Butterfly Orchid l Florida Alicia l 2017 FNPS Conference
Florida Native Plant Society Named
Florida Wildlife Federation
Conservation Organization of the Year
By Andy Taylor
The Florida Native Plant Society received the Florida W ildlife Federation’s Conservation Organization of the Year award for 2017. The award was presented at the FWF’s 80th a nnual Conservation Awards Banquet April 21st at the Wyndham Grand Hotel in Jupiter, Florida.
“It wa s a huge honor to receive t he prestigious F WF Conservation Organization of t he Year award,” F NPS P resident Catherine Bowman said. “I enjoyed accepting t he award on behalf of t he dedicated work of t he 3,950 members and 37 chapters of the Florida Native Plant Society. I appreciate the Federation’s commitment to bringing conservation-focused people and organizations from around Florida together.”
“The Florida Native Plant Society has worked tirelessly to preserve and restore the plant communities upon which our ecosystems depend. The Society is very deserving to be recognized by the Federation for its fine efforts,” stated Manley Fuller, President of the Florida Wildlife Federation.
The Federation’s Board of Directors made their selection because of the excellent work FNPS does year in and year out to conserve natural Florida. FNPS was nominated by Florida Wildlife Federation Vice President and General Counsel Preston Robertson.
A total of 14 awards were handed out at t he Conservation Awards Banquet. F NPS i s g reatly appreciative of t he recognition f rom t he Florida Wildlife Federation.
2018 Endowment Grant Research Awards, Conservation Grant Awards and the Dan Austin Award for Ethnobotany
The Florida Native Plant Society maintains an Endowment Research Grant program for the purpose of funding research on native plants. These are small grants ($1,500 or less) awarded for a 1-year period and intended to support research that forwards the mission of the Florida Native Plant Society, which is “to promote the preservation, conservation, and restoration of the native plants and native plant communities of Florida.”
FNPS Conservation Grants support applied native plant conservation projects in Florida. These grants ($5,000 or less) are awarded for a 1-year period. These projects promote the preservation, conservation, or restoration of rare or imperiled native plant taxa and rare or imperiled native plant communities. To qualify for a Conservation Grant, the proposed project must be sponsored by an FNPS Chapter.
The Dan Austin Award for Ethnobotany will provide up to $1,500 to graduate or undergraduate students who are studying Florida ethnobotany (the study of the relationship between peoples or cultures with plants native to Florida or Florida ecosystems). These can be current uses or historic uses.
Application guidelines and details are on the FNPS website (www. fnps.org), click on ‘What We Do/Grants and Awards’. Questions regarding the grant programs should be sent to info@fnps.org.
Application deadline for the 2018 Awards is March 2, 2018. Awards will be announced at the May 2018 Annual Conference at the Miccosukee Resort in Miami, Florida. Award recipients do not have to be present at the Conference to receive an award.
October is Florida Native Plant Month
Stay tuned to your email and FNPS chapter leaders for more details on October’s Florida Native Plant Month campaign to foster awareness, grow membership and create connections throughout the state.
FNPS was represented at the banquet by six members: Brian and Winnie Said, Ron Blair, FNPS President Catherine Bowman, Andy Taylor, and Anne Cox. At the same event, longtime FNPS member Jim Thomas was inducted into the FWF’s Conservation Hall of Fame. Mr. Thomas was represented by his family at the banquet.
The Quarterly Journal of the Florida Native Plant Society
Palmetto
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Editor, Sabal minor ................Stacey Matrazzo
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Social Media .........................Sarah Garcia
Webmaster ...........................Paul Rebmann
Palmetto
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The purpose of the Florida Native Plant Society is to conserve, preserve, and restore the native plants and native plant communities of Florida.
Official definition of native plant:
For most purposes, the phrase Florida native plant refers to those species occurring within the state boundaries prior to European contact, according to the best available scientific and historical documentation. More specifically, it includes those species understood as indigenous, occurring in natural associations in habitats that existed prior to significant human impacts and alterations of the landscape.
Editor: Marjorie Shropshire − Visual Key Creative, Inc. pucpuggy@bellsouth.net l (772) 285-4286 l 1083 NW Pine Lake Drive, Stuart, FL 34994 (ISSN 0276-4164) Copyright 2017, Florida Native Plant Society, all rights reserved. No part of the contents of this magazine may be reproduced by any means without written consent of the editor. Palmetto is published four times a year by the Florida Native Plant Society (FNPS) as a benefit to members. The observations and opinions expressed in attributed columns and articles are those of the respective authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official views of the Florida Native Plant Society or the editor, except where otherwise stated.
Editorial Content
We welcome articles on native plant species and related conservation topics, as well as high-quality botanical illustrations and photographs. Contact the editor for guidelines, deadlines and other information.
Features
4 Florida’s So-Called ‘Butterfly Orchid’
The most w idespread epiphytic orchid in t he southern half of t he Florida Peninsula i s Encyclia tampensis, t he Butterfly Orchid. Why do we use this common name, which seems better suited to other, more “butterfly-like” species?
Article by Chuck McCartney.
