
Plant conservation is a major part of the mission of any wild plant organization. The New England Wild Flower Society
administers NEPCoP, which is a voluntary alliance of organizations and individuals committed to the protection of the native flora of our region. Come learn more.
Free and open to the public. FREE LECTURE: RICHARD LOUV
Saturday, September 27, 2008
7:00 pm
CCRI - Warwick Campus
Don't miss this important event! Save The Bay is co-sponsoring this FREE speaking event featuring Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. He will
be introduced by U.S. Senator Jack Reed and will sign books after his talk. Louv has been credited with spurring the national conversation about the disconnect between children and nature, and his
message has galvanized an international movement. He is also the founder of the Children and Nature Network. Please register to attend online at http://www.rwpzoo.org/louvEvent.cfm. MUSHROOM WALK
Nettie Jones Preserve, West Greenwich
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Fungus is everywhere, but mostly we only notice it when it decides to send out its spore producing
fruit, the mushroom. At Nettie Jones Preserve in West Greenwich, the variety of habitats from the mixed hardwood forest, streams and old fields should give us a diversity of mushrooms to look for. We
will pick one of each type to try and identify it to a major group. There is no collecting on this foray.
You are advised never to eat a wild mushroom unless you are positive of its species. Many mushrooms look alike, but some are deadly. Leader:
Noel Rowe, an amateur mushroom enthusiast [but is by no means an expert). Fee: $5 for members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497. CREATING A WOODLAND GARDEN USING WILD PLANTS: Size Doesn't Matter
Bittersweet Cottage Gardens
Harmony, RI
Saturday, September 13, 2008
1:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Fall is the best time to start a new garden, especially one that uses native plants. Join Cheryl Cadwell in her recently created
woodland garden. She will show you how to recreate a woodland setting in any landscape, no matter how large or small.
Cheryl, President of the Rhode Island Wild Plant Society, garden columnist and lecturer, has been creating gardens for over twenty years. Fee:
$5 for members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497. The class is limited to 20 attendees. NORTH KINGSTOWN: Easy Paddle
Saturday, September 6, 2008
10:00 am
Bring your canoe or kayak to venture a view of Bidens laevis (tickseed) in bloom. By paddling around Secret Lake we will get up
close to this flower in the Asteraceae family. It will feel like being in a meadow of sunflowers except we will be in the water. Leader: Sindy Hempstead Fee:
$5 for members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497 WEED IDENTIFICATION
URI Agricultural Experiment Station, URI Kingston
Saturday, August 23, 2008
9:00 am -12:00 noon, rain or shine
Got weeds? Don't know what they are? The first step in weed management is proper identification. Come and join Carl Sawyer,
Research Associate at the URI Agricultural Experiment Station, and learn how to key out weeds using Weeds of the Northeast
by Uva, Neal, and DiTomasso. We will key out specimens brought in by participants, look at weed communities at the Station
and talk about management strategies. A hand lens would be helpful. Limited to 15 participants. Leader:
Carl Sawyer M.S. in plant physiology and research associate at URI Agricultural Experiment Station. Fee: FREE! Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497. QUEEN RIVER PRESERVE
Exeter, RI
Saturday, August 9, 2008
8:30 am -10:30 am
Let's try to beat the heat while exploring a little known area. The Nature Conservancy's Queen River Preserve is an easy stroll
along forested pathways to a pristine stream. An unusual pine barren community, wetlands and woods can be explored, and
together we can uncover its secrets. Bring an interest, or expertise, in mosses, ferns, lichens, flowering plants and trees and see why this area is an important area to protect. Leader:
Frances Topping, a nature generalist interested in the interactions of plants and animals, including humans. Fee: $5 for members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497. FERNS FOR YOUR LANDSCAPE
Tiverton, RI
Sunday, July 27, 2008
10:00 am
Nothing evokes serenity and "naturalizes" a landscape like a glade of ferns. They are easy to grow and provide season-long
greenery and wonderful texture. This program will get you started in appreciating and identifying common native ferns with their
appropriate soil and light conditions. After reviewing fern species, their interesting life cycle and propagation techniques, we'll
tour the property where a variety of native ferns add to its natural diversity and aesthetic quality. Leader: Garry Plunkett, naturalist and NEWFS Certificate Program graduate. Fee:
$5 for members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at RIWPS office 401-789-7497. CARNIVOROUS PLANT WALK -- Co-sponsored with the New England Carnivorous Plant Society
Great Swamp Wildlife Management Area, West Kingston, RI
Saturday, July 19, 2008
12:00 noon – 3:00 pm
Rhode Island is home to several species of flesh-eating plants. While most other plants are dependent on the soil for providing
essential nutrients, carnivorous plants can get what they need from decaying insects. This allows them to survive in some
nutrient-poor conditions such as sphagnum bogs, fens, wet gravel, or just floating in the water. The Great Swamp is a great
place to see some of them. We should find pitcher plants, sundews and bladderworts, and with luck, most will be in bloom. The
Great Swamp has a lot to offer botanically, from the stately American Holly Tree to the beautiful White Fringed Orchid.
