CNPS will hold its first-ever meeting in August, on Thursday, August 1st, at the SLO Vets’ Hall at 7:00 pm. The featured speaker will Greg Rubin, an expert in native residential landscape design with special emphasis on fire resistant species. Greg will talk on his experience in Southern California, working in chaparral ecosystems. He will present the current approach to best practices for fire-safe plant selection and placement in suburban environs.
Greg Rubin, President and Founder of California’s Own Native Landscape Design, Inc. is a licensed landscape contractor who has worked with California native plants since 1985. His company has designed over 700 native landscapes in Southern California.Specialties include residential, commercial, and institutional landscapes that cover an array of garden styles, while providing year-round appeal, low maintenance, water efficiency, rich habitat, and fire-resistance. Greg has been featured in a number of periodicals including the Wall Street Journal, San Diego Union Tribune and Los Angeles Times, and magazines such as Sunset, San Diego Home and Garden, California Gardener and Kiplinger's. Media coverage includes repeat appearances on NPR. Greg regularly gives presentations and workshops on native plants to conferences, garden clubs and other organizations throughout Southern California. Greg is co-author of a new book with Lucy Warren, “The California Native Landscape: The Homeowners’ Design Guide to Restoring its Beauty and Balance”, published by Timber Press. This popular native horticultural work covers all aspects of native landscape design. Greg also served on the boards of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation, California Native Plant Society, the Lux Art Institute, and the Garden Native foundation.
Saturday, June 1st, 8:30 am, Point Buchon and Bishop Pine Ridge, Montaña de Oro State Park
This field trip is guided by PG&E botanist, Kelly Kephart, and will give us access to the ridge south of Coon Creek. The hike is 3.0 miles round trip with an 800 ft. elevation gain.
Meet at the Coon Creek trail parking lot at the southern end of Montaña de Oro SP. Bring a photo ID, as each hiker will need to register themselves at the PG&E kiosk when entering this area.
We will walk up the ridge road, where we will see the bishop pine forest, as well as coastal scrub and chaparral habitats. In addition to Bishop Pine, Pinus muricata, we will see the Pecho manzanita, Arctostaphylos pechoensis, a CA Rare Plant Rank 1B.2.
Bring adequate water, snacks, and dress in layers for the weather; a hat and sturdy shoes are advised.
For info, contact Bill, 805-459-2103. No dogs please.
CHAPTER MEETING June 6th 2019 – Thursday – 7:00 pm
7:00 social, 7:30 program
Veteran’s Hall, Grand Avenue at Monterey, San Luis Obispo
Reed Kenny, MS Candidate, Cal Poly, CNPS McLeod Scholar, Floristic Survey of Halter Ranch, San Luis Obispo County,
California
Halter Ranch, a portion of which is a working winery, is approximately 2,000 acres in size and has areas of intact oak woodland, grassland and manzanita chaparral. Located in northern SLO County near Adelaida, it includes portions of the historic MacGillivary Ranch, which hasn’t been surveyed by botanists since 1984, and additional areas that may not have been surveyed at all. This talk will summarize the results of this season’s field surveys.
With Dr.’s Matt Ritter and Dave Keil, Cal Poly.
Paul Excoffier, MS Candidate, Cal Poly, CNPS McLeod Scholar, Climate Change and San Joaquin Woollythreads (Monolopia congdonii)
San Joaquin woollythreads, Federally-listed as Endangered, was historically found throughout the rain shadow of the southern Coast Ranges. However, the current range of M. congdonii has been greatly reduced by habitat loss. Current conservation strategies for M. congdonii focus on conserving extant populations and re-establishing populations within its historic range. However, climate change represents a key unknown in determining if these strategies will be successful. This talk will discuss work in progress on testing the performance of M. condonii and other winter annual species under simulated future climates and investigation of its seed longevity.
With Dr. Nishanta Rajakaruna, Cal Poly, and Ryan O’Dell, Bureau of Land Management.
Saturday, June 15th, 9:00 am, Arroyo de la Cruz, North SLO County
This field trip visits one of the “hottest” spots for botanical diversity in San Luis Obispo Co. Our leaders D.R. “Doc” Miller and Elizabeth Appel will lead us on a tour of several unique species located on these coastal bluffs. The Arroyo de la Cruz area features a variety of plant communities and a number of endemic, and rare plants found only in this relatively small area.
Meet at the Elephant Seal Overlook (first entrance on the left going north) at 9:00 am. For those wanting to carpool from the south, meet in the Santa Rosa Park parking lot in San Luis Obispo at 8:00 am.
The field trip will last roughly 3 hours. Bring adequate water, snacks, and dress in layers for the weather; a hat and sturdy shoes are advised.
For more information, contact: Bill 805-459-2103. No dogs please.