8 Tricks of the Trade: Characteristics of Florida Alicia That Facilitate its Persistence in Florida Habitats Walk through any scrub or sandhill in Florida between May and September and you’ll notice the golden flowers atop tall swaying stems of Florida Alicia (Chapmannia floridana). Learn about the specific characteristics that allow it to persist in t he h abitats w here it o ccurs.
Article by Jennifer Schafer.
12 Connections Above and Below:
The 2017 FNPS Annual Conference
The FNPS annual conference is a premier event showcasing every aspect of native plant and plant community conservation in Florida. The 2017 conference at Westgate River Ranch provided something for every native plant enthusiast – from researchers and conservation professionals to landowners, gardeners, and citizen scientists.
Article by Juliet Rynear.
ON THE COVER:
Encyclia tampensis is the most widespread epiphytic orchid in the southern half of the Florida Peninsula, where it has come to be known by the pretty but nonsensical name Butterfly Orchid, according to author Chuck McCartney. This specimen was photographed by Christopher Ohanian in busy suburban Broward County, Florida. See article on page 4.
Florida’s So-Called ‘Butterfly Orchid’
By Chuck McCartney
The most w idespread epiphytic (tree-growing) orchid in the southern half of the Florida Peninsula is the pretty species k nown scientifically a s Encyclia tampensis Because so many laymen are reluctant to learn botanical names (they say the latinate binomials “scare” them or “confuse” them or are “hard to pronounce”), it has become the practice to provide every plant, no matter how obscure, w ith a so-called “ common name” – even if such a vernacular name has never been in common usage. Such i s t he case w ith Encyclia tampensis, which i s a lmost endemic to Florida (with a small population in t he Bahamas but no verified specimens f rom Cuba, despite t he presence of some similar species t here). Therefore, someone (I can’t determine who) made up t he common name “Florida Butterfly Orchid”
for Encyclia tampensis It’s a ll very pretty a nd very poetic. The problem i s, it makes no sense whatsoever.
The reason t his new common name i s a problem i s t he fact t hat t he sweet-scented flowers of t his orchid, which blooms mostly in t he late spring a nd early summer, look nothing like a butterfly, nor a re t hey k nown to be pollinated by butterflies. The shape of t he flowers a nd t heir honey-like f ragrance produced in t he a fternoon seem to indicate pollination by some species of bee. The round, fl attened midlobe of t he white lip forms a “ landing pad” for a v isiting pollinator, a nd t he magenta spot or stripes in t he middle of it (the rare “albino” form lacks t his colorful ornamentation) serve a s “nectar g uides,” pointing t he way to where t he pollinator may (or may not – orchids can be g reat
Although there are a number of orchid species around the world called Butterfly Orchid, to most orchidists, Psychopsis papilio and its three closest relatives are considered the classic Butterfly Orchid. By comparison, Florida’s Encyclia tampensis looks nothing like a butterfly, nor is it known to be pollinated by them. This specimen of Psychopsis papilio was grown by Ernie Barham and photographed by Chuck McCartney. Encyclia tampensis was photographed by Christopher Ohanian on June 5, 2013, in northern Broward County.
Left: A typically colored flower of Encyclia tampensis has a bright magenta spot in the middle of the white lip which forms a landing pad for the presumed bee pollinator of this widespread native orchid. This specimen was photographed by Chuck McCartney on June 20, 1994, at the western end of Long Pine Key in the Miami-Dade County portion of Everglades National Park.
Some botanists have suggested a hybrid origin for Encyclia tampensis in the distant past, possibly accounting for numerous color variations in the flowers. Jake A. Heaton photographed a rare “alba” form of the species on June 8, 2016, in a Sarasota County nature preserve. In a dwarf cypress forest in the Miami-Dade County section of Everglades National Park, Chuck McCartney came upon an unusual yellow-flowered form on June 20, 1994.
Above: In full sun, plants of Encyclia tampensis sometimes take on a dwarfed appearance and may display purplish coloration to cope with the high ultraviolet light, like this specimen photographed by Chuck McCartney on November 1, 1980, in a dwarf cypress forest in the Big Cypress of northeastern Collier County.
Above: Not all plants of Encyclia tampensis growing in full sun become miniaturized. Environmental consultant Jack Lange observes a sizable specimen flowering profusely on a dead Buttonwood tree (Conocarpus erectus) in a coastal prairie near Flamingo in the Monroe County portion of Everglades National Park. Photographed on May 24, 2000, by Chuck McCartney.
Above: In south-central Florida’s Sarasota County, Encyclia tampensis can form large colonies on Live Oak trees (Quercus virginiana). Photograph taken on June 6, 2016, by Jake A. Heaton.
Above:
Above: Intrepid amateur field botanist Jake A. Heaton created this photo combo showing variations of Encyclia tampensis flowers he photographed in Sarasota County, Florida.
pollinator deceivers) fi nd some a nticipated reward in t he form of nectar. A lso, a bee i s strong enough to muscle its way into t he center of t he flower in its search for nectar by depressing t he lip (or l abellum) of t he flower, which i s hinged to t he base of t he orchid’s reproductive column.