Easy walk - No Fee. To register and for information and directions contact walk Leaders: Doug McGrady, 401-248-2967 (RIWPS) and John Phillip, 401-741-7825 (NECPS). TOUR PULASKI STATE PARK
Chepachet, RI
Saturday, June 21, 2008
10:00 am - 12:00 noon
This tour will highlight one of the jewels in the state forest system. Until the 1930's Pulaski Park was heavily used for forest
products. The government bought the land to help forestland owners get back on their feet after the depression. Pulaski is a
wonderful example of how a forest can recover and be restored as a vital habitat. The hike will tour thru the hemlock trail, and
see some of the results of state management release of beetles in battling Hemlock Woolly Adelgid. There is also Lightning Hill, where trees meet the elements in large thunderstorms. Leader:
Paul Dolan, Assistant State Forester. Fee: $5 members, $7 nonmembers. Register with Jackie at the RIWPS office 401-789-7497. Sprague Farm
Sunday, May 18, 2008 -- 1:00 p.m.
Chepachet, RI
The two primary forest formations of New England are the northern hardwood forest and the central hardwood forest. There is
also an overlap region, the "transition zone" where many species of both formations can be found. This transition zone dips into
parts of the northwest corner of Rhode Island, as evident in the forest at Sprague Farm that is owned and managed by the
Glocester Land Trust. This thousand plus acre preserve includes the best striped maple (Acer Pensylvanicum) stand in the state,
some magnificent chestnut oaks (Quercus prinus) and an Atlantic white cedar swamp (Chamaecyparis thyoides). With luck we should also catch some woodland spring ephemerals in bloom.
Leader: Garry Plunkett, naturalist and NEWFS Certificate Program graduate. Fee $3.00 members, $5.00 non-members. Register with Garry at 401-624-2549. Habitat Changes and the Forest
Saturday May 10, 2008 -- 10:00 a.m.-12 Noon
Powder Mill Ledges, Audubon Headquarters
Smithfield, RI
Come and tour the Audubon site and see how nature can coexist so close to a major business district. This area is very unique
in the different types of habitat found in close proximity to each other. See the definite line when agriculture was abandoned.
Learn how to read the forest. The emphasis will be tree identification and basic forestry concepts. Moderate hike, 2 -3 miles.
Leader: Paul Dolan Assistant State Forester. Register at pcdolan@cox.net
. Fee: $3.00 RIWPS members, $5.00 non-members.
Visit to Garden in the Woods
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Framingham, MA
Meet to car pool at 9 a.m. Time of tour: 11 a.m.
There is no better place to visit in early May than Garden in the Woods. The trails will be full of spring blossoms including blue
phlox, white trillium, and yellow ladyslippers. There are many different habitats with all sorts of native plants. We will have a
guided tour. After the tour, relax with a picnic lunch (bring a brown bag lunch) and then continue wandering through the woods.
The plant sale area at Garden in the Woods will be full of plants to purchase, and the shop full of books and gifts. A tour by
electric cart is available, but restricted to those who have difficulty walking. Reserve early and indicate to RIWPS.
Transportation: Drive by private car and meet there. We will meet just off I-95 in South Attleboro at 9:00 for carpooling. The
return to the same location will be around 3:30 or 4:00. If you are willing to drive, let us know when you register. Riders in car
pool cars are expected to assist in furnishing gas and expense money to the driver.
Pre-registration required. The tour is limited to twenty. Please register early by contacting the RIWPS office at 789-7497. Fee:
$12.00 RIWPS members, $15.00 non-members. NEWFS members can deduct $5 from the fee but MUST bring their membership card with them. Amphibian Vernal Pool Walk
Saturday, April 19, 2008 -- 10:00am
Carolina Management Area
This walk will focus on vernal pools and breeding ecology of pond-breeding amphibians. We will visit a number of vernal pools in
the Carolina Management Area, hiking on trails with a mild terrain. Meet in Stop and Shop parking lot in Hope Valley (east side of I-95, on Rte. 138).
Leader: URI Professor Peter Paton. Pre-register with Peter at ppaton@uri.edu or call the RIWPS office at 789-7497. Fee: $3.00 RIWPS members, $5.00 non-members. Buds, Twigs and Bark - Learn to identify local trees.
Saturday, April 5, 2008 -- 1:00 -3:00 p.m.
Tri-Pond Park Nature Center
Asa Pond Road
South Kingstown, RI
As spring emerges, learn to identify local trees and shrubs through their bark and buds. After some indoor exploration of samples
and their characteristics, we will walk a short trail at Tri-Pond Park Nature Center to try our skills. Spring will be in the air -- an
ideal time to learn before using your knowledge later on walks in the woods. Bring pencil and paper for notes.
Leader: Frances Topping, a naturalist interested in plants and their interactions with animals, including humans. Frances holds a
BS in Geography with Botany and Zoology from Sheffield University, England, a Graphic Design degree from Akron, Ohio and a certificate in Natural Science Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design. Registration required. Contact Frances at 401-364-8002. Fee $8.00 RIWPS members, $10.00 non-members. RI Wild Plant Society Annual Meeting
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Weaver Auditorium, URI Coastal Institute
Kingston, RI
(corner of Flagg & Greenhouse Roads) 12:00 Noon: Business Meeting - Annual Report, Budget, Elections
1:00 pm: Refreshments and Fellowship
1:30 pm: Program
Changing Ecosystems, Changing Plants
As climate and species demographics change, which plants are native, exotic or invasive? Presented by Dr. Susan Gordon,
Manager of the Kinney Azalea Gardens in Kingston and an Adjunct Asst. Professor of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture at URI.
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Rhododendron arborescens - Native? |
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If your surname begins with the letters A through M, please bring refreshments to share. The program is free and open to the
public -- bring a friend! Snow Date: Sat., March 15, same time & place (check WPRO or 789-7497) |
