The mission of the California Native Plant Society is to increase understanding and appreciation of California’s native plants and to conserve them and their natural habitats through education, science, advocacy, horticulture and land stewardship.
Dedicated to the preservation of California's native plants
Hot Topics
Where are the flowers
Participate in the new effort to use digital images to investigate phenological change in a biodiversity hotspot – California.
read morePresident’s notes – December 2019
Over the years, Dr. David Keil, professor emeritus Cal Poly-SLO, has documented the plants of California with an emphasis on plants of San Luis Obispo County and nearby regions. These lists represent a mountain of work, where he has carefully noted every species occurring in a particular area and later revisited the area to add and/or modify his findings.
read moreLandscaping with California Native Plants Workshop in October
CNPS-SLO hosted an information-packed, fun-filled workshop on October 12, 2019. This was the first of a series of “Botanist-Development” workshops to be provided by your local CNPS chapter. The goals for these workshops is to offer low cost training for local...
read moreWorkshop Committee Forming
CNPS-SLO needs a couple of dedicated volunteers to help with workshop planning in 2020. 4-6 hrs per month, mix of email communications, behind the scenes organizing, and coordination meetings. Free workshop registration! To sign-up or inquire, please email mailto:info.cnpsslo@gmail.comby January 15.
Invasive Species Report: Bull thistle Cirsium vulgare
A member of the Asteraceae family, bull thistle is an annual herb native to Europe and is widespread in California and listed as a noxious weed in Colorado, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington. It is found in every state in the U.S. and on every continent except Antarctica. It is a problem in some natural areas such as Yosemite National Park, California
read moreYour spring wildflower garden
It’s time to start thinking about planting your wildflower garden with the winter rains coming soon. As in years past, we are beginning our rainy season late with a dry fall so far. This doesn’t mean we will have a dry winter, but this dry pattern is important when it comes to sowing our wildflower garden.
read moreDownload and Print the new CNPS-SLO Planting Guide
Tetragonia tetragonoides (New Zealand Spinach)
New Zealand spinach belongs to a family of flowering plants, Aizoaceae, that is primarily native to the Southern Hemisphere. New Zealand spinach is, in fact native to Southern Africa but has spread to New Zealand and is apparently a serious weed throughout southern Australia. Obviously, it has also been introduced into North America and Eurasia.
read moreEvent Calendar
Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
December | December | December | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
|
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | February |
Volunteer at the Hoover Herbarium
Where is the Hoover Herbarium located?
The Hoover Herbarium is located on Cal Poly SLO campus on the 3rd floor of the Fisher Science Building (33) in rooms 352 and 359. Questions: email Jenn Yost at jyost@calpoly.edu
What do volunteers do?
During the volunteer sessions at the Hoover Herbarium, people can take part in any number of activities. One of our primary responsibilities is mounting new specimens. This involves taking dried and pressed plants and glueing them to paper. When we mount plants, we do it in such a way that those specimens will last for hundreds of years. Each specimen is a physical record of what plants occurred where and when. Without this valuable information we wouldn’t know when a species goes extinct, expands or contracts its range, or where species occur. After mounting, the specimens are databased and geo-referenced. Then they are filed into the main collection. We have over 80,000 specimens at the Hoover Herbarium. We are also working on a SLO Voucher Collection, which will contain one representative specimen for each species in the county. Volunteers look through our specimens and pick the one that should be added to the Voucher Collection. Additionally, we are actively working on our moss and lichen collections. Volunteers can choose what aspects of the work they would like to participate in. Anyone and everyone is welcome. Questions: email Jenn Yost at jyost@calpoly.edu
What days/hours do you need volunteers?
Hoover Herbarium volunteers sessions are Monday 3-5 pm and Friday 9 – 1. Questions: email Jenn Yost at jyost@calpoly.edu
Where do I park?
Parking permits are required on campus Monday through Thursday, 7:00 am through 10:00 pm; and Friday, 7:00 am through 5:00 pm. You can either buy a $6 day pass, a $4 3-hr pass, park in a metered space, ride the bus, or park off campus and walk in. Questions: email Jenn Yost at jyost@calpoly.edu
Some Titles from our Bookstore – View Full Selection
PHOTO GALLERY
Fiscalini Ranch, January, 2019. Cambria, California. Marlin Harms.
Hypogymnia sp., Tube Lichen. Marlin Harms.
Phaeolus schweinitzii, Dyer’s Polypore.
Marlin Harms.
Mycena purpureofusca, Cone-dwelling Mycena. On cone of Monterey Pine, Pinus radiata. Marlin Harms.
Coastal Lichens on Rock–Caloplaca & Acarospora.
Marlin Harms
Gymnopilus spectabilis, Laughing Gym, After Showers. Marlin Harms.