Brief a natomy lesson: The column (fancy word: g ynostemium) i s a unique character of most of t he orchid family, uniting t wo of t he flowers’ posited primitive t hree a nthers (male parts) into a single structure t hat a lso contains t he united stigmas (female parts). In most orchids (remember, t here a re more t han 25,000 naturally occurring species worldwide, so t here i s a lot of variability in t he following pattern), t he pollen, rather t han being in individual g rains, i s presented in discrete packets called pollinia. These a re beneath a cover called t he a nther cap. The sticky stigmatic surface i s behind t he pollinia, separated f rom it most of t he t ime by a fl ap of t issue called a rostellum to prevent self-fertilization. A v isiting pollinator, while probing for a reward, dislodges t he a nther cap, gets t he pollinia glued to some portion of its a natomy, t hen fl ies away to v isit a nother orchid flower, in t he process depositing t he pollen packets onto t he stigma of t hat flower, t hus achieving cross-pollination for t he orchid. The pollinator may or may not have received a reward for its efforts. For a n orchid so relatively ubiquitous in southern Florida, it’s surprising t hat so little i s k nown about t he precise pollination biology of Encyclia tampensis Sadly, t his i s t rue of perhaps t he majority of t he world’s orchid species because t his sort of scientific inquiry i s painstaking, t ime-consuming work. The other problem w ith the newly minted “Florida Butterfly O rchid” i s t hat t his s pecies a lready h ad a longstanding common name, at least among old-time orchid collectors a nd orchid g rowers in extreme southern Florida. A lthough certainly less pretty or poetic t han “Florida Butterfly Orchid,” Encyclia tampensis (then called Epidendrum tampense) wa s long k nown a s t he Onion Orchid. Just one look at t he plant and t his common name makes sense. It produces a rounded to pear-shaped bulb (technically a swollen water- a nd nutrient-storage stem called a pseudobulb) t hat i s topped by one, t wo or occasionally t hree long, tough g reen leaves. It doesn’t t ake a leap of imagination to see t he resemblance of t he plant to a n onion. Thank goodness t he orchid – plant or flower – doesn’t smell like a n onion!
Another big problem w ith t he common name of “Butterfly Orchid” for Encyclia tampensis i s t hat a round t he world, t here a re several other orchids g iven t hat vernacular designation. Most especially, t hat name belongs to a small g roup of orchids f rom northern South A merica (and adjacent Trinidad, which i s, floristically a nd geologically, just a piece of t he South A merican continent t hat got separated in relatively recent t imes). These distinctive orchids at one t ime were placed in a large, diverse a ssemblage of orchids lumped into t he genus O ncidium a nd now, understandably, segregated into t he genus Psychopsis, which contains just four species (although some authorities i nclude a fi fth). The prime e xample of t he genus i s t he
Above: A robust specimen of Encyclia tampensis growing in the shade of a hardwood hammock in eastern Everglades National Park shows the onion-like appearance of the plant, with its conical pseudobulb topped by tough green leaves. The appearance of the plant accounts for the understandable common name Onion Orchid among old-time South Florida orchid growers. Photographed on February 23, 1995, by Chuck McCartney.
s pecies Psychopsis papilio. Now t his i s, i n my m ind, t he u ltimate Butterfly O rchid.
The genus Psychopsis wa s established by eccentric botanist C.S. R afinesque in 1838 a nd derives its name f rom t wo Greek words t hat t ranslate a s “resembling a butterfly.” A nd t he species epithet papilio means “ butterfly” in L atin. (Some of our larger swallowtail butterflies, for example, t he beautiful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail a nd t he Eastern Black Swallowtail, a re placed in t he genus Papilio.) This orchid a nd its related species certainly deserve t he common name Butterfly Orchid, mainly because t hey look like large, exotic yellow-and-brown butterflies sitting atop t all, t hin flower stems (inflorescences). These a re t ruly handsome species t hat r ichly deserve t heir common name. Then called Oncidium papilio, this “true” Butterfly Orchid caused a sensation when introduced into England in 1824. Some authors credit this exotic beauty w ith igniting the “orchidomania” among the British gentry that dominated horticulture in that country through the subsequent Victorian Era of the 19th Century. Regarding our Encyclia tampensis/Onion Orchid, it was first described in botanical literature in 1847 based on a plant that made its way from Florida’s Tampa Bay region to English botanist John Lindley, the preeminent orchid expert in the first half of the 19th Century. Lindley placed it in the large catchall genus Epidendrum a s Epidendrum tampense, and sometimes even today, you’ll hear it called “tampense.” John Kunkel Small of the New York Botanical Garden, ever the “splitter” when it came to plant taxonomy, transferred it to the then relatively obscure genus Encyclia in 1913. That genus was resurrected and validated by Florida-based taxonomist Dr. Robert L Dressler, one of the preeminent orchid botanists of the second half of the 20th
Century. D ressler d istinguished Encyclia tampensis a nd its generally pseudobulbous relatives from the mainly lepitopteranpollinated “keyhole” flowers that resembled the t ype species of the genus Epidendrum Encyclia was created in 1828 by English orchid expert William Jackson Hooker based on a now-obscure Brazilian species where the side lobes of the lip encircled the flower’s reproductive column, the character to which the Greekderived genus name refers.
As a side note, the genus Epidendrum was named in 1763 by Swedish scholar Carl Linnaeus, the father of our modern binomial (two-name) system for designating living organisms (plant, animal or otherwise – although there wasn’t as much “otherwise” back then). In Linnaeus’s time, as European explorers were fanning out across the globe and sending back exotic orchid plant specimens to Linnaeus labeled as being found on a tree, he created this catchall form genus Epidendrum for those orchids, a name derived from the Greek words meaning “ upon a tree.” Linnaeus’s concept of Epidendrum proved to be a hodgepodge of often-unrelated orchids, including species from such disparate genera that we now know as Cymbidium, Grammatophyllum and even Phalaenopsis, for example. Over the intervening 250-plus years, the genus Epidendrum has been refined to include just New World (Neotropical) orchids in the subfamily Laeliinae. Even w ith the segregation of Encyclia and some other genera, Epidendrum as it is now understood still includes upward of 1,500 species.
When t he g roundbreaking book The Native Orchids of Florida by Carlyle A Luer, M.D., came out in 1972, it included four species in the genus Encyclia However, since then, through the work of Florida orchid taxonomist Dr. Wesley E. Higgins, three of those species have now been moved to the genus Prosthechea, first created in 1838 by George B K nowles and Frederic Westcott for a n obscure little species of southern Mexico a nd northern Central
America called P rosthechea glauca These t hree former Florida e ncyclias a re now k nown a s P rosthechea cochleata var. triandra (the Clamshell Orchid), P rosthechea boothiana var. e rythronioides (the Dollar Orchid), a nd little P rosthechea pygmaea ( known in Florida only f rom t he Fakahatchee Strand). A mong t he major physical characteristics separating P rosthechea from Encyclia are a reproductive column w ith three prominent projections at its apex and, perhaps more telling, a three-sided seed capsule that is triangular in cross-section.
The only other t rue Encyclia reported for Florida wa s t he Bahamian species Encyclia rufa, w ith a label reading t hat it wa s collected by John Kunkel Small, Charles A. Mosier a nd P.A. Matthews on May 24, 1926, at Eau Gallie, now part of Melbourne in Brevard County, never to be seen again in our state. This specimen was either a waif (a one-time chance introduction), a tiny population that was lost to habitat destruction, or a labeling error by Small as to the true provenance of the plant.
As it stands now, Encyclia tampensis – t he Onion Orchid –i s t he only member of t his New World genus of 170 t axa (including species and natural hybrids) that is found in Florida.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank avid young amateur field botanists Jake A. Heaton and Christopher Ohanian for kindly lending their excellent photographs to help illustrate this article. They are agile and adventuresome enough to get to places I no longer can.
About the Author
Chuck McCartney is a fourth-generation South Floridian. He joined Miami-Dade County’s legendary Native Plant Workshop in the mid-1970s and has been a member of the Florida Native Plant Society since 1986, winning the society’s Green Palmetto award in 2002 for his educational efforts. His special interest is the wild orchids of southern Florida and the Southern Appalachians, and he often speaks on these and other native wildflower topics to native plant groups, orchid societies, garden clubs and natural history organizations.
Above: In suburban northern Broward County, Encyclia tampensis is still surprisingly abundant. A large specimen grows on the vertical trunk of a Cabbage Palm (Sabal palmetto) in a parking lot off a much-traveled roadway. Not far away in a remnant cypress forest next to a gas station near a busy intersection, a specimen beautifully displays its flowers. Photos taken on June 5, 2013, by Christopher Ohanian.
Jennifer Schafer
Tricks of the trade: characteristics of Florida Alicia that facilitate its persistence in Florida habitats.
Figure 1: Flowers of Florida Alicia at the top of a flowering stem. The thin yellow structures extending out of the central curled petals are the stigmas.
Walk through any scrub or sandhill in peninsular Florida between May and September and you’ll notice golden flowers atop tall swaying stems (Figure 1). This is Florida Alicia (C hapmannia floridana), a herbaceous Florida endemic that is found in only 20 counties (Atlas of Florida Plants). In addition to inhabiting fire-maintained scrub and sandhill habitats (Gunn et al. 1980), Florida Alicia also occurs, often at high densities, in degraded scrub habitats, roadsides, and pastures. In fact, Florida Alicia is one of the few native scrub plants that persists in cattle-grazed pastures. Taking a closer look at Florida Alicia reveals several characteristics that allow it to persist in the habitats where it occurs.
During late May and early June 2015, I tagged and measured over 1,350 Florida Alicia individuals. Fewer than 10% of t hese were flowering, but t hey had multiple flowers on stems that averaged 1 meter in height. This is approximately 15 times taller than the average height of the non-reproductive stems I measured – taller than many neighboring shrub stems. Tall flowering stems likely promote flower visitation and pollination in Florida Alicia due to t he high visibility of flowers to insect pollinators.
The flowering stems of Florida Alicia are covered with sticky hairs, called glandular trichomes, that trap small flies and possibly other insects (Figure 2).
Trapped insects are a food source for predatory arthropods, and the presence of predatory arthropods on a plant decreases herbivory and increases fruit production (Krimmel and Pearse 2013). The Lynx Spider I observed sitting on a flowering Florida Alicia stem may have been attracted by trapped insects and subsequently deterred herbivory of flowers and seeds.
Florida Alicia is in the legume family (Fabaceae), and its fruits are segmented pods with several seeds.
Figure 2: Section of a flowering stem of Florida Alicia with glandular trichomes and a trapped fly.
Fruits of legumes typically split longitudinally, but the fruits of Florida Alicia split latitudinally (Figure 3), with one seed in each segment. Like the flowering stems, the fruits are covered with glandular trichomes. These trichomes may both protect against seed predation and aid in seed dispersal. The fruits stuck to my fingers, so it is easy to imagine them getting stuck in the fur of a passing deer and dispersed away from the parent plant. Because the fruits break into segments, individual seeds can be dispersed into a wider range of microsites, increasing their chance of ending up in a microsite suitable for germination.
To investigate the root system of Florida Alicia, I dug u p 1 2 p lants. M any p lants i n t he l egume f amily h ave mutualistic associations with nitrogen-fixing bacteria living in root nodules. Both organisms involved in a mutualistic association benefit. In the specific mutualism found in
legumes, the plants get nitrogen (a commonly limiting soil nutrient) from the bacteria, while the bacteria get carbon (fixed in the process of photosynthesis) from the plant. However, I was unable to find any root nodules on Florida Alicia, suggesting that it does not form associations with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Instead, this species may access nitrogen via its deep taproots. Florida scrub water tables are often found at depths of only 1-2 meters, and scrub plants access nitrogen from the water table, where nitrogen availability is relatively high (McKinley et al. 2009).
Because the roots of Florida Alicia are long, narrow, and grow deep into the sandy scrub and sandhill soils, I was rarely, if ever, able to dig up the entire root system. For a 1-centimeter tall pl ant in a pasture I had dug to a depth of 78 centimeters when I broke the root, leaving some in the
Figure 3: Fruits of Florida Alicia covered with glandular trichomes. The fruit on the bottom left has broken latitudinally.
Figure 4: Florida Alicia individual with live stems (top right), dead stems (top left), and the upper part of the root system with swollen root sections.
soil. Measurement of aboveground and belowground biomass of this pl ant indicated that at least 98.5% of the biomass of the plant was belowground. All of the other plants I incompletely dug up had over 70% of their biomass belowground. High belowground to aboveground biomass ratios are also found in Palmettos (Saha et al. 2010) and the scrub herb Euphorbia rosescens (Smith and Menges 2016); E . rosescens and Florida Alicia have similar root systems, with intermittent swollen sections along taproots (Figure 4). Allocation of a large proportion of biomass to belowground structures is common in plants that resprout after disturbances because belowground reserves are reallocated to t hose aboveground to create new stems and leaves. To assess the resprouting ability of Florida Alicia, I removed the aboveground biomass of 153 individuals in June 2015. Less than two months later, all but three had resprouted. Both fire and cattle remove entire stems of Florida A licia individuals, and the ability to resprout is important for post-disturbance survival.
Tall flowering stems, glandular trichomes, deep roots, and high allocation of resources belowground likely all contribute to the persistence of Florida Alicia populations in pyrogenic scrub and sandhill and anthropogenically disturbed habitats. So next time you spot the golden flowers of Florida Alicia, take a minute to look for insects stuck to the stem and think about all that is under your feet.
References
Atlas of Florida Plants (http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu). Accessed June 18, 2016.
McKinley, D.C., Romero, J.C., Hungate, B.A., Drake, B.G., Megonigal, J.P. (2009) Does deep soil N availability sustain long-term ecosystem responses to elevated CO2? Global Change Biology 15:2035-2048.
Saha, S., Catenazzi A., Menges, E.S. (2010) Does time since fire explain plant biomass allocation in the Florida, USA, scrub ecosystem? Fire Ecology 6:13-25.
Smith, S.A., Menges, E.S. (2016) Population dynamics and life history of Euphorbia rosescens, a state-endangered herb endemic to Florida scrub. PLoS ONE 11(7): e0160014.
The Dan Austin Award for Ethnobotany
Through the leadership and generosity of our members, the Florida Native Plant Society will begin offering a grant award in memory and recognition of Dr. Dan Austin and his work in ethnobotany. The first grant award recipient will be announced at the 2018 Annual Conference in Miami. The Dan Austin Award for Ethnobotany will provide up to $1,500 to graduate or undergraduate students who a re studying Florida ethnobotany (the study of the relationship between peoples or cultures with plants native to Florida or Florida ecosystems). These can be current uses or historic uses. For more information about this award and to download an application, please visit the FNPS website fnps.org and click on “Grants and Awards”.
Call for Research Track Papers and Poster Presentations
Florida Native Plant Society 2018 Conference
The Florida Native Plant Society Annual Conference will be held at the Miccosukee Resort (500 S.W. 177 th Avenue, Miami, FL 33194), May 17-20, 2018. The Research Track of the Conference will include presented papers and a poster session on Friday, May 18 and Saturday, May 19.
Researchers are invited to submit abstracts on research related to native plants and plant communities of Florida including preservation, conservation, and restoration. Presentations are planned to be 20 minutes in total length (15 min. presentation, 5 min. questions).
Abstracts of not more than 200 words should be submitted as a MS Word file by email to Paul A. Schmalzer at paul.a.schmalzer@ nasa.gov by February 1, 2018. Include title, affiliation, and address. Indicate whether you will be presenting a paper or poster.
Please join us in thanking the following generous sponsors for making this award possible:
Sandra Austin
Sarah Davis Dean
Thomas Gire
Sonya Guidry
Raymond Jungles
Suzanne Koptur
Christine Lockhart
Karin Taylor
Dick Workman
Nature Coast Chapter of FNPS
Palm Beach County Chapter of FNPS
The Villages Chapter of FNPS
2017 Annual Conference at Westgate River Ranch Connections Above and Below
by Juliet Rynear, FNPS Executive Assistant
If you have never attended an Annual Conference of t he Florida Native Plant Society (FNPS) you have lost an opportunity to enjoy a premier event showcasing every aspect of native plant and plant community conservation in Florida. Over the past 37 years, FNPS has hosted an Annual Conference in every region of the state. The Conference attracts a diverse group of people including conservation professionals, researchers, public officials, businesses, landowners, and citizen scientists. These four-day events feature world-class speakers, field trips, lectures, workshops, panel d iscussions, book signings, FNPS committee and annual membership meetings, exhibitors, a silent auction, a native plant sale, a nd t hree breakout t racks highlighting conservation a nd ecology, current issues, and research. At each Conference, expertise i s shared a nd ideas a re born, flourish and grow thanks to a wealth of education and networking opportunities. Whether you are seeking knowledge, i nspiration, support, input, collaboration, or collaborators for an idea or project, your attendance at the FNPS Annual Conference is essential if you live and work in Florida.
This year, t he Conference wa s at Westgate R iver R anch in t he heart of t he historic Everglades watershed. Four featured speakers outlined such topics a s sea level r ise a nd its effects on natural communities (Dr. Tonya Clayton), w ildflowers of t he
Kissimmee Valley (Roger Hammer), t he roles of mycorrhizal f ungi in ecosystems (Laura Super), a nd t he history a nd current restoration efforts of t he Everglades (Dr. Thomas L odge).
This year’s breakout tracks provided listeners with a wide choice of topics. To see a full list of the 34 presenters, visit our website at f nps.org a nd click on Events/Annual Conference. Special thanks go to volunteer speaker coordinator Theresa Lutz for contacting and organizing speakers. Nearly all of t he presentations qualified for Continuing Education Credits (CEUs), and we thank Land Management Partners Committee Chair Ray Jarrett for his work securing the CEUs.
The Current Events track of the Conference focused on restoration projects in the K issimmee R iver Valley, comprehensive Everglades restoration, the history of land conservation in Florida, the Peninsular Florida Landscape Conservation Cooperative, and programs for preserving natural lands and connective corridors. Five of the speakers in this track participated in the panel discussion “Conservation Connections in Florida,” which was moderated by FNPS Past President Dr. Anne Cox. Dr. Cox is also the force of nature that put together the theme and speaker list for the Current Events track. Thank you, Dr. Cox, for your boundless energy and dedication to the FNPS mission.
Several FNPS committees also participated in the Current Events track by hosting workshops that shared important tools
Above: Featured speaker Dr. Tonya Clayton kicked off the Conference with a presentation on sea level rise and its effect on Florida’s natural areas. Photo by Vince Lamb.
Above: Conference plant sale vendors Sweet Bay Nursery, Martin County Growers, and Natural Treasures Farm and Nursery were on hand to assist customers in choosing the best plants for their specific sites.
and knowledge to empower citizens to help protect public lands (Land Management Partners), promote conservation education (Education), and to train citizens to become advocates for good environmental policy (Policy & Legislation). We are indebted to committee chairs Nicole Cribbs, Patricia Burgos, Wendy Poag, Eugene Kelly, and Sue Mullins for making the workshops a success.
The Science track highlighted important research on Florida’s rare and endemic plants, soil crusts, soil microbes, pollinator/plant interactions, pesticide/pollination issues, biotic and abiotic stressors of black mangroves, and the effects of time-since-fire on flower v isitor networks. Once again, FNPS Science Advisory Chair Dr. Paul Schmalzer organized a fantastic Science track.
The Conservation a nd Ecology t rack focused on fi re a nd fi re-adapted landscapes, impacts of climate change on natural communities, plants and the species they support, fungi, assessment of non-native species, plant conservation, a nd ecological landscape design. The F NPS Conservation Committee reviewed successes a nd challenges in plant conservation a nd habitat restoration while highlighting t he crucial need for citizen support a nd t he important contributions of citizen science. Several committee members a lso spoke at t he conference: Dr. A lan Franck, Scott Davis, Chris L ockhart, a nd Dr. Susan Carr. F NPS i s fortunate a nd g rateful for t heir dedication to conservation.
Twenty field trips (11 on Thursday and 9 on Sunday) were led by botanists and conservation professionals. FNPS field t rips create unique opportunities for participants to enjoy natural lands with entertaining and informative leaders like Dr. Walter Kingsley Taylor. Many thanks are due to volunteer Field Trip Coordinator Dr. Shirley Denton, whose organizational skills and hard work made the trips possible.
The northernmost field t rip wa s to L ake Marion Creek Wildlife Management A rea, a 7,035-acre expanse of public lands located in t he headwaters of t he K issimmee R iver a nd t he Everglades. The property includes floodplain forests, seepage slopes, pine fl atwoods, a nd scrub. The t rip wa s led by author a nd land steward Tom Palmer a nd botanist Steve Dickman.
Above: Carter Creek field trip leader Eric Menges (2nd from left), a Senior Research Biologist at Archbold Biological Station, showed off some of Archbold’s rare plant conservation work (inside the cage beneath the tree). Photo by Joan Bausch.
Top right: Interior native plant displays were provided by Sweet Bay Nursery, Martin County Growers, and Natural Treasures Farm and Nursery.
Above: The Kisida Garden, winner of the Landscape Award of Merit.
Dickman a lso won t he Plant ID contest in t he expert category.
The southernmost field trip was a Kissimmee River Eco-Tour led by Loisa Kerwin, Florida Atlantic University’s Assistant Director of the Riverwoods Field Lab. Attendees learned about the world’s largest river restoration project and how it illustrates the interdisciplinary nature of environmental science and management.
Other field t rips v isited t he A rbuckle Tract of t he L ake Wales R idge State Forest, t he K issimmee P rairie P reserve State Park, L ake K issimmee State Park (where land management review training took place), SUMICA, Disney Wilderness Preserve, Carter Creek, Tiger Creek, t he Adams R anch, Highlands Hammock State Park, a nd t he dry prairie portion of Three L akes Wildlife Management A rea. More choices were provided by t rips to Saddle Blanket P reserve, Forever Florida, Ft. Drum Marsh Conservation A rea, Camp L onesome Conservation A rea, a nd Crooked L ake P rairie P reserve. In addition, t wo t rips v isited Bok Tower Gardens to v iew t he native plant a nd pollinator gardens a nd see a sandhill community restoration project.
The Conference also offered several popular workshops. Budding photographers took part in “Florida Wildflower Photography” taught by Vince Lamb at Lake K issimmee State Park. Lamb is a former chairman of the Florida Wildflower Foundation as well as a Florida Master Naturalist. He has led numerous photography classes and workshops featuring w ildflowers and other natural subjects. “An Introduction to Plant Identification” was taught by James Stevenson, who is an Extension Specialist in Pinellas County. The workshop examined the basics of plant identification, from using simple keys to identifying critical characteristics to help any would-be botanist in the field. An emphasis was placed on flowering plants, but ferns were included a s well. “Nature Journaling, On a nd Off t he Trail” wa s t aught by Marjorie Shropshire, who i s a member of t he Guild of Natural Science Illustrators a nd i s t he editor of t he Florida Native Plant Society’s magazine, Palmetto Shropshire helped students discover details of Florida’s ecosystems by encouraging t hem to use drawing a s a method to focus a nd sharpen t heir observational skills.
At t he 2017 A nnual Members Meeting on Saturday morning, P resident Catherine Bowman recognized F NPS founding members in attendance: L oran A nderson (Magnolia Chapter), L inda Duever (Paynes P rairie Chapter), Don Gann (Dade Chapter), Joyce Gann (Dade Chapter), a nd Peggy L antz (Tarflower Chapter). Please join us in t hanking t hem for t heir foresight, leadership, a nd dedication to our mission. Each year at t he Conference, t he F NPS R esearch a nd Conservation g rant awards a re a nnounced. R esearch Grants promote v itally important research a nd have helped support t he projects of many g raduate students a nd Ph.D. candidates. Conservation Grants have supported applied plant conservation projects throughout Florida. To date, more than 45 peer-reviewed journal articles have been published as a result of projects funded by these grant programs. Together, they have provided more than $100,000 for research and conservation in Florida.
This year’s R esearch Grants f und projects t hat w ill gather badly needed data for restoration efforts t hroughout Florida. While development a nd land conversion a re intensifying in our state, F NPS i s racing to conserve t he remaining genetic diversity t hat i s represented w ithin intact natural communities a nd plant populations before t hey a re destroyed. A ll seeds a nd cuttings t hat a re collected a nd a ll plant populations t hat a re rescued a re used for restoration projects on publicly protected lands. F NPS relies on research covering species biology (e.g., ploidy, population genetics, reproduction, habitat, pollinators) so t hat restored populations a nd communities w ill succeed in t he long term. Without good research a nd applied plant conservation, t hese species a nd a ssemblages w ill soon be lost forever.
The 2017 R esearch Grants awarded $1,500 each to t hree recipients: Iwan E Molgo (University of Florida, Department of Biology) – “Determining t he origin of t wo recently discovered Florida endemics: Tetraploid a nd hexaploid Callisia ornata (Commelinaceae)”; A ndre Naranjo (University of Florida, Florida Museum of Natural History) – “Understanding t he evolution of narrow endemics for conservation”; a nd Lydia M Cuni (Florida International University, Department of Earth a nd Environment) – “Drivers of species composition a nd diversity in pine rocklandhardwood hammock ecosystem t ransitional g radients: Implications for restoration efforts of f ragmented communities.”
FNPS Conservation Grants support applied plant conservation projects that conserve Florida’s rare or imperiled native plant taxa and native plant communities. This is where native plant research is applied to on-the-ground conservation and restoration projects. For more information on previous grant recipients visit fnps.org and click on What We Do/Grants and Awards. The 2017 Conservation Grant ($5,000) was awarded to Dr. Gary Knox and Gardening Friends of the Big Bend, Inc. for “Exploration into the biology and ecology of the Floridaendangered Magnolia ashei (Ashe’s magnolia).”
Each year FNPS recognizes native plant landscapes in the categories of single-family residential, multi-family residential, commercial, institutional, transportation, restoration, mitigation, and w ildflower/butterfly garden. Awards are granted as follows: Award of Excellence (1st), Award of Honor (2nd), or Award of Merit (3rd). Each awardee receives a customized plaque, local and statewide media exposure, features in FNPS media, and recognition and complimentary registration at the Annual Conference. We thank the FNPS Landscape Committee – Ron Blair, Steve Turnipseed, and Marc Godts – for their work organizing the awards. The awards for 2017 are: Award of Honor, Residential Single Family – Courtyard Villa, The Villages, Georgette Gerry (The Villages Chapter) and Award of Merit, Residential Single Family –K isida Garden, Norma and Kenneth K isida (Serenoa Chapter). No Conference would be a success w ithout good food a nd enjoyable socials. A new game, “Plant P ictionary”, wa s designed by volunteer Donna Bollenbach for t he Thursday night social. We were a lso fortunate to have volunteer Mark K ateli plan each of t he menus t his year so t hat everyone who attended could
enjoy satisfying meals. Each healthy menu wa s designed to accommodate a w ide range of dietary needs: omnivore, vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, a nd celiac-friendly. The socials a lso provided a n opportunity for participants to meet other like-minded individuals a nd network. Dining a nd chatting w ith authors such a s Roger Hammer, Dr. Walter Taylor, Ginny Stibolt, Peggy L antz, Dr. Craig Huegel a nd others wa s a real t reat.
During lunch on Friday and Saturday, authors were available to autograph their books for attendees: Dr. Tonya Clayton, R oger Hammer, Dr. Craig Huegel, Peggy Lantz, Thomas E. L odge, Ginny Stibolt, Dr. Walter Kingsley Taylor, and Larry Weaner. We thank Volunteer Coordinator Winnie Said for organizing this event and assisting the authors.
The plant sale vendors were Sweet Bay Nursery, Martin County Growers, a nd Natural Treasures Farm a nd Nursery. Staff a nd owners f rom each nursery were on hand to a ssist buyers i n choosing t he best plants for t heir specific sites. The nurseries a lso provided plant displays i n each of t he speaker rooms. Sweet Bay Nursery created t he display i n t he L onghorn Center (Current I ssues t rack a nd featured speakers), Martin County Growers made t he displays i n t he main hall (Conservation a nd Ecology t rack), a nd Natural Treasures Farm a nd Nursery made t he display for t he Morgan R oom (Research t rack). Please help us t hank volunteers Jenny Welch (Plant Sa le Coordinator) a nd Sa ndy Webb for t heir work organizing t he plant sale.
We had a wonderful room for vendors and exhibitors at the Conference, and their displays were amazing. Thanks a re due to Vendor/Exhibitor Coordinator Sondra Driscoll, who organized this part of the conference. Onsite this year were: Florida A ssociation of Native Nurseries, Florida W ildflower Foundation, Heartwood Preserve, Indigo Travel C ompany, L ark L abel, M ade by R andee, Native Plant
Horticulture Foundation, Roger Hammer, Earthborne Face and Body, University Press of Florida, and Sticky Steve’s Honey.
So many people donated to the silent auction this year that the volunteers who organized the auction, Jenny Welch a nd Sandy Webb, had to use all of their creative talents to d isplay each of the items.
Please help us thank all of the FNPS Conference Committee volunteers who made the 2017 annual conference possible. Conference Chair Marlene Rodak was our fearless leader and cheerleader. Thank you. Marlene. and thanks to your “crew” –Dr. Anne Cox, Jenny Welch, Dr. Susan Carr, Sondra Driscoll, Theresa Lutz, Mark K ateli, Donna Bollenbach, Dr. Shirley
Denton, Winnie Said, and K im Z arillo. A huge thank-you goes out to FNPS President Catherine Bowman for her endless support and generosity. Of course, pulling everything together and working tirelessly was Juliet Rynear, whose attention to detail and organization skills were critical to the success of the Conference.
Last, but certainly not least, a conference of t his stature could never be accomplished w ithout t he support of our sponsors: Charlotte Harbor National E stuary P rogram, Coccoloba Chapter of F NPS, Conradina Chapter of F NPS, Cemex Inc., Ecolo-G Inc., Family L ands R emembered, Florida Department of Environmental P rotection, Florida Power a nd L ight, Florida Wildflower Foundation, Indigo Travel Company, L ake Beautyberry Chapter of F NPS, L ark L abel, Mangrove Chapter of F NPS, Mosaic, Paynes P rairie Chapter of F NPS, Suncoast Chapter of F NPS, a nd t he University of Central Florida A rboretum.
FNPS i s a lready hard at work planning t he 2018 A nnual Conference. A s t he year progresses, look for upcoming details on t he F NPS website, f nps.org, at t he Events/Annual Conference link. We hope you’ll join us in 2018.
Above: Courtyard Villa at The Villages, winner of the Landscape Award of Honor.
Above: Enjoying lunch under the oaks at River Ranch.